I said, “I will guard my ways that I may not sin with my tongue; I will keep a muzzle on my mouth as long as the wicked are in my presence.”
I was silent and still; I held my peace to no avail; my distress grew worse,
my heart became hot within me. While I mused, the fire burned; then I spoke with my tongue:
“Lord, let me know my end, and what is the measure of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is.
You have made my days a few handbreadths, and my lifetime is as nothing in your sight. Surely everyone stands as a mere breath. Selah
Surely everyone goes about like a shadow. Surely for nothing they are in turmoil; they heap up, and do not know who will gather.
“And now, O Lord, what do I wait for? My hope is in you.
Deliver me from all my transgressions. Do not make me the scorn of the fool.
I am silent; I do not open my mouth, for it is you who have done it.
Remove your stroke from me; I am worn down by the blows of your hand.
“You chastise mortals in punishment for sin, consuming like a moth what is dear to them; surely everyone is a mere breath. Selah
“Hear my prayer, O Lord, and give ear to my cry; do not hold your peace at my tears. For I am your passing guest, an alien, like all my forebears.
Turn your gaze away from me, that I may smile again, before I depart and am no more.”
