Psalm 102
The full text of Psalm 102 in the Trinity Bible Version — clear modern English, translated from the original Hebrew. Free to read.
A prayer of one afflicted, when he is faint and pours out his complaint before the LORD.
1 Hear my prayer, O LORD;
let my cry come to you!
2 Do not hide your face from me
in the day of my distress!
Incline your ear to me;
answer me speedily in the day when I call!
3 For my days pass away like smoke,
and my bones burn like a furnace.
4 My heart is struck down like grass and has withered;
I forget to eat my bread.
5 Because of my loud groaning
my bones cling to my flesh.
6 I am like a desert owl of the wilderness,
like an owl of the waste places;
7 I lie awake;
I am like a lonely sparrow on the housetop.
8 All the day my enemies taunt me;
those who deride me use my name for a curse.
9 For I eat ashes like bread
and mingle tears with my drink,
10 because of your indignation and anger;
for you have taken me up and thrown me down.
11 My days are like an evening shadow;
I wither away like grass.
12 But you, O LORD, are enthroned forever;
you are remembered throughout all generations.
13 You will arise and have pity on Zion;
it is the time to favor her;
the appointed time has come.
14 For your servants hold her stones dear
and have pity on her dust.
15 Nations will fear the name of the LORD,
and all the kings of the earth will fear your glory.
16 For the LORD builds up Zion;
he appears in his glory;
17 he regards the prayer of the destitute
and does not despise their prayer.
18 Let this be recorded for a generation to come,
so that a people yet to be created may praise the LORD:
19 that he looked down from his holy height;
from heaven the LORD looked at the earth,
20 to hear the groans of the prisoners,
to set free those who were doomed to die,
21 that they may declare in Zion the name of the LORD,
and in Jerusalem his praise,
22 when peoples gather together,
and kingdoms, to worship the LORD.
23 He has broken my strength in midcourse;
he has shortened my days.
24 "O my God," I say, "take me not away
in the midst of my days—
you whose years endure
throughout all generations!"
25 Of old you laid the foundation of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
26 They will perish, but you will remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.
You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away,
27 but you are the same, and your years have no end.
28 The children of your servants shall dwell secure;
their offspring shall be established before you.
Translation notes (6)
- Psalm 102:6a The bird named here, qa'at (קָאַת), cannot be identified with certainty; proposals include the desert owl and the pelican, the latter reflected in the Septuagint and the King James tradition. Whatever the species, the psalmist selects a creature of desolate, unclean places as an image of isolation.
- Psalm 102:8a Hebrew bi nishba'u, literally 'they swear by me': the psalmist's misery has become so proverbial that his name serves in curse formulas, as in 'may you become like this man'. The practice is attested in Isaiah 65:15 and Jeremiah 29:22, where the names of the disgraced are invoked in imprecations.
- Psalm 102:18a The phrase am nivra (עַם נִבְרָא), 'a people to be created', uses the verb bara', which in Hebrew Scripture describes exclusively divine creation, as in Genesis 1:1. The psalmist thus presents the future generation not merely as descendants to be born but as a people God himself will bring into being to read this testimony and offer praise.
- Psalm 102:23a The Hebrew reads literally 'he has weakened my strength in the way'; 'midcourse' interprets derekh, 'way', as the image of a journey cut short. The consonantal text (Ketiv) has 'his strength', while the marginal reading (Qere) gives 'my strength'. The Septuagint, taking the verb from a root meaning 'answer' rather than 'afflict', diverges considerably here.
- Psalm 102:25a This verse, with the two that follow, is quoted in Hebrews 1:10-12 according to the Septuagint and applied there to the Son, so that words addressed to the God of Israel as creator become an address to Christ. The contrast between the enduring creator and the perishing creation continues through verse 27.
- Psalm 102:26a The verb chalaph, 'to change' or 'to pass on', describes both the exchanging of worn clothing and the passing of generations, sharpening the contrast with the unchanging Creator. Hebrews 1:11-12 quotes this verse from the Septuagint and applies it to the Son, making it a foundational text for early Christian claims about Christ's role in creation.
About this translation
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