| English Standard Version | NET Bible |
| 1I said, “I will guard my ways, that I may not sin with my tongue; I will guard my mouth with a muzzle, so long as the wicked are in my presence.” | 1For the music director, Jeduthun; a psalm of David. I decided, "I will watch what I say and make sure I do not sin with my tongue. I will put a muzzle over my mouth while in the presence of an evil man." |
| 2I was mute and silent; I held my peace to no avail, and my distress grew worse. | 2I was stone silent; I held back the urge to speak. My frustration grew; |
| 3My heart became hot within me. As I mused, the fire burned; then I spoke with my tongue: | 3my anxiety intensified. As I thought about it, I became impatient. Finally I spoke these words: |
| 4“O LORD, make me know my end and what is the measure of my days; let me know how fleeting I am! | 4"O LORD, help me understand my mortality and the brevity of life! Let me realize how quickly my life will pass! |
| 5Behold, you have made my days a few handbreadths, and my lifetime is as nothing before you. Surely all mankind stands as a mere breath! Selah | 5Look, you make my days short-lived, and my life span is nothing from your perspective. Surely all people, even those who seem secure, are nothing but vapor. |
| 6Surely a man goes about as a shadow! Surely for nothing they are in turmoil; man heaps up wealth and does not know who will gather! | 6Surely people go through life as mere ghosts. Surely they accumulate worthless wealth without knowing who will eventually haul it away." |
| 7“And now, O Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in you. | 7But now, O Lord, upon what am I relying? You are my only hope! |
| 8Deliver me from all my transgressions. Do not make me the scorn of the fool! | 8Deliver me from all my sins of rebellion! Do not make me the object of fools' insults! |
| 9I am mute; I do not open my mouth, for it is you who have done it. | 9I am silent and cannot open my mouth because of what you have done. |
| 10Remove your stroke from me; I am spent by the hostility of your hand. | 10Please stop wounding me! You have almost beaten me to death! |
| 11When you discipline a man with rebukes for sin, you consume like a moth what is dear to him; surely all mankind is a mere breath! Selah | 11You severely discipline people for their sins; like a moth you slowly devour their strength. Surely all people are a mere vapor. (Selah) |
| 12“Hear my prayer, O LORD, and give ear to my cry; hold not your peace at my tears! For I am a sojourner with you, a guest, like all my fathers. | 12Hear my prayer, O LORD! Listen to my cry for help! Do not ignore my sobbing! For I am dependent on you, like one residing outside his native land; I am at your mercy, just as all my ancestors were. |
| 13Look away from me, that I may smile again, before I depart and am no more!” | 13Turn your angry gaze away from me, so I can be happy before I pass away. |
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