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3:1  I am the one who has seen the afflictions that come from the rod of the LORD's anger.
3:2  He has led me into darkness, shutting out all light.
3:3  He has turned his hand against me again and again, all day long.
3:4  He has made my skin and flesh grow old. He has broken my bones.
3:5  He has besieged and surrounded me with anguish and distress.
3:6  He has buried me in a dark place, like those long dead.
3:7  He has walled me in, and I cannot escape. He has bound me in heavy chains.
3:8  And though I cry and shout, he has shut out my prayers.
3:9  He has blocked my way with a high stone wall; he has made my road crooked.
3:10  He has hidden like a bear or a lion, waiting to attack me.
3:11  He has dragged me off the path and torn me in pieces, leaving me helpless and devastated.
3:12  He has drawn his bow and made me the target for his arrows.
3:13  He shot his arrows deep into my heart.
3:14  My own people laugh at me. All day long they sing their mocking songs.
3:15  He has filled me with bitterness and given me a bitter cup of sorrow to drink.
3:16  He has made me chew on gravel. He has rolled me in the dust.
3:17  Peace has been stripped away, and I have forgotten what prosperity is.
3:18  I cry out, "My splendor is gone! Everything I had hoped for from the LORD is lost!"
3:19  The thought of my suffering and homelessness is bitter beyond words.
3:20  I will never forget this awful time, as I grieve over my loss.
3:21  Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this:
3:22  The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease.
3:23  Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.
3:24  I say to myself, "The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!"
3:25  The LORD is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him.
3:26  So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the LORD.
3:27  And it is good for people to submit at an early age to the yoke of his discipline:
3:28  Let them sit alone in silence beneath the LORD's demands.
3:29  Let them lie face down in the dust, for there may be hope at last.
3:30  Let them turn the other cheek to those who strike them and accept the insults of their enemies.
3:31  For no one is abandoned by the Lord forever.
3:32  Though he brings grief, he also shows compassion because of the greatness of his unfailing love.
3:33  For he does not enjoy hurting people or causing them sorrow.
3:34  If people crush underfoot all the prisoners of the land,
3:35  if they deprive others of their rights in defiance of the Most High,
3:36  if they twist justice in the courts--doesn't the Lord see all these things?
3:37  Who can command things to happen without the Lord's permission?
3:38  Does not the Most High send both calamity and good?
3:39  Then why should we, mere humans, complain when we are punished for our sins?
3:40  Instead, let us test and examine our ways. Let us turn back to the LORD.
3:41  Let us lift our hearts and hands to God in heaven and say,
3:42  "We have sinned and rebelled, and you have not forgiven us.
3:43  "You have engulfed us with your anger, chased us down, and slaughtered us without mercy.
3:44  You have hidden yourself in a cloud so our prayers cannot reach you.
3:45  You have discarded us as refuse and garbage among the nations.
3:46  "All our enemies have spoken out against us.
3:47  We are filled with fear, for we are trapped, devastated, and ruined."
3:48  Tears stream from my eyes because of the destruction of my people!
3:49  My tears flow endlessly; they will not stop
3:50  until the LORD looks down from heaven and sees.
3:51  My heart is breaking over the fate of all the women of Jerusalem.
3:52  My enemies, whom I have never harmed, hunted me down like a bird.
3:53  They threw me into a pit and dropped stones on me.
3:54  The water rose over my head, and I cried out, "This is the end!"
3:55  But I called on your name, LORD, from deep within the pit.
3:56  You heard me when I cried, "Listen to my pleading! Hear my cry for help!"
3:57  Yes, you came when I called; you told me, "Do not fear."
3:58  Lord, you are my lawyer! Plead my case! For you have redeemed my life.
3:59  You have seen the wrong they have done to me, LORD. Be my judge, and prove me right.
3:60  You have seen the vengeful plots my enemies have laid against me.
3:61  LORD, you have heard the vile names they call me. You know all about the plans they have made.
3:62  My enemies whisper and mutter as they plot against me all day long.
3:63  Look at them! Whether they sit or stand, I am the object of their mocking songs.
3:64  Pay them back, LORD, for all the evil they have done.
3:65  Give them hard and stubborn hearts, and then let your curse fall on them!
3:66  Chase them down in your anger, destroying them beneath the LORD's heavens.