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3:1  I have suffered much because God was angry.
3:2  He chased me into a dark place, where no light could enter.
3:3  I am the only one he punishes over and over again, without ever stopping.
3:4  God caused my skin and flesh to waste away, and he crushed my bones.
3:5  He attacked and surrounded me with hardships and trouble;
3:6  he forced me to sit in the dark like someone long dead.
3:7  God built a fence around me that I cannot climb over, and he chained me down.
3:8  Even when I shouted and prayed for help, he refused to listen.
3:9  God put big rocks in my way and made me follow a crooked path.
3:10  God was like a bear or a lion waiting in ambush for me;
3:11  he dragged me from the road, then tore me to shreds.
3:12  God took careful aim and shot his arrows
3:13  straight through my heart.
3:14  I am a joke to everyone— no one ever stops making fun of me.
3:15  God has turned my life sour.
3:16  He made me eat gravel and rubbed me in the dirt.
3:17  I cannot find peace or remember happiness.
3:18  I tell myself, “I am finished! I can't count on the Lord to do anything for me.”
3:19  Just thinking of my troubles and my lonely wandering makes me miserable.
3:20  That's all I ever think about, and I am depressed.
3:21  Then I remember something that fills me with hope.
3:22  The Lord's kindness never fails! If he had not been merciful, we would have been destroyed.
3:23  The Lord can always be trusted to show mercy each morning.
3:24  Deep in my heart I say, “The Lord is all I need; I can depend on him!”
3:25  The Lord is kind to everyone who trusts and obeys him.
3:26  It is good to wait patiently for the Lord to save us.
3:27  When we are young, it is good to struggle hard
3:28  and to sit silently alone, if this is what the Lord intends.
3:29  Being rubbed in the dirt can teach us a lesson;
3:30  we can also learn from insults and hard knocks.
3:31  The Lord won't always reject us!
3:32  He causes a lot of suffering, but he also has pity because of his great love.
3:33  The Lord doesn't enjoy sending grief or pain.
3:34  Don't trample prisoners under your feet
3:35  or cheat anyone out of what is rightfully theirs. God Most High sees everything,
3:36  and he knows when you refuse to give someone a fair trial.
3:37  No one can do anything without the Lord's approval.
3:38  Good and bad each happen at the command of God Most High.
3:39  We're still alive! We shouldn't complain when we are being punished for our sins.
3:40  Instead, we should think about the way we are living, and turn back to the Lord.
3:41  When we lift our hands in prayer to God in heaven, we should offer him our hearts and say,
3:42  “We've sinned! We've rebelled against you, and you haven't forgiven us!
3:43  Anger is written all over you, as you pursue and slaughter us without showing pity.
3:44  You are behind a wall of clouds that blocks out our prayers.
3:45  You allowed nations to treat us like garbage;
3:46  our enemies curse us.
3:47  We are terrified and trapped, caught and crushed.”
3:48  My people are destroyed! Tears flood my eyes,
3:49  and they won't stop
3:50  until the Lord looks down from heaven and helps.
3:51  I am horrified when I see what enemies have done to the young women of our city.
3:52  No one had reason to hate me, but I was hunted down like a bird.
3:53  Then they tried to kill me by tossing me into a pit and throwing stones at me.
3:54  Water covered my head— I thought I was gone.
3:55  From the bottom of the pit, I prayed to you, Lord.
3:56  I begged you to listen. “Help!” I shouted. “Save me!” You answered my prayer
3:57  and came when I was in need. You told me, “Don't worry!”
3:58  You rescued me and saved my life.
3:59  You saw them abuse me, Lord, so make things right.
3:60  You know every plot they have made against me.
3:61  Yes, you know their insults and their evil plans.
3:62  All day long they attack with words and whispers.
3:63  No matter what they are doing, they keep on mocking me.
3:64  Pay them back for everything they have done, Lord!
3:65  Put your curse on them and make them suffer.
3:66  Get angry and go after them until not a trace is left under the heavens.