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3:1  I am a man who has suffered greatly. The Lord has used the Babylonians to punish my people.
3:2  He has driven me away. He has made me walk in darkness instead of light.
3:3  He has turned his powerful hand against me. He has done it again and again, all day long.
3:4  He has worn out my body. He has broken my bones.
3:5  He has surrounded me and attacked me. He has made me suffer bitterly. He has made things hard for me.
3:6  He has made me live in darkness like those who are dead and gone.
3:7  He has built walls around me, so I can’t escape. He has put heavy chains on me.
3:8  I call out and cry for help. But he won’t listen to me when I pray.
3:9  He has put up a stone wall to block my way. He has made my paths crooked.
3:10  He has been like a bear waiting to attack me. He has been like a lion hiding in the bushes.
3:11  He has dragged me off the path. He has torn me to pieces. And he has left me helpless.
3:12  He has gotten his bow ready to use. He has shot his arrows at me.
3:13  The arrows from his bag have gone through my heart.
3:14  My people laugh at me all the time. They sing and make fun of me all day long.
3:15  The Lord has made my life bitter. He has made me suffer bitterly.
3:16  He made me chew stones that broke my teeth. He has walked all over me in the dust.
3:17  I have lost all hope of ever having any peace. I’ve forgotten what good times are like.
3:18  So I say, “My glory has faded away. My hope in the Lord is gone.”
3:19  I remember how I suffered and wandered. I remember how bitter my life was.
3:20  I remember it very well. My spirit is very sad deep down inside me.
3:21  But here is something else I remember. And it gives me hope.
3:22  The Lord loves us very much. So we haven’t been completely destroyed. His loving concern never fails.
3:23  His great love is new every morning. Lord, how faithful you are!
3:24  I say to myself, “The Lord is everything I will ever need. So I will put my hope in him.”
3:25  The Lord is good to those who put their hope in him. He is good to those who look to him.
3:26  It is good when people wait quietly for the Lord to save them.
3:27  It is good for a man to carry a heavy load of suffering while he is young.
3:28  Let him sit alone and not say anything. The Lord has placed that load on him.
3:29  Let him bury his face in the dust. There might still be hope for him.
3:30  Let him turn his cheek toward those who would slap him. Let him be filled with shame.
3:31  The Lord doesn’t turn his back on people forever.
3:32  He might bring suffering. But he will also show loving concern. How great his faithful love is!
3:33  He doesn’t want to bring pain or suffering to anyone.
3:34  Every time people crush prisoners under their feet, the Lord knows all about it.
3:35  When people refuse to give someone what they should, the Most High God knows it.
3:36  When people don’t treat someone fairly, the Lord knows it.
3:37  Suppose people order something to happen. It won’t happen unless the Lord has planned it.
3:38  Troubles and good things alike come to people because the Most High God has commanded them to come.
3:39  A person who is still alive shouldn’t blame God when God punishes them for their sins.
3:40  Let’s take a good look at the way we’re living. Let’s return to the Lord.
3:41  Let’s lift up our hands to God in heaven. Let’s pray to him with all our hearts.
3:42  Let’s say, “We have sinned. We’ve refused to obey you. And you haven’t forgiven us.
3:43  “You have covered yourself with the cloud of your anger. You have chased us. You have killed us without pity.
3:44  You have covered yourself with the cloud of your anger. Our prayers can’t get through to you.
3:45  You have made us become like trash and garbage among the nations.
3:46  “All our enemies have opened their mouths wide to swallow us up.
3:47  We are terrified and trapped. We are broken and destroyed.”
3:48  Streams of tears flow from my eyes. That’s because my people are destroyed.
3:49  Tears will never stop flowing from my eyes. My eyes can’t get any rest.
3:50  I’ll weep until the Lord looks down from heaven. I’ll cry until he notices my tears.
3:51  What I see brings pain to my spirit. All the women of my city are mourning.
3:52  Those who were my enemies for no reason at all hunted me down as if I were a bird.
3:53  They tried to end my life by throwing me into a deep pit. They threw stones down at me.
3:54  The water rose and covered my head. I thought I was going to die.
3:55  Lord, I called out to you. I called out from the bottom of the pit.
3:56  I prayed, “Please don’t close your ears to my cry for help.” And you heard my appeal.
3:57  You came near when I called out to you. You said, “Do not be afraid.”
3:58  Lord, you stood up for me in court. You saved my life and set me free.
3:59  Lord, you have seen the wrong things people have done to me. Stand up for me again!
3:60  You have seen how my enemies have tried to get even with me. You know all about their plans against me.
3:61  Lord, you have heard them laugh at me. You know all about their plans against me.
3:62  You have heard my enemies whispering among themselves. They speak against me all day long.
3:63  Just look at them sitting and standing there! They sing and make fun of me.
3:64  Lord, pay them back. Punish them for what their hands have done.
3:65  Cover their minds with a veil. Put a curse on them!
3:66  Lord, get angry with them and hunt them down. Wipe them off the face of the earth.