PSALM 38 L.M. [Sing Psalms]

Recommended Tunes: 168 Saxony, 156 Llef, 169, Soldau, 147 Finnart

1  In wrath do not rebuke me, LORD,
Or in your anger chasten me.
2  Your arrows deeply pierce my soul;
Your hand lies on me heavily.

3  Because your anger rests on me,
My body has no health within;
There is no soundness in my bones,
Because you judge me for my sin.

4  My guilt has overwhelmed my soul;
Its burden is a crushing weight.
5  My wounds are foul and festering,
Because my foolishness is great.

6  I am bowed down, I am brought low,
And I go mourning all the day.
7  My back is filled with searing pain,
And my whole body wastes away.

8  I’m feeble and completely crushed;
In anguish of my heart I groan.
9  Lord, my desires before you lie;
To you my sighing is well known.

10  My heart beats wildly, strength has failed,
The light has faded from my eye.
11  My friends and neighbours keep away;
They see my wounds and then pass by.

12  My enemies who seek my life
With cunning set their snares for me;
My foes conspire to do me harm,
And all day long plot treachery.

13  I’m like the deaf, who cannot hear,
And like the mute, who cannot cry.
14  I’m like a man who hears no sound,
Whose mouth can offer no reply.

15  I wait for you, O Lord my God;
And you, O LORD, will answer me.
16  I prayed to you, “If my foot slips,
Let them not gloat exultantly.”

17  Indeed I am about to fall;
My pain is ever deep within.
18  I must confess iniquity,
And I am troubled by my sin.

19  My foes are vigorous and strong;
And many hate me wrongfully.
20  My good with evil they repay;
When I seek good, they slander me.

21  O LORD, do not abandon me;
Do not be far from me, my God.
22  Come quickly to deliver me
Because you are my Saviour, Lord.