17. to turn them from wrongdoingand keep them from pride,
18. to preserve them from the pit,their lives from perishing by the sword.
19. ‘Or someone may be chastened on a bed of painwith constant distress in their bones,
20. so that their body finds food repulsiveand their soul loathes the choicest meal.
21. Their flesh wastes away to nothing,and their bones, once hidden, now stick out.
22. They draw near to the pit,and their life to the messengers of death.
23. Yet if there is an angel at their side,a messenger, one out of a thousand,sent to tell them how to be upright,
24. and he is gracious to that person and says to God,“Spare them from going down to the pit;I have found a ransom for them –
25. let their flesh be renewed like a child’s;let them be restored as in the days of their youth” –
26. then that person can pray to God and find favour with him,they will see God’s face and shout for joy;he will restore them to full well-being.
27. And they will go to others and say,“I have sinned, and I have perverted what is right,but I did not get what I deserved.