4. ‘Show me, Lord, my life’s endand the number of my days;let me know how fleeting my life is.
5. You have made my days a mere handbreadth;the span of my years is as nothing before you.Everyone is but a breath,even those who seem secure.
6. ‘Surely everyone goes around like a mere phantom;in vain they rush about, heaping up wealthwithout knowing whose it will finally be.
7. ‘But now, Lord, what do I look for?My hope is in you.
8. Save me from all my transgressions;do not make me the scorn of fools.
9. I was silent; I would not open my mouth,for you are the one who has done this.
10. Remove your scourge from me;I am overcome by the blow of your hand.
11. When you rebuke and discipline anyone for their sin,you consume their wealth like a moth –surely everyone is but a breath.
12. ‘Hear my prayer, Lord,listen to my cry for help;do not be deaf to my weeping.I dwell with you as a foreigner,a stranger, as all my ancestors were.
13. Look away from me, that I may enjoy life againbefore I depart and am no more.’