Isaiah 26:16

16 O God, they begged you for help when they were in trouble, when your discipline was so heavy they could barely whisper a prayer.

Isaiah 26:16 In-Context

14 The dead don't talk, ghosts don't walk, Because you've said, "Enough - that's all for you," and wiped them off the books.
15 But the living you make larger than life. The more life you give, the more glory you display, and stretch the borders to accommodate more living!
16 O God, they begged you for help when they were in trouble, when your discipline was so heavy they could barely whisper a prayer.
17 Like a woman having a baby, writhing in distress, screaming her pain as the baby is being born, That's how we were because of you, O God.
18 We were pregnant full-term. We writhed in labor but bore no baby. We gave birth to wind. Nothing came of our labor. We produced nothing living. We couldn't save the world.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.