The Complete Jewish Bible CJB
The Bible in Basic English BBE
1 ) We wish you would tear open heaven and come down, so the mountains would shake at your presence!
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O let the heavens be broken open and come down, so that the mountains may be shaking before you,
2 It would be like fire kindling the brush, and the fire then makes the water boil. Then your enemies would know your name, the nations would tremble before you!
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As when fire puts the brushwood in flames, or as when water is boiling from the heat of the fire: to make your name feared by your haters, so that the nations may be shaking before you;
3 When you did tremendous things that we were not expecting, we wished that you would come down, so that the mountains would shake at your presence!
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While you do acts of power for which we are not looking, and which have not come to the ears of men in the past.
4 No one has ever heard, no ear perceived, no eye seen, any God but you. You work for him who waits for you.
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The ear has not had news of, or the eye seen, ... any God but you, working for the man who is waiting for him.
5 You favored those who were glad to do justice, those who remembered you in your ways. When you were angry, we kept sinning; but if we keep your ancient ways, we will be saved.
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Will you not have mercy on him who takes pleasure in doing righteousness, even on those who keep in mind your ways? Truly you were angry, and we went on doing evil, and sinning against you in the past.
6 All of us are like someone unclean, all our righteous deeds like menstrual rags; we wither, all of us, like leaves; and our misdeeds blow us away like the wind.
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For we have all become like an unclean person, and all our good acts are like a dirty robe: and we have all become old like a dead leaf, and our sins, like the wind, take us away.
7 No one calls on your name or bestirs himself to take hold of you, for you have hidden your face from us and caused our misdeeds to destroy us.
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And there is no one who makes prayer to your name, or who is moved to keep true to you: for your face is veiled from us, and you have given us into the power of our sins.
8 But now, ADONAI, you are our father; we are the clay, you are our potter; and we are all the work of your hands.
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But now, O Lord, you are our father; we are the earth, and you are our maker; and we are all the work of your hand.
9 Do not be so very angry, ADONAI! Don't remember crime forever. Look, please, we are all your people.
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Be not very angry, O Lord, and do not keep our sins in mind for ever: give ear to our prayer, for we are all your people.
10 Your holy cities have become a desert, Tziyon a desert, Yerushalayim a ruin.
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Your holy towns have become a waste, Zion has become a waste, Jerusalem is a mass of broken walls.
11 Our holy, beautiful house, where our ancestors used to praise you, has been burned to the ground; all we cherished has been ruined.
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Our holy and beautiful house, where our fathers gave praise to you, is burned with fire; and all the things of our desire have come to destruction.
12 ADONAI, after all this, will you still hold back? Will you still stay silent and punish us past endurance?
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In view of all this, will you still do nothing, O Lord? will you keep quiet, and go on increasing our punishment?
Complete Jewish Bible Copyright 1998 by David H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
The Bible in Basic English is in the public domain.