New Living Translation NLT
The Message Bible MSG
1 Save me, O God, for the floodwaters are up to my neck.
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God, God, save me! I'm in over my head,
2 Deeper and deeper I sink into the mire; I can’t find a foothold. I am in deep water, and the floods overwhelm me.
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Quicksand under me, swamp water over me; I'm going down for the third time.
3 I am exhausted from crying for help; my throat is parched. My eyes are swollen with weeping, waiting for my God to help me.
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I'm hoarse from calling for help, Bleary-eyed from searching the sky for God.
4 Those who hate me without cause outnumber the hairs on my head. Many enemies try to destroy me with lies, demanding that I give back what I didn’t steal.
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I've got more enemies than hairs on my head; Sneaks and liars are out to knife me in the back. What I never stole Must I now give back?
5 O God, you know how foolish I am; my sins cannot be hidden from you.
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God, you know every sin I've committed; My life's a wide-open book before you.
6 Don’t let those who trust in you be ashamed because of me, O Sovereign LORD of Heaven’s Armies. Don’t let me cause them to be humiliated, O God of Israel.
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Don't let those who look to you in hope Be discouraged by what happens to me, Dear Lord! God of the armies! Don't let those out looking for you Come to a dead end by following me - Please, dear God of Israel!
7 For I endure insults for your sake; humiliation is written all over my face.
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Because of you I look like an idiot, I walk around ashamed to show my face.
8 Even my own brothers pretend they don’t know me; they treat me like a stranger.
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My brothers shun me like a bum off the street; My family treats me like an unwanted guest.
9 Passion for your house has consumed me, and the insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.
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I love you more than I can say. Because I'm madly in love with you, They blame me for everything they dislike about you.
10 When I weep and fast, they scoff at me.
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When I poured myself out in prayer and fasting, All it got me was more contempt.
11 When I dress in burlap to show sorrow, they make fun of me.
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When I put on a sad face, They treated me like a clown.
12 I am the favorite topic of town gossip, and all the drunks sing about me.
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Now drunks and gluttons Make up drinking songs about me.
13 But I keep praying to you, LORD, hoping this time you will show me favor. In your unfailing love, O God, answer my prayer with your sure salvation.
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And me? I pray. God, it's time for a break! God, answer in love! Answer with your sure salvation!
14 Rescue me from the mud; don’t let me sink any deeper! Save me from those who hate me, and pull me from these deep waters.
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Rescue me from the swamp, Don't let me go under for good, Pull me out of the clutch of the enemy; This whirlpool is sucking me down.
15 Don’t let the floods overwhelm me, or the deep waters swallow me, or the pit of death devour me.
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Don't let the swamp be my grave, the Black Hole Swallow me, its jaws clenched around me.
16 Answer my prayers, O LORD, for your unfailing love is wonderful. Take care of me, for your mercy is so plentiful.
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Now answer me, God, because you love me; Let me see your great mercy full-face.
17 Don’t hide from your servant; answer me quickly, for I am in deep trouble!
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Don't look the other way; your servant can't take it. I'm in trouble. Answer right now!
18 Come and redeem me; free me from my enemies.
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Come close, God; get me out of here. Rescue me from this deathtrap.
19 You know of my shame, scorn, and disgrace. You see all that my enemies are doing.
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You know how they kick me around - Pin on me the donkey's ears, the dunce's cap.
20 Their insults have broken my heart, and I am in despair. If only one person would show some pity; if only one would turn and comfort me.
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I'm broken by their taunts, Flat on my face, reduced to a nothing. I looked in vain for one friendly face. Not one. I couldn't find one shoulder to cry on.
21 But instead, they give me poison for food; they offer me sour wine for my thirst.
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They put poison in my soup, Vinegar in my drink.
22 Let the bountiful table set before them become a snare and their prosperity become a trap.
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Let their supper be bait in a trap that snaps shut; May their best friends be trappers who'll skin them alive.
23 Let their eyes go blind so they cannot see, and make their bodies shake continually.
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Make them become blind as bats, Give them the shakes from morning to night.
24 Pour out your fury on them; consume them with your burning anger.
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Let them know what you think of them, Blast them with your red-hot anger.
25 Let their homes become desolate and their tents be deserted.
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Burn down their houses, Leave them desolate with nobody at home.
26 To the one you have punished, they add insult to injury; they add to the pain of those you have hurt.
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They gossiped about the one you disciplined, Made up stories about anyone wounded by God.
27 Pile their sins up high, and don’t let them go free.
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Pile on the guilt, Don't let them off the hook.
28 Erase their names from the Book of Life; don’t let them be counted among the righteous.
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Strike their names from the list of the living; No rock-carved honor for them among the righteous.
29 I am suffering and in pain. Rescue me, O God, by your saving power.
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I'm hurt and in pain; Give me space for healing, and mountain air.
30 Then I will praise God’s name with singing, and I will honor him with thanksgiving.
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Let me shout God's name with a praising song, Let me tell his greatness in a prayer of thanks.
31 For this will please the LORD more than sacrificing cattle, more than presenting a bull with its horns and hooves.
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For God, this is better than oxen on the altar, Far better than blue-ribbon bulls.
32 The humble will see their God at work and be glad. Let all who seek God’s help be encouraged.
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The poor in spirit see and are glad - Oh, you God-seekers, take heart!
33 For the LORD hears the cries of the needy; he does not despise his imprisoned people.
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For God listens to the poor, He doesn't walk out on the wretched.
34 Praise him, O heaven and earth, the seas and all that move in them.
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You heavens, praise him; praise him, earth; Also ocean and all things that swim in it.
35 For God will save Jerusalem and rebuild the towns of Judah. His people will live there and settle in their own land.
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For God is out to help Zion, Rebuilding the wrecked towns of Judah. Guess who will live there - The proud owners of the land?
36 The descendants of those who obey him will inherit the land, and those who love him will live there in safety.
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No, the children of his servants will get it, The lovers of his name will live in it.
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by
Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
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.