Psalm 41

O Lord, Be Gracious to Me

1 Dignify those who are down on their luck; you'll feel good - that's what God does.
God looks after us all,
makes us robust with life -
Lucky to be in the land,
we're free from enemy worries.
Whenever we're sick and in bed,
God becomes our nurse,
nurses us back to health.

4 I said, "God, be gracious!
Put me together again -
my sins have torn me to pieces."
My enemies are wishing the worst for me;
they make bets on what day I will die.
If someone comes to see me,
he mouths empty platitudes,
All the while gathering gossip about me
to entertain the street-corner crowd.
These "friends" who hate me
whisper slanders all over town.
They form committees
to plan misery for me.

8 The rumor goes out, "He's got some dirty,
deadly disease. The doctors
have given up on him."
Even my best friend, the one I always told everything
- he ate meals at my house all the time! -
has bitten my hand.
10 God, give grace, get me up on my feet.
I'll show them a thing or two.

11 Meanwhile, I'm sure you're on my side -
no victory shouts yet from the enemy camp!
You know me inside and out, you hold me together,
you never fail to stand me tall in your presence
so I can look you in the eye.

13 Blessed is God, Israel's God,
always, always, always.
Yes. Yes. Yes.

The Message (MSG) Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by NavPress and Eugene H. Peterson
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