Do Not Hide Your Face from Me
A Prayer of one afflicted, wwhen he is faint and xpours out his complaint before the Lord.
1 yHear my prayer, O Lord;
let my cry come to you!
2 Do not zhide your face from me
in the day of my distress!
Incline your ear to me;
aanswer me speedily in the day when I call!
3 For my days pass away like bsmoke,
and my cbones burn like a furnace.
4 My heart is struck down like grass and has withered;
I forget to eat my bread.
5 Because of my loud groaning
dmy bones cling to my flesh.
6 I am like a desert owl of the wilderness,
like an owl1 of the waste places;
7 I lie awake;
I am like a lonely sparrow on the housetop.
8 All the day my enemies taunt me;
those who deride me use my name for a curse.
9 For eI eat ashes like bread
and mingle tears with my drink,
10 because of your indignation and anger;
for you have taken me up and thrown me down.
11 My days are like an evening fshadow;
I wither away like grass.
12 But you, O Lord, are genthroned forever;
you are remembered throughout all generations.
13 You will arise and have pity on Zion;
it is the time to favor her;
the appointed time has come.
14 For your servants hold her stones dear
and have pity on her dust.
15 Nations will hfear the name of the Lord,
and iall the kings of the earth will fear your glory.
16 For jthe Lord builds up Zion;
khe appears in his glory;
17 he regards the prayer of the destitute
and does not despise their prayer.
18 Let this be recorded for a generation to come,
so that a people lyet to be created may praise the Lord:
19 that he looked down from his holy height;
from heaven the Lord looked at the earth,
20 to mhear the groans of the prisoners,
to set free those who were doomed to die,
21 that they may declare in Zion the name of the Lord,
and in Jerusalem his praise,
22 when peoples gather together,
and nkingdoms, to worship the Lord.
23 He has broken my strength in midcourse;
he has oshortened my days.
24 “O my God,” I say, “take me not away
in the midst of my days—
you pwhose years endure
throughout all generations!”
25 qOf old you laid the foundation of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
26 rThey will perish, but you will remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.
You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away,
27 but syou are the same, and your years have no end.
28 The children of your servants shall dwell secure;
their offspring shall be established before you.
The Call of Wisdom
20 aWisdom cries aloud in the street,
in the markets she raises her voice;
21 at the head of the noisy streets she cries out;
at the entrance of the city gates she speaks:
22 “How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple?
How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing
and fools bhate knowledge?
23 If you cturn at my reproof,1
behold, I will dpour out my spirit to you;
I will make my words known to you.
24 eBecause I have called and you refused to listen,
have stretched out my hand and no one has heeded,
25 because you have fignored all my counsel
and would have none of my reproof,
26 I also will glaugh at your calamity;
I will mock when terror strikes you,
27 when terror strikes you like a storm
and your calamity comes like a whirlwind,
when distress and anguish come upon you.
28 Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer;
they will seek me diligently but will not find me.
29 Because they hated knowledge
and did not choose the fear of the Lord,
30 would have none of my hcounsel
and idespised all my reproof,
31 therefore they shall jeat the fruit of their way,
and have their fill of their own devices.
32 For the ksimple are killed by their turning away,
and the complacency of fools destroys them;
33 but whoever listens to me will dwell secure
and will be at ease, lwithout dread of disaster.”
2 Now when John heard in cprison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples 3 and said to him, “Are you dthe one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” 4 And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John ewhat you hear and see: 5 fthe blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers1 are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and gthe poor have good news preached to them. 6 And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”
7 As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John: “What did you go out hinto the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 8 What then did you go out to see? A man2 dressed in soft clothing? Behold, those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses. 9 What then did you go out to see? A iprophet?3 Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10 This is he of whom it is written,
j“‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,
who will prepare your way before you.’
11 Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is kleast in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 12 lFrom the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence,4 and the violent take it by force. 13 For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John, 14 and if you are willing to accept it, mhe is Elijah who is to come. 15 He who has ears to hear,5 let him hear.
16 “But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their playmates,
17 “‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’
18 For John came neither neating nor odrinking, and they say, p‘He has a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a qfriend of tax collectors and sinners!’ rYet wisdom is justified by her deeds.”6
