Psalm 88

1 Yahweh, Holder of the day of my rescue,

I cry in the night, right in your face.

2 She will come to you, this prayer of mine;

stretch out your ears to my pleading.

3 She is glutted with miseries, this soul of mine;

my life touches the Unseen.

4 I am counted with the ones who go down;

those who belong to the tomb;

It turns out that I’m master of nothing;

of no-one— I’m powerless.

5 I’m in among the dead ones,

 as free as the wounded ones that lie in the grave;

the ones you don’t remember any more.

They are out of your reach—cut off.

6 You put me down in the under-tomb of the lowest ones;

among the shadows below, in the darkest depths.

7 Your fury bears down hard on me;

Your crashing surf breaks over me— I’m at a loss.

—Behold—

8 You took everyone who knows me far away;

you made me disgusting to them.

Now I’m in prison and there’s no escape.

9 I keep on looking for everything that’s missing;

My soul feels small, like a kid that’s been sent to her room.

I call your name all day long; I reach out with empty hands.

10 Are you going to show off for dead people?

Will they be their own healers and stand up to applaud you?

—Behold —

11 Shall we tell the story of your kindness in the tomb,

or the tale of your trustworthiness among the ruins?

12 Will the dark see your wonders,

 or the world of ignorance know your goodness?

13 But it’s always you that I’m begging, no-one else;

every morning my prayer goes ahead of you.

14 Why do you keep throwing my soul away?

Why do you keep giving me the cold shoulder?

15 I’ve been sick to death for what seems like forever,

distracted by my uneasiness about you.

16 Your fierce heat washes over me; your shocks wipe me out.

17 They surge around me all day long, like a flood;

they surround me from every direction.

18 You’ve taken all the people I love and sent them far away;

all my friends and the people I know have disappeared into the dark.