39:2 I was stone silent; 1
I held back the urge to speak. 2
My frustration grew; 3
39:3 my anxiety intensified. 4
As I thought about it, I became impatient. 5
Finally I spoke these words: 6
39:4 “O Lord, help me understand my mortality
and the brevity of life! 7
Let me realize how quickly my life will pass! 8
1 tn Heb “I was mute [with] silence.”
2 tn Heb “I was quiet from good.” He kept quiet, resisting the urge to find emotional release and satisfaction by voicing his lament.
3 tn Heb “and my pain was stirred up.” Emotional pain is in view here.
4 tn Heb “my heart was hot within me.”
5 tn Heb “In my reflection fire burned.” The prefixed verbal form is either a preterite (past tense) or an imperfect being used in a past progressive or customary sense (“fire was burning”).
6 tn Heb “I spoke with my tongue.” The phrase “these words” is supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.
7 tn Heb “Cause me to know, O
8 tn Heb “Let me know how transient I am!”