Do I eat the flesh of bulls? Do I drink the blood of goats?

Because of the anxiety that makes me groan, my bones protrude from my skin.

I am so starved my knees shake; I have turned into skin and bones.

My body trembles because I fear you; I am afraid of your judgments.

For I am overcome with shame and my whole body is sick.

You hear prayers; all people approach you.

He remembered that they were made of flesh, and were like a wind that blows past and does not return.

to the one who gives food to all living things, for his loyal love endures.

So my heart rejoices and I am happy; My life is safe.

When evil men attack me to devour my flesh, when my adversaries and enemies attack me, they stumble and fall.

My whole body is sick because of your judgment; I am deprived of health because of my sin.

In God – I boast in his promise – in God I trust, I am not afraid. What can mere men do to me?

They have given the corpses of your servants to the birds of the sky; the flesh of your loyal followers to the beasts of the earth.

My mouth will praise the Lord. Let all who live praise his holy name forever!

I desperately want to be in the courts of the Lord’s temple. My heart and my entire being shout for joy to the living God.

A psalm of David, written when he was in the Judean wilderness. O God, you are my God! I long for you! My soul thirsts for you, my flesh yearns for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water.