Mazmur 102:4

102:4 My heart is parched ¹  and withered like grass,

for I am unable ²  to eat food. ³ 

Mazmur 39:5

39:5 Look, you make my days short-lived, ⁴ 

and my life span is nothing from your perspective. ⁵ 

Surely all people, even those who seem secure, are nothing but vapor. ⁶ 

[102:4]  ¹ tn Heb “struck, attacked.”

[102:4]  ² tn Heb “I forget.”

[102:4]  ³ sn I am unable to eat food. During his time of mourning, the psalmist refrained from eating. In the following verse he describes metaphorically the physical effects of fasting.

[39:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “Look, handbreadths you make my days.” The “handbreadth” (equivalent to the width of four fingers) was one of the smallest measures used by ancient Israelites. See P. C. Craigie, Psalms 1-50 (WBC), 309.

[39:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “is like nothing before you.”

[39:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “surely, all vapor [is] all mankind, standing firm.” Another option is to translate, “Surely, all mankind, though seemingly secure, is nothing but a vapor.”