Isaiah 38:9–20

⁹After Hezekiah recovered from his illness, he wrote this song of praise:

¹⁰I thought that in the prime of life

I was going to the world of the dead,

Never to live out my life.

¹¹I thought that in this world of the living

I would never again see the Lord

Or any living person.

¹²My life was cut off and ended, Like a tent that is taken down, Like cloth that is cut from a loom. I thought that God was ending my life.^{d 13}All night I cried out with pain,

As if a lion were breaking my bones.

I thought that God was ending my life.^e

¹⁴My voice was thin and weak,

And I moaned like a dove.

My eyes grew tired from looking to heaven.

Lord, rescue me from all this trouble.

¹⁵What can I say? The Lord has done this.

My heart is bitter, and I cannot sleep.

¹⁶Lord, I will live for you, for you alone;

Heal me and let me live.^f

¹⁷My bitterness will turn into peace.

You save^g my life from all danger;

You forgive all my sins.

¹⁸No one in the world of the dead can praise you;

The dead cannot trust in your faithfulness.

¹⁹It is the living who praise you,

As I praise you now.

Parents tell their children how faithful you are.

²⁰Lord, you have healed me.

We will play harps and sing your praise,

Sing praise in your Temple as long as we live.^h