Isaiah 38

16-19 O Master, these are the conditions in which people live,

and yes, in these very conditions my spirit is still alive—

fully recovered with a fresh infusion of life!

It seems it was good for me

to go through all those troubles.

Throughout them all you held tight to my lifeline.

You never let me tumble over the edge into nothing.

But my sins you let go of,

threw them over your shoulder—good riddance!

The dead don’t thank you,

and choirs don’t sing praises from the morgue.

Those buried six feet under

don’t witness to your faithful ways.

It’s the living—live men, live women—who thank you,

just as I’m doing right now.

Parents give their children

full reports on your faithful ways.

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