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30. Psalm 30

¹ I will exalt you, LORD,
   for you lifted me out of the depths
   and did not let my enemies gloat over me.
² LORD my God, I called to you for help,
   and you healed me.
³ You, LORD, brought me up from the realm of the dead;
   you spared me from going down to the pit.

    ⁴ Sing the praises of the LORD, you his faithful people;
   praise his holy name.
⁵ For his anger lasts only a moment,
   but his favor lasts a lifetime;
weeping may stay for the night,
   but rejoicing comes in the morning.

    ⁶ When I felt secure, I said,
   “I will never be shaken.”
⁷ LORD, when you favored me,
   you made my royal mountain That is, Mount Zion stand firm;
but when you hid your face,
   I was dismayed.

    ⁸ To you, LORD, I called;
   to the Lord I cried for mercy:
⁹ “What is gained if I am silenced,
   if I go down to the pit?
Will the dust praise you?
   Will it proclaim your faithfulness?
¹⁰ Hear, LORD, and be merciful to me;
   LORD, be my help.”

    ¹¹ You turned my wailing into dancing;
   you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
¹² that my heart may sing your praises and not be silent.
   LORD my God, I will praise you forever.

10. Hear, O Jehovah! In this clause the Psalmist softens and corrects his former complaint; for it would have been absurd to expostulate with God like one who despaired of safety, and to leave off in this fretful temper. Having asked, therefore, with tears, what profit God would derive from his death, he encourages himself to a more unconstrained manner of prayer, and, conceiving new hope, calls upon God for mercy and help. He puts God’s favor, however, in the first place, from whom alone he could expect the help which he implored.