1. I said, “I will watch my ways and keep my tongue from sin; I will put a muzzle on my mouth while in the presence of the wicked.”
2. So I remained utterly silent, not even saying anything good. But my anguish increased;
3. my heart grew hot within me. While I meditated, the fire burned; then I spoke with my tongue:
4. “Show me, Lord, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is.
5. You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Everyone is but a breath, even those who seem secure.
6. “Surely everyone goes around like a mere phantom; in vain they rush about, heaping up wealth without knowing whose it will finally be.