1 I f only You would tear open the heavens and come down! The mountains would shake before You,

Oh, that You would rend the heavens! That You would come down! That the mountains might shake at Your presence—

2 a s when fire burns the wood and causes the water to boil. Come and make Your name known to those who are against you, that the nations may shake in fear before You!

As fire burns brushwood, As fire causes water to boil— To make Your name known to Your adversaries, That the nations may tremble at Your presence!

3 W hen You did powerful things which we did not expect, You came down, and the mountains shook before You.

When You did awesome things for which we did not look, You came down, The mountains shook at Your presence.

4 F rom long ago no ear has heard and no eye has seen any God besides You, Who works for those who wait for Him.

For since the beginning of the world Men have not heard nor perceived by the ear, Nor has the eye seen any God besides You, Who acts for the one who waits for Him.

5 Y ou meet him who finds joy in doing what is right and good, who remembers You in Your ways. See, You were angry because we sinned. We have been sinning for a long time, and will we be saved?

You meet him who rejoices and does righteousness, Who remembers You in Your ways. You are indeed angry, for we have sinned— In these ways we continue; And we need to be saved.

6 A ll of us have become like one who is unclean. All our right and good works are like dirty pieces of cloth. And all of us dry up like a leaf. Our sins take us away like the wind.

But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away.

7 T here is no one who calls on Your name, who stirs himself up to take hold of You. For You have hidden Your face from us, and have given us over to the power of our sins.

And there is no one who calls on Your name, Who stirs himself up to take hold of You; For You have hidden Your face from us, And have consumed us because of our iniquities.

8 B ut now, O Lord, You are our Father. We are the clay, and You are our pot maker. All of us are the work of Your hand.

But now, O Lord, You are our Father; We are the clay, and You our potter; And all we are the work of Your hand.

9 D o not be so angry, O Lord. Do not remember our sin forever. Look now, all of us are Your people.

Do not be furious, O Lord, Nor remember iniquity forever; Indeed, please look—we all are Your people!

10 Y our holy cities have become a waste place. Zion has become a waste place. Jerusalem lies destroyed.

Your holy cities are a wilderness, Zion is a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation.

11 O ur holy and beautiful house, where our fathers praised You, has been burned by fire. And all our things of great worth have been destroyed.

Our holy and beautiful temple, Where our fathers praised You, Is burned up with fire; And all our pleasant things are laid waste.

12 W ill You do nothing after seeing these things, O Lord? Will You keep quiet and make us suffer even more?

Will You restrain Yourself because of these things, O Lord ? Will You hold Your peace, and afflict us very severely?