Show Don't Tell: Psalm 39

Instead of saying "Life is short and uncertain," measure it in handbreadths. "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.' So I remained utterly silent, not even saying anything good. But my anguish increased; my heart grew hot within me. While I meditated, the fire burned; then I spoke with my tongue." Silence failed—the pressure built until he erupted. "Show me, LORD, my life's end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is. 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." Four fingers wide—that's a handbreadth. That's a life. "Surely everyone goes around like a mere phantom; in vain they rush about, heaping up wealth without knowing whose it will finally be." Phantoms accumulating wealth for unknown heirs. "But now, Lord, what do I look for? My hope is in you. Save me from all my transgressions; do not make me the scorn of fools." Then the hard prayer: "Remove your scourge from me; I am overcome by the blow of your hand. When you rebuke and discipline anyone for their sin, you consume their wealth like a moth—surely everyone is but a breath. Hear my prayer, LORD, listen to my cry for help; do not be deaf to my weeping. I dwell with you as a foreigner, a stranger, as all my ancestors were. Look away from me, that I may enjoy life again, before I depart and am no more."