*(Intro: Slow, swirling guitar riff with echoing reverb, building into a hazy, distorted groove. Drums enter with a steady, hypnotic beat, like a heartbeat in the void.)* **Verse 1** Hear my prayer, O Lord; Let my cry come to you! Do not hide your face from me In the day of my distress! Incline your ear to me; Answer me speedily in the day when I call! *(Guitar solo: Trippy, bending notes, evoking smoke and fading shadows.)* **Verse 2** For my days pass away like smoke, And my bones burn like a furnace. My heart is struck down like grass and has withered; I forget to eat my bread. Because of my loud groaning My bones cling to my flesh. **Pre-Chorus** I am like a desert owl of the wilderness, Like an owl of the waste places; I lie awake; I am like a lonely sparrow on the housetop. *(Build-up: Layered vocals with echo, synth waves washing over, creating a sense of isolation in infinite space.)* **Chorus** All the day my enemies taunt me; Those who deride me use my name for a curse. For I eat ashes like bread And mingle tears with my drink, Because of your indignation and anger; For you have taken me up and thrown me down. My days are like an evening shadow; I wither away like grass. *(Chorus fade: Distorted feedback, like swirling cosmic dust.)* **Verse 3** But you, O Lord, are enthroned forever; You are remembered throughout all generations. You will arise and have pity on Zion; It is the time to favor her; The appointed time has come. For your servants hold her stones dear And have pity on her dust. **Bridge** Nations will fear the name of the Lord, And all the kings of the earth will fear your glory. For the Lord builds up Zion; He appears in his glory; He regards the prayer of the destitute And does not despise their prayer. *(Instrumental break: Psychedelic jam – wah-wah pedals, sitar-like tones, drifting into ethereal soundscapes, representing divine intervention.)* **Verse 4** Let this be recorded for a generation to come, So that a people yet to be created may praise the Lord: That he looked down from his holy height; From heaven the Lord looked at the earth, To hear the groans of the prisoners, To set free those who were doomed to die, **Pre-Chorus** That they may declare in Zion the name of the Lord, And in Jerusalem his praise, When peoples gather together, And kingdoms, to worship the Lord. **Chorus** He has broken my strength in midcourse; He has shortened my days. “O my God,” I say, “take me not away In the midst of my days— You whose years endure Throughout all generations!” *(Extended chorus: Vocals multiply, harmonizing in a mantra-like repetition, with rising intensity.)* **Outro Verse** Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you will remain; They will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, But you are the same, and your years have no end. The children of your servants shall dwell secure; Their offspring shall be established before you. *(Fade out: Slow decrescendo with echoing chimes and fading reverb, leaving a sense of eternal resonance.)*
