11-14 What’s going on here? Is God out to lunch?Nobody’s tending the store.The wicked get by with everything;they have it made, piling up riches.I’ve been stupid to play by the rules;what has it gotten me?A long run of bad luck, that’s what—a slap in the face every time I walk out the door.
15-20 If I’d have given in and talked like this,I would have betrayed your dear children.Still, when I tried to figure it out,all I got was a splitting headache . . .Until I entered the sanctuary of God.Then I saw the whole picture:The slippery road you’ve put them on,with a final crash in a ditch of delusions.In the blink of an eye, disaster!A blind curve in the dark, and—nightmare!We wake up and rub our eyes. . . . Nothing.There’s nothing to them. And there never was.
21-24 When I was beleaguered and bitter,totally consumed by envy,I was totally ignorant, a dumb oxin your very presence.I’m still in your presence,but you’ve taken my hand.You wisely and tenderly lead me,and then you bless me.
25-28 You’re all I want in heaven!You’re all I want on earth!When my skin sags and my bones get brittle,God is rock-firm and faithful.Look! Those who left you are falling apart!Deserters, they’ll never be heard from again.But I’m in the very presence of God—oh, how refreshing it is!I’ve made Lord God my home.God, I’m telling the world what you do!