16-19 O Master, these are the conditions in which people live,
    and yes, in these very conditions my spirit is still alive—
    fully recovered with a fresh infusion of life!
It seems it was good for me
    to go through all those troubles.
Throughout them all you held tight to my lifeline.
    You never let me tumble over the edge into nothing.
But my sins you let go of,
    threw them over your shoulder—good riddance!
The dead don’t thank you,
    and choirs don’t sing praises from the morgue.
Those buried six feet under
    don’t witness to your faithful ways.
It’s the living—live men, live women—who thank you,
    just as I’m doing right now.
Parents give their children
    full reports on your faithful ways.

* * *

20 God saves and will save me.
    As fiddles and mandolins strike up the tunes,
We’ll sing, oh we’ll sing, sing,
    for the rest of our lives in the Sanctuary of God.

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18 For the grave(A) cannot praise you,
    death cannot sing your praise;(B)
those who go down to the pit(C)
    cannot hope for your faithfulness.
19 The living, the living—they praise(D) you,
    as I am doing today;
parents tell their children(E)
    about your faithfulness.

20 The Lord will save me,
    and we will sing(F) with stringed instruments(G)
all the days of our lives(H)
    in the temple(I) of the Lord.

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