'Life' in the Bible

Return, O Lord, rescue my soul;Save me because of Your [unfailing] steadfast love and mercy.

So that my enemy will not tear me like a lion,Dragging me away while there is no one to rescue [me].

Let the enemy pursue me and overtake me;And let him trample my life to the groundAnd lay my honor in the dust. Selah.

You will show me the path of life;In Your presence is fullness of joy;In Your right hand there are pleasures forevermore.

Arise, O Lord, confront him, cast him down;Save my soul from the wicked with Your sword,

From men with Your hand, O Lord,From men of the world [these moths of the night] whose portion [of enjoyment] is in this life—idle and vain,And whose belly You fill with Your treasure;They are satisfied with children,And they leave what they have left [of wealth] to their children.

He asked life of You,And You gave it to him,Long life forever and evermore.

Rescue my life from the sword,My only life from the paw of the dog (the executioner).

He refreshes and restores my soul (life);He leads me in the paths of righteousnessfor His name’s sake.

Surely goodness and mercy and unfailing love shall follow me all the days of my life,And I shall dwell forever [throughout all my days] in the house and in the presence of the Lord.

To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul.

Do not sweep my soul away with sinners,Nor [sweep away] my life with men of bloodshed,

The Lord is my light and my salvation—Whom shall I fear?The Lord is the refuge and fortress of my life—Whom shall I dread?

One thing I have asked of the Lord, and that I will seek:That I may dwell in the house of the Lord [in His presence] all the days of my life,To gaze upon the beauty [the delightful loveliness and majestic grandeur] of the LordAnd to meditate in His temple.

O Lord, You have brought my life up from Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead);You have kept me alive, so that I would not go down to the pit (grave).

For His anger is but for a moment,His favor is for a lifetime.Weeping may endure for a night,But a shout of joy comes in the morning.

For my life is spent with sorrowAnd my years with sighing;My strength has failed because of my iniquity,And even my body has wasted away.

For I have heard the slander and whispering of many,Terror is on every side;While they schemed together against me,They plotted to take away my life.

My soul makes its boast in the Lord;The humble and downtrodden will hear it and rejoice.

Who is the man who desires lifeAnd loves many days, that he may see good?

Let those be ashamed and dishonored who seek my life;Let those be turned back [in defeat] and humiliated who plot evil against me.

For without cause they hid their net for me;Without cause they dug a pit [of destruction] for my life.

Lord, how long will You look on [without action]?Rescue my life from their destructions,My only life from the young lions.

For with You is the fountain of life [the fountain of life-giving water];In Your light we see light.

Those who seek my life lay snares for me,And those who seek to injure me threaten mischievous things and destruction;They devise treachery all the day long.

Let those be ashamed and humiliated togetherWho seek my life to destroy it;Let those be turned back [in defeat] and dishonoredWho delight in my hurt.

O my God, my soul is in despair within me [the burden more than I can bear];Therefore I will [fervently] remember You from the land of the JordanAnd the peaks of [Mount] Hermon, from Mount Mizar.

Yet the Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime,And in the night His song will be with me,A prayer to the God of my life.

For the ransom of his soul is too costly,And he should cease trying forever—

For strangers have risen against meAnd violent men have sought my life;They have not set God before them. Selah.

Behold, God is my helper and ally;The Lord is the sustainer of my soul [my upholder].

He has redeemed my life in peace from the battle that was against me,For there were many against me.

They attack, they hide and lurk,They watch my steps,As they have [expectantly] waited to take my life.

For You have rescued my soul from death,Yes, and my feet from stumbling,So that I may walk before GodIn the light of life.

My life is among lions;I must lie among those who breathe out fire—The sons of men whose teeth are spears and arrows,And their tongue a sharp sword.

They set a net for my steps;My very life was bowed down.They dug a pit before me;Into the midst of it they themselves have fallen. Selah.

Look! They lie in wait for my life;Fierce and powerful men [are uniting together to] launch an attack against me,Not for my wrongdoing nor for any sin of mine, O Lord.

You will prolong the king’s life [adding days upon days];His years will be like many generations.

Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,My lips shall praise You.

But those who seek my life to destroy itWill [be destroyed and] go into the depths of the earth [into the underworld].

Hear my voice, O God, in my complaint;Guard my life from the terror of the enemy.

Save me, O God,For the waters have threatened my life [they have come up to my neck].

May they be blotted out of the book of life [and their lives come to an end]And may they not be recorded with the righteous (those in right standing with God).

Let those be ashamed and humiliatedWho seek my life;Let them be turned back and humiliatedWho delight in my hurt.

For my enemies have spoken against me;Those who watch for my life have consulted together,

Let those who attack my life be ashamed and consumed;Let them be covered with reproach and dishonor, who seek to injure me.

Oh, do not hand over the soul of your turtledove to the wild beast;Do not forget the life of Your afflicted forever.

He leveled a path for His anger [to give it free run];He did not spare their souls from death,But turned over their lives to the plague.

Then we shall not turn back from You;Revive us and we will call on Your name.

Protect my life (soul), for I am godly and faithful;O You my God, save Your servant, who trusts in You [believing in You and relying on You, confidently committing everything to You].

O God, arrogant and insolent men have risen up against me;A band of violent men have sought my life,And they have not set You before them.

The singers as well as the players of flutes will say,“All my springs and sources of joy are in you [Jerusalem, city of God].”

For my soul is full of troubles,And my life draws near the grave (Sheol, the place of the dead).

Remember how fleeting my lifetime is;For what vanity, [for what emptiness, for what futility, for what wisp of smoke] You have created all the sons of men!

Who understands the power of Your anger? [Who connects this brevity of life among us with Your judgment of sin?]And Your wrath, [who connects it] with the [reverent] fear that is due You?

“With a long life I will satisfy himAnd I will let him see My salvation.”

They band themselves together against the life of the righteousAnd condemn the innocent to death.

Who redeems your life from the pit,Who crowns you [lavishly] with lovingkindness and tender mercy;

He clothed himself with cursing as with his garment,And it seeped into his inner self like waterAnd like [anointing] oil into his bones.

Let this be the reward of my attackers from the Lord,And of those who speak evil against my life.

For He will stand at the right hand of the needy,To save him from those who judge his soul.

Then I called on the name of the Lord:“O Lord, please save my life!”

For You have rescued my life from death,My eyes from tears,And my feet from stumbling and falling.

Beth.How can a young man keep his way pure?By keeping watch [on himself] according to Your word [conforming his life to Your precepts].

I will meditate on Your preceptsAnd [thoughtfully] regard Your ways [the path of life established by Your precepts].

Daleth.My earthly life clings to the dust;Revive and refresh me according to Your word.

My soul dissolves because of grief;Renew and strengthen me according to [the promises of] Your word.

Turn my eyes away from vanity [all those worldly, meaningless things that distract—let Your priorities be mine],And restore me [with renewed energy] in Your ways.

I long for Your precepts;Renew me through Your righteousness.

This is my comfort in my affliction,That Your word has revived me and given me life.

According to Your steadfast love refresh me and give me life,So that I may keep and obey the testimony of Your mouth.

I will never forget Your precepts,For by them You have revived me and given me life.

I am greatly afflicted;Renew and revive me [giving me life], O Lord, according to Your word.

My life is continually in my hand,Yet I do not forget Your law.

Hear my voice according to Your [steadfast] lovingkindness;O Lord, renew and refresh me according to Your ordinances.

Plead my cause and redeem me;Revive me and give me life according to [the promise of] Your word.

Great are Your tender mercies and steadfast love, O Lord;Revive me and give me life according to Your ordinances.

Consider how I love Your precepts;Revive me and give me life, O Lord, according to Your lovingkindness.

Too long my soul has had its dwellingWith those who hate peace.

The Lord will protect you from all evil;He will keep your life.

Our soul is greatly filledWith the scoffing of those who are at ease,And with the contempt of the proud [who disregard God’s law].

May the Lord bless you from Zion [His holy mountain],And may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life;

It is like the dew of [Mount] HermonComing down on the hills of Zion;For there the Lord has commanded the blessing: life forevermore.

Your eyes have seen my unformed substance;And in Your book were all writtenThe days that were appointed for me,When as yet there was not one of them [even taking shape].

For my eyes are toward You, O God, the Lord;In You I take refuge; do not pour out my life nor leave me defenseless.

Look to the right [the point of attack] and see;For there is no one who has regard for me [to act in my favor].Escape has failed me and I have nowhere to run;No one cares about my life.

“Bring my soul out of prison (adversity),So that I may give thanks and praise Your name;The righteous will surround me [in triumph],For You will look after me.”

For the enemy has persecuted me,He has crushed my life down to the ground;He has made me dwell in dark places, like those who have been long dead.

Save my life, O Lord, for Your name’s sake;In Your righteousness bring my life out of trouble.

Let everything that has breath and every breath of life praise the Lord!Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah!)