I am like an owl ¹  in the wilderness; I am like a screech owl ²  among the ruins. ³ 

biblegateway Psa 102:6

I resemble a pelican of the wilderness; I have become like an owl of the waste places.

I am like a desert owl, like an owl among the ruins.

I am like a desert owl, like an owl living in the ruins.

biblegateway Psa 102:6

I am like a desert owl, like an owl among the ruins.

I am like a desert owl of the wilderness, like an owl of the waste places;

bibleoremus Psa 102:6

I am like an owl of the wilderness, like a little owl of the waste places.

I am like a desert-owl in the wilderness, like an owl that lives among ruins.

biblegateway Psa 102:6

I am like a pelican of the wilderness; I am like an owl of the desert.

I am like a pelican of the wilderness: I am like an owl of the desert.

biblegateway Psa 102:6

I am like an owl ¹  in the wilderness; I am like a screech owl ²  among the ruins. ³ 

¹ tn The Hebrew term קָאַת (qa’at) refers to some type of bird (see Lev 11:18; Deut 14:17) that was typically found near ruins (see Zeph 2:14). Modern translations have frequently rendered this as some type of owl (NIV, REB “desert owl”; NRSV “owl”).

² tn The Hebrew term כוֹס (khos) refers to a bird (see Lev 11:17; Deut 14:16), probably a type of owl (cf. NIV, REB “owl”; NRSV “little owl”).

³ sn By comparing himself to a screech owl among the ruins, the psalmist may be highlighting his loneliness (see v. 7), though he may also be comparing his cries for help to the owl’s screech.