Psalms 129:6

May they be like the grass on the rooftops which withers before one can even pull it up, ¹ 

May they be like grass on the roof, which withers before it can grow;

Let them be like grass upon the housetops, Which withers before it grows up;

May they be as useless as grass on a rooftop, turning yellow when only half grown,

Let them be like grass in shallow ground that withers before the harvest,

Let them be like the grass on the house-tops, which is dry before it comes to full growth.

Let them be like the grass on the housetops that withers before it grows up,

Let them be as the grass on the housetops, Which withers before it grows up,

May they be like the grass on the rooftops which withers before one can even pull it up, ¹ 

¹ tn The Hebrew verb שָׁלַף (shalaf) normally means “to draw [a sword]” or “to pull.” BDB 1025 s.v. suggests the meaning “to shoot up” here, but it is more likely that the verb here means “to pluck; to pull up,” a nuance attested for this word in later Hebrew and Aramaic (see Jastrow 1587 s.v. שָׁלַף).