If I knew someone was languishing in the hospital, suffering constantly and intensely, and about to die, while I can't physically do anything to hasten the death, can I add in my davening a request that, as an expression of God's mercy, the person die sooner rather than later? I don't know that the die has been cast and the death is necessarily inevitable because there could always be a miraculous recovery, so I would continue to hope and say "rofeh cholim", but can I word something to the effect that "if that isn't going to happen, better the person should pass quickly and soon instead of lingering and suffering"?
I am not asking about praying for the death of a specific wicked person (which brings this to mind) but at acknowledging that God meimit umechayeh (and that according to Kohelet 3:2, there is a time to die -- we can't all live forever), so if the person is constantly suffering, is there anything wrong for asking for the end to come?
I know that part of this hinges on the purpose and method of prayer as it relates to "Does prayer change God's mind" but if prayer can have any sort of effect, is it permissible to pray for such a course to come to pass?
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