Composite Psalter – The Trinity Mission

The Composite Psalter is a poetic composite of traditional, English translations designed for memorization and group recitation.

More information here

Psalm 1

Blessed is the man

who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, *

nor stand in the way of sinners,

nor sit in the seat of scoffers.

But his delight is in the law of the LORD, *

and on his law he meditates day and night.

He is like a tree planted by streams of water,

bearing fruit in due season

and whose leaf does not wither. *

In all that he does, he prospers.

The wicked are not so; *

but they are like chaff that the wind drives away.

Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, *

nor the sinner in the assembly of the righteous.

For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, *

but the way of the wicked will perish.

Psalm 2

Why do the nations rage *

and the peoples plot in vain?

The kings of the earth stand up

and the rulers take counsel together *

against the LORD and against his Anointed.

“Let us break their chains,” they say, *

“and cast away their cords from us.”

The One enthroned in the heavens laughs; *

the Lord holds them in derision.

Then he will speak to them in his wrath, *

and terrify them in his fury:

“I myself have set my King *

on Zion, my holy hill.”

I will proclaim the decree: *

the LORD said to me, “You are my Son;

today I have begotten you.

Ask of me,

and I will make the nations your inheritance, *

and the ends of the earth your possession.

You shall rule them with a rod of iron; *

you shall shatter them like pottery.”

Therefore, O kings, be wise; *

be warned, you rulers of the earth.

Serve the LORD with fear, *

and rejoice with trembling.

Kiss the Son, lest he be angry *

and you perish in the way,

For his wrath is quickly kindled. *

Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

Psalm 3

O LORD, how many are my foes. *

How many there are who rise up against me.

How many there are who say of my soul, *

“There is no help for him in his God.”

But you, O LORD, are a shield around me; *

my glory, and the lifter of my head.

I cry aloud to the LORD, *

and he answers me from his holy hill.

I lay me down and sleep; *

I wake again, for the LORD sustains me.

I will not fear the tens of thousands *

who have set themselves against me on every side.

Rise up, O LORD; set me free, O my God; *

for you have struck all my enemies on the cheekbone;

you have broken the teeth of the wicked.

Salvation belongs to the LORD. *

Your blessing be on your people.

Psalm 4

Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness. *

You have relieved me in my distress;

have mercy on me and hear my prayer.

O children of men, how long shall my glory be turned into shame? *

How long will you love worthlessness and seek after lies?

Know that the LORD has set apart the godly for himself; *

the LORD will hear when I call to him.

Be angry, and do not sin; *

search your own hearts on your bed and be still.

Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, *

and put your trust in the LORD.

There are many who say, “Who will show us some good?” *

let the light of your face shine upon us, O LORD.

You have filled my heart with greater joy *

than when their grain and wine abound.

I will lay me down and sleep in peace; *

for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.

Psalm 5

Give ear to my words, O LORD; *

consider my sighing.

Give heed to the voice of my cry, my King and my God, *

for to you do I pray.

In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; *

in the morning I will lay my requests before you

and eagerly wait.

For you are not a God who delights in evil; *

with you the wicked cannot dwell.

Braggarts cannot stand before your eyes; *

you hate all workers of wickedness.

You destroy those who speak lies; *

the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.

But as for me, in the multitude of your mercy

I will come into your house; *

I will bow down toward your holy temple in the fear of you.

Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness because of my enemies; *

make your way straight before my face.

For there is no truth in their mouth; their inmost part is destruction itself; *

their throat is an open grave;

with their tongue they speak deceit.

Make them bear their guilt, O God; *

let them fall by their own counsels.

Thrust them out because of the abundance of their transgressions, *

for they have rebelled against you.

But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; *

let them ever sing for joy.

Spread your protection over them, *

that those who love your Name may exult in you.

For surely, LORD, you bless the righteous; *

you surround him with favor as with a shield.

Psalm 6

O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger, *

nor discipline me in your wrath.

Be merciful to me, O LORD, for I am weak; *

heal me, LORD, for my bones are troubled.

My soul also is greatly dismayed; *

how long, O LORD, how long?

Turn, O LORD, and deliver my soul; *

save me for your mercy’s sake.

For in death there is no remembrance of you; *

in Sheol who shall give you praise?

I am wearied with my sighing; *

every night I make my bed to swim;

I flood my couch with my weeping.

My eye wastes away with grief; *

it grows weak because of all my enemies.

Depart from me, all you workers of evil, *

for the LORD has heard the sound of my weeping.

The LORD has heard my supplication; *

the LORD accepts my prayer.

All my enemies shall be confounded and dismayed; *

they shall turn back and suddenly be put to shame.

Psalm 7

O LORD my God, in you I take refuge; *

save and deliver me from all my pursuers;

Lest like lion they tear my soul apart, *

and rip me to pieces with no one to rescue.

O LORD my God, if I have done this: *

if there is any injustice in my hands,

If I have repaid my ally with evil, *

or plundered my enemy without cause,

Then let my enemy pursue my soul and overtake me, *

let him trample my life to the ground,

and lay my glory in the dust.

Arise, O LORD, in your anger;

rise up against the rage of my adversaries; *

awake for me; for you have appointed a judgment.

Let the assembly of the nations be gathered around you; *

and over them return on high.

The LORD shall judge the nations; *

judge me, O LORD, according to my righteousness

and the integrity that is in me.

Oh, let the evil of the wicked come to an end *

and may you make the righteous secure –

O righteous God, who searches hearts and minds.

God is my shield and defense; *

He is the savior of the upright in heart.

God is a righteous judge; *

God is angry with the wicked every day.

If a man does not repent, God will sharpen his sword; *

He bends his bow and makes it ready.

He has prepared his deadly weapons, *

He makes his arrows shafts of fire.

Behold those in labor with wickedness, *

who conceive evil, and give birth to lies.

They dig a pit and make it deep *

and fall into the hole which they have made.

Their malice turns back upon their own head; *

and on their own skull their violence descends.

I will give thanks to the LORD because of his righteousness; *

I will sing praise to the Name of the LORD Most High.

Psalm 8

O LORD, our Lord, *

how majestic is your Name in all the earth.

You have set your glory above the heavens.

Out of the mouth of infants and babes you have ordained praise, *

because of your adversaries, to silence the enemy and the avenger.

When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, *

the moon and the stars, which you have ordained,

What is man that you are mindful of him, *

the son of man that you care for him?

Yet you have made him a little lower than the angels *

and crowned him with glory and honor.

You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; *

you have put all things under his feet,

All sheep and oxen, *

and the beasts of the field,

The birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea, *

all that passes along the paths of the seas.

O LORD, our Lord, *

how majestic is your Name in all the earth.

Psalm 9

I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart; *

I will tell of all your wonderful works.

I will be glad and rejoice in you; *

I will sing praise to your Name, O Most High.

When my enemies are driven back, *

they will stumble and perish at your presence.

For you have maintained my right and my cause; *

you have sat on your throne judging in righteousness.

You have rebuked the nations and made the wicked perish; *

you have blotted out their name for ever and ever.

The enemy has come to an end in everlasting ruins; *

their cities plowed under;

the very memory of them has perished.

But the LORD reigns forever; *

He has established his throne for justice;

He judges the world with righteousness; *

He judges the peoples with equity.

The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, *

a high tower in times of trouble.

And those who know your Name will put their trust in you; *

for you, O LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.

Sing praises to the LORD, who dwells in Zion. *

Declare among the nations the things he has done.

For the Avenger of blood remembers; *

He does not forget the cry of the afflicted.

Have mercy on me, O LORD. *

See the misery I suffer from those who hate me,

O you who lift me up from the gates of death,

So that I may declare your praises, *

and rejoice in your salvation

in the gates of the daughter of Zion.

The nations have sunk down into the pit that they made; *

in the net that they hid, their own foot has been caught.

The LORD is known by his acts of justice; *

the wicked are snared in the work of their own hands.

The wicked shall be given over to the grave, *

all the nations that forget God.

For the needy shall not always be forgotten, *

and the hope of the poor shall not perish forever.

Arise, O LORD. Do not let man prevail; *

let the nations be judged in your presence.

Put fear upon them, O LORD. *

Let the nations know that they are but men.

Psalm 10

Why, O LORD, do you stand far off? *

Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?

In arrogance the wicked persecute the afflicted; *

let them be caught in the schemes they have conceived.

For the wicked boasts of his heart’s desire, *

he blesses the one greedy for gain and renounces the LORD.

In the pride of his countenance the wicked does not seek him; *

all his thoughts are, “There is no God.”

His ways are always prospering; *

your laws are on high, out of his sight;

he sneers at all his enemies.

He says to himself, “I shall not be shaken; *

throughout all generations I shall not be in adversity.”

His mouth is full with cursing and deceit and oppression; *

under his tongue are trouble and evil.

He sits in the lurking places of the villages; *

in secret places he murders the innocent.

his eyes stealthily watch for the helpless;

He lurks in ambush like a lion in cover;

lurking that he may catch the poor; *

he catches the poor and drags him off in his net.

The helpless are crushed, *

they collapse and they fall under his strength.

He says to himself, “God has forgotten, *

He hides his face, He will never see.”

Arise, O LORD; *

O God, lift up your hand;

do not forget the afflicted.

Why does the wicked man renounce God *

and say to himself, “He will not call me to account”?

But you do see,

for you behold trouble and misery, *

you see it and take it into your own hand;

The helpless commit themselves to you; *

you are the helper of the fatherless.

Break the arm of the wicked and the evildoer; *

call his wickedness to account till you find no more.

The LORD is king for ever and ever; *

the nations are perished out of his land.

O LORD, you hear the desire of the afflicted; *

you will strengthen their heart;

you will incline your ear

to give justice to the fatherless and the oppressed, *

so that man, who is of the earth, may terrify no more.

Psalm 11

In the LORD I have taken refuge; *

how then can you say to my soul,

“Flee like a bird to the mountains,

For behold, the wicked bend the bow;

and fit their arrow upon the string *

to shoot in a moonless night at the upright in heart;

If the foundations are destroyed, *

what can the righteous do?”

The LORD is in his holy temple; *

the LORD’s throne is in heaven;

His eyes behold, *

his eyelids try the children of man.

The LORD examines the righteous and the wicked; *

his soul hates the one who loves violence.

On the wicked he will rain snares and fire; *

sulfur and a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.

For the LORD is righteous and he loves righteousness; *

the upright shall behold his face.

Psalm 12

Help me, O LORD, for the godly one is gone; *

for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.

Everyone utters lies to his neighbor; *

with flattering lips and a double heart do they speak.

May the LORD cut off all flattering lips, *

and the tongues that speak proud things,

those who have said, “With our tongue we will prevail, *

our lips are our own; who is lord over us?”

“Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,

I will now arise,” says the LORD; *

“I will set him in the safety for which he yearns.”

The words of the LORD are pure words,

like silver refined in a furnace of earth, *

purified seven times.

You, O LORD, shall keep us and guard us, *

from this generation, and forever.

The wicked walk on every side, *

when vileness is exalted among the children of man.

Psalm 13

How long, O LORD?

Will you forget me forever? *

How long will you hide your face from me?

How long must I wrestle in my soul

and have sorrow in my heart all the day? *

How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?

Look upon me and answer, O LORD my God; *

give light to my eyes, lest I sleep in death,

Lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed against him,” *

lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.

But I have trusted in your steadfast love; *

my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.

I will sing to the LORD who has dealt bountifully with me; *

I will praise the Name of the LORD Most High.

Psalm 14

The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” *

They are corrupt and commit abominable deeds,

there is none who does good.

The LORD looks from heaven on the children of man, *

to see if there are any of understanding,

who seek after God.

They have all turned away; together they have become corrupt; *

there is none who does good,

not even one.

Have they no knowledge, these workers of evil *

who eat up my people as though eating bread

and do not call upon the LORD?

There they are, overwhelmed with great fear, *

for God is with the generation of the righteous.

You have shamed the plans of the poor, *

because the LORD is his refuge.

Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion. *

When the LORD restores the fortunes of his people,

let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.

Psalm 15

O LORD, who may dwell in your tabernacle? *

Who may abide on your holy hill?

He who walks with integrity and does what is righteous *

and speaks truth in his heart;

He who does not slander with his tongue

and does no evil to his neighbor, *

nor casts slurs against his fellow man;

In whose eyes a vile person is despised, *

but who honors those who fear the LORD;

who keeps an oath even when it hurts, and does not change;

Who lends his money without interest

and does not take a bribe against the innocent. *

He who does these things shall never be shaken.

Psalm 16

Preserve me, O God, *

for in you I take refuge.

I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord; *

apart from you I have no good thing.”

As for the saints who are in the land, *

they are the excellent ones

in whom is all my delight.

The sorrows of those will be multiplied *

who chase after other gods.

Their drink offerings of blood I will not offer, *

nor take their names upon my lips.

O LORD, you are the portion of my inheritance and my cup; *

it is you who make my lot secure.

The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; *

indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.

I will bless the LORD who gives me counsel; *

even in the night my heart instructs me.

I have set the LORD always before me; *

because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

Therefore my heart is glad and my whole being rejoices; *

my flesh also will dwell secure.

For you will not abandon me to Sheol, *

nor let your holy one see decay.

You make known to me the path of life; *

in your presence there is fullness of joy;

at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Psalm 17

Hear a just cause, O LORD; attend to my cry. *

Give ear to my prayer from lips not deceitful.

Let my vindication come forth from your presence. *

Let your eyes look upon the things that are right.

You have tried my heart, you have visited by night,

you have tested me and have found nothing; *

I have purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.

As to the deeds of man, *

by the word of your lips

I have avoided the ways of the violent.

My steps have held fast to your paths, *

that my feet may not stumble.

I call upon you, O God, for you will answer me; *

incline your ear to me and hear my words.

Wondrously show your faithful love, *

O Savior of those who take refuge

from those who rise up against your right hand.

Keep me as the apple of your eye; *

hide me in the shadow of your wings,

From the wicked who assault me, *

from my deadly enemies who surround me.

They close their unfeeling fat hearts; *

with their mouths they speak arrogantly.

They have tracked me down; they have now surrounded me; *

with eyes alert to cast me to the ground;

Like a lion eager to tear, *

like a young lion lurking in ambush.

Arise, O LORD. Anticipate him and cast him down. *

By your sword, deliver my soul from the wicked.

By your hand, deliver me, O LORD, from men, *

from men of the world whose portion is in this life.

You fill their belly with treasure; *

they are satisfied with children

and leave their abundance to their infants.

As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; *

I shall be satisfied when I awake in your likeness.

Psalm 18

I love you, O LORD, my strength. *

The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,

My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; *

my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, *

and so shall I be saved from my enemies.

The cords of death encompassed me; *

the torrents of destruction made me afraid;

The sorrows of Sheol surrounded me; *

the snares of death confronted me.

In my distress I called upon the LORD; *

to my God I cried out for help.

From his temple he heard my voice, *

and my cry before him reached his ears.

Then the earth reeled and rocked; *

the foundations of the mountains trembled

and quaked, because he was angry.

Smoke went up in his wrath;

devouring fire from his mouth; *

glowing coals were kindled by it.

He bowed the heavens and came down; *

thick darkness was under his feet.

He rode upon a cherub and flew; *

he soared upon the wings of the wind.

He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him, *

dark waters, thick clouds of the skies.

At the brightness before him his thick clouds passed - *

hailstones and coals of fire.

The LORD thundered in the heavens; *

the Most High uttered his voice.

He sent out his arrows and scattered them; *

he flashed forth lightning and routed them.

Then the channels of the sea were seen;

the foundations of the world were laid bare *

at your rebuke, O LORD,

at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.

He sent from on high, he took me; *

he drew me out of many waters.

He delivered me from my strong enemy, *

from those who hated me,

for they were too mighty for me.

They confronted me in the day of my calamity, *

but the LORD was my support.

He brought me out into a broad place; *

he delivered me, because he delighted in me.

The LORD has dealt with me according to my righteousness; *

according to the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me.

For I have kept the ways of the LORD, *

and have not wickedly departed from my God.

For all his just decrees were before me, *

and his statutes I did not put away from me.

I was blameless before him, *

and I kept myself from my iniquity.

So the LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness, *

according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.

With the merciful you show yourself merciful; *

with the blameless you show yourself blameless;

With the pure you show yourself pure; *

and with the crooked you show yourself shrewd.

For you will save a humble people, *

but haughty eyes you will bring down.

For it is you who light my lamp; *

the LORD my God enlightens my darkness.

For by you I can run against a troop; *

by my God I can leap over a wall.

As for God, his way is perfect,

the word of the LORD proven true; *

he is a shield to all who take refuge in him.

For who is God, but the LORD? *

And who is a rock, except our God?

It is God who girds me with strength *

and has made my way blameless.

He makes my feet like the feet of a deer *

and sets me secure on high places.

He trains my hands for battle, *

my arms to bend a bow of bronze.

You have given me the shield of your salvation, *

and your right hand has held me up,

your gentleness has made me great.

You enlarged my path beneath me, *

so that my feet have not slipped.

I will pursue my enemies and overtake them; *

I will not turn back till they are consumed.

I will thrust them through so they cannot rise; *

they shall fall defeated at my feet.

For you have girded me with strength for the battle; *

you have subdued under me those who rise up against me.

You have made my enemies turn their backs in flight; *

those who hated me I destroyed.

They cried for help, but there was none to save; *

they cried even to the LORD, but he did not answer them.

I beat them as fine as the dust before the wind; *

I cast them out like the mire of the streets.

You have delivered me from strife with the people; *

you have made me the head of the nations;

a people whom I did not know now serve me.

As soon as they hear of me they obey me; *

the sons of the strangers come cringing before me.

The foreigners fade away; *

they come trembling out of their strongholds.

The LORD lives, blessed be my rock, *

let the God of my salvation be exalted.

The God who avenges me, *

who subdues peoples under me,

He delivers me from my enemies; *

yes, you lift me up above those who rise up against me;

you have delivered me from the man of violence.

Therefore I will give thanks to you, O LORD, among the nations; *

I will sing praises to your Name.

Great deliverance he brings to his king, *

and shows steadfast love to his anointed,

to David and his offspring forever.

Psalm 19

The heavens declare the glory of God, *

and the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

Day unto day pours forth speech, *

and night unto night reveals knowledge.

There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. *

Their voice goes out through all the earth,

and their words to the ends of the world.

In the heavens he has set up a tent for the sun, *

which comes forth like a bridegroom out of his chamber,

and, like a champion, rejoices to run his course.

His rising is from one end of the heavens,

and his circuit to the other; *

there is nothing hidden from his heat.

The law of the LORD is perfect, *

reviving the soul;

the testimony of the LORD is sure, *

making wise the simple;

the precepts of the LORD are right, *

rejoicing the heart;

the commandment of the LORD is pure, *

enlightening the eyes;

the fear of the LORD is clean, *

enduring forever;

the judgments of the LORD are true, *

and altogether righteous.

They are more to be desired than gold, even much fine gold; *

sweeter far than honey, than honey dripping from the comb.

By them is your servant warned; *

in keeping them there is great reward.

Who can discern his own errors? *

Cleanse me from my hidden faults.

Keep your servant also from presumptuous sins;

let them not have dominion over me. *

Then shall I be blameless, innocent of great transgression.

May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart

be pleasing in your sight, *

O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.

Psalm 20

May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble. *

May the Name of the God of Jacob defend you.

May he send you help from the sanctuary *

and strengthen you from Zion.

May he remember all your offerings *

and find your burnt sacrifices acceptable.

May he grant to you your heart’s desire *

and make all your plans succeed.

We will shout for joy over your salvation,

and in the Name of our God set up our banners. *

May the LORD fulfill all your petitions.

Now I know that the LORD saves his anointed; *

he will answer him from his holy heaven

with the saving strength of his right hand.

Some trust in chariots and some in horses, *

but we trust in the Name of the LORD our God.

They collapse and fall, *

but we arise and stand upright.

O LORD, save the king, *

and answer us when we call.

Psalm 21

O LORD, in your strength the king shall rejoice, *

and in your salvation how greatly he exults.

You have given him his heart’s desire *

and have not withheld the request of his lips.

For you meet him with rich blessings; *

you set a crown of fine gold on his head.

He asked you for life, and you gave it to him, *

length of days for ever and ever.

His glory is great through your salvation; *

splendor and majesty you have bestowed upon him.

For you have made him a blessing forever; *

you make him glad with the joy of your presence.

For the king trusts in the LORD, *

and through the mercy of the Most High he shall not be moved.

Your hand will find out all your enemies; *

your right hand will find out all those who hate you.

You will make them as a blazing oven *

in the time of your presence.

The LORD will swallow them up in his wrath, *

and the fire will devour them.

You will destroy their descendants from the earth, *

their seed from among the sons of man.

Though they intended evil against you, *

though they devised a plot, they will not succeed.

For you will put them to flight; *

you will aim your arrows at their faces.

Be exalted, O LORD, in your strength. *

We will sing and praise your power.

Psalm 22

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? *

Why are you so far from saving me,

and from the words of my groaning?

O my God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer, *

and by night, but I find no rest.

Yet you are the Holy One, *

enthroned on the praises of Israel.

In you our fathers put their trust; *

they trusted, and you delivered them.

To you they cried and were rescued; *

in you they trusted and were not put to shame.

But I am a worm and not a man; *

scorned by mankind, and despised by the people.

All who see me sneer at me; *

they curl their lips and wag their heads, saying,

“He trusted in the LORD, let him deliver him; *

let him rescue him, since he delights in him.”

Yet you are the one who brought me out of the womb; *

you made me trust you while at my mother’s breast.

I was cast upon you from my birth; *

from my mother’s womb you have been my God.

Be not far from me, *

for trouble is near, and there is none to help.

Many bulls have surrounded me; *

strong bulls of Bashan encircle me;

They open wide their mouths at me, *

like a raging and roaring lion.

I am poured out like water,

and all my bones are out of joint; *

my heart is like wax; it is melted within me;

My strength is dried up like a potsherd; *

my tongue clings to the roof of my mouth;

you lay me in the dust of death.

For dogs have surrounded me; *

a company of evildoers encircles me;

they have pierced my hands and feet —

I can count all my bones; *

they look and stare upon me;

they divide my garments among them; *

they cast lots for my clothing.

But you, O LORD, be not far off. *

O my Strength, hasten to help me.

Deliver my soul from the sword, *

my precious life from the power of the dog.

Rescue me from the mouth of the lion. *

Save me from the horns of wild bulls.

I will tell of your Name to my brothers; *

in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:

You who fear the LORD, praise him. *

all you descendants of Jacob, glorify him;

stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel.

For he has not despised nor abhorred

the affliction of the afflicted, *

and he has not hidden his face from him,

but has heard his cry for help.

From you comes my praise in the great congregation; *

I will pay my vows before those who fear him.

The poor shall eat and be satisfied; *

those who seek the LORD shall praise him.

May your hearts live forever.

All the ends of the earth shall remember

and turn to the LORD, *

and all the families of the nations shall worship before you.

For the kingdom is the LORD’s; *

He rules over the nations.

All the prosperous of the earth will eat and worship; *

before him shall bow all who go down to the dust —

those who cannot keep themselves alive.

Posterity shall serve him; *

the coming generation will be told about the LORD;

they will proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn: *

He has done it.

Psalm 23

The LORD is my shepherd; *

I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures; *

he leads me beside still waters.

He restores my soul; *

he leads me in paths of righteousness for his Name’s sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil, *

for you are with me;

your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; *

you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, *

and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Psalm 24

The earth is the LORD’s and all that is in it, *

the world and those who dwell therein,

For he has founded it upon the seas *

and established it upon the rivers.

Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD? *

and who shall stand in his holy place?

He who has clean hands and a pure heart, *

who does not lift up his soul to falsehood

and does not swear deceitfully.

He will receive blessing from the LORD *

and righteousness from the God of his salvation.

Such is the generation of those who seek him, *

who seek your face, O God of Jacob.

Lift up your heads, O gates;

be lifted up, O ancient doors, *

that the King of glory may come in.

Who is this King of glory? *

The LORD, strong and mighty,

the LORD, mighty in battle.

Lift up your heads, O gates;

lift them up, O ancient doors, *

that the King of glory may come in.

Who is this King of glory? *

The LORD of hosts,

he is the King of glory.

Psalm 25

To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul. *

O my God, in you I trust;

Let me not be put to shame; *

let not my enemies triumph over me.

Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame; *

but shame will come to those who are treacherous without cause.

Show me your ways, O LORD; *

teach me your paths.

Lead me in your truth and teach me, *

for you are the God of my salvation;

for you do I wait all the day long.

Remember, O LORD, your tender mercies and your faithful love, *

for they have been from of old.

Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions; *

according to your faithful love remember me,

for the sake of your goodness, O LORD.

Good and upright is the LORD; *

therefore he instructs sinners in the way.

He leads the humble in what is right, *

he teaches the humble his way.

All the paths of the LORD are steadfast love and faithfulness *

to those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.

For the sake of your Name, O LORD, *

pardon my iniquity, for it is great.

Who is the man who fears the LORD? *

Him will he instruct in the way he should choose.

His soul shall abide in prosperity, *

and his offspring shall inherit the land.

The LORD confides in those who fear him; *

he reveals to them his covenant.

My eyes are ever toward the LORD, *

for he will free my feet from the net.

Turn to me and be gracious to me, *

for I am lonely and afflicted.

The troubles of my heart are enlarged; *

bring me out of my distresses.

Look upon my affliction and my pain, *

and forgive me all my sin.

Consider how many are my foes, *

and with what violent hatred they have hated me.

O guard my soul and deliver me. *

Let me not be put to shame,

for I have taken refuge in you.

May integrity and uprightness protect me, *

for I wait for you.

Redeem Israel, O God, *

out of all his troubles.

Psalm 26

Vindicate me, O LORD,

for I have walked in my integrity; *

I have trusted in the LORD and have not faltered.

Examine me, O LORD, and try me; *

test my heart and my mind.

For your unfailing love is before my eyes, *

and I walk in your faithfulness.

I do not sit with deceitful men, *

nor do I associate with hypocrites.

I abhor the assembly of evildoers, *

and I will not sit down with the wicked.

I wash my hands in innocence *

and go around your altar, O LORD,

That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving, *

and tell of all your wondrous works.

O LORD, I have loved the habitation of your house; *

the place where your glory dwells.

Do not sweep my soul away with the sinners, *

nor my life with bloodthirsty men,

In whose hands are evil devices, *

and whose right hand is full of bribes.

But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity; *

redeem me, and be gracious to me.

My foot stands on level ground; *

in the great assembly I will bless the LORD.

Psalm 27

The LORD is my light and my salvation; *

whom shall I fear?

The LORD is the stronghold of my life; *

of whom shall I be afraid?

When evildoers advance against me

to eat up my flesh,

my adversaries and my foes, *

it is they who stumble and fall.

Though an army encamp against me, *

my heart shall not fear;

Though war should arise against me, *

even then I will be confident.

One thing I have asked of the LORD, *

that will I seek after:

That I may dwell in the house of the LORD

all the days of my life, *

to behold the beauty of the LORD

and to seek him in his temple.

For in the day of trouble he will hide me in his shelter; *

he will conceal me in the cover of his tent;

he will set me high upon a rock.

And now my head shall be lifted up *

above my enemies all around me,

And I will offer in his tent sacrifices of shouts of joy; *

I will sing and make music to the LORD.

Hear my voice, O LORD, when I cry aloud; *

have mercy on me and answer me.

You have said, “Seek my face.” *

My heart says to you,

“Your face, LORD, I will seek.”

Hide not your face from me,

nor turn your servant away in anger. *

You have been my help;

do not abandon me nor forsake me

O God of my salvation.

Though my father and my mother forsake me, *

the LORD will take me in.

Teach me your way, O LORD, *

and lead me on a level path

because of my enemies.

Deliver me not into the will of my adversaries; *

for false witnesses have risen against me;

they breathe out violence.

I believe that I shall see the goodness of the LORD *

in the land of the living.

Wait for the LORD; *

be strong and let your heart take courage;

wait for the LORD.

Psalm 28

To you, O LORD, I will cry; *

my rock, be not silent to me,

lest, if you be silent to me, *

I become like those who go down to the pit.

Hear the voice of my supplications, *

when I cry to you for help,

when I lift up my hands *

toward your holy sanctuary.

Do not drag me away with the wicked, *

with the workers of iniquity,

who speak peace with their neighbors *

while evil is in their hearts.

Give to them according to their deeds *

and according to the evil of their endeavors;

give to them according to the work of their hands; *

render to them their due reward.

Because they do not regard the works of the LORD

nor the operation of his hands,

he will tear them down and not build them up.

Blessed be the LORD. *

For he has heard the voice of my supplications.

The LORD is my strength and my shield; *

in him my heart trusts, and I am helped;

my heart greatly rejoices, *

and with my song I will thank him.

The LORD is the strength of his people; *

and the saving defender of his anointed.

Oh, save your people and bless your inheritance. *

Shepherd them also and carry them forever.

Psalm 29

Ascribe to the LORD, O you sons of the mighty, *

ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.

Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his Name; *

worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.

The voice of the LORD is over the waters;

the God of glory thunders, *

the LORD, over the many waters.

The voice of the LORD is powerful; *

the voice of the LORD is full of majesty.

The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars; *

yes, the LORD breaks the cedars of Lebanon.

He makes Lebanon to skip like a calf, *

and Sirion like a young wild ox.

The voice of the LORD flashes with flames of fire.

The voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness; *

the LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.

The voice of the LORD makes the deer give birth,

and strips the forests bare, *

and in his temple all cry, “Glory.”

The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; *

the LORD sits as king forever.

The LORD will give strength to his people. *

The LORD will bless his people with peace.

Psalm 30

I will extol you, O LORD, for you have lifted me up, *

and have not let my enemies rejoice over me.

O LORD my God, I cried out to you for help, *

and you have healed me.

O LORD, you have brought up my soul from Sheol; *

you restored me to life, that I should not go down to the pit.

Sing praise to the LORD, O you his saints, *

and give thanks to his holy name.

For his anger is but for a moment; *

his favor is for a lifetime.

Weeping may remain for the night, *

but joy comes in the morning.

As for me, I said in my prosperity, *

“I shall never be moved.”

By your favor, O LORD, you made my mountain stand strong; *

but when you hid your face, I was filled with fear.

To you, O LORD, I cried out; *

to the Lord I made my supplication:

“What profit is there in my destruction, if I go down to the pit? *

Will the dust praise you? Will it declare your faithfulness?

Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me. *

O LORD, be my helper.”

You have turned my mourning into dancing; *

you have removed my sackcloth and girded me with gladness,

So that my soul may sing your praise and not be silent. *

O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever.

Psalm 31

In you, O LORD, I have taken refuge;

let me never be put to shame; *

in your righteousness deliver me.

Bow down your ear to me; *

make haste to rescue me.

Be my rock of refuge, *

a house of defense to save me.

For you are my rock and my fortress; *

and for the sake of your Name you will lead me and guide me;

you draw me out of the net that they have hidden for me, *

for you are my protector.

Into your hands I commit my spirit; *

for you have redeemed me, O LORD, O God of truth.

I have hated those who regard worthless idols, *

but I trust in the LORD.

I will be glad and rejoice in your steadfast love,

for you have seen my affliction; *

you have known the distress of my soul,

you have not shut me up me in the hand of the enemy; *

you have set my feet in a spacious place.

Have mercy on me, O LORD, for I am in distress;

my eye wastes away with grief; *

my soul and my body as well.

For my life is spent with sorrow, *

and my years with sighing;

my strength fails because of my iniquity, *

and my bones waste away.

I have become a reproach among all my enemies, *

but exceedingly so to my neighbors,

and an object of dread to my acquaintances; *

those who see me in the street flee from me.

I am utterly forgotten like a dead man, out of mind; *

I have become like a broken vessel.

For I have heard the slander of many, *

terror on every side;

as they conspire together against me, *

as they scheme to take my life.

But I trust in you, O LORD; *

I say, “You are my God.”

My time is in your hands;

rescue me from the hand of my enemies, *

and from those who persecute me.

Make your face to shine upon your servant; *

save me in your steadfast love.

Let me not be put to shame, O LORD, *

for I have called upon you;

let the wicked be put to shame; *

let them lie silently in Sheol.

Let the lying lips be put to silence,

which speak insolent things against the righteous, *

with pride and contempt.

Oh, how abundant is your goodness, *

which you have laid up for those who fear you,

which you have prepared for those who take refuge in you, *

in the sight of the sons of man.

You hide them in the cover of your presence *

from the plots of man;

you conceal them in your shelter *

from the strife of tongues.

Blessed be the LORD,

for he has shown me marvelously great kindness *

when I was in a besieged city.

For I had said in my alarm, *

“I am cut off from your sight;”

nevertheless you heard the voice of my pleas *

when I cried out to you for help.

O love the LORD, all you his saints.

For the LORD preserves those who are faithful, *

and plenteously repays the proud.

Be strong, and let your heart take courage, *

all you who hope in the LORD.

Psalm 32

Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, *

whose sin is covered.

Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity, *

and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

When I kept silent, my bones wasted away *

through my groaning all the day long.

For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; *

my strength was dried up as in the heat of summer.

Then I acknowledged my sin to you, *

and I did not cover up my iniquity;

I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” *

and you forgave me the guilt of my sin.

Therefore let everyone who is godly *

offer prayer to you at the time when you may be found;

Surely in the rush of great waters, *

they shall not reach him.

You are my hiding place;

you preserve me from trouble; *

you surround me with songs of deliverance.

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; *

I will counsel you with my eye upon you.

Do not be like the horse or the mule, with no understanding, *

which must be harnessed with bit and bridle,

or else it will not stay near you.

Many are the sorrows of the wicked, *

but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the LORD.

Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, O you righteous, *

sing, all you upright in heart.

Psalm 33

Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous. *

It befits the upright to praise him.

Give thanks to the LORD with the lyre; *

make music to him on the harp of ten strings.

Sing to him a new song; *

play skillfully, with shouts of joy.

For the word of the LORD is right and true, *

and all his works are faithfulness.

He loves righteousness and justice; *

the earth is full of the goodness of the LORD.

By the word of the LORD the heavens were made; *

by the breath of his mouth their starry host.

He gathers up the waters of the sea as a heap; *

he puts the deeps into storehouses.

Let all the earth fear the LORD; *

let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.

For he spoke, and it came to be; *

he commanded, and it stood firm.

The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; *

he frustrates the plans of the peoples.

The counsel of the LORD stands firm forever, *

the plans of his heart through all generations.

Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, *

the people he has chosen as his own inheritance.

The LORD looks down from the heavens; *

he sees all the children of man;

From his dwelling place he looks upon *

all the inhabitants of the earth,

He who fashions the hearts of them all *

observes everything they do.

The king is not saved by the size of his army; *

a warrior is not delivered by his great strength.

A horse is a false hope for salvation; *

despite all its strength it cannot save.

Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, *

on those whose hope is in his mercy,

To deliver their soul from death *

and to keep them alive in famine.

Our soul waits for the LORD; *

he is our help and our shield.

For in him our heart shall rejoice, *

because we trust in his holy Name.

Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, *

even as we have our hope in you.

Psalm 34

I will bless the LORD at all times; *

his praise shall ever be in my mouth.

My soul shall make its boast in the LORD; *

let the humble hear of it and rejoice.

O proclaim with me the greatness of the LORD *

and let us exalt his Name together.

I sought the LORD, and he answered me; *

he delivered me from all my fears.

Those who look to him are radiant; *

their faces shall not be ashamed.

This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him *

and saved him out of all his troubles.

The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, *

and he delivers them.

O taste and see that the LORD is good. *

blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

O fear the LORD, you his saints, *

for those who fear him lack for nothing.

The young lions suffer want and hunger; *

but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

Come, O children, listen to me; *

I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

Who among you loves life *

and desires long days, that he may see good?

Keep your tongue from evil *

and your lips from speaking deceit.

Turn away from evil and do good; *

seek peace and pursue it.

The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous *

and his ears are open toward their cry.

The face of the LORD is against those who do evil, *

to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.

The righteous cry and the LORD hears them; *

he delivers them out of all their troubles.

The LORD is near to the brokenhearted *

and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

Many are the afflictions of the righteous, *

but the LORD delivers him out of them all.

He keeps safe all his bones; *

not one of them is broken.

Evil will slay the wicked; *

those who hate the righteous will be condemned.

The LORD redeems the lives of his servants; *

none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.

Psalm 35

Contend, O LORD, with those who contend with me; *

and fight against those who fight against me.

Take hold of shield and buckler, *

and rise up for my help.

Draw out the spear and the javelin *

to stop those who pursue me.

Say to my soul, *

“I am your salvation.”

Let them be put to shame and dishonored *

who seek after my life;

let them be turned back and confounded *

who devise evil against me.

Let them be like chaff before the wind, *

and let the angel of the LORD scatter them.

Let their way be dark and slippery, *

with the angel of the LORD pursuing them.

For without cause they hid their net for me; *

without cause they dug a pit for my soul.

Let destruction come upon them unexpectedly;

and let the net that they hid catch themselves; *

into that very destruction let them fall.

Then my soul shall rejoice in the LORD, *

it shall rejoice in his salvation.

All my bones shall say, *

“O LORD, who is like you,

delivering the poor from those who are too strong for them, *

the poor and needy from those who rob them?”

Malicious witnesses rise up; *

they ask me of things that I do not know.

They repay me evil for good; *

to the sorrow of my soul.

But as for me, when they were sick—

I put on sackcloth; *

I humbled myself with fasting;

I prayed with head bowed on my chest.

I went about grieving as though for my friend or my brother;

as one who mourns for his mother, *

I bowed down with heaviness of heart.

But in my adversity, they rejoiced and gathered together; *

they gathered together against me;

attackers whom I did not know *

tore at me without ceasing;

like godless mockers at a feast, *

they gnashed at me with their teeth.

How long, O Lord, will you look on?

Rescue my soul from their ravages, *

my precious life from the lions.

I will give you thanks in the great congregation; *

among many people I will praise you.

Let not those rejoice over me *

who are wrongfully my foes,

and let not those wink the eye *

who hate me without cause.

For they do not speak for peace,

but they devise words of deceit *

against those who are quiet in the land.

They opened wide their mouths against me; *

and said, “Aha, Aha. Our eyes have seen it.”

You have seen this, O LORD; do not keep silent. *

O Lord, do not be far from me.

Arise and awake to my judgement, *

for my cause, my God and my Lord.

Vindicate me, O LORD, my God,

according to your righteousness, *

and let them not rejoice over me.

Let them not say in their hearts,

“Aha, we have what we wanted.” *

Let them not say, “We have swallowed him up.”

Let them be ashamed and confounded together *

who rejoice at my calamity.

Let them be clothed with shame and dishonor *

who magnify themselves against me.

Let them shout for joy and be glad, *

who favor my righteous cause;

and let them say continually,

“The LORD be exalted, *

who delights in the welfare of his servant.”

Then my tongue shall tell of your righteousness *

and of your praise all the day long.

Psalm 36

The transgression of the wicked speaks deep in his heart; *

there is no fear of God before his eyes.

For he flatters himself in his own eyes *

that his iniquity will not be found out and be hated.

The words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit; *

he has ceased to act wisely and to do good.

He plots wickedness while on his bed; *

he sets himself on a way that is not good;

he does not reject evil.

Your love, O LORD, reaches to the heavens, *

your faithfulness to the clouds.

Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains;

your judgments like the great deep; *

O LORD, you preserve both man and beast.

How precious is your steadfast love, O God. *

The children of man take refuge in the shadow of your wings.

They feast on the abundance of your house; *

you give them drink from the river of your delights.

For with you is the fountain of life; *

in your light we see light.

Continue your love to those who know you; *

your righteousness to the upright of heart.

Let not the foot of pride come upon me, *

nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.

There the evildoers have fallen; *

thrust down, and unable to rise.

Psalm 37

Fret not yourself because of the ungodly; *

nor be envious of the evildoers.

For they shall soon be dried up like the grass *

and wither like the green herb.

Trust in the LORD, and do good; *

dwell in the land and be fed with faithfulness.

Delight yourself in the LORD, *

and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the LORD; *

trust in him, and he will bring it to pass.

He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, *

and your justice as the noonday.

Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;

do not fret over him who prospers in his way, *

over the man who carries out evil devices.

Refrain from anger, and let go of wrath. *

Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.

For the evildoers shall be rooted out, *

but those who wait for the LORD shall inherit the land.

Yet a little while, and the wicked will be no more; *

though you look carefully for his place, it shall not be there.

But the meek shall inherit the earth, *

and delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

The wicked plots against the righteous *

and gnashes at him with his teeth,

but the Lord laughs at the wicked, *

for he sees that his day is coming.

The wicked draw the sword and bend their bow,

to bring down the poor and needy, *

to slay those whose way is upright;

their sword shall enter their own heart, *

and their bows shall be broken.

Better is the little that the righteous has *

than the abundant wealth of the wicked.

For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, *

but the LORD upholds the righteous.

The LORD knows the days of the blameless, *

and their inheritance shall endure forever;

they shall not be ashamed in the time of evil; *

and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.

But the wicked will perish;

the enemies of the LORD, like the splendor of the fields, shall vanish; *

as smoke they shall vanish away.

The wicked borrows and does not repay, *

but the righteous is generous and gives;

for those blessed by the LORD shall inherit the land, *

but those cursed by him shall be cut off.

The steps of a man are established by the LORD, *

And he will delight in his way;

though he fall, he shall not be cast down, *

for the LORD upholds him with his hand.

I have been young, and now am old; *

yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken

nor his children begging for bread.

He is ever generous in lending, *

and his children shall be a blessing.

Depart from evil, and do good, *

and dwell forevermore.

For the LORD loves justice; *

he will not forsake his saints.

They are preserved forever, *

but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.

The righteous shall inherit the land *

and dwell in it forever.

The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom, *

and his tongue speaks of justice.

The law of his God is in his heart; *

None of his steps shall slip.

The wicked watches the righteous *

and seeks to put him to death.

The LORD will not leave him in his hand *

nor let him be condemned when he is judged.

Wait for the LORD and keep his way,

and he will exalt you to inherit the land; *

when the wicked are cut off, you shall see it.

I have seen the wicked in great power, *

flourishing like a tree in full leaf.

Yet he passed away, and behold, he was no more; *

though I sought him, he could not be found.

Mark the blameless and observe the upright, *

for there is a future for the man of peace.

But the transgressors shall be destroyed altogether; *

the future of the wicked shall be cut off.

The salvation of the righteous is from the LORD; *

he is their strength in the time of trouble.

The LORD shall help them and deliver them; *

he shall deliver them from the wicked and save them,

because they take refuge in him.

Psalm 38

O LORD, rebuke me not in your wrath, *

nor discipline me in your anger.

For your arrows have pierced me deeply, *

and your hand presses me down.

There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation; *

nor health in my bones because of my sin.

For my iniquities have gone over my head; *

like a heavy burden, they are too much for me to bear.

My wounds are foul and festering *

because of my foolishness,

I am troubled and utterly bowed down; *

I go about mourning all the day long.

For my sides are filled with burning, *

and there is no soundness in my flesh.

I am feeble and sore broken; *

I groan because of the tumult of my heart.

O Lord, all my longing is before you; *

and my groaning is not hidden from you.

My heart throbs; my strength fails me, *

and the light of my eyes, even it is gone from me.

My friends and my neighbors stand aloof from my plague, *

and my nearest of kin stand far away.

Those who seek my life lay their snares for me; *

those who seek my hurt speak of ruin

and meditate treachery all the day long.

But I am like a deaf man; I do not hear, *

like a mute man who does not open his mouth.

Yes, I have become like a man who does not hear, *

and in whose mouth are no reproofs.

For you, O LORD, do I wait; *

You will answer, O Lord my God.

For I said, “Let them not rejoice over me, *

who boast against me when my foot slips.”

For I am ready to fall, *

and my sorrow is ever before me.

For I will confess my iniquity; *

I will be sorry for my sin.

But my enemies are vigorous and strong, *

and many are those who wrongfully hate me.

Those who render me evil for good *

accuse me because I follow what is good.

Do not forsake me, O LORD; *

O my God, be not far from me.

Make haste to help me, *

O Lord, my salvation.

Psalm 39

I said, “I will guard my ways, *

that I may not sin with my tongue;

I will guard my mouth as with a muzzle, *

while the wicked are in my sight.”

I was mute and silent; *

I refrained even from good,

and my sorrow was stirred.

My heart grew hot within me.

While I mused, the fire kindled; *

then I spoke with my tongue:

“O LORD, make me to know my end

and what is the measure of my days; *

that I may know how fleeting I am.

Behold, you have made my days a few handbreadths, *

and my age is nothing in your sight.

Surely all mankind is but a mere breath. *

Surely man walks about like a shadow.

Surely they busy themselves in vain; *

he heaps up wealth and does not know

whose it finally will be.

“And now, O Lord, for what do I wait? *

My hope is in you.

Deliver me from all my transgressions. *

Make me not the reproach of the fool.

I have become mute; I do not open my mouth, *

for it is you who have done it.

Remove your scourge from me; *

I am overcome by the blow of your hand.

When you, with rebukes, discipline a man for sin,

you consume like a moth what is precious to him; *

surely all mankind is but a mere breath.

“Hear my prayer, O LORD,

and give ear to my cry; *

hold not your peace at my tears.

For I am a sojourner with you, *

a stranger, as were all my fathers.

Look away from me, that I may smile again, *

before I depart and am no more.”

Psalm 40

I waited patiently for the LORD; *

he inclined to me and heard my cry.

He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, *

out of the miry clay,

he set my feet upon a rock, *

and made my footsteps firm.

He put a new song in my mouth, *

a song of praise to our God.

Many will see and fear, *

and put their trust in the LORD.

Blessed is the man who makes *

the LORD his trust,

who does not turn to the proud, *

nor to those who turn aside to falsehood.

Many, O LORD my God, *

are the wondrous works which you have done,

and in your thoughts toward us; *

none can compare with you.

I will proclaim and tell of them, *

yet they are more than can be numbered.

Sacrifice and offering you have not desired, *

but a body you have prepared for me.

Burnt offering and sin offering *

you have not required.

Then I said, “Behold, I come; *

it is written of me in the scroll of the book:

I delight to do your will, O my God; *

your law is within my heart.”

I have proclaimed your righteousness in the great congregation; *

behold, I will not restrain my lips, O LORD, as you know. *

I have not hidden your righteousness within my heart; *

I have declared your faithfulness and your salvation;

I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness *

from the great congregation.

But you, O LORD, do not withhold your mercies from me, *

may your steadfast love and your faithfulness ever preserve me. *

For innumerable evils have encompassed me *

my iniquities have overtaken me, so that I cannot see;

they are more in number than the hairs of my head; *

and my heart has utterly failed me.

Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me. *

O LORD, make haste to help me.

Let them be ashamed and confounded *

who seek after my soul to destroy it;

let them be turned back and dishonored *

who delight in my hurt.

Let them be desolate and rewarded with shame *

who say to me, “Aha, Aha.”

Let all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; *

let those who love your salvation say always, “The LORD be praised.” *

As for me, I am poor and needy, *

but the LORD is mindful of me.

You are my help and my deliverer; *

do not delay, O my God.

Psalm 41

Blessed is the one who considers the poor. *

The LORD will deliver him in the day of trouble.

The LORD will preserve him and keep him alive;

and make him blessed upon the earth; *

he will not give him up to the will of his enemies.

The LORD sustains him on his sickbed; *

in his illness you restore him to health.

I said, “O LORD, have mercy on me; *

heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.”

My enemies speak evil against me, *

“When will he die, and his name perish?”

And if anyone comes to see me, he utters empty words,

while his heart gathers iniquity to itself; *

when he goes out, he tells it abroad.

All who hate me whisper together against me; *

they imagine the worst for me.

“A wicked thing is poured out on him,” they say, *

“now that he lies down, he will not rise again.”

Even my close friend in whom I trusted,

who ate my bread, *

has lifted up his heel against me.

But you, O LORD, have mercy on me, *

and raise me up, that I may repay them.

By this I know that you delight in me: *

because my enemy does not shout over me in triumph.

But you have upheld me because of my integrity, *

and set me before your face forever.

Blessed be the LORD God of Israel,

from everlasting to everlasting. *

Amen and Amen.

Psalm 42

As a deer pants for streams of water, *

so my soul longs after you, O God.

My soul thirsts for God,

for the living God. *

When shall I come and appear before God?

My tears have been my food *

day and night,

while they say to me all the day long, *

“Where is your God?”

These things I remember, as I pour out my soul:

how I would go with the multitude *

and lead them in procession to the house of God

with a voice of joy and songs of praise, *

a multitude keeping festival.

Why are you cast down, O my soul, *

and why are you in turmoil within me?

Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, *

my salvation and my God.

My soul is cast down within me; *

therefore I will remember you

from the land of Jordan and of Hermon, *

from Mount Mizar.

Deep calls to deep *

at the roar of your waterfalls;

all your breakers and your waves *

have gone over me.

By day the LORD commands his mercy, *

and in the night his song is with me, *

a prayer to the God of my life.

I will say to God, my rock: *

“Why have you forgotten me?

Why must I go about mourning *

because of the oppression of the enemy?”

As with a breaking of my bones, *

my adversaries taunt me,

while they say to me all the day long, *

“Where is your God?”

Why are you cast down, O my soul, *

and why are you in turmoil within me?

Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, *

my salvation and my God.

Psalm 43

Vindicate me, O God, and plead my cause

against an ungodly nation, *

O deliver me from the unjust and deceitful man.

For you, O God, are my strength; *

why have you rejected me?

Why must I go about mourning *

because of the oppression of the enemy?

Send out your light and your truth; *

let them lead me;

let them bring me to your holy hill *

and to your dwelling.

Then I will go to the altar of God, *

to God my exceeding joy,

and I will praise you with the harp, *

O God, my God.

Why are you cast down, O my soul, *

and why are you in turmoil within me?

Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, *

my salvation and my God.

Psalm 44

O God, we have heard with our ears, *

our fathers have told us,

what deeds you performed in their days, *

in the days of old:

your hand drove out the nations, *

and you planted them;

you afflicted the peoples, *

and you set them free;

for not by their own sword did they win the land, *

nor did their own arm save them,

but your right hand and your arm,

and the light of your face, *

for you delighted in them.

You are my King, O God; *

who commands salvation for Jacob.

Through you we push down our foes; *

through your Name we will trample those who rise up against us.

For I will not trust in my bow, *

and my sword will not save me.

But you have saved us from our enemies *

and have put to shame those who hate us.

In God we have boasted all the day long, *

and we will give thanks to your Name forever.

But now you have rejected us and put us to shame *

and you do not go out with our armies.

You have made us turn back from the enemy, *

and those who hate us have plundered our goods.

You have made us like sheep to be eaten *

and have scattered us among the nations.

You sell your people for a pittance, *

gaining nothing from their sale.

You have made us a reproach to our neighbors, *

a derision and scorn to those all around us.

You have made us a byword among the nations, *

a laughingstock among the peoples.

All day long my disgrace is before me, *

and the shame of my face has covered me

at the voice of the one who taunts and reviles, *

at the sight of the enemy and the avenger.

All this has come upon us,

though we have not forgotten you, *

and we have not been false to your covenant.

Our heart has not turned back, *

nor have our steps departed from your way;

yet you have crushed us in the haunt of jackals *

and covered us with the shadow of death.

If we had forgotten the Name of our God *

or spread out our hands to a foreign god,

would not God discover this? *

For he knows the secrets of the heart.

Yet for your sake we are killed all the day long; *

we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.

Awake. Why do you sleep, O Lord? *

Arise. Do not reject us forever.

Why do you hide your face? *

Why do you forget our affliction and oppression?

For our soul is bowed down to the dust; *

our belly clings to the ground.

Rise up, O Lord, and help us. *

Redeem us for the sake of your unfailing love.

Psalm 45

My heart overflows with a noble theme;

I address my verses to the king; *

my tongue is like the pen of a ready writer.

You are more beautiful than the sons of men;

grace is poured upon your lips; *

therefore God has blessed you forever.

Gird your sword upon your thigh, O mighty one, *

in your splendor and majesty.

In your majesty ride out victoriously

for the cause of truth and meekness and righteousness; *

and your right hand shall show you marvelous things.

Your arrows are sharp

in the heart of the king's enemies; *

the peoples fall under you.

Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.

The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of righteousness; *

you have loved righteousness and hated wickedness.

Therefore God, your God, has anointed you

with the oil of gladness beyond your companions; *

your garments are all scented

with myrrh and aloes and cassia.

From ivory palaces stringed instruments make you glad;

daughters of kings are among your honored women; *

at your right hand stands the queen in gold of Ophir.

Hear, O daughter, and consider, and incline your ear: *

forget your people and your father's house,

and the king will desire your beauty.

Since he is your lord, bow down to him.

And the daughter of Tyre shall come with gifts, *

the richest of the people will seek your favor.

All glorious is the princess within her chamber, *

with robes interwoven with gold.

In many-colored garments she is led to the king, *

her virgin companions who follow her

will be brought to you.

With joy and gladness they shall be brought *

as they enter the palace of the king.

In place of your fathers shall be your sons; *

you shall make them princes in all the earth.

I will make your Name to be remembered in all generations; *

therefore the peoples shall praise you forever and ever.

Psalm 46

God is our refuge and strength, *

an ever-present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear, though the earth be moved, *

though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea,

Though its waters roar and foam, *

though the mountains tremble at its surging.

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, *

the holy habitation of the Most High.

God is in the midst of her; she will not be moved; *

God will help her when morning dawns.

The nations rage, the kingdoms fall; *

he lifts his voice, the earth melts.

The LORD of hosts is with us; *

the God of Jacob is our fortress.

Come, behold the works of the LORD, *

what desolations he has brought on the earth.

He makes wars to cease throughout the earth; *

he breaks the bow and shatters the spear,

and burns the chariots with fire.

“Be still, and know that I am God; *

I will be exalted among the nations,

I will be exalted in the earth.”

The LORD of hosts is with us; *

the God of Jacob is our fortress.

Psalm 47

Clap your hands, all you peoples. *

Shout to God with a voice of triumph.

For the LORD Most High is to be feared, *

a great king over all the earth.

He subdued peoples under us, *

and the nations under our feet.

He shall choose our inheritance for us, *

the pride of Jacob whom he loves.

God has gone up with a shout, *

the LORD with the sound of a trumpet.

Sing praises to God, sing praises. *

Sing praises to our King, sing praises.

For God is King of all the earth; *

sing praises with understanding.

God reigns over the nations; *

God sits on his holy throne.

The princes of the people gather together, *

the people of the God of Abraham.

For the shields of the earth belong to God; *

he is highly exalted.

Psalm 48

Great is the LORD and greatly to be praised *

in the city of our God, his holy mountain.

Beautiful in elevation, *

is the joy of all the earth,

Mount Zion, in the far north, *

the city of the great King.

God is within her citadels, *

he has made himself known as a stronghold.

For behold, the kings assembled; *

they came on together.

As soon as they saw it, they marveled; *

in panic they hastened away.

Trembling took hold of them there, *

anguish as of a woman in labor.

With the east wind you shattered *

the ships of Tarshish.

As we have heard, so have we seen *

in the city of the LORD of hosts,

in the city of our God, *

which God will establish forever.

We have thought on your unfailing love, O God, *

in the midst of your temple.

As is your Name, O God, *

so is your praise to the ends of the earth.

Your right hand is filled with righteousness. *

Let Mount Zion be glad.

Let the daughters of Judah rejoice *

because of your judgments.

Walk about Zion, go all around her, *

number her towers,

consider well her ramparts, *

go through her citadels,

that you may tell the next generation *

that this is God,

our God forever and ever. *

He will guide us forever.

Psalm 49

Hear this, all peoples; *

give ear, all inhabitants of the world,

both low and high, *

rich and poor together.

My mouth will speak wisdom; *

and the meditation of my heart understanding.

I will incline my ear to a parable; *

I will disclose my riddle to the music of the lyre.

Why should I fear in the days of evil, *

when the iniquity at my heel surrounds me,

those who trust in their wealth *

and boast in the abundance of their riches?

No man can ransom his brother, *

or give to God the price of his life,

for the redemption of his soul is costly *

it shall never suffice,

that he should live on forever *

and never see the grave.

For he sees that even wise men die; *

the fool and the stupid alike must perish

and leave their wealth to others.

Their graves are their homes forever, *

their dwelling places to all generations,

though they called lands by their own names.

Man in his pomp will not remain; *

he is like the beasts that perish.

This is the way of those who are foolish, *

and yet after them people approve of their sayings.

Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol;

death shall be their shepherd, *

and the upright shall rule over them in the morning.

Their beauty shall be consumed in the grave, *

So that they have no habitation.

But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol, *

for he will receive me.

Be not afraid when a man becomes rich, *

when the glory of his house increases.

For when he dies he will carry nothing away; *

his glory will not follow him down.

For though, while he lives, he counts himself blessed *

—and though you get praise when you do well for yourself—

his soul will go to the generation of his fathers, *

who will never again see light.

Man in his pomp yet without understanding *

is like the beasts that perish.

Psalm 50

The Mighty One, God the LORD,

speaks and summons the earth *

from the rising of the sun to its setting.

Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, *

God shines forth.

Our God comes; he does not keep silent; *

a fire devours before him,

around him a mighty tempest.

He calls to the heavens above *

and to the earth, that he may judge his people:

“Gather to me my faithful ones, *

who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”

The heavens declare his righteousness, *

for God himself is judge.

“Hear, O my people, and I will speak; *

O Israel, I will testify against you.

I am God, your God.

Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you; *

For your burnt offerings are continually before me.

I will not accept a young bull from your house *

nor goats from your folds.

For every beast of the forest is mine, *

the cattle on a thousand hills.

I know every bird of the mountains, *

and all that moves in the field is mine.

“If I were hungry, I would not tell you, *

for the world is mine, and all its fullness.

Do I eat the flesh of bulls *

or drink the blood of goats?

Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, *

and pay your vows to the Most High,

call upon me in the day of trouble; *

I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.”

But to the wicked God says: *

“What right have you to recite my statutes

or take my covenant on your lips?

For you hate instruction, *

and you cast my words behind you.

When you see a thief, you are pleased with him, *

and you have cast in your lot with adulterers.

“You have let your mouth loose with evil, *

and your tongue frames deceit.

You sit and speak against your brother; *

you slander your own mother's son.

These things you have done, and I have been silent; *

you thought that I am altogether like you.

But I rebuke you *

and set before you the things you have done.

“Consider this, then, you who forget God, *

lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver.

A sacrifice of thanksgiving glorifies me; *

and to him who orders his way rightly

I will show the salvation of God.”

Psalm 51

Have mercy on me, O God,

according to your steadfast love; * *

according to the multitude of your mercies

blot out my transgressions.

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, * *

and cleanse me from my sin.

For I know my transgressions, * *

and my sin is ever before me.

Against you, you only, have I sinned

and done what is evil in your sight - * *

that you may be justified in your words

and blameless in your judgment.

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, * *

and in sin did my mother conceive me.

Behold, you desire truth in the inward being, * *

you teach me wisdom in the hidden heart.

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; * *

wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

Make me to hear joy and gladness; * *

let the bones you have broken rejoice.

Hide your face from my sins, * *

and blot out all my iniquities.

Create in me a clean heart, O God, * *

and renew a right spirit within me.

Cast me not away from your presence, * *

and take not your Holy Spirit from me.

Restore to me the joy of your salvation, * *

and uphold me with your generous Spirit.

Then I will teach transgressors your ways, * *

and sinners shall turn back to you.

Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,

O God of my salvation, * *

and my tongue shall sing aloud of your righteousness.

O Lord, open my lips, * *

and my mouth shall proclaim your praise.

For you do not desire sacrifice, or I would give it; * *

you will not be pleased with burnt offerings.

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; * *

a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

Do good in your good pleasure to Zion; * *

build up the walls of Jerusalem;

then will you delight in sacrifices of righteousness,

in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings; * *

then they shall offer young bulls on your altar.

Psalm 52

Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man? *

The goodness of God endures all the day.

Your tongue devises destruction, *

like a sharp razor, working deceit.

You love evil more than good, *

and lying more than speaking righteousness.

You love all words of destruction, *

O deceitful tongue.

God will likewise break you down forever;

he will snatch you up and tear you away from your tent; *

he will uproot you from the land of the living.

The righteous also shall see and fear, *

and shall laugh at him, saying,

“Behold, the man who would not make God his refuge, *

but trusted in the abundance of his riches

and strengthened himself in his wickedness.”

But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; *

I trust in the mercy of God

forever and ever.

I will thank you forever for what you have done; *

I will wait for your Name, for it is good,

in the sight of your saints.

Psalm 53

The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” *

They are corrupt, and have done abominable iniquity;

there is none who does good.

God looks from heaven on the children of man *

to see if there are any of understanding,

who seek after God.

They have all fallen away; *

together they have become corrupt;

there is none who does good, *

not even one.

Have those who work evil no knowledge,

who eat up my people as though eating bread, *

and do not call upon God?

There they are, overwhelmed with great fear, *

where there has been no fear.

For God has broken the bones of those who beseiged you; *

you have put them to shame, because God has rejected them.

Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion. *

When God restores the fortunes of his people,

let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.

Psalm 54

Save me, O God, by your Name; * *

vindicate me by your power.

Hear my prayer, O God; * *

open your ear to the words of my mouth.

For the arrogant have risen against me, * *

and violent men seek after my soul;

those who have not set God before them.

Behold, God is my helper; * *

it is the Lord who sustains my life.

Turn back unto my enemies their evil; * *

in your faithfulness, utterly destroy them.

Willingly will I sacrifice to you; * *

I will give thanks to your Name, O LORD, for it is good,

for it has delivered me from every trouble, * *

and my eyes have seen the ruin of my enemies.

Psalm 55

Give ear to my prayer, O God, *

and hide not yourself from my supplication.

Attend to me, and answer me; *

I mourn in my meditation,

and I am troubled,

because of the voice of the enemy, *

because of the oppression of the wicked.

For they bring down trouble upon me, *

and in anger they bear a grudge against me.

My heart is in anguish within me; *

the terrors of death have fallen upon me.

Fear and trembling have come upon me, *

and horror has overwhelmed me.

And I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove. *

I would fly away and be at rest;

indeed, I would wander far off; *

I would lodge in the wilderness;

I would hasten to find a refuge *

from the raging wind and tempest.”

Destroy, O Lord, and divide their tongues; *

for I see violence and strife in the city.

Day and night they go around her on her walls,

malice and mischief are in the midst of her; *

fraud and deceit do not depart from her streets.

For it is not an enemy who taunts me— *

then I could bear it;

nor is it an adversary who has exalted himself against me— *

then I could hide from him.

But it is you, a man my equal, *

my companion, my familiar friend.

We used to take sweet counsel together; *

in the house of God, we walked in concord.

Let death come upon them;

let them go down alive into Sheol; *

for evil is in their dwellings and in their heart.

As for me, I will call upon God, *

and the LORD will save me.

Evening and morning and mid-day *

I will pray and cry aloud,

and he shall hear my voice.

He redeems my soul in safety

from the battle that waged against me, *

for many are arrayed against me.

God will hear and humble them, *

he who is enthroned from of old,

because they do not change *

and they do not fear God.

My companion has put out his hand

against those who were at peace with him; *

he violated his covenant.

The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, *

but war was in his heart;

his words were softer than oil, *

yet they were drawn swords.

Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; *

he will never permit the righteous to be moved.

But you, O God, will cast them down *

into the pit of destruction;

bloodthirsty and deceitful men

shall not live out half their days. *

But I will trust in you.

Psalm 56

Be gracious to me, O God, for man tramples me down; *

all day long an attacker oppresses me;

my enemies have trampled upon me all day long, *

for they are many who fight proudly against me.

When I am afraid, *

I will trust in you.

In God, whose word I praise, *

in God I put my trust; I shall not be afraid.

What can flesh do to me?

All day long they twist my words; *

all their thoughts are against me for evil.

They gather together, they lurk; *

they watch my steps,

as they lie in wait for my life.

Shall they escape by iniquity? *

In anger cast down the peoples, O God.

You have kept account of my miseries;

put my tears in your bottle. *

Are they not in your book?

Then my enemies will turn back

in the day when I call. *

This I know, that God is for me.

In God, whose word I praise, *

in the LORD, whose word I praise,

in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. *

What can man do to me?

Your vows are upon me, O God; *

I will render thank offerings to you.

For you have delivered my soul from death, *

you kept my feet from falling,

that I may walk before God *

in the light of the living.

Psalm 57

Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, *

for my soul takes refuge in you;

in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge, *

till the storms of destruction have passed.

I cry out to God Most High, *

to God who fulfills his purpose for me.

He will send from heaven and save me; *

he will rebuke those who trample on me.

God will send forth his mercy and his faithfulness.

My soul is in the midst of lions; *

I lie down among fiery beasts—

the children of man, whose teeth are spears and arrows, *

and whose tongues are sharp swords.

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; *

let your glory be over all the earth.

They have set a net for my feet; *

my soul is bowed down.

They have dug a pit before me, *

but they have fallen into it themselves.

My heart is steadfast, O God, *

my heart is steadfast.

I will sing and give praise. *

Awake, my glory.

Awake, O harp and lyre. *

I will awaken the dawn.

I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples; *

I will sing praises to you among the nations.

For the greatness of your mercy reaches to the heavens, *

your faithfulness to the clouds.

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; *

let your glory be over all the earth.

Psalm 58

Do you indeed speak righteousness, O silent ones? *

Do you judge uprightly, O children of man?

No, in your heart you work wickedness; *

you weigh out the violence of your hands on the earth.

The wicked have turned away from the womb; *

they go astray from birth, speaking lies.

Their venom is like the venom of a serpent, *

like a deaf adder that stops up its ear,

so that it does not hear the voice of the charmers *

no matter how skillful the charming may be.

O God, shatter the teeth in their mouths; *

tear out the fangs of the young lions, O LORD.

Let them vanish away like water that runs off; *

when he bends his bow, let his arrows fall short.

Let them be like wax which melts away, *

fire has fallen, they have not seen the sun.

Before your pots can feel the fire of thorns, *

both green and ablaze, may he sweep them away.

The righteous will rejoice when they see the vengeance; *

they will wash their feet in the blood of the wicked.

Then mankind will say,

“Surely there is a reward for the righteous; *

surely there is a God who judges the earth.”

Psalm 59

Deliver me from my enemies, O God; *

defend me from those who rise up against me;

deliver me from the workers of evil, *

and save me from bloodthirsty men.

For behold, they lie in wait for my life; *

fierce men stir up strife against me.

For no transgression or sin of mine, O LORD, *

for no fault of mine, they run and make themselves ready.

Arise to help me, and see; *

You, LORD God of hosts, the God of Israel.

Rouse yourself to punish all the nations; *

do not be merciful to those who treacherously plot evil.

At evening they return,

howling like dogs *

and prowling about the city.

Behold, they bellow with their mouths,

swords in their lips, *

for “Who,” they say, “will hear us?”

But you, O LORD, laugh at them; *

you scoff at all the nations.

O my strength, I will watch for you, *

for you, O God, are my fortress.

My God in his mercy shall meet me; *

God will let me look on my enemies in triumph.

Do not kill them, lest my people forget;

scatter them by your power, *

and bring them down, O Lord, our shield.

For the sin of their mouth, for the word of their lips, *

let them be caught in their pride.

For the cursing and lies that they utter,

consume them in wrath; *

consume them till they are no more,

so that they may know

that God rules in Jacob *

to the ends of the earth.

At evening they return,

howling like dogs *

and prowling about the city.

They wander up and down for food *

and growl if they are not satisfied.

But I will sing of your strength; *

yes, I will sing aloud of your mercy in the morning.

For you have been to me a fortress *

and a refuge in the day of my trouble.

O my strength, I will sing praises to you,

for you, O God, are my fortress, *

the God who shows me steadfast love.

Psalm 60

O God, you have rejected us, you have broken us down; *

you have been angry; O, turn back to us again.

You have shaken the earth; you have split it open; *

heal its breaches, for it totters.

You have shown your people hard things; *

you have given us wine to drink that makes us stagger.

You have set up a banner for those who fear you, *

so that they may flee to it from the bow.

That your beloved may be delivered, *

save with your right hand and hear me.

God has spoken in his holiness:

“I will rejoice, I will divide up Shechem, *

and portion out the Valley of Succoth.

Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine; *

Ephraim is my helmet;

Judah, my scepter.

Moab is my washbasin;

upon Edom I cast my shoe; *

over Philistia I shout in triumph.”

Who will bring me to the fortified city? *

Who will lead me into Edom?

Is it not you, O God, who rejected us? *

And you, O God, do not go out with our armies.

Oh give us help against the enemy, *

for vain is the deliverance of man.

Through God we shall do valiantly; *

for it is he who will tread down our foes.

Psalm 61

Hear my cry, O God, *

attend to my prayer.

From the end of the earth I call to you *

when my heart is overwhelmed;

lead me to the rock that is higher than I, *

that is higher than I,

for you have been my refuge, *

a strong tower against the enemy.

Let me dwell in your tent forever. *

Let me take refuge in the shelter of your wings.

For you, O God, have heard my vows; *

you have given me the heritage of those who fear your Name.

Add days to the days of the king; *

may his years endure to many generations.

May he be enthroned before God forever; *

appoint steadfast love and faithfulness to preserve him.

So I will sing praise to your Name forever, *

that I may perform my vows day after day.

Psalm 62

For God alone my soul waits in silence; *

from him comes my salvation.

He alone is my rock and my salvation, *

my fortress; I will not be greatly shaken.

How long will you attack a man to batter him,

all of you together, *

like a leaning wall, a tottering fence?

They plan only to thrust him down from his high position; *

They delight in lies;

they bless with their mouths, *

but inwardly they curse.

For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, *

for my hope is from him.

He only is my rock and my salvation, *

my fortress; I will not be shaken.

In God is my salvation and my glory; *

the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.

Trust in him at all times, O people;

pour out your hearts before him; *

God is a refuge for us.

Those of low estate are but a breath; *

those of high estate, a delusion;

in the balances they go up; *

together they are lighter than a breath.

Put no trust in oppression;

set no vain hope on robbery; *

if riches increase, do not set your heart upon them.

One thing God has spoken; *

these two things I have heard:

that power belongs to God, *

and that with you, O Lord, is steadfast love.

For you will render to everyone *

according to his work.

Psalm 63

O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; * *

my soul thirsts for you;

my flesh faints for you,

in a dry and weary land

where there is no water.

So I have seen you in the sanctuary, * *

and beheld your power and your glory.

Because your love is better than life, * *

my lips will praise you.

So I will bless you as long as I live, * *

and in your Name I will lift up my hands.

My soul shall be satisfied as with the richest of foods, * *

and with joyful lips my mouth shall praise you,

When I remember you upon my bed, * *

and meditate on you through the watches of the night.

Because you have been my help, * *

I will sing for joy in the shadow of your wings.

My soul clings to you; * *

your right hand upholds me.

But those who seek my soul, to destroy it, * *

shall go down into the depths of the earth;

They shall be given over to the power of the sword; * *

they shall be a portion for jackals.

But the king shall rejoice in God;

everyone who swears by him shall glory, * *

for the mouths of liars will be silenced.

Psalm 64

Hear my voice, O God, in my supplication; *

preserve my life from fear of the enemy.

Hide me from the conspiracy of the wicked, *

from the insurrection of evildoers,

who sharpen their tongue like a sword, *

who aim bitter words like arrows,

to shoot in secret at the innocent; *

they shoot him suddenly and without fear.

They hold fast to their evil purpose; *

and discuss among themselves the hiding of snares,

they say, “Who shall see them?” *

They search out injustices,

they wearied themselves with a diligent search; *

the approach of man and the heart are deep.

But God will be exalted; *

with his arrows they will be struck down suddenly.

He will make them to stumble,

their own tongue turned against them; *

all who see them shall flee away.

Then all people will fear; *

they will proclaim the work of God,

and ponder what he has done.

Let the righteous rejoice in the LORD,

and take refuge in him, *

and all the upright in heart shall glory.

Psalm 65

Praise awaits you, O God, in Zion, *

and to you shall vows be performed.

O you who hear our prayer, *

to you all flesh shall come.

Our wicked words prevail against us; *

O be merciful and cover our transgressions.

Blessed is the one you choose and bring near, *

to dwell in your courts.

We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, *

your holy temple.

By awesome deeds you answer us with righteousness, *

O God of our salvation,

the hope of all the ends of the earth *

and of the farthest seas;

who formed the mountains by his power, *

and is girded about with might;

who stills the raging of the seas, *

the roaring of their waves,

the tumult of the peoples.

Those who dwell at the ends of the earth

shall be in fear at your signs; *

you cause the morning and the evening to rejoice.

You visit the earth and water it; *

you greatly enrich it;

the river of God is full of water;

you prepare the grain, *

for so you provide for the earth.

You water its furrows abundantly, *

you settle its ridges,

you soften it with showers, *

you bless its growth.

You crown the year with your bounty; *

your paths overflow with abundance.

The pastures of the wilderness overflow, *

and the hills are girded with gladness,

the meadows are clothed with flocks,

the valleys are covered with grain, *

they shout and sing together for joy.

Psalm 66

Shout joyfully to God, all the earth;

sing the glory of his Name; *

give to him glorious praise.

Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds; *

so great is your power that your enemies pretend to obey you.

All the earth shall worship you

and sing praises to you; *

they will sing praises to your Name.”

Come and see what God has done, *

his awesome deeds toward the children of man.

He turned the sea into dry land; *

they went through the water on foot.

There we will rejoice in him, *

who rules by his might forever;

his eyes keep watch on the nations— *

let not the rebellious exalt themselves.

Bless our God, all you peoples; *

let the sound of his praise be heard,

who keeps our soul among the living, *

and does not allow our feet to slip.

For you, O God, have tested us; *

you have tried us as silver is tried.

You brought us into the net; *

you laid a heavy burden on our backs;

you let men ride over our heads;

we went through fire and through water; *

yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance.

I will come into your house with burnt offerings; *

I will fulfill my vows to you,

vows which my lips uttered *

and my mouth promised when I was in distress.

I will offer to you burnt offerings of fattened animals, *

with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams;

I will make an offering of bulls and goats.

Come and hear, all you who fear God, *

and I will tell what he has done for my soul.

I cried out to him with my mouth, *

and high praise was on my tongue.

If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, *

the Lord would not have listened.

But truly God has listened; *

he has attended to the voice of my prayer.

Blessed be God,

who has not rejected my prayer, *

nor withheld his mercy from me.

Psalm 67

May God be gracious to us and bless us *

and make his face to shine upon us,

that your way may be known on the earth, *

your salvation among all nations.

Let the peoples praise you, O God; *

let all the peoples praise you.

Let the nations be glad and rejoice,

for you judge the peoples righteously, *

and guide the nations on the earth.

Let the peoples praise you, O God; *

let all the peoples praise you.

The earth has yielded her increase; *

God, our God, shall bless us.

God shall bless us; *

and all the ends of the earth shall fear him.

Psalm 68

Let God arise, and let his enemies be scattered; *

let those who hate him flee before him.

As smoke is driven away, so drive them away; *

as wax melts before fire,

so the wicked shall perish before God.

But let the righteous be glad;

let them rejoice before God; *

let them be jubilant with joy.

Sing to God, sing praises to his Name; *

lift up a song to him who rides through the deserts;

his Name is the LORD; *

rejoice before him.

Father of the fatherless, and protector of widows, *

is God in his holy habitation.

God settles the solitary in a home;

he leads out the prisoners into prosperity, *

but the rebellious dwell in a sun-scorched land.

O God, when you went out before your people, *

when you marched through the wilderness,

the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain,

before God, the One of Sinai, *

before God, the God of Israel.

O God, you sent a gracious rain; *

you restored your inheritance when it was weary;

your creatures found a dwelling there; *

in your goodness, O God, you provided for the poor.

The Lord gave the word; *

and the women who proclaim it are a great company. *

The kings of the armies—they flee, they flee. *

And the women at home divide the spoil. *

Though you lie among the sheepfolds,

you will be like the wings of a dove covered with silver, *

her feathers with shimmering gold.

When the Almighty scattered kings there, *

it was like snow fall in Zalmon.

O mountain of God, mountain of Bashan; *

O mountain of many peaks, mountain of Bashan.

Why do you fume with envy, O many-peaked mountain,

at the mount that God desired for his dwelling, *

yes, where the LORD will dwell forever?

The chariots of God are twice ten thousand,

thousands upon thousands; *

the Lord is among them, as in Sinai, in the sanctuary.

You have ascended on high,

leading a host of captives *

and receiving gifts for man,

even among the rebellious as well, *

that the LORD God may dwell there.

Blessed be the Lord,

who daily bears us up; *

The God who is our salvation.

Our God is a God of salvation, *

and to GOD, the Lord, belong deliverances from death.

But God will strike the head of his enemies, *

the hairy crown of those who persist in their guilty ways.

The Lord said,

“I will bring them back from Bashan, *

I will bring them back from the depths of the sea,

that your foot may be dipped in the blood of your enemies, *

the tongue of your dogs be red with the same.”

They have seen your procession, O God, *

the procession of my God, my King, into the sanctuary—

the singers in front, the musicians behind them, *

in the midst are the maidens playing tambourines.

Bless God in the great congregation, *

the LORD, O you who are of Israel's fountain.

There is Benjamin, the youngest of them, their leader,

the princes of Judah, their counsel, *

the princes of Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali.

Command your power, O God, *

the power, O God, by which you have worked for us.

Because of your temple at Jerusalem, *

kings shall bring gifts to you.

Rebuke the beasts that dwell among the reeds, *

the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples.

Trample underfoot those who lust after tribute; *

scatter the peoples who delight in war.

Ambassadors shall come out of Egypt; *

Ethiopia shall hasten to stretch out her hands to God.

Sing to God, O you kingdoms of the earth; *

sing praises to the Lord,

to him who rides in the heavens of heavens, from the beginning; *

he sends out his voice, his mighty voice.

Ascribe power to God,

whose majesty is over Israel, *

and whose strength is in the skies.

Awesome is God from his sanctuary; *

the God of Israel himself, gives power and strength to his people.

Blessed be God.

Psalm 69

Save me, O God. *

For the waters have come up to my neck.

I sink down in deep mire, where there is no foothold; *

I have come into deep waters, and the flood overflows me.

I am weary with crying; my throat is parched. *

My eyes grow dim with waiting for my God.

Those who hate me without cause, *

Are more in number than the hairs of my head.

Mighty are those who would destroy me,

those who attack me with lies. *

What I did not steal, I must now restore.

O God, you know my foolishness; *

the wrong I have done is not hidden from you.

Let not those who hope in You, O Lord GOD of hosts, *

be ashamed because of me;

let not those who seek you be dishonored because of me, *

O God of Israel.

For it is for your sake that I have borne reproach; *

shame has covered my face.

I have become a stranger to my brothers, *

and an alien to my mother's children.

For zeal for your house has consumed me, *

and the reproaches of those who reproach you have fallen on me.

When I wept and humbled my soul with fasting, *

that became my reproach.

When I made sackcloth my clothing, *

I became a byword to them.

Those who sit in the gate speak against me, *

and I am the song of the drunkards.

But as for me, my prayer is to you, O LORD, *

at an acceptable time, O God,

in the multitude of your mercy, *

answer me in the truth of your salvation.

Deliver me out of the mire, *

let me not sink;

let me be delivered from those who hate me, *

and from the deep waters.

Let not the flood sweep over me,

nor let the deep swallow me up, *

nor the pit close its mouth over me.

Answer me, O LORD, for your steadfast love is good; *

turn to me according to the abundance of your mercy.

Hide not your face from your servant, *

for I am in distress; make haste to answer me.

Draw near to my soul, redeem me; *

ransom me because of my enemies.

You know my reproach,

and my shame, and my dishonor; *

my adversaries are all before you.

Reproach has broken my heart, *

so that I am in despair.

I looked for sympathy, but there was none; *

and for comforters, but I found none.

They gave me gall for my food, *

and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.

Let their table before them become a snare; *

and when they are at peace, let it become a trap.

Let their eyes be darkened, so that they cannot see, *

and make their loins tremble continually.

Pour out your indignation upon them, *

and let your burning anger overtake them.

May their camp become desolate; *

let there be no one to dwell in their tents.

For they persecute him whom you have struck down, *

and they tell of the pain of whom you have wounded.

Add guilt to their guilt; *

and let them not come into Your righteousness.

Let them be blotted out of the book of the living; *

let them not be recorded among the righteous.

But I am afflicted and in pain; *

let your salvation, O God, set me safely on high.

I will praise the Name of God with a song; *

and I will magnify him with thanksgiving.

And it will please the LORD more than an ox, *

a bull with horns and hoofs.

The humble shall see this and be glad; *

you who seek God, your hearts shall revive.

For the LORD hears the needy, *

and does not despise his people who are prisoners.

Heaven and earth shall praise him, *

the seas and everything that moves in them.

For God will save Zion *

and build up the cities of Judah,

that people may dwell there and possess it;

the offspring of his servants shall inherit it, *

and those who love his Name shall dwell there.

Psalm 70

O God, hasten to deliver me. *

O LORD, make haste to help me.

Let them be put to shame and confounded *

who seek after my life.

Let them be turned back and dishonored *

who wish me evil.

Let them be turned back because of their shame *

who say to me, “Aha, Aha.”

May all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you. *

And let those who love your salvation say continually,

“God is great.”

But I am poor and needy; *

hasten to me, O God.

You are my help and my deliverer; *

O LORD, do not delay.

Psalm 71

In you, O LORD, I have taken refuge; *

let me never be put to shame.

In your righteousness, rescue me and deliver me; *

incline your ear to me, and save me.

Be to me a rock of refuge, *

to which I may continually come;

you have given the command to save me, *

for you are my rock and my fortress.

Deliver me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked, *

from the grasp of the unrighteous and ruthless man.

For you are my hope, O Lord; *

O LORD, my confidence from my youth.

I have leaned on you from before my birth;

you brought me out from my mother's womb; *

my praise is continually of you.

I have become a portent to many, *

but you are my strong refuge.

Let my mouth be filled with your praise, *

that I may sing of your glory all the day long.

Do not cast me off in the time of old age; *

forsake me not when my strength is spent.

For my enemies speak against me; *

those who watch for my life consult together

saying, “God has forsaken him;

pursue and seize him, *

for there is none to deliver him.”

O God, be not far from me; *

O my God, make haste to help me.

May my accusers be put to shame and consumed; *

with scorn and disgrace may they be covered who seek my harm.

But I will hope continually *

and will praise you yet more and more.

My mouth will tell of your righteousness,

and of your acts of salvation all the day long, *

though their number is past my knowledge.

I will go forth in the strength of the Lord GOD; *

I will remind them of your righteousness, yours alone.

O God, from my youth you have taught me, *

and to this day I declare your wondrous works.

So even to old age and gray hairs, *

O God, do not forsake me,

until I proclaim your might to the next generation, *

your power to all those to come.

Your righteousness, O God, *

reaches the high heavens.

You who have done great things, *

O God, who is like you?

You who have made me see many troubles and calamities *

will revive me again;

and from the depths of the earth *

you will again bring me up.

You will increase my greatness *

and comfort me again.

Also, I will praise you with the harp *

for your faithfulness, O my God;

I will sing praises to you with the lyre, *

O Holy One of Israel.

My lips will shout for joy,

when I sing praises to you; *

my soul also, which you have redeemed.

And my tongue will tell of your righteousness *

all the day long,

for they have been put to shame and confounded *

who sought to do me harm.

Psalm 72

Give the king your justice, O God; * *

your righteousness to the royal son;

That he may judge your people with righteousness, * *

and your poor with justice.

May the mountains yield prosperity for the people, * *

and the little hills bring righteousness.

He shall defend the cause of the poor among the people, * *

he will deliver the children of the poor,

and crush the oppressor-

They shall fear you while the sun and moon endure, * *

from generation to generation.

May he come down like rain falling on the mown grass, * *

like showers that water the earth.

In his days may the righteous flourish, * *

and peace abound, till the moon be no more.

May he have dominion from sea to sea, * *

and from the River to the ends of the earth.

May the desert tribes bow down before him, * *

and his enemies shall lick the dust.

May the kings of Tarshish and of distant shores render him tribute; * *

the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.

May all kings bow down before him, * *

and all nations serve him.

For he delivers the needy who cry out, * *

the poor also, and him who has no helper.

He has compassion on the weak and the needy, * *

the lives of the needy, he will save.

He will redeem their life from oppression and violence, * *

and precious will their blood be in his sight.

Long may he live; * *

may the gold of Sheba be given to him.

May prayer be made for him continually, * *

and all the day long shall he be praised.

May there be an abundance of grain in the land; * *

may it wave on the tops of the mountains;

May its fruit flourish like the forests of Lebanon; * *

and they of the city blossom like the grass of the field.

May his Name endure forever, * *

may his Name continue as long as the sun.

All people shall be blessed in him, * *

all nations shall call him blessed.

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, * *

who alone does wondrous things.

Blessed be his glorious name forever; * *

may the whole earth be filled with his glory.

Amen and Amen.

Psalm 73

Truly God is good to Israel, *

to those who are pure in heart.

But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled, *

my steps had nearly slipped.

For I was envious of the arrogant *

when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

For they have no pains until death; *

their bodies are healthy and strong.

They are not in the misery of mortals; *

they are not tormented like the rest of mankind.

Therefore pride is their necklace; *

violence covers them like a garment.

Their eyes bulge with abundance; *

their hearts overflow with follies.

They scoff and speak with malice; *

with arrogance they threaten oppression.

They set their mouth against the heavens, *

and their tongue struts through the earth.

Therefore the people turn back to them, *

and find no fault in them.

And they say, “How does God know? *

Is there knowledge in the Most High?”

Behold, these are the wicked, who are always at ease; *

they increase in riches.

Surely in vain have I kept my heart clean *

and washed my hands in innocence.

For all the day long I have been afflicted *

and chastened every morning.

If I had said, “I will speak thus,” *

I would have betrayed the generation of your children.

When I thought how to understand this, *

it seemed to me a wearisome task,

until I went into the sanctuary of God; *

then I discerned their destiny.

Truly you set them in slippery places; *

you cast them down into destruction.

How suddenly they are brought to desolation, *

utterly consumed by terrors.

Indeed, like a dream when one awakes, O Lord, *

when you arise, you will despise them as phantoms.

When my soul was embittered, *

when I was pierced in heart,

I was foolish and ignorant; *

I was like a beast before you.

Nevertheless, I am continually with you; *

you have hold of my right hand.

You guide me with your counsel, *

and afterward you will receive me to glory.

Whom have I in heaven but you? *

And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.

My flesh and my heart may fail, *

but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

For behold, those who are far from you shall perish; *

you put an end to everyone who goes a whoring from you.

But it is good for me to draw near to God; *

I have made the Lord GOD my refuge,

that I may declare all your works.

Psalm 74

O God, why do you cast us off forever? *

Why does your anger smoke against the sheep of your pasture?

Remember your congregation, *

which you have purchased of old,

the tribe of your inheritance, *

which you have redeemed;

remember Mount Zion, *

where you have dwelt.

Draw near and behold the perpetual ruins; *

how the enemy has destroyed everything in the sanctuary.

Your enemies have roared in the midst of your meeting place; *

they set up their own signs for signs;

they were like men wielding axes, *

cutting through a thicket of trees;

and all its carved wood they broke down *

with hatchets and hammers.

They have set fire to your sanctuary; *

they have defiled the dwelling place of your Name,

bringing it down to the ground.

They said in their hearts, “We will crush them completely;” *

they burned all the meeting places of God in the land.

We do not see our signs;

there is no longer any prophet, *

and there is none among us who knows how long.

How long, O God, will the enemy mock? *

Will the adversary revile your Name forever?

Why do you hold back your hand, your right hand? *

Take it from the fold of your garment, destroy them.

Yet God is my King from of old, *

working salvation in the midst of the earth.

You divided the sea by your strength; *

you broke the heads of the sea monsters on the waters.

You crushed the heads of Leviathan; *

you gave him as food for the people of the desert.

You split open the fountain and the flood; *

you dried up ever-flowing streams.

Yours is the day, yours also the night; *

you have established the light and the sun.

You have set all the boundaries of the earth; *

you have made both summer and winter.

Remember this, O LORD, how the enemy has mocked, *

and a foolish people has reviled your Name.

Do not deliver the soul of your dove to the wild beast; *

do not forget the life of your poor forever.

Consider the covenant, *

for the dark places of the earth are full

of the habitations of violence.

Let not the oppressed turn back in disgrace; *

let the poor and needy praise your Name.

Arise, O God, defend your cause; *

remember how the foolish scoff at you all the day long.

Do not forget the voice of your enemies, *

the uproar of those who rise up against you

increases continually.

Psalm 75

We give thanks to you, O God;

we give thanks, for your Name is near; *

we declare your wondrous deeds.

“At the time I appoint, *

I will judge uprightly.

When the earth and all its inhabitants are unsteady, *

it is I who set firm its pillars.

I say to the arrogant, ‘Boast no more,’ *

and to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up your horn;

do not lift up your horn on high, *

or speak with a haughty neck.’”

For exaltation comes neither from the east,

nor from the west, *

nor from the desert mountains,

for it is God who is the judge, *

putting down one and lifting up another.

For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup *

with foaming wine, well mixed,

he pours it out, *

and all the wicked of the earth

shall drain it down to the dregs.

As for me, I will declare it forever; *

I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.

All the horns of the wicked I will cut off, *

but the horns of the righteous shall be exalted.

Psalm 76

In Judah God is known; *

his Name is great in Israel.

In Salem is his tabernacle, *

his dwelling place in Zion.

There he broke the flashing arrows, *

the shield, the sword, the weapons of war.

You are radiant with light, *

more majestic than the mountains full of prey.

The stouthearted are plundered; *

they have sunk into sleep;

and none of the warriors can use their hands.

At your rebuke, O God of Jacob, *

both horse and rider are in a dead sleep.

But you, yourself, are to be feared; *

who can stand before you when your anger is roused?

You caused judgment to be heard from heaven; *

the earth trembled and was silent,

when God arose to judgment, *

to save all the humble of the earth.

Surely the wrath of man shall praise you; *

the remnant of your wrath are restrained.

Make vows to the LORD your God, and fulfill them; *

let all who are around him

bring gifts to him who is to be feared,

He shall cut off the spirit of princes; *

he is feared by the kings of the earth.

Psalm 77

I cry out to God with my voice, *

I cry aloud, and he hears me.

In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord;

in the night my hand is stretched out without ceasing; *

my soul refuses to be comforted.

When I remember God, I groan; *

when I meditate, my spirit grows faint.

You hold my eyelids open; *

I am so troubled that I cannot speak.

I consider the days of old, *

the years of long ago.

I call to remembrance my song in the night; *

I meditate within my heart,

and my spirit makes diligent search.

Will the Lord reject forever, *

and never again show his favor?

Has his mercy forever ceased? *

Are his promises at an end for evermore?

Has God forgotten to be gracious? *

Has he in anger withdrawn his compassion?

Then I said, “I will appeal to this: *

to the years of the right hand of the Most High.”

I will remember the works of the LORD; *

yes, I will remember your wonders of old.

I will meditate on all your work, *

and consider all your mighty deeds.

Your way, O God, is holy. *

What god is great like our God?

You are the God who works wonders; *

you have made known your power among the peoples.

With your mighty arm you redeemed your people, *

the children of Jacob and Joseph.

The waters saw you, O God,

the waters saw you and were afraid; *

indeed, the deeps trembled.

The clouds poured out water;

the skies resounded with thunder; *

your arrows flashed on every side.

The voice of your thunder was in the whirlwind;

the lightning lit up the world; *

the earth trembled and shook.

Your way was through the sea,

your path through the mighty waters; *

yet your footsteps were not seen.

You led your people like a flock *

by the hand of Moses and Aaron.

Psalm 78

Give ear, O my people, to my teaching; *

incline your ears to the words of my mouth.

I will open my mouth in a parable; *

I will utter dark sayings of old,

things we have heard and known, *

things that our fathers have told us.

We will not hide them from their children, *

but tell to the generation to come

the glorious deeds of the LORD, and His might, *

and the wonderful works that He has done.

He established a testimony in Jacob *

and appointed a law in Israel,

which He commanded our fathers *

to teach to their children,

that the next generation might know them, *

the children yet to be born,

that they would arise and tell them to their children, *

so that they would set their hope in God

and not forget the works of God, *

but keep His commandments;

and that they should not be like their fathers, *

a stubborn and rebellious generation,

a generation that did not set its heart aright, *

whose spirit was not faithful to God.

The children of Ephraim, armed with the bow, *

turned back on the day of battle.

They did not keep the covenant of God, *

they refused to walk in His law.

They forgot His works *

and the wonders that He had shown them.

He did marvelous things in the sight of their fathers, *

in the land of Egypt, in the fields of Zoan.

He divided the sea and led them through it, *

and made the waters stand up like a heap.

In the daytime He led them with a cloud, *

and all the night with a light of fire.

He split the rocks in the wilderness *

and gave them drink in abundance as from the great deep.

He brought forth streams from out of the rock *

and caused waters to run down like rivers.

Yet they sinned still more against Him, *

rebelling against the Most High in the desert.

They tested God in their heart *

by demanding food according to their desire.

They spoke against God, saying, *

“Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?

Behold, He struck the rock so that water gushed out *

and the streams overflowed.

Can He also give bread *

or provide meat for His people?”

When the LORD heard this, He was filled with anger; *

and a fire was kindled against Jacob;

His wrath arose against Israel,

because they did not believe in God *

and did not trust in His salvation.

Yet He commanded the clouds above *

and opened the doors of the heavens,

and He rained down on them manna to eat *

and gave them the bread of heaven.

Man ate of the bread of angels; *

He sent them food in abundance.

He caused the east wind to blow in the heavens, *

and by His power He made the south wind blow;

He rained meat on them like dust, *

winged birds like the sand of the seas;

He let them fall in the midst of their camp, *

all around their habitations.

So they ate and were well filled, *

for He gave them their own desire.

But before they had satisfied their craving, *

while the food was still in their mouths,

the wrath of God rose up against them,

and killed the strongest of them *

and struck down the young men of Israel.

In spite of all this, they sinned yet more; *

despite His wonders, they did not believe.

So He ended their days in futility, *

and their years in sudden terror.

When He killed them, then they sought Him; *

they repented and sought earnestly for God.

They remembered that God was their rock, *

the Most High God their redeemer.

Nevertheless, they flattered Him with their mouths; *

they lied to Him with their tongues.

For their heart was not steadfast toward Him; *

nor were they faithful in His covenant.

But He, being merciful, atoned for their iniquity *

and did not destroy them;

Time after time He turned His anger away, *

and did not stir up all His wrath.

He remembered that they were but flesh, *

a wind that passes and comes not again.

How often they rebelled against Him in the wilderness *

and grieved Him in the desert.

They tested God again and again *

and provoked the Holy One of Israel.

They did not remember His power *

or the day He redeemed them from the enemy,

when He performed His signs in Egypt *

and His marvels in the fields of Zoan.

He turned their rivers to blood, *

and their streams, so that they could not drink.

He sent among them swarms of flies, which devoured them, *

and frogs, which destroyed them.

He gave also their crops to the grasshopper *

and the fruit of their labor to the locust.

He destroyed their vines with hailstones *

and their sycamore trees with frost.

He gave over their cattle to the hail *

and their flocks to hot thunderbolts.

He let loose on them His burning anger,

wrath, indignation, and distress, *

a band of destroying angels.

He made a path for His anger;

he did not spare their souls from death, *

but gave their lives over to the plague.

He struck down every firstborn in Egypt, *

the firstfruits of their strength in the tents of Ham.

Then he led out his people like sheep *

and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.

He led them on safely, so that they were not afraid; *

while the sea overwhelmed their enemies.

He brought them in to the borders of His holy land, *

to the mountain which His right hand had won.

He drove out the nations before them;

he allotted them their lands as an inheritance *

and settled the tribes of Israel in their tents.

Yet they tested and rebelled against the Most High God *

and did not keep His testimonies,

but turned away and acted treacherously like their fathers; *

they twisted like a deceitful bow.

For they provoked Him to anger with their high places; *

and moved Him to jealousy with their idols.

When God heard this, He was filled with anger, *

and He utterly rejected Israel.

He abandoned His tabernacle in Shiloh, *

the tent where he dwelt among man,

and delivered His strength into captivity, *

His glory into the enemy’s hand.

He gave his people over to the sword *

and showed Himself angry with His inheritance.

Fire devoured their young men, *

and their maidens had no marriage songs.

Their priests fell by the sword, *

and their widows made no lamentation.

Then the Lord awoke as if from sleep, *

like a warrior overcome with wine.

He drove back his adversaries; *

He put them to everlasting shame.

He rejected the tent of Joseph; *

He did not choose the tribe of Ephraim,

He chose the tribe of Judah, *

Mount Zion, which He loves.

He built His sanctuary like the high heavens, *

like the earth, which He has established forever.

He chose David His servant *

and took him from the sheepfolds;

from following the nursing ewes He brought him *

to shepherd Jacob His people,

and Israel His inheritance.

With upright heart he shepherded them *

and guided them with skillful hands.

Psalm 79

O God, the nations have invaded Your inheritance;

they have defiled Your holy temple; *

they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.

They have given the bodies of Your servants as food

to the birds of the air, *

the flesh of Your faithful to the beasts of the earth.

They have poured out their blood like water all around Jerusalem, *

and there was no one to bury them.

We have become a disgrace to our neighbors, *

mocked and derided by those around us.

How long, O LORD? Will You be angry forever? *

Will Your jealousy burn like fire?

Pour out Your wrath on the nations that do not know You, *

and on the kingdoms that do not call upon Your Name.

For they have devoured Jacob *

and laid waste his dwelling place.

Do not remember against us our former iniquities; *

let Your compassion come quickly to meet us,

for we are brought very low.

Help us, O God of our salvation, *

for the glory of Your Name;

deliver us, and atone for our sins, *

for Your Name's sake.

Why should the nations say, *

“Where is their God?”

Before our eyes let it be known among the nations: *

the avenging of the outpoured blood of Your servants.

Let the groaning of the prisoner come before You; *

according to Your great power, preserve those condemned to die.

Return sevenfold into the lap of our neighbors *

the taunts with which they have taunted You, O Lord.

So we, Your people and the sheep of Your pasture,

will give You thanks forever; *

from generation to generation we will proclaim Your praise.

Psalm 80

Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,

you who lead Joseph like a flock. * *

You who sit enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth;

Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh, * *

awaken your strength and come to save us.

Restore us, O God; * *

let your face shine upon us, that we may be saved.

O Lord God of hosts, * *

how long will you be angry with the prayers of your people?

You have fed them with the bread of tears * *

and given them tears to drink by the bowlful.

You have made us an object of contention to our neighbors, * *

our enemies mock us among themselves.

Restore us, O God of hosts; * *

let your face shine upon us, that we may be saved.

You brought a vine out of Egypt; * *

you drove out the nations and planted it.

You cleared the ground for it; * *

and it took deep root and filled the land.

The mountains were covered with its shade, * *

the mighty cedars with its branches.

It sent out its branches to the sea * *

and its shoots as far as the River.

Why then have you broken down its walls, * *

so that all who pass that way pluck its fruit?

The boar from the forest ravages it, * *

and all that moves in the fields feed upon it.

Turn to us, O God of hosts. * *

Look down from heaven, and see;

Show care for this vine,

the root that your right hand has planted, * *

the branch you made strong for yourself.

It is burned with fire; it is cut down; * *

they perish at the rebuke of your face.

But let your hand be on the man of your right hand, * *

on the son of man you have made strong for yourself.

Then we shall not turn away from you; * *

give us life, and we will call on your name.

Restore us, O Lord God of hosts. * *

Let your face shine upon us, that we may be saved.

Psalm 81

Sing aloud to God our strength; *

shout for joy to the God of Jacob.

Raise a song; strike the tambourine, *

the sweet sounding lyre with the harp.

Blow the trumpet at the new moon, *

at the full moon, on the day of our feast.

For it is a statute for Israel, *

an ordinance of the God of Jacob.

He established it as a testimony in Joseph

when he went throughout the land of Egypt, *

where I heard a language I did not know.

“I relieved his shoulder of the burden; *

his hands were freed from the basket.

In distress you called, and I rescued you;

I answered you in the secret place of thunder; *

I tested you at the waters of Meribah.

Hear, O my people, while I admonish you. *

O Israel, if you would but listen to me.

There shall be no strange god among you; *

you shall not bow down to a foreign god.

I am the LORD your God,

who brought you out of the land of Egypt; *

open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.

“But my people did not listen to my voice; *

Israel would not submit to me.

So I gave them over to their own stubborn hearts, *

to follow their own counsels.

Oh, that my people would listen to me, *

that Israel would walk in my ways.

I would soon subdue their enemies *

and turn my hand against their foes.

Those who hate the LORD would cringe before him, *

and their fate would endure forever.

But he would feed you with the finest of wheat, *

and satisfy you with honey from the rock.”

Psalm 82

God stands in the divine council; *

in the midst of the gods he judges:

“How long will you judge unjustly *

and show partiality to the wicked?

Give justice to the poor and the fatherless; *

maintain the rights of the poor and the oppressed.

Rescue the weak and the needy; *

free them from the hand of the wicked.”

They do not know nor understand,

they walk about in darkness; *

all the foundations of the earth are shaken.

I said, “You are gods, *

and all of you are sons of the Most High;

nevertheless, like men you shall die, *

and fall like one of the princes.”

Arise, O God, judge the earth; *

for you shall inherit all the nations.

Psalm 83

O God, do not keep silent; *

do not hold your peace or be still, O God.

For behold, how your enemies roar; *

those who hate you have lifted up their heads.

They make crafty plans against your people; *

they consult together against your cherished ones.

They say, “Come, let us wipe them out as a nation, *

that the name of Israel may be remembered no more.”

For they have conspired with one accord; *

against you they make a covenant—

the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites, *

Moab and the Hagrites,

Gebal and Ammon and Amalek, *

Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;

Assyria also has joined them; *

they are a strong arm to the children of Lot.

Deal with them as you did with Midian, *

as with Sisera and Jabin at the brook of Kishon,

who were destroyed at En-dor, *

who became like dung on the earth.

Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb, *

all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna,

who said, “Let us take for ourselves *

the pastures of God for our possession.”

O my God, make them like whirling dust, *

like chaff before the wind.

As the fire consumes the forest, *

as the flame sets the mountains ablaze,

so pursue them with your tempest *

and terrify them with your hurricane.

Fill their faces with shame, *

that they may seek your Name, O LORD.

Let them be disgraced and dismayed forever; *

let them be put to shame and perish,

that they may know that you, whose Name is the LORD, *

that you alone are the Most High

over all the earth.

Psalm 84

How lovely is your dwelling place, * *

O LORD Almighty.

My soul longs, yes, even faints * *

for the courts of the LORD;

My heart and flesh cry out * *

for the living God.

Even the sparrow has found a home,

and the swallow a nest for herself, * *

where she may lay her young,

at your altars, O LORD of hosts,

my King and my God.

Blessed are those who dwell in your house, * *

they are ever singing your praise.

Blessed are those whose strength is in you, * *

whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.

As they pass through the Valley of Weeping

they make it a place of springs; * *

yes, the early rain also covers it with pools.

They go from strength to strength; * *

and the God of gods will be seen in Zion.

O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer; * *

give ear, O God of Jacob.

Behold our shield, O God; * *

look upon the face of your anointed.

For one day in your courts * *

is better than a thousand elsewhere.

I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God * *

than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.

For the LORD God is a sun and shield; * *

the LORD bestows favor and honor.

No good thing does he withhold * *

from those who walk uprightly.

O LORD of hosts, * *

blessed is the one who trusts in you.

Psalm 85

You have been favorable to our land, O LORD; * *

you have restored the fortunes of Jacob.

You have forgiven the iniquity of your people * *

and covered all their sin.

You have withdrawn all your fury * *

and turned away from your burning anger.

Restore us again, O God of our salvation, * *

and put away your anger toward us.

Will you be angry with us forever? * *

Will you prolong your anger to all generations?

Will you not revive us again, * *

that your people may rejoice in you?

Show us your faithful love, O LORD, * *

and grant us your salvation.

Let me hear what God the LORD is saying, * *

for he will speak peace to his people, his saints;

but let them not turn back to folly.

Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him; * *

that glory may dwell in our land.

Steadfast love and faithfulness meet together; * *

righteousness and peace kiss each other.

Faithfulness springs up from the ground, * *

and righteousness looks down from heaven.

Indeed, the LORD will give what is good, * *

and our land will yield its increase.

Righteousness goes before him * *

and will make his footsteps into our pathway.

Psalm 86

Incline your ear, O LORD, and hear me, *

for I am poor and needy.

Preserve my life, for I am holy; *

O you my God, save your servant, who trusts in you.

Be merciful to me, O Lord, *

for to you do I cry all the day long.

Gladden the soul of your servant, *

for to you, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.

For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, *

abounding in mercy to all who call upon you.

Give ear, O LORD, to my prayer; *

and attend to the voice of my supplication.

In the day of my distress I call upon you, *

for you answer me.

There is none like you among the gods, O Lord, *

nor are there any works like your works.

All the nations you have made

shall come and worship before you, O Lord, *

and shall glorify your Name.

For you are great and do wondrous things; *

you alone are God.

Teach me your way, O LORD,

that I may walk in your truth; *

unite my heart to fear your Name.

I give thanks to you, O Lord my God,

with my whole heart, *

and I will glorify your Name forevermore.

For great is your steadfast love toward me; *

you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.

O God, arrogant men have risen up against me;

a band of ruthless men seeks my life, *

and they have not set you before them.

But you, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious, *

slow to anger

and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.

Oh, turn to me and have mercy on me;

give your strength to your servant, *

and save the son of your maidservant.

Show me a sign of your favor,

that those who hate me may see it and be put to shame *

because you, LORD, have helped me and comforted me.

Psalm 87

In the holy mountains stands the city he founded; *

the LORD loves the gates of Zion

more than all the dwelling places of Jacob.

Glorious things are spoken of you, *

O city of God.

I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon to those who know Me;

behold, Philistia and Tyre, with Ethiopia— *

“This one was born there,” they say.

And of Zion it shall be said,

“This one and that one were born in her”; *

for the Most High himself will establish her.

The LORD will record when he registers the peoples, *

“This one was born there.”

Singers and dancers alike will say, *

“All my fountains are in you.”

Psalm 88

O LORD, God of my salvation, *

I have cried out day and night before you.

Let my prayer come before you; *

incline your ear to my cry.

For my soul is full of troubles, *

and my life draws near to the grave.

I am counted among those who go down to the pit; *

I have become like one who has no strength,

adrift among the dead, *

like the slain who lie in the grave,

whom you remember no more, *

for they are cut off from your hand.

You have laid me in the lowest pit, *

in the regions of darkness, in the depths.

Your wrath lies heavy upon me, *

you have overwhelmed me with all your waves.

You have caused my companions to shun me; *

you have made me an abomination to them.

I am confined and cannot escape; *

my eye grows dim with grief.

I have called upon you, O LORD, all the day; *

I have stretched out my hands to you.

Will you work wonders for the dead? *

Will the departed rise up and praise you?

Will your steadfast love be declared in the grave, *

or your faithfulness in Abaddon?

Will your wonders be known in the darkness, *

or your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?

But I, O LORD, cry out to you; *

in the morning my prayer comes before you.

O LORD, why do you cast off my soul? *

Why do you hide your face from me?

From my youth, I have been afflicted and close to death, *

I suffer your terrors; I am helpless.

Your wrath has swept over me; *

your terrors have cut me off.

They surround me like a flood all the day long; *

they close in on me on every side.

My beloved and my friend you have removed from me; *

my companion the place of darkness.

Psalm 89

I will sing of the LORD's great love forever; *

with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness to all generations.

For I have said, “Steadfast love will be built up forever; *

in the heavens you will establish your faithfulness.”

You have said, “I have made a covenant with my chosen one; *

I have sworn to David my servant:

‘I will establish your offspring forever, *

and build up your throne for all generations.’”

Let the heavens praise your wonders, O LORD, *

your faithfulness in the assembly of the saints.

For who in the heavens can be compared to the LORD? *

Who is like the LORD among the sons of the mighty?

God greatly feared in the assembly of the saints, *

held in reverence by all those round about him?

O LORD God of hosts, who is like you? *

Mighty, O LORD, your faithfulness surrounds you.

You rule the raging of the sea; *

when its waves rise up, you still them.

You have broken the proud one in pieces, as one who is slain; *

you have scattered your enemies with your mighty arm.

The heavens are yours; the earth also is yours; *

you founded the world and all its fullness.

The north and the south, you have created them; *

Tabor and Hermon rejoice in your Name.

Your arm is mighty; your hand is strong; *

your right hand is exalted.

Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; *

steadfast love and faithfulness go before your face.

Blessed are the people who know the festal shout, *

who walk, O LORD, in the light of your presence,

who rejoice in your Name all the day long *

and in your righteousness they are exalted.

For you are the glory of their strength; *

by your favor our horn is exalted.

For our shield belongs to the LORD, *

our king to the Holy One of Israel.

You once spoke in a vision to your saint, and said: *

“I have bestowed help to one who is mighty;

I have exalted one chosen from the people.

I have found David, my servant; *

with my holy oil I have anointed him,

my hand shall hold him fast; *

my arm also shall strengthen him.

The enemy shall not outwit him; *

nor the son of wickedness afflict him.

I will crush his foes before his face *

and strike down those who hate him.

My faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him, *

and in my Name shall his horn be exalted.

I will set his hand over the sea *

and his right hand over the rivers.

He shall cry to me, ‘You are my Father, *

my God, and the Rock of my salvation.’

And I will make him the firstborn, *

the highest of the kings of the earth.

My mercy I will keep for him forever, *

and my covenant shall stand firm with him.

His seed I will make to endure forever *

and his throne as the days of the heavens.

If his children forsake my law *

and do not walk in my judgements,

if they violate my statutes *

and do not keep my commandments,

Then I will visit their transgression with the rod *

and their iniquity with stripes,

but I will not remove my mercy from him *

nor be false to my faithfulness.

I will not violate my covenant *

nor alter the word that went forth from my lips.

Once for all I have sworn by my holiness; *

I will not lie to David.

His seed shall endure forever, *

and his throne as the sun before me.

Like the moon it shall be established forever, *

a faithful witness in the skies.”

But you have cast off and rejected; *

you have turned away the face of your anointed.

You have rejected the covenant of your servant; *

you have defiled his crown to the ground.

You have broken down all his walls; *

and made his strongholds a ruin.

All who pass by plunder him; *

he has become the scorn of his neighbors.

You have exalted the right hand of his adversaries; *

you have made all his enemies rejoice.

You have also turned back the edge of his sword, *

and you have not sustained him in battle.

You have made his splendor to cease *

and cast his throne to the ground.

You have cut short the days of his youth; *

you have covered him with shame.

How long, O LORD? Will you hide yourself forever? *

How long will your wrath burn like fire?

Remember how short my lifetime is. *

For futility have you created all the children of man?

What man can live and never see death? *

Who can deliver his soul from the power of Sheol?

Lord, where is your steadfast love of old, *

which in your faithfulness you swore to David?

Remember, O Lord, how your servants are mocked, *

how I bear in my heart the reproach of all the many nations,

with which your enemies have taunted, O LORD, *

with which they mock the footsteps of your anointed.

Blessed be the LORD forevermore. *

Amen and Amen.

Psalm 90

Lord, you have been our dwelling place * *

in every generation.

Before the mountains were brought forth,

before you had formed the earth and the world, * *

from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

You turn man back into dust * *

saying, “Return, O children of man.”

For a thousand years in your sight * *

are like the day that has just gone by,

or like a watch in the night.

You sweep them away like a flood; * *

they are as a dream,

like new grass growing in the morning:

In the morning it flourishes and is renewed; * *

by the evening it fades and withers away.

For we are consumed by your anger; * *

by your wrath we are dismayed.

You have set our iniquities before you, * *

our secret sins in the light of your presence.

For all our days pass away in your fury; * *

we bring our years to an end like a sigh.

The span of our days is seventy years,

eighty perhaps for those who are strong; * *

yet their sum is but toil and sorrow;

they are soon gone, and we fly away.

Who understands the power of your anger, * *

and your wrath as great as the fear that is due you?

So teach us to number our days * *

that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

Return, O Lord. How long will it be? * *

Have compassion on your servants.

Satisfy us in the morning with your faithful love, * *

that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.

Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, * *

for as many years as we have seen evil.

Let your work be shown to your servants, * *

and your glory to their children.

Let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us,

establish the work of our hands for us; * *

yes, establish the work of our hands.

Psalm 91

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High * *

shall abide in the shadow of Shaddai.

He will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, * *

my God, in whom I trust.”

Surely he will deliver you * *

from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence.

He will cover you with his feathers,

and under his wings you will find refuge; * *

his faithfulness is your shield and buckler.

You need not fear any terror of the night, * *

nor the arrow that flies by day,

Nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, * *

nor the destruction that lays waste at noonday.

A thousand may fall at your side,

ten thousand at your right hand, * *

but it will not come near you.

You will only look on with your eyes * *

and see the recompense of the wicked.

Because you have made the LORD your refuge— * *

the Most High your habitation—

No evil shall be allowed to befall you, * *

nor any plague come near your tent.

For he will command his angels concerning you * *

to guard you in all your ways.

In their hands they will bear you up, * *

lest you dash your foot against a stone.

You will tread upon the lion and the adder; * *

the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot.

“Because he has loved me, therefore will I deliver him; * *

I will protect him, because he knows my Name.

When he calls upon me, I will answer him; * *

I will be with him in trouble;

I will deliver him and honor him.

With long life will I satisfy him * *

and show him my salvation.”

Psalm 92

It is good to give thanks to the LORD, * *

to sing praises to your Name, O Most High;

To proclaim your steadfast love in the morning, * *

and your faithfulness every night,

With the ten-stringed lute, with the harp, * *

and with the melody of the lyre.

For you, O LORD, have made me glad by what you have done; * *

I will sing for joy at the works of your hands.

How great are your works, O LORD. * *

How profound your thoughts.

The senseless man cannot know; * *

the fool cannot understand,

That though the wicked sprout like grass * *

and all evildoers flourish,

They shall be utterly destroyed forever; * *

but you, O LORD, are on high forevermore.

For behold, your enemies, O LORD,

for behold, your enemies shall perish; * *

and all evildoers shall be scattered.

You have exalted my horn like that of the wild ox; * *

you have anointed me with fresh oil.

My eyes have seen the downfall of my enemies; * *

my ears have heard the doom of my wicked foes.

The righteous will flourish like a palm tree; * *

he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.

Those who are planted in the house of the LORD; * *

shall flourish in the courts of our God.

They will still bear fruit in old age; * *

they are ever full of sap and very green,

To show that the LORD is upright; * *

he is my rock, in whom no fault can be found.

Psalm 93

The LORD reigns; he is robed in majesty; *

the LORD is robed and has girded himself with strength.

Yes, the world is established; *

it shall not be moved.

Your throne is established from of old; *

you are from everlasting.

The floods have lifted up, O LORD,

the floods have lifted up their voice; *

the floods lift up their roaring.

Mightier than the voice of many waters,

mightier than the waves of the sea, *

the LORD on high is mighty.

Your testimonies are trustworthy;

holiness adorns your house, *

O LORD, forevermore.

Psalm 94

O LORD, God of vengeance, *

O God who avenges, shine forth.

Rise up, O judge of the earth; *

render to the proud what they deserve.

How long shall the wicked, O LORD, *

how long shall the wicked triumph?

They pour out arrogant words; *

all the workers of evil boast.

They crush your people, O LORD, *

and afflict your inheritance.

They kill the widow and the sojourner, *

and murder the fatherless;

They say, “The LORD does not see; *

the God of Jacob does not notice.”

Take heed, you dullest of the people. *

you fools, when will you be wise?

He who planted the ear, does he not hear?

He who formed the eye, does he not see? *

He who disciplines the nations, will he not rebuke?

He who teaches man knowledge—

the LORD—knows the thoughts of man, *

that they are but a breath.

Blessed is the man whom you discipline, O LORD, *

the one you teach out of your law,

that you may give him rest from the days of trouble, *

until a pit is dug for the wicked.

For the LORD will not forsake his people; *

he will not abandon his inheritance;

for judgement will return to righteousness, *

and all the upright in heart will follow it.

Who will rise up for me against the wicked? *

Who will take a stand for me against the workers of evil?

If the LORD had not been my help, *

my soul would have soon lived in the land of silence.

If I say, “My foot is slipping,” *

your steadfast love, O LORD, will hold me up.

When the cares of my heart are many, *

your consolations cheer my soul.

Can wicked rulers be allied with you, *

those who frame injustice by statute?

They gather together against the life of the righteous *

and condemn the innocent to death.

But the LORD is my stronghold, *

and my God the rock of my refuge.

He will turn back on them their iniquity

and wipe them out in their own wickedness; *

the LORD our God will wipe them out.

Psalm 95

O come, let us sing to the LORD; * *

let us shout for joy to the rock of our salvation.

Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving; * *

and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.

For the LORD is a great God, * *

and a great King above all gods.

In his hand are the caverns of the earth; * *

and the heights of the hills are his also.

The sea is his, for he made it, * *

and his hands have molded the dry land.

O come, let us worship and bow down; * *

let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker.

For he is our God, * *

and we are the people of his pasture,

and the sheep of his hand.

Today, if you hear his voice, * *

do not harden your heart, as in the rebellion,

As on the day of Massah in the wilderness, when your fathers tested me; * *

they put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.

For forty years I loathed that generation

and said, “They are a people who go astray in their hearts, * *

they do not know my ways.”

Therefore I swore in my anger, * *

“They shall not enter my rest.”

Psalm 96

O sing to the LORD a new song; * *

sing to the LORD, all the earth.

Sing to the LORD, bless his name; * *

proclaim his salvation from day to day.

Declare his glory among the nations, * *

his marvelous works among all peoples.

For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; * *

he is to be feared above all gods.

For all the gods of the nations are worthless idols, * *

but the LORD made the heavens.

Splendor and majesty are before him; * *

strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

Ascribe to the LORD, O you families of the nations, * *

ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.

Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; * *

bring an offering and come into his courts.

Worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness; * *

tremble before him, all the earth.

Say among the nations, “The LORD reigns.” * *

The world is firmly established, it shall not be moved;

he will judge the peoples with equity.

Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; * *

let the sea roar, and all that is in it.

Let the fields exult, and everything in them; * *

then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy before the LORD,

For he comes, * *

for he comes to judge the earth.

He will judge the world in righteousness * *

and the peoples in his faithfulness.

Psalm 97

The LORD reigns, let the earth rejoice; * *

let the many coastlands be glad.

Clouds and thick darkness are round about him; * *

righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.

Fire goes before him * *

and burns up his adversaries on every side.

His lightning bolts light up the world; * *

the earth sees and trembles.

The mountains melt like wax before the LORD, * *

before the Lord of all the earth.

The heavens proclaim his righteousness, * *

and all the peoples see his glory.

Let all who worship images be put to shame,

those who boast of worthless idols. * *

Bow down before him, all you gods.

Zion hears this and is glad, * *

the daughters of Judah rejoice,

because of your judgments, O LORD.

For you, O LORD, are the most high over all the earth; * *

you are exalted far above all gods.

O you who love the LORD, hate evil. * *

He preserves the lives of his saints;

he delivers them from the hand of the wicked.

Light is sown for the righteous, * *

and joy for the upright in heart.

Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous ones, * *

and give thanks to his holy Name.

Psalm 98

O sing to the LORD a new song,

for he has done marvelous things. * *

his right hand and his holy arm

have worked salvation for him.

The LORD has made known his salvation; * *

he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations.

He has remembered his steadfast love

and his faithfulness to the house of Israel. * *

All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; * *

break forth and sing for joy, sing praises.

Sing praises to the LORD with the harp, * *

with the harp and the voice of a psalm.

With trumpets and the sound of the ram’s horn * *

make a joyful noise before the LORD, the King.

Let the sea roar, and all that is in it; * *

the world and all who dwell in it.

Let the rivers clap their hands; * *

let the hills sing together for joy;

Let them sing before the LORD,

for he comes to judge the earth. * *

he will judge the world with righteousness,

and the peoples with equity.

Psalm 99

The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble. *

He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth shake.

The LORD is great in Zion; *

he is exalted above all the peoples.

Let them praise your great and awesome Name; *

for it is holy.

The strength of the King loves justice. *

You have established equity;

you have executed justice *

and righteousness in Jacob.

Exalt the LORD our God;

worship at his footstool; *

for he is holy.

Moses and Aaron were among his priests,

Samuel was also among those who called upon his Name; *

they called upon the LORD, and he answered them.

In a pillar of cloud he spoke to them; *

they kept his testimonies

and the ordinances that he gave them.

O LORD our God, you answered them;

you were a forgiving God to them, *

and yet an avenger of their evildoings.

Exalt the LORD our God,

and worship at his holy mountain; *

for the LORD our God is holy.

Psalm 100

Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; *

serve the LORD with gladness

and come into his presence with singing.

Know that the LORD, he is God.

It is he who has made us, and not we ourselves; *

we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving,

and into his courts with praise; *

Give thanks to him, and bless his Name.

For the LORD is good;

his mercy is everlasting, *

and his truth endures to all generations.

Psalm 101

I will sing of mercy and justice; *

to you, O LORD, I will sing praises.

I will carefully attend to the way that is blameless. *

Oh when will you come to me?

I will walk within my house with integrity of heart; *

I will set no worthless thing before my eyes.

I hate the work of those who fall away; *

it shall not cling to me.

A perverse heart shall be far from me; *

I will know nothing of wickedness.

Whoever slanders his neighbor secretly, *

him I will cut off.

Whoever has a haughty look and an arrogant heart, *

him I will not endure.

My eyes will look with favor on the faithful in the land, *

that they may dwell with me;

he who walks in the way that is blameless, *

he shall minister to me.

No one who practices deceit shall dwell in my house; *

no one who utters lies shall continue in my presence.

Morning by morning I cut off all the wicked of the land, *

cutting off all the evildoers from the city of the LORD.

Psalm 102

Hear my prayer, O LORD; *

and let my cry come to you.

Do not hide your face from me *

in the day of my distress.

Incline your ear to me; *

answer me quickly in the day when I call.

For my days pass away like smoke, *

and my bones burn like glowing embers.

Struck down like grass, and withered, is my heart; *

I forget to eat my bread.

Because of the voice of my groaning *

my bones cling to my flesh.

I am like a pelican in the desert, *

like an owl of the waste places;

I lie awake; *

I am like a sparrow alone on the roof.

My enemies revile me all the day long; *

and those who deride me use my name for a curse.

For I have eaten ashes like bread, *

and mingled my drink with weeping,

because of your indignation and wrath; *

for you have lifted me up and cast me down.

My days are like an evening shadow; *

and I wither away like the grass.

But you, O LORD, endure forever; *

and your remembrance throughout all generations.

You will arise and have mercy on Zion;

for it is the time to favor her; *

the appointed time has come.

For your servants hold dear her very stones, *

and feel pity for her dust.

The nations will fear the Name of the LORD, *

and all the kings of the earth your glory.

For the LORD will build up Zion; *

he will appear in his glory;

he regards the prayer of the destitute; *

he does not despise their prayer.

Let this be written for a generation to come, *

that the people who shall be created may praise the LORD:

for he looked down from the height of his holy place; *

from the heavens the LORD looked upon the earth,

to hear the groaning of the prisoners, *

to set free those condemned to death,

to declare in Zion the Name of the LORD, *

and in Jerusalem his praise,

when the peoples gather together, *

and kingdoms, to worship the LORD.

He has broken my strength in midcourse; *

he has shortened my days.

I say “My God, take me not away in the midst of my days— *

your years endure throughout all generations.”

In the beginning, O Lord, you laid the foundation of the earth, *

and the heavens are the work of your hands.

They will perish, but you will remain; *

they will all wear out like a garment.

Like clothing you will change them, and they will be changed, *

but you are the same, and your years have no end.

The children of your servants shall dwell secure; *

their descendants shall be established before you.

Psalm 103

Bless the LORD, O my soul, *

and all that is within me, bless his holy name.

Bless the LORD, O my soul, *

and forget not all his benefits,

who forgives all your iniquities, *

who heals all your diseases,

who redeems your life from destruction, *

who crowns you with steadfast love and tender mercy,

who satisfies you with good things *

so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

The LORD works righteousness *

and justice for all who are oppressed.

He made known his ways to Moses, *

his acts to the children of Israel.

The LORD is merciful and gracious, *

slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

He will not always chide, *

nor will he keep his anger forever.

He has not dealt with us according to our sins, *

nor repaid us according to our iniquities.

For as high as the heavens are above the earth, *

so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;

as far as the east is from the west, *

so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

As a father has compassion for his children, *

so the LORD has compassion for those who fear him.

For he knows our frame; *

he remembers that we are dust.

As for man, his days are like grass; *

he flourishes like a flower of the field;

the wind passes over it and it is gone, *

and its place remembers it no more.

But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, *

and his righteousness to children’s children,

to those who keep his covenant *

and remember his commandments and do them.

The LORD has established his throne in the heavens, *

and his kingdom rules over all.

Bless the LORD, O you his angels,

you mighty ones who do his bidding, *

obeying the voice of his word.

Bless the LORD, all you his hosts, *

his ministers, who do his will.

Bless the LORD, all his works,

in all places of his dominion. *

Bless the LORD, O my soul.

Psalm 104

Bless the LORD, O my soul, *

O LORD my God, how very great you are.

You are clothed with splendor and majesty. *

You robe yourself with light as with a garment, *

stretching out the heavens like a tent;

who lays the beams of his chambers on the waters;

who makes the clouds his chariot; *

who walks on the wings of the wind;

who makes his angels spirits, *

his ministers a flame of fire;

who set the earth on its foundations, *

so that it should never be moved.

You covered it with the deep as with a garment; *

the waters stood above the mountains.

At your rebuke they fled; *

at the voice of your thunder they took to flight.

The mountains rose, the valleys sank down *

to the place that you appointed for them.

You have set a boundary which they may not pass, *

that never again will they cover the earth.

You make springs gush forth in the valleys; *

they flow among the hills;

they give drink to every beast of the field; *

the wild donkeys quench their thirst.

Beside them the birds of the heavens dwell; *

they sing among the branches.

From your lofty abode you water the mountains; *

the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work.

You cause the grass to grow for the cattle *

and plants for man to cultivate,

that he may bring forth food from the earth *

and wine to gladden the heart of man,

oil to make his face shine *

and bread to strengthen man's heart.

The trees of the LORD are watered abundantly, *

the cedars of Lebanon which he planted.

In them the birds build their nests; *

the stork has her home in the fir trees.

The high mountains are for the wild goats; *

the rocks are a refuge for the rock badgers.

He made the moon to mark the seasons; *

the sun knows the time for its setting.

You make darkness, and it is night, *

when all the beasts of the forest creep about.

The young lions roar for their prey, *

seeking their food from God.

When the sun rises, they steal away *

and lie down in their dens.

Man goes out to his work *

and to his labor until the evening.

O LORD, how manifold are your works.

In wisdom have you made them all; *

the earth is full of your creatures.

Here is the sea, great and wide,

which teems with things innumerable, *

living things both small and great.

There go the ships, *

and Leviathan, which you formed to play in it.

All of these look to you, *

to give them their food in due season.

When you give it to them, they gather it up; *

when you open your hand, they are filled with good things.

When you hide your face, they are dismayed; *

when you take away their breath, they die

and return to their dust.

When you send forth your Spirit, they are created, *

and you renew the face of the earth.

May the glory of the LORD endure forever; *

may the LORD rejoice in his works,

who looks on the earth and it trembles, *

who touches the mountains and they smoke.

I will sing to the LORD as long as I live; *

I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.

May my meditation be pleasing to him, *

for I rejoice in the LORD.

Let sinners be consumed from the earth, *

and let the wicked be no more.

Bless the LORD, O my soul. *

Praise the LORD.

Psalm 105

Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his Name; *

make known his deeds among the peoples.

Sing to him, sing praises to him; *

tell of all his wondrous works.

Glory in his holy Name; *

let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.

Seek the LORD and his strength; *

seek his presence continually.

Remember the wonders that he has done, *

his miracles, and the judgments of his mouth,

O offspring of Abraham, his servant, *

children of Jacob, his chosen ones.

He is the LORD our God; *

his judgments are in all the earth.

He remembers his covenant forever, *

the word he commanded for a thousand generations,

the covenant he made with Abraham, *

and the oath he swore to Isaac,

which he confirmed to Jacob as a statute, *

to Israel as an everlasting covenant,

saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan *

the portion of your inheritance.”

When they were but few in number, *

yes, very few, and strangers in it,

wandering from nation to nation, *

from one kingdom to another people,

he permitted no one to oppress them; *

he rebuked kings on their account,

saying, “Do not touch my anointed, *

and do no harm to my prophets.”

He called a famine on the land *

and broke the whole supply of bread.

He sent a man ahead of them, *

Joseph was sold as a slave.

They humbled his feet with fetters; *

his soul was laid in irons.

Until his word came to pass, *

the word of the LORD refined him.

The king sent and released him; *

the ruler of the peoples set him free;

he made him master of his household *

and ruler over all he possessed,

to bind his princes at his pleasure *

and teach his elders wisdom.

Then Israel came to Egypt; *

Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham.

He made his people very fruitful; *

made them stronger than their foes;

whose hearts he turned to hate his people, *

to conspire against his servants.

He sent Moses, his servant, *

and Aaron, whom he had chosen.

They performed his signs among them *

and wonders in the land of Ham.

He sent darkness, and made it dark; *

yet they rebelled against his words.

He turned their waters into blood *

causing their fish to die.

Their land brought forth frogs in abundance, *

even in their royal chambers.

He spoke, and there came swarms of flies, *

and gnats throughout their country.

He gave them hail for rain, *

a flaming fire throughout their land.

He struck their vine and their fig, *

and shattered the trees that were in their borders.

He spoke, and the locusts came, *

and the grasshoppers without number,

which devoured all the grass in their land *

and ate up the fruit of their ground.

He struck down all the firstborn in their land, *

the firstfruits of all their strength.

Then he brought out Israel with silver and gold, *

and there was none among their tribes who stumbled.

Egypt was glad when they departed, *

for dread of them had fallen upon them.

He spread a cloud for a covering, *

and fire to give light by night.

They asked, and he brought them quail, *

and fed them well with the bread of heaven.

He opened the rock, and water gushed out; *

it flowed through the desert like a river.

For he remembered his holy promise, *

and Abraham, his servant.

So he brought his people out with joy, *

his chosen ones with singing.

And he gave them the lands of the nations, *

and they inherited the fruit of the peoples' toil,

that they might keep his statutes

and observe his laws. *

Praise the LORD.

Psalm 106

Praise the LORD.

Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, *

for his faithful love endures forever.

Who can speak of the mighty deeds of the LORD, *

or proclaim all his praise?

Blessed are they who act with justice, *

who practice righteousness at all times.

Remember me, O LORD, with the favor of your people; *

O visit me with your salvation,

that I may see the prosperity of your chosen ones,

that I may rejoice in the joy of your nation, *

that I may glory with your inheritance.

Both we and our fathers have sinned; *

we have committed iniquity; we have acted wickedly.

Our fathers, when they were in Egypt, *

did not consider your wondrous works;

they did not remember the abundance of your mercies, *

but rebelled by the sea, at the Red Sea.

Nevertheless, he saved them for his Name's sake, *

that he might make his power known.

He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up, *

and he led them through the deep as through a desert.

So he saved them from the hand of the one who hated them; *

he redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.

And the waters covered their adversaries; *

not one of them was left.

Then they believed his words; *

they sang his praises.

But they soon forgot what he had done *

and would not wait for his counsel.

But they craved exceedingly in the wilderness, *

and put God to the test in the desert;

so he gave them their request, *

and sent a wasting disease among them.

When men in the camp were jealous of Moses *

and of Aaron, the holy one of the LORD,

the earth opened and swallowed up Dathan, *

and covered the company of Abiram.

A fire was kindled in their congregation; *

a flame burned up the wicked.

They made a calf in Horeb *

and worshiped a cast metal image.

They exchanged the glory of God *

for the image of an ox that eats grass.

They forgot God, their Savior, *

who had done great things in Egypt,

wondrous works in the land of Ham, *

and awesome deeds by the Red Sea.

So he said he would destroy them, *

had not Moses, his chosen one,

stood before him in the breach, *

to turn back his wrath from destroying them.

Then they despised the pleasant land, *

and gave no credence to his word.

They grumbled in their tents; *

they did not listen to the voice of the LORD.

Therefore he raised his hand

in an oath against them, *

to make them fall in the wilderness,

and to make their offspring fall among the nations, *

scattering them throughout the lands.

Then they yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor, *

and ate the sacrifices of the dead;

they provoked him to anger with their deeds, *

and a plague broke out among them.

Then Phinehas stood up and intervened, *

and the plague was restrained.

And it was counted to him as righteousness *

to all generations forever.

They angered him also at the waters of Meribah, *

so that trouble came to Moses on their account,

for they provoked his spirit, *

and he spoke rashly with his lips.

They did not destroy the peoples, *

as the LORD commanded them,

but they mingled with the heathen *

and learned to do as they did.

They served their idols, *

which became a snare to them.

They even sacrificed their sons *

and their daughters to the demons;

they poured out innocent blood, *

the blood of their sons and daughters,

whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, *

and the land was polluted with blood.

They were thus defiled by what they did, *

and were unfaithful in their deeds.

Then the anger of the LORD was kindled against his people, *

so that he loathed his own inheritance;

he gave them into the hand of the heathen, *

and those who hated them ruled over them.

Their enemies oppressed them, *

and they were subdued under their hands.

Many times did he deliver them,

but they were rebellious in their purposes *

and wasted away in their sin.

Nevertheless, he regarded their affliction, *

when he heard their cry.

For their sake he remembered his covenant, and relented *

according to the abundance of his steadfast love.

He caused them to be pitied *

by all who held them captive.

Save us, O LORD our God, *

and gather us from among the nations,

that we may give thanks to your holy Name *

and glory in your praise.

Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, *

from everlasting to everlasting.

And let all the people say, “Amen.” *

Praise the LORD.

Psalm 107

Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; *

his faithful love endures forever.

Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, *

those he redeemed from the hand of the enemy,

those he gathered in from the lands, *

from the east and from the west,

from the north and from the south.

Some wandered in desert wastelands, *

finding no way to a city where they might dwell.

They were hungry and thirsty; *

their soul fainted within them.

Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, *

and he delivered them from their distress.

He led them by a straight way *

till they reached a city to dwell in.

Let them give thanks to the LORD for his steadfast love, *

for his wondrous works to the children of man.

For he satisfies the thirsty soul, *

and fills the hungry with good things.

Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, *

bound fast in misery and iron chains,

for they had rebelled against the words of God, *

and despised the counsel of the Most High.

So he humbled their hearts down with hard labor; *

they stumbled, and there was none to help.

Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, *

and he delivered them from their distress.

He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, *

and broke their chains apart.

Let them give thanks to the LORD for his steadfast love, *

for his wondrous works to the children of man.

For he shatters the doors of bronze *

and breaks the bars of iron in two.

Some became fools through their sinful ways; *

because of their iniquities, they suffered affliction;

their soul abhorred all manner of food, *

and they drew near to the gates of death.

Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, *

and he delivered them from their distress.

He sent forth his word and healed them, *

and saved them from their destruction.

Let them give thanks to the LORD for his steadfast love, *

for his wondrous works to the children of man.

Let them offer the sacrifices of thanksgiving, *

and tell of his deeds with songs of joy.

Some went down to the sea in ships, *

doing business on the mighty waters;

they have seen the deeds of the LORD, *

and his wondrous works in the deep.

For he spoke, and a stormy wind arose, *

which lifted up the waves of the sea.

They mounted up to the heavens; they went down again to the depths; *

their courage melted away in their misery;

they reeled and staggered like drunken men *

and were at their wits’ end.

Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, *

and he delivered them from their distress.

He stilled the storm to a whisper, *

and the waves of the sea were hushed.

Then they were glad that the waters were quiet, *

and he brought them to their desired harbor.

Let them give thanks to the LORD for his steadfast love, *

for his wondrous works to the children of man.

Let them exalt him in the congregation of the people, *

and praise him in the assembly of the elders.

The LORD turns rivers into a desert, *

springs of water into thirsty ground,

a fruitful land into a salt waste, *

because of the evil of its inhabitants.

He turns deserts into pools of water, *

a parched land into water-springs;

and there he brings the hungry to dwell; *

they establish a city for a dwelling place;

they sow the fields and plant vineyards *

and they yield a fruitful harvest.

By his blessing they are multiplied greatly, *

and he does not let their herds decrease.

When they are diminished and brought low *

through oppression, affliction, and sorrow,

he pours contempt upon their princes *

and makes them wander in a trackless waste;

but he raises the poor out of misery *

and makes their families like flocks of sheep.

The upright see this and rejoice, *

but all iniquity shuts its mouth.

Whoever is wise will give heed to these things, *

and consider well the faithful love of the LORD.

Psalm 108

My heart is steadfast, O God. *

I will sing and give praise with all my soul.

Awake, O harp and lyre. *

I will awaken the dawn.

I will give thanks to you, O LORD, among the peoples; *

I will sing praises to you among the nations.

For your mercy is great above the heavens; *

your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens. *

Let your glory be over all the earth.

That your beloved ones may be delivered, *

save with your right hand, and hear me.

God has spoken in his holiness: *

“I will triumph, I will divide up Shechem *

and portion out the Valley of Succoth.

Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine; *

Ephraim is my helmet,

Judah my scepter.

Moab is my washbasin;

upon Edom I cast my shoe; *

over Philistia I shout in triumph.”

Who will bring me to the fortified city? *

Who will lead me unto Edom?

Have you not rejected us, O God? *

You do not go out, O God, with our armies.

Oh give us help against the enemy, *

for vain is the deliverance of man.

With God we shall do valiantly; *

it is he who will tread down our foes.

Psalm 109

Do not be silent, O God of my praise.

For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me, *

speaking against me with lying tongues.

They have surrounded me with words of hate, *

and fought against me without a cause.

In return for my love they have become my accusers, *

but I give myself to prayer.

Thus they reward me evil for good, *

and hatred for my love.

Appoint a wicked man against him; *

let an accuser stand at his right hand.

When he is tried, let him come forth guilty; *

let his prayer be counted as sin.

May his days be few; *

may another take his office.

May his children be fatherless, *

and his wife a widow.

May his children wander about and beg; *

may they be cast out of their habitations.

May the creditor seize all that he has; *

may strangers plunder the fruits of his labor.

Let there be none to extend kindness to him, *

nor any to pity his fatherless children.

May his posterity be cut off; *

may his name be wiped out in the next generation.

May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD, *

and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.

Let them be always before the LORD, *

that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth.

For he was not minded to show kindness,

but pursued the poor and needy *

and the brokenhearted, to put him to death.

As he loved cursing; let curses come upon him. *

He did not delight in blessing; so may it be far from him.

He clothed himself with cursing as a coat; *

so let it soak into his body like water,

and like oil into his bones.

May it be to him a garment that he wraps around him, *

like a belt that he wears continually.

May this be the reward from the LORD to my accusers, *

of those who speak evil against my soul.

But you, O LORD my Lord,

deal kindly with me for the sake of your Name; *

because your mercy is good, deliver me.

For I am poor and needy, *

and my heart is wounded within me.

I am passing like a shadow at evening; *

I am shaken off like a locust.

My knees are weak from fasting; *

my flesh has grown lean, without fatness.

I am an object of scorn to my accusers; *

when they see me, they shake their heads.

Help me, O LORD my God; *

save me according to your steadfast love.

Let them know that this is your hand; *

that you, O LORD, have done it.

Though they curse, yet you will bless.

Let them arise and be put to shame, *

but your servant will rejoice.

May my accusers be clothed with dishonor; *

may they be wrapped in their own shame as a cloak.

With my mouth I will give great thanks to the LORD; *

I will praise him in the midst of many.

For he stands at the right hand of the needy, *

to save him from those who would condemn his soul.

Psalm 110

The LORD said to my Lord: *

“Sit at my right hand,

until I make your enemies your footstool.”

The LORD sends forth from Zion

the scepter of your strength. *

Rule in the midst of your enemies.

On the day of your power, your people *

will offer themselves freely, in holy garments;

from the womb of the morning, *

the dew of your youth will be yours.

The LORD has sworn *

and will not change his mind,

“You are a priest forever *

after the order of Melchizedek.”

The Lord is at your right hand; *

he will crush kings in the day of his wrath.

He will execute judgment among the nations,

filling them with corpses; *

he will crush the chiefs of many on earth.

He will drink from a brook by the wayside; *

therefore he will lift up his head.

Psalm 111

Praise the LORD.

I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart, *

in the company of the upright, in the congregation.

Great are the works of the LORD, *

pondered by all who delight in them.

Splendid and majestic is his work, *

and his righteousness endures forever.

He has caused his wonderful works to be remembered; *

the LORD is gracious and full of compassion.

He provides food for those who fear him; *

he remembers his covenant forever.

He has shown his people the power of his works, *

in giving them the inheritance of the nations.

The works of his hands are faithful and just; *

all his precepts are trustworthy;

they are established forever and ever, *

to be performed with truth and uprightness.

He sent redemption to his people;

he has commanded his covenant forever. *

Holy and awesome is his Name.

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom;

all those who practice it have a good understanding. *

His praise endures forever.

Psalm 112

Praise the LORD.

Blessed is the one who fears the LORD, *

who greatly delights in his commandments.

His offspring will be mighty in the land; *

the generation of the upright will be blessed.

Wealth and riches are in his house, *

and his righteousness endures forever.

For the upright, there rises light in the darkness; *

gracious, and merciful, and righteous.

The good man deals generously and lends; *

he conducts his affairs with justice.

For the righteous will never be shaken; *

he will be remembered forever.

He is not afraid of bad news; *

his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD.

His heart is firm; he will not be afraid, *

until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.

He has distributed freely; he has given to the poor; *

his righteousness endures forever;

his horn is exalted in honor.

The wicked will see it and be angry;

they will gnash their teeth and melt away; *

the desire of the wicked will perish.

Psalm 113

Praise the LORD.

Praise him, you servants of the LORD, *

praise the Name of the LORD.

Blessed be the Name of the LORD *

from this time forth and forevermore.

From the rising of the sun to its setting, *

the Name of the LORD is to be praised.

The LORD is high above all nations, *

and his glory above the heavens,

Who is like the LORD our God, *

who is seated on high,

who humbles himself to behold *

the things in the heavens and the earth?

He raises the poor from the dust *

and lifts the needy from the ash heap,

to make them sit with princes, *

with the princes of his people.

He gives the barren woman a home,

and makes her the joyous mother of children. *

Praise the LORD.

Psalm 114

When Israel came out from Egypt, *

the house of Jacob from a people of strange language,

Judah became his sanctuary, *

and Israel his dominion.

The sea saw it and fled; *

the Jordan was turned back.

The mountains skipped like rams, *

the little hills like lambs.

What ails you, O sea, that you flee? *

O Jordan, that you turn back?

O mountains, that you skip like rams? *

O little hills, like lambs?

Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord, *

at the presence of the God of Jacob,

who turns the rock into a pool of water, *

the flint stone into a fountain spring.

Psalm 115

Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to your Name give glory, *

for the sake of your mercy and your faithfulness.

Why should the nations say, *

“Where is their God?”

Our God is in the heavens; *

he does all that pleases him.

Their idols are silver and gold, *

the work of human hands.

They have mouths, but they cannot speak; *

eyes, but they cannot see.

They have ears, but they cannot hear; *

noses, but they cannot smell.

They have hands, but they cannot feel;

feet, but they cannot walk; *

nor is there any sound in their throat.

Those who make them become like them; *

and so do all who trust in them.

O Israel, trust in the LORD. *

He is their help and their shield.

O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD. *

He is their help and their shield.

You who fear the LORD, trust in the LORD *

He is their help and their shield.

The LORD has been mindful of us; he will bless us; *

he will bless the house of Israel;

he will bless the house of Aaron;

he will bless those who fear the LORD, *

the small and the great together.

May the LORD give you increase, you and your children. *

May you be blessed by the LORD,

who made heaven and earth.

The heavens are the heavens of the LORD; *

the earth he has given to the children of man.

The dead do not praise the LORD, *

nor do any who go down into silence.

But we will bless the LORD

from this time forth and forevermore. *

Praise the LORD.

Psalm 116

I love the LORD, for he hears my voice; *

he heard my pleas for mercy.

Because he inclined his ear toward me, *

I will call on him as long as I live.

The sorrows of death surrounded me;

the terrors of Sheol took hold of me; *

I was overcome by distress and sorrow.

Then I called upon the Name of the LORD: *

“O LORD, I pray you, deliver my soul.”

Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; *

our God is full of compassion.

The LORD preserves the simple; *

I was brought low, and he saved me.

Return to your rest, O my soul; *

for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you.

For you have delivered my soul from death, *

my eyes from tears,

my feet from falling;

I will walk in the presence of the LORD *

in the land of the living.

I believed, even when I said, “I am greatly afflicted”; *

I said in my distress, “All men are liars.”

How shall I repay the LORD *

for all his goodness toward me?

I will lift up the cup of salvation *

and call upon the Name of the LORD,

I will fulfill my vows to the LORD *

in the presence of all his people.

Precious in the sight of the LORD *

is the death of his saints.

O LORD, truly I am your servant; *

I am your servant, the son of your maidservant.

You have loosed my bonds.

I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving *

and call upon the Name of the LORD.

I will fulfill my vows to the LORD *

in the presence of all his people,

In the courts of the house of the LORD, *

in the midst of you, O Jerusalem.

Praise the LORD.

Psalm 117

O praise the LORD, all you nations. *

Praise him, all you peoples.

For great is his steadfast love toward us, *

and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever.

Praise the LORD.

Psalm 118

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; *

his faithful love endures forever.

Let Israel say, *

“His faithful love endures forever.”

Let the house of Aaron say, *

“His faithful love endures forever.”

Let those who fear the LORD say, *

“His faithful love endures forever.”

I called to the LORD in my distress; *

he answered me and set me free.

The LORD is for me; I will not fear. *

What can man do to me?

The LORD is for me; he is my helper; *

I will look in triumph on those who hate me.

It is better to take refuge in the LORD *

than to trust in man.

It is better to take refuge in the LORD *

than to trust in princes.

All nations surrounded me; *

in the name of the LORD I cut them off.

They surrounded me on every side; *

in the name of the LORD I cut them off.

They surrounded me like bees;

they blazed like a fire of thorns; *

in the name of the LORD I cut them off.

I was pushed hard that I might fall, *

but the LORD helped me.

The LORD is my strength and my song; *

he has become my salvation.

Glad songs of salvation

are in the tents of the righteous: *

“The right hand of the LORD does valiantly,

the right hand of the LORD is exalted, *

the right hand of the LORD does valiantly.”

I shall not die, but I shall live, *

and declare what the LORD has done.

The LORD has disciplined me severely, *

but he has not given me over to death.

Open to me the gates of righteousness; *

that I may enter through them

and give thanks to the LORD.

This is the gate of the LORD: *

the righteous shall enter through it.

I will give you thanks, for you answered me, *

and have become my salvation.

The stone that the builders rejected *

has become the cornerstone.

This is the LORD's doing; *

it is marvelous in our eyes.

This is the day that the LORD has made; *

let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Save us, we pray, O LORD. *

O LORD, we pray, grant us success.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD: *

we bless you from the house of the LORD.

The LORD is God; he gives us light; *

bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.

You are my God, and I will give you thanks; *

you are my God; I will exalt you.

Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; *

his faithful love endures forever.

Psalm 119

Aleph

Blessed are they whose way is blameless, *

who walk in the law of the LORD.

Blessed are they who keep his testimonies, *

who seek him with their whole heart,

Who also do no unrighteousness, *

but always walk in his ways.

You have laid down your precepts, *

that we should keep them diligently.

Oh, that my ways may be steadfast *

in keeping your decrees.

Then I shall not be put to shame, *

when I consider all your commandments.

I will praise you with an upright heart, *

when I have learned your righteous rules.

I will keep your decrees; *

do not utterly forsake me.

Beth

How can a young man keep his way pure? *

By guarding it according to your word.

With my whole heart I seek you; *

Oh let me not wander from your commandments.

Your word have I hidden in my heart, *

that I might not sin against you.

Blessed are you, O LORD; *

teach me your decrees.

With my lips I have declared *

all the judgements of your mouth.

I delight in the way of your statutes *

as much as in all manner of riches.

I will meditate on your precepts *

and fix my eyes on your ways.

I will delight myself in your statutes; *

I will not forget your word.

Gimel

Deal bountifully with your servant, *

that I may live and keep your word.

Open my eyes, that I may see *

the wondrous things in your law.

I am a sojourner on the earth; *

do not hide your commandments from me.

My soul is consumed at all times *

with longing for your ordinances.

You rebuke the insolent, *

the accursed ones, who stray from your commandments.

Remove from me scorn and contempt, *

for I have kept your testimonies.

Though princes sit and plot against me, *

your servant will meditate on your decrees.

Indeed, your statutes are my delight; *

they are my counselors.

Daleth

My soul clings to the dust; *

revive me according to your word.

I have told of my ways, and you answered me; *

teach me your decrees.

Make me to understand the way of your commandments, *

that I may meditate on your wondrous works.

My soul is weary with sorrow; *

strengthen me according to your word.

Remove from me deceitful ways *

and teach me your law graciously.

I have chosen the way of faithfulness; *

I have set your ordinances before me.

I hold fast to your testimonies; *

O LORD, let me not be put to shame.

I will run in the path of your commandments *

For you have set my heart free.

Teach me, O LORD, the way of your statutes; *

and I shall keep it to the end.

Give me understanding, that I may keep your law; *

and I will keep it with my whole heart.

Make me to walk in the path of your commandments, *

for in it do I delight.

Incline my heart toward your testimonies, *

and not toward selfish gain.

Turn my eyes away from looking at worthless things; *

and revive me in your ways.

Confirm your promise to your servant, *

that you may be feared.

Turn away the disgrace that I dread, *

for your ordinances are good.

Behold, I long for your precepts; *

revive me in your righteousness.

Waw

Let your faithful love come to me, O LORD, *

your salvation according to your promise;

So then shall I have an answer for him who taunts me, *

for I trust in your word.

Take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, *

for my hope is in your ordinances.

So shall I keep your law continually, *

I shall keep it for ever and ever,

And I shall walk about in a wide place, *

for I have sought your precepts.

I will also speak of your testimonies before kings *

and shall not be put to shame,

For I find my delight in your commandments, *

which I love.

I lift up my hands toward your commandments, which I love, *

and I will meditate on your decrees.

Zayin

Remember your word to your servant, *

in which you have made me hope.

This is my comfort in my affliction, *

that your promise gives me life.

The arrogant utterly deride me, *

but I do not turn away from your law.

I remember your ordinances of old, *

and I comfort myself, O LORD.

Hot indignation seizes me *

because of the wicked, who forsake your law.

Your statutes have been my songs *

in the house of my sojourning.

In the night, O LORD, I remember your name *

and I keep your law.

This blessing has fallen to me, *

because I have kept your precepts.

Heth

You are my portion, O LORD; *

I have promised that I would keep your words.

I entreat your favor with my whole heart; *

be gracious to me according to your promise.

I have considered my ways, *

and I turn my feet to your testimonies;

I hasten and do not delay *

to keep your commandments.

Though the cords of the wicked have wrapped me round, *

I have not forgotten your law.

At midnight I shall rise to give you praise, *

because of your righteous judgements.

I am a friend of all who fear you, *

of those who keep your precepts.

The earth, O LORD, is filled with your faithful love; *

teach me your decrees.

Teth

You have dealt well with your servant, O LORD, *

according to your word.

Teach me good judgment and knowledge, *

for I believe in your commandments.

Before I was afflicted I went astray, *

but now I keep your word.

You are good and what you do is good; *

teach me your decrees.

The arrogant have smeared me with lies, *

but I keep your precepts with my whole heart;

Their hearts are unfeeling as fat, *

but I delight in your law.

It is good for me that I have been afflicted, *

that I might learn your decrees.

The law of your mouth is better to me *

than all the pieces of silver and gold.

Yodh

Your hands have made me and fashioned me; *

give me understanding that I may learn your commandments.

May those who fear you see me and rejoice, *

because I have hoped in your word.

I know, O LORD, that your judgements are righteous, *

that in faithfulness you have afflicted me.

O let your steadfast love be my comfort, *

according to your word to your servant.

Let your tender mercy come to me, that I may live; *

for your law is my delight.

Let the arrogant be put to shame for wronging me with falsehood; *

but as for me, I will meditate on your precepts.

Let those who fear you turn to me, *

and they shall know your testimonies.

May my heart be blameless regarding your decrees, *

that I may not be put to shame.

Kaph

My soul languishes for your salvation; *

I have my hope in your word.

My eyes long for your promise; *

While I ask, “When will you comfort me?”

I have become like a wineskin in the smoke, *

yet I have not forgotten your decrees.

How many days must your servant endure? *

When will you bring judgement against my pursuers?

The arrogant have dug pits to trap me; *

they do not live in accord with your law.

All your commandments show constancy; *

help me, for they persecute me with falsehood.

They have almost destroyed me from the earth, *

but I have not forsaken your precepts.

Give me life, in accordance with your steadfast love, *

that I may keep the testimony of your mouth.

Lamedh

Forever, O LORD, *

your word stands firm in the heavens.

Your faithfulness endures to all generations; *

you established the earth, and it stands fast.

In accordance with your laws they stand this day, *

for all things are your servants.

If your law had not been my delight, *

I would have perished in my affliction.

I will never forget your precepts, *

for by them you have given me life.

I am yours; save me, *

for I have sought your precepts.

The wicked lie in wait to destroy me, *

but I shall ponder your testimonies.

I have seen a limit of all perfection, *

but your commandment is exceedingly broad.

Mem

Oh how I love your law. *

It is my meditation all the day.

You make me wiser than my enemies through your commandments, *

for they are ever with me.

I have more understanding than all my teachers, *

for your testimonies are my meditation.

I understand more than the aged, *

because I keep your precepts.

I restrain my feet from every evil way, *

that I may keep your word.

I do not depart from your ordinances, *

for you yourself have taught me.

How sweet are your words to my taste, *

sweeter than honey to my mouth.

Through your precepts I get understanding; *

therefore I hate every false way.

Nun

Your word is a lamp to my feet *

and a light to my path.

I have sworn an oath and I confirm it, *

that I will keep your righteous rules.

I am exceedingly afflicted; *

revive me, O LORD, according to your word.

Accept, O LORD, my freewill offerings of praise, *

and teach me your ordinances.

My life I hold in my hand continually, *

yet I do not forget your law.

The wicked have laid a snare for me, *

yet I do not stray from your precepts.

Your testimonies are my heritage forever; *

they are the rejoicing of my heart.

I incline my heart to obey your statutes; *

their reward is eternal.

Samekh

I hate the double-minded, *

but I love your law.

You are my hiding place and my shield; *

I have my hope in your word.

Depart from me, you evildoers, *

for I will keep the commands of my God.

Uphold me according to your word and I shall live: *

and make me not ashamed of my hope.

Hold me up, and I shall be safe *

and continually have regard for your statutes.

You spurn all those who stray from your statutes, *

for their deceitfulness is falsehood.

All the wicked of the earth you discard like dross, *

therefore I love your testimonies.

My flesh trembles for fear of you, *

for I am afraid of your judgments.

Ayin

I have done what is just and righteous; *

leave me not to my oppressors.

Guarantee the well-being of your servant; *

do not let the arrogant oppress me.

My eyes are longing for your salvation *

for the fulfillment of your righteousness.

Deal with your servant according to your faithful love, *

and teach me your statutes.

I am your servant; *

give me understanding, that I may know your testimonies.

It is time to act, O LORD, *

for your law is being broken.

Therefore I love your commandments *

more than gold, yes, more than fine gold.

Therefore I consider your precepts concerning all things to be right; *

I hate every false way.

Your testimonies are wonderful; *

therefore my soul keeps them.

The unfolding of your words gives light; *

it gives understanding to the simple.

I open my mouth wide *

panting for your commandments.

Turn to me and be gracious to me, *

as is your custom toward those who love your name.

Establish my steps according to your word, *

and let no iniquity get dominion over me.

Redeem me from the oppression of man, *

that I may keep your precepts.

Make your face to shine upon your servant, *

and teach me your statutes.

Rivers of tears run down from my eyes, *

because your law is disregarded.

Tsadhe

Righteous are you, O LORD, *

and upright are your rules.

The testimonies you have commanded are righteousness *

and exceeding faithfulness.

My zeal consumes me, *

because my foes forget your words.

Your word is well tested, *

and your servant loves it.

I am small and despised, *

yet I do not forget your precepts.

Your righteousness is righteousness forever, *

and your law is truth.

Trouble and anguish have overtaken me, *

yet your commandments are my delight.

Your testimonies are righteous forever; *

give me understanding, and I shall live.

Qoph

With my whole heart I cry out; answer me, O LORD. *

I will keep your statutes.

I cry out to you; save me, *

that I may observe your testimonies.

I rise before dawn and cry for help; *

I hope in your word.

My eyes are awake through the watches of the night, *

that I may meditate on your promise.

Hear my voice according to your steadfast love; *

O LORD, give me life according to your justice.

They draw near who follow after wickedness; *

they are far from your law.

But you are near, O LORD, *

and all your commandments are truth.

I have known of old from your testimonies *

that you have founded them to last forever.

Resh

Consider my suffering and deliver me, *

for I do not forget your law.

Plead my cause and redeem me; *

give me life according to your word.

Salvation is far from the wicked, *

for they do not seek your statutes.

Great is your tender mercy, O LORD; *

give me life according to your ordinances.

Many are my persecutors and my adversaries, *

but I do not turn aside from your testimonies.

I behold the treacherous with disgust, *

for they do not keep your commands.

Consider how I love your precepts. *

Give me life in accordance with your steadfast love.

The sum of your word is truth, *

and every one of your righteous rules endures forever.

Sin and Shin

Princes persecute me without cause, *

but my heart stands in awe of your word.

I rejoice at your word *

as one who finds a great treasure.

I hate and abhor falsehood, *

but your law I love.

Seven times a day I praise you *

for the rules of your righteousness.

Great peace have those who love your law; *

nothing can make them to stumble.

I hope for your salvation, O LORD, *

and I carry out your commandments.

My soul keeps your testimonies; *

for I love them exceedingly.

I keep your precepts and your testimonies, *

for all my ways are before you.

Taw

Let my cry come before you, O LORD; *

give me understanding according to your word.

Let my supplication come before you; *

deliver me according to your word.

My lips shall pour forth praise, *

for you teach me your statutes.

My tongue shall sing of your word, *

for all your commandments are righteousness.

Let your hand be ready to help me, *

for I have chosen your precepts.

I long for your salvation, O LORD, *

and your law is my delight.

Let my soul live that it may praise you, *

and let your ordinances sustain me.

I have gone astray like a lost sheep; *

seek your servant, for I do not forget your commandments.

Psalm 120

In my distress I cried to the LORD, *

and he answered me.

Deliver me, O LORD, from lying lips, *

and from a deceitful tongue.

What shall be given to you; what more shall be done to you,

O deceitful tongue? *

Sharp arrows of the warrior,

with glowing coals of the broom tree.

Woe to me, that I sojourn in Meshech, *

that I dwell among the tents of Kedar.

Too long has my soul had its dwelling *

among the enemies of peace.

I am for peace, but when I speak, *

they make themselves ready for war.

Psalm 121

I lift up my eyes to the mountains. *

From where is my help to come?

My help comes from the LORD, *

the maker of heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot be moved; *

he who watches over you will not slumber.

Behold, he who watches over Israel *

will neither slumber nor sleep.

The LORD watches over you; *

the LORD is your shade at your right hand.

The sun shall not strike you by day, *

nor the moon by night.

The LORD will keep you from all evil; *

he will watch over your life.

The LORD will watch over your going out and your coming in *

from this time forth, and forevermore.

Psalm 122

I rejoiced when they said to me, *

“Let us go to the house of the LORD.”

Our feet are standing *

within your gates, O Jerusalem.

Jerusalem is built as a city *

that is at unity with itself;

To which the tribes go up, the tribes of the LORD, *

as a testimony for Israel,

to give thanks to the name of the LORD.

There the thrones for judgment stand, *

the thrones of the house of David.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: *

“May those who love you be secure.

May peace be within your walls *

and prosperity within your palaces.”

For the sake of my brothers and friends, *

I will say, “Peace be within you.”

For the sake of the house of the LORD our God, *

I will seek your good.

Psalm 123

Unto you I lift up my eyes, *

O you enthroned in the heavens.

Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, *

as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress,

So our eyes look to the LORD our God, *

until he has mercy upon us.

Have mercy upon us, O LORD, have mercy: *

for we are exceedingly filled with contempt.

Our soul is exceedingly filled *

with the scorn of those who are at ease,

and with the contempt of the proud.

Psalm 124

If the LORD had not been on our side – *

let Israel now say –

if the LORD had not been on our side *

when people rose up against us,

then they would have swallowed us up alive, *

when their wrath was kindled against us;

then the waters would have swept us away,

the torrent would have gone over us; *

the raging waters would have swept over our souls.

Blessed be the LORD, *

who has not let us be torn by their teeth.

We escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowler; *

the snare is broken, and we are delivered.

Our help is in the Name of the LORD, *

the maker of heaven and earth.

Psalm 125

Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, *

which cannot be moved, but abides forever.

As the mountains surround Jerusalem,

so the LORD surrounds his people, *

from this time forth and for evermore.

For the scepter of wickedness shall not rest

on the land allotted to the righteous, *

lest the righteous reach out their hands to do wrong.

Do good, O LORD, to those who are good, *

to those who are upright in their hearts.

But those who turn aside to crooked ways

the LORD will lead away with the evildoers. *

Peace be upon Israel.

Psalm 126

When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion, *

we were like those who dream.

Our mouths were filled with laughter then, *

and our tongues with shouts of joy;

then they said among the nations, *

“The LORD has done great things for them.”

The LORD has done great things for us; *

and we are glad indeed.

Restore our fortunes, O LORD, *

like streams in the Negev.

Those who sow in tears *

shall reap with shouts of joy.

He who goes out weeping, *

carrying the seed to sow,

will surely come again with shouts of joy, *

carrying his sheaves with him.

Psalm 127

Unless the LORD builds the house, *

those who build it labor in vain.

Unless the LORD watches over the city, *

the watchman stays awake in vain.

It is in vain that you rise up early

and go late to bed,

eating the bread of anxious toil; *

for he gives sleep to his beloved.

Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, *

and the fruit of the womb is a reward.

Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, *

so are the children of one’s youth.

Blessed is the man whose quiver is filled with them. *

He shall not be put to shame

when he contends with his enemies in the gate.

Psalm 128

Blessed are all who fear the LORD, *

who walk in his ways.

You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; *

you shall be blessed, and it will be well with you.

Your wife will be like a fruitful vine *

within your house;

your children will be like olive shoots *

around your table.

Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the LORD. *

The LORD bless you from Zion.

May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem *

all the days of your life.

May you see your children's children. *

May peace be upon Israel.

Psalm 129

“Often have they afflicted me from my youth”— *

let Israel now say—

“Often have they afflicted me from my youth, *

yet they have not prevailed against me.

The plowers plowed upon my back; *

they made their furrows long.”

The LORD is righteous; *

he has cut in two the cords of the wicked.

Let all all who hate Zion *

be put to shame and turned backward.

Let them be like grass on the housetops, *

which withers before it can grow up,

With which the reaper does not fill his hand *

nor the binder of sheaves his arms.

Nor let those who pass by them say, *

“The blessing of the LORD be upon you.

We bless you in the name of the LORD.”

Psalm 130

Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD. *

O LORD, hear my voice.

Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplication.

If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities, *

O Lord, who could stand?

But with you there is forgiveness, *

that you may be feared.

I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, *

and in his word I put my hope;

My soul waits for the Lord *

more than watchmen wait for the morning,

more than watchmen wait for the morning.

O Israel, hope in the LORD. *

For with the LORD there is steadfast love,

with him there is plentiful redemption. *

and he will redeem Israel from all his iniquities.

Psalm 131

O LORD, my heart is not haughty; *

my eyes are not set too high;

I do not occupy myself with great matters *

things too profound, too marvelous for me.

But I have calmed and quieted my soul,

like a weaned child with his mother; *

like a weaned child is my soul within me.

O Israel, hope in the LORD *

from this time forth and for evermore.

Psalm 132

O LORD, remember David, *

and all the hardships he endured,

How he swore to the LORD *

and vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob:

“I will not come into my house *

nor climb into the comfort of my bed,

I will give no sleep to my eyes *

or slumber to my eyelids,

Until I find a place for the LORD, *

a dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”

Behold, we heard of it in Ephrathah; *

we found it in the fields of Jaar.

“Let us go to his dwelling place; *

let us worship at his footstool.”

Arise, O LORD, to your resting place, *

you and the ark of your strength.

Let your priests be clothed with righteousness, *

and let your saints shout for joy.

For the sake of your servant David, *

do not turn away the face of your anointed.

The LORD has sworn to David

a sure oath from which he will not turn back: *

“Your own son I will set on your throne, the fruit of your body.

If your children keep my covenant;

my testimonies that I shall teach them, *

their sons too shall sit on your throne forever.”

For the LORD has chosen Zion; *

he has desired it for his dwelling place:

“This is my resting place forever; *

here I will dwell, for I have desired her.

I will abundantly bless her provisions; *

I will satisfy her poor with bread.

Her priests I will clothe with salvation, *

and her saints will sing aloud for joy.

There I will make the horn of David flourish; *

I have prepared a lamp for my anointed.

His enemies I will clothe with shame, *

but on him, himself, his crown will shine.”

Psalm 133

Behold, how good and how pleasant it is *

when brothers dwell together in unity.

It is like the precious oil upon the head, *

running down on the beard,

On the beard of Aaron, *

running down onto the collar of his robes.

It is like the dew of Hermon, *

falling down upon the mountains of Zion.

For there the LORD commanded the blessing, *

life forevermore.

Psalm 134

Behold, bless the LORD, all you servants of the LORD, *

who stand by night in the house of the LORD.

Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, *

and bless the LORD.

May the LORD bless you from Zion; *

he who made heaven and earth.

Psalm 135

Praise the LORD.

Praise the Name of the LORD, *

praise him, O you servants of the LORD,

You who stand in the house of the LORD, *

in the courts of the house of our God.

Praise the LORD, for the LORD is good; *

sing praise to his Name, for it is lovely.

For the LORD has chosen Jacob for himself, *

and Israel as his treasured possession.

For I know that the LORD is great, *

and that our Lord is above all gods.

Whatever the LORD pleases, he does, *

in heaven and on the earth,

in the seas and all the depths.

It is he who makes the clouds to ascend from the ends of the earth, *

who sends out lightning for the rain

and brings forth the wind from his storehouses.

It was he who struck down the firstborn of Egypt, *

firstborn both of man and beast;

He who in your midst, O Egypt, sent signs and wonders *

against Pharaoh and all his servants;

He who struck down many nations *

and put mighty kings to death,

Sihon, king of the Amorites, and Og, the king of Bashan, *

and all the kingdoms of Canaan,

And he gave their land as a heritage, *

a heritage to Israel his people.

Your Name, O LORD, endures forever, *

your renown, O LORD, throughout all generations.

For the LORD will vindicate his people *

and he will have compassion on his servants.

The idols of the nations are silver and gold, *

the work of human hands.

They have mouths, but they do not speak; *

they have eyes, but they do not see;

They have ears, but they do not hear, *

nor is there any breath in their mouths.

Those who make them will become like them, *

yes, so will all who trust in them.

O house of Israel, bless the LORD. *

O house of Aaron, bless the LORD.

O house of Levi, bless the LORD. *

You who fear the LORD, bless the LORD.

Blessed be the LORD from Zion, who dwells in Jerusalem. *

Praise the LORD.

Psalm 136

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, *

for his faithful love endures forever.

Give thanks to the God of gods, *

for his faithful love endures forever.

Give thanks to the Lord of lords, *