The
Psalms 
Book One
Psalm 1 — The Way of Happiness
 1Happy are those
1who do not follow the counsel of the wicked,
not halting in ways frequented by sinners,
nor taking a seat in a gathering of scoffers.
 2But the law of the Lord is their joy,
they study it day and night.
 3They are like trees
planted by runlets of water,
yielding fruit in due season,
leaves never fading.
In all that they do, they prosper.

 4Not so fare the wicked, not so;
like chaff are they, blown by the wind.
 5So the wicked will not stand firm in the judgment,
nor sinners appear, when the righteous are gathered.
 6For the way of the righteous is dear to the Lord,
but the way of the wicked will end in ruin. 
Psalm 2 — The Lord's Chosen King
 2Why this turmoil of nations,
1this futile plotting of peoples,
 2with kings of the earth conspiring,
and rulers consulting together,
against the Lord and against his anointed,
 3to snap their bonds
and fling their cords away?

 4He whose throne is in heaven laughs,
the Lord mocks them.
 5Then he speaks to them in his wrath,
and in his hot anger confounds them.
 6“This my king is installed by me,
on Zion my holy mountain.”

 7I will tell of the Lord's decree.
He said to me: “You are my son,
this day I became your father.
 8Only ask, and I make you the heir of the nations,
and lord of the world to its utmost bounds.
 9You will break them with sceptre of iron,
shatter them like pottery.”

 10So now, you kings, be wise:
be warned, you rulers of earth.
 11Serve the Lord in awe,
kiss his feet with trembling,
 12lest, angry, he hurl you to ruin;
for soon will his fury blaze.
Happy all who take refuge in him. 
Psalm 3 — A Morning Prayer for Protection
A psalm of David, when he fled from his son Absalom.
 3How many, 1Lord, are my foes!
Those who rise up against me are many.
 2Many are those who say of me,
“There is no help for him in his God.” Selah

 3But you, Lord, are shield about me,
my glory, who lifts up my head.
 4When loudly I call to the Lord,
from his holy hill he gives answer. Selah

 5I laid down and slept:
now I wake, for the Lord sustains me.
 6I fear not the myriads of people
who beset me on every side.

 7Arise, Lord: save me, my God,
who strikes all my foes on the cheek,
and shatters the teeth of the wicked.
 8Victory belongs to the Lord:
let your blessing descend on your people. Selah 
Psalm 4 — An Evening Prayer
For the leader, with stringed instruments. A psalm of David. 
 4Answer my cry,
1God, my defender.
Often from straits you have brought me
to spacious places.
So now show me your favor
and hear my prayer.

 2How long, you proud people,
will my honor be stained
by the slanders you love,
and the lies that you follow? Selah
 3See! The Lord has shown me
his wonderful kindness:
the Lord hears,
when I call to him.

 4Sin not in your anger:
but speak in your heart
on your bed, and be still. Selah
 5Offer true sacrifice,
trust in the Lord.

 6Many are longing
for fortune to smile.
Lift upon us
the light of your face. 
 7You have put in my heart, Lord,
a deeper joy
than was theirs who had corn
and wine in abundance.

 8So in peace I will 
lie down and sleep;
for you, Lord, keep me
safe. 
Psalm 5 — A Prayer for Guidance
For the leader: A psalm of David, to be accompanied by the flute.
 5Hear my words, 1Lord:
give heed to my whisper.
 2Attend to my loud cry for help,
my king and my God.
 3When I pray to you, Lord, in the morning,
hear my voice.
I make ready for you in the morning,
and look for a sign.

 4For you are no God who takes pleasure in wickedness:
no one of evil can be your guest.
 5No braggarts can stand in your presence,
you hate all workers of wrong.
 6You destroy all speakers of lies,
people of blood and deceit you abhor.
 7But I, through your kindness abundant,
may enter your house,
and towards the shrine of your temple
may reverently bow.

 8Lead me, Lord, in your righteousness
because of my enemies.
Make your way level before me.
 9For their mouth is a stranger to truth,
their heart is a pit of destruction.
Their throat is a wide open grave,
their tongue the smooth tongue of the hypocrite.

 10Condemn them, God;
let their schemes bring them down to the ground.
For their numberless crimes thrust them down
for playing the rebel against you.
 11But let all who take refuge in you
ring out their gladness forever.
Protect those who love your name,
so they may exult in you.
 12For you give your blessing, Lord, to the godly,
and the shield of your favor protects them. 
Psalm 6 — A Cry for Help in Time of Trouble
For the leader; with instrumental music on the sheminith. A psalm of David.
 6Rebuke me not, 1Lord, in your anger,
punish me not in your wrath.
 2Lord, be gracious to me 
in my weakness.
Heal me Lord, 
for racked is my body;
 3all of me utterly racked.
Why do you wait so long, Lord?

 4Turn, Lord, rescue me;
save me, because of your love.
 5For in death none can call you to mind;
in Sheol who can praise you?

 6I am so weary of sighing.
All the night I make my bed swim,
and wet my couch with my tears.
 7My eyes swollen with grief;
from weeping caused by my foes.

 8Begone, workers of wrong,
for the Lord has heard my loud weeping,
 9the Lord has heard my entreaty,
the Lord accepts my prayer.
 10My foes will be stricken with terror,
brought to shame and dismay in a moment. 
Psalm 7 — A Prayer to the God of Justice
A Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the 7Lord about Cush, the Benjamite.
 1Lord my God, I take refuge in you.
Deliver me, save me from all who pursue me;
 2or like lions they will tear me to pieces,
and rend me, past hope of rescue.

 3Lord, my God, if my life has been such
if my hands have been stained with guilt,
 4if friends I paid back with evil,
if I plundered my foes without cause,
 5may the enemy chase and find me,
 trample my life to the ground,
my honor leave in the dirt! Selah

 6Arise, Lord, in anger,
against my foes rise in fury.
Awake for my help:
let justice be done.
 7Gather the nations about you,
and sit on your lofty throne,
 8as the Lord, the judge of the peoples.
Judge me, Lord, in my innocence
and according to my integrity.

 9Put an end to the wrong of the wicked,
protect the righteous.
Searcher of hearts and minds,
righteous God.
 10God is my shield:
he saves the upright in heart.

 11God is a just judge,
constant in righteous anger.
 12He will sharpen his sword without fail,
his bow is bent and ready,
 13his deadly weapons are ready,
his arrows he makes of flame.

 14The enemy who conceives evil;
pregnant with mischief, 
giving birth to lies,
 15a pit they have made and dug;
but into the hole that they made they will fall.
 16On their own heads their mischief comes back;
on their own skulls their violence comes down.
 17I will give thanks to the Lord for his justice,
and sing to the name of the Lord Most High. 
Psalm 8 — God's Glory in Nature
For the leader: A psalm of David, to be accompanied by a stringed instrument.
 8Lord1 our God!
How glorious in all the earth is your name! 
Your praise reaches as high as the heavens,
 2from the mouths of children and infants.

You have built a fortress
against your enemies,
to silence the foe and the rebel.

 3When I look at your heavens, 
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars, 
which you have set there,
 4what are mortals, 
that you think of them,
humans, 
that you visit them?

 5Yet you made them little less than divine,
crowned them with glory and majesty,
 6made them lord of the works of your hands,
put all things under their feet —
 7sheep and oxen, 
all of them;
and the wild beasts also:
 8birds of the air, 
and fish of the sea,
and all that crosses the paths of the ocean.

 9Lord our God!
How glorious in all the earth is your name! 
Psalm 9 — A Song of Praise the Lord's Justice
For the leader; 'almuth labben. A psalm of David.
 9With all my heart I will praise the 1Lord,
all your wonders I will rehearse.
 2I will rejoice and exult in you,
singing praise to your name, Most High;
 3because backward my foes were turned,
they stumbled and perished before you.

 4My right and my claim you have upheld,
you did sit on the throne as a fair judge,
 5rebuking the nations, destroying the wicked,
and blotting their name out forever and ever.
 6The foe is vanished, ruined forever,
their cities destroyed, their memory perished.

 7See! The Lord is seated forever
on the throne he established for judgment,
 8ruling the world with justice,
and judging the nations with equity.

 9So the Lord proves a haven to the oppressed,
a haven in times of trouble.
 10Well may they trust you who know your name,
for those who seek you, you never abandon.

 11Sing praise to the Lord, whose home is in Zion,
declare his deeds among the nations.
 12As avenger of blood, he keeps them in mind,
he does not forget the cry of the wretched.

 13Show me favor, Lord,
see how my foes afflict me,
lift me up from the gates of death;
 14so I may, in your help exulting,
tell forth your praise at the gates of Zion.

 15The nations are sunk in the pit which they made,
in the net that they hid, their own foot is entangled.
 16The Lord is revealed in the judgment he wrought,
the wicked are snared in their own handiwork. Selah

 17Let the wicked depart to Sheol,
all the nations that live forgetful of God.
 18For the needy will not be always forgotten,
nor the hope of the helpless be lost forever.

 19Arise, Lord; don't let them triumph:
before your face let the nations be judged.
 20Strike them with fear, Lord:
show the nations how frail they are. Selah 
Psalm 10 — A Prayer for Help
 10Why do you stand, 1Lord, so far away,
hiding yourself in times of trouble?
 2The wicked, in their pride, are pursuing the helpless:
let them be caught in the schemes they have plotted.

 3For the wicked boasts of their wanton greed;
the robber despises the Lord, and curses him,
 4in wicked pride, thinks:
God doesn't care,
God doesn't call to account.

 5Never a season that they do not prosper;
your judgments are far above out of their sight:
they scoff at their foes.

 6Each says in their heart, 
“I will never be shaken;
I will live for all time 
untouched by misfortune.”
 7Their mouths are full of deceit and oppression:
under their tongues lurks mischief and wrong.

 8Lying in secret in some village ambush,
and stealthily watching, they murder the innocent.
 9Like a lion that lurks in a secret lair
they lurk intending to catch the defenceless;
to seize them, to drag them away in their net.

 10Their victims are crushed, 
sink down to the ground.
Under their claws 
the hapless fall.
 11The wicked say in their hearts 
that God has forgotten,
has hidden his face, 
will see nothing.

 12Arise, Lord, lift up your hand,
do not forget the cry of the wretched.
 13Why do the wicked treat God with contempt,
and say in their hearts, “God doesn't care”?

 14You have seen the trouble and sorrow;
you mark it all, and will take it in hand.
The hapless can count on you,
helper of orphans.

 15Break the arm of the wicked and evil:
search out their sin, till no more be found.
 16The Lord is king forever and ever:
the nations will vanish from his land.

 17Lord, you have heard the desire of the humble,
inclining your ear, strengthening their hearts,
 18rights you have won for the crushed and the orphan,
so no one on earth may strike terror again. 
Psalm 11 — Trust in the Lord
For the leader. Of David.
 11In the 1Lord I take refuge.
How can you tell me
to flee like a bird to the mountains?

 2“See! The wicked are bending the bow,
their arrow is set on the string,
to shoot from the shadows at the upright in heart.
 3In this tearing down of foundations
what good can a good person do?”

 4The Lord in his holy temple,
the Lord in heaven, enthroned.
His eyes watch the world, 
they see everyone.
 5The Lord examines the righteous and wicked,
and the lover of violence he hates.
 6On the wicked he rains coals of fire and brimstone,
and their drink will be scorching wind. 
 7For the Lord is just, and justice he loves;
so the upright will see his face. 
Psalm 12 — A Prayer for the Faithful in a False World
For the leader; on the sheminith. A psalm of David.
 12Help, 1Lord, for the good are all gone,
faithful people have vanished.
 2One lies to another, speaking empty lies,
with flattering lips and false hearts they speak.

 3May the Lord cut off all the flattering lips,
and the tongue that utters arrogance,
 4they declare, “Our tongue is our strength,
our allies our lips: who is lord over us?”

 5“The poor are despoiled, and the needy are sighing;
so now I will act,” the Lord declares
“And place them in the safety they long for.”

 6The words of the Lord are words that are pure,
silver smelted, seven times refined.
 7You will keep us, Lord,
and guard us from this generation forever,
 8in a world where the wicked prowl,
and worthless people exalted. 
Psalm 13 — A Prayer for Help in Trouble
For the leader. A psalm of David.
 13How long, 1Lord, will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
 2How long must I nurse grief inside me,
and in my heart a daily sorrow?
How long are my foes to exult over me?

 3Look at me, answer me, Lord my God.
Fill my eyes with your light, 
lest I sleep in death,
 4lest my enemies claim to have triumphed,
lest my foes rejoice at my downfall.

 5But I trust in your kindness:
my heart will rejoice in your help.
 6I will sing to the Lord who was good to me. 
Psalm 14 — The Folly of Denying God
For the leader. Of David.
 14Fools say in their heart,
1“There is no God.”
Vile, hateful their life is;
not one does good.

 2From heaven the Lord looks out
on humans, to see
if any are wise,
and care for God.

 3But all have turned bad,
the taint is on all;
not one does good,
no, not one.

 4Have they learned their lesson,
those workers of evil?
Who ate up my people,
eating, devouring,
never calling to the Lord.

 5Sore afraid will they be;
for God is among
those who are righteous,
 6you may mock the plans of the poor,
but the Lord is their refuge.

 7If only help from Zion
would come for Israel!
When the Lord brings his people
a change of fortune,
how glad will be Jacob,
and Israel how joyful! 
Psalm 15 — Standing Firm
A psalm of David.
 15Lord1, who can be guest in your tent?
Who may live on your holy mountain?

 2The person whose walk is blameless,
whose conduct is right,
whose words are true and sincere;
 3on whose tongue there sits no slander,
who will not harm a friend,
 4nor cruelly insult a neighbor,
who regards with contempt those rejected by God;
but honors those who obey the Lord,
who keeps an oath, whatever the cost,
 5whose money is lent without interest,
and never takes a bribe to hurt the innocent.

The person who does these things will always stand firm. 
Psalm 16 — The Joy of Fellowship with God
A michtam of David.
 16Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge.
 2I said to the Lord, “You are my Lord,
my happiness rests in you alone.
 3Those who are holy in the land,
they, they alone, are the noble ones;
all my delight is in them.”

 4Those who choose other gods
find endless sorrow.
In their offerings of blood I will have no part
nor take their name on my lips.
 5The Lord is my share and my portion, 
my fate is in your strong hands.

 6The boundary lines of my life
mark out delightful country,
my heritage pleases me well.
 7I praise the Lord for his counsel,
which so stirs my heart in the night.
 8I keep the Lord always in mind:
with him at my hand, I can never be moved.

 9So my heart is glad, there is joy inside me;
and in safety of body I live.
 10For you will not give me up to Sheol 
nor let any who love you see the pit.
 11You will show me the path that leads to life,
to that fulness of joy which is in your presence,
and the pleasures dispensed by your hand evermore. 
Psalm 17 — A Prayer for Deliverance
A prayer of David.
 17Listen, O 1Lord, to my innocence;
attend to my piercing cry.
Give heed to my prayer
out of lips unfeigned.
 2Let my vindication come from you,
your eyes see the truth.

 3When you test my heart when you visit at night,
and assay me like silver — you can find no evil.
I am determined that my mouth should not lie.
 4I gave earnest heed to the words of your lips.
 5My steps have held fast to the paths of your precepts 
and in your tracks have my feet never stumbled.

 6So I call you, O God, with assurance of answer;
bend down your ear to me, hear what I say.
 7Show your marvelous love, you who save from enemies
those who take refuge at your right hand.

 8Keep me as the apple of the eye,
hide me in the shelter of your wings.
 9From wicked people who do me violence,
from deadly foes who crowd around me.

 10They have closed their hearts to pity,
the words of their mouths are haughty.
 11Now they dog us at every step,
keenly watching, to hurl us to the ground,
 12like a lion, longing to tear,
like a young lion, lurking in secret.

 13Arise, Lord, face them and fell them.
By your sword set me free from the wicked,
 14by your hand, O Lord, from those —
whose portion of life is but of this world.
But let your treasured ones have food in plenty
may their children be full and their children satisfied. 

 15In my innocence I will see your face,
awake I am filled with a vision of you. 
Psalm 18 — A King's Song of Gratitude
For the leader. Of David, the servant of the 18Lord, who recited the words of this song to the Lord after the Lord had saved him from the power of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said:
 1I love you, O Lord, my strength.
 2The Lord is my rock, my fortress, deliverer,
my God, my rock, where I take refuge,
my shield, my defender, my tower.
 3Worthy of praise is the Lord whom I call on,
he rescues me from all my foes.

 4The waves of death broke about me,
fearful floods of chaos.
 5Sheol threw cords around me,
snares of death came to meet me.
 6In distress I cried to the Lord,
and shouted for help to my God;
in his temple he heard my voice,
into his ears came my cry.

 7Then the earth shook and quaked,
mountains trembled to their foundations,
and quaked because of his wrath.
 8Smoke went up from his nostrils,
devouring fire from his mouth,
coals were kindled by it.

 9Then he bent the sky and came down,
thick darkness was under his feet.
 10He rode on a cherub and flew,
darting on wings of wind,
 11with his screen of darkness about him,
in thick dark clouds of water.

 12At the radiance before him there passed
hailstones and coals of fire.
 13The Lord thundered from heaven,
the Most High uttered his voice.
 14He shot his arrows and scattered them,
flashed lightnings, and routed them.
 15The channels of the sea were revealed,
the world was laid bare to its base,
at your rebuke, O Lord,
at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.

 16He stretched from on high, he seized me,
drew me up from the mighty waters,
 17and saved me from those who hated me —
fierce foes, too mighty for me.
 18In my day of distress they assailed me,
but the Lord proved my support.
 19To a spacious place he brought me,
and, for love of me, he saved me.

 20The Lord repays my innocence,
he rewards my cleanness of hands.
 21For I kept the ways of the Lord,
nor have wickedly strayed from my God.
 22His commandments were all before me,
his statutes I put not away.
 23And I was blameless before him,
guarding myself from sin.
 24So the Lord repaid my innocence,
my cleanness of hands in his sight.

 25With the loyal you are loyal,
and with the blameless blameless.
 26With the pure you show yourself pure,
but shrewd with the devious.
 27For the lowly people you save,
but haughty eyes you abase.
 28You are my lamp, Lord,
my God who enlightens my darkness.
 29With you I can storm a rampart,
with my God I can leap a wall.
 30As for God, his way is perfect;
the word of the Lord is pure.
He is shield to all who take refuge in him.

 31For who is God but the Lord?
And who is a rock but our God?
 32The God who arms me with strength,
who cleared and smoothed my way.
 33He made my feet like hinds' feet,
and set me up on the heights.
 34He taught my hands how to fight,
and my arms how to bend a bronze bow.

 35The shield of your help you gave me,
your right hand supports me,
you stoop down to make me great. 
 36In your strength I took giant strides,
and my feet never slipped.
 37So I chased the foe till I caught them,
and turned not, till I made an end of them.
 38I smashed them, they could not rise,
they fell beneath my feet.

 39You did arm me with strength for war,
you did bow my assailants beneath me.
 40You made my foes turn their back to me,
and those who did hate me I finished.
 41They cried for help, but none saved them;
to the Lord, but he answered them not.
 42I beat them like dust of the market-place,
stamped them like mud of the streets.

 43From the strife of the peoples you saved me,
you made me head of the nations,
peoples I knew not did serve me.
 44On the instant they hear, they obey me,
foreigners come to me cringing.
 45Foreigners lose courage,
and come out of their strongholds trembling.

 46The Lord is alive! Blest be my rock!
Exalted be God, my protector!
 47The God who gave me revenge,
and brought down nations beneath me,
 48who saved me from angry foes,
and set me above my assailants,
safe from the violent.

 49For this I will praise you among the nations,
making music, O Lord, to your name:
 50for great triumphs he grants to his king,
and faithful love he shows his anointed,
to David and his seed evermore. 
Psalm 19 — The Glory of God in the Heavens
For the leader. A psalm of David. 
 19The heavens declare God's glory,
1the sky tells what his hands have done.
 2Day tells it to day,
night reveals it to night,
 3without speaking, without words;
without the sound of voices.
 4But through all the world their voice carries
their words to the ends of the earth.

He has pitched a tent for the sun in the sky,
 5it comes out like a bridegroom from his bridal chamber,
it joyfully runs its course like a hero.
 6From one end of the heavens it rises,
and around it runs to the other,
and nothing hides from its heat.
In Praise of the Law
 7The law of the Lord is perfect,
renewing life.
The decrees of the Lord are trusty,
making the simple wise.

 8The behests of the Lord are right,
rejoicing the heart.
The command of the Lord is pure,
giving light to the eyes.

 9The fear of the Lord is clean,
it endures forever.
The Lord's judgments are true
and right altogether.

 10More precious are they than gold —
than fine gold in plenty,
and sweeter they are than honey,
that drops from the comb.

 11By them is your servant warned;
who keeps them has rich reward.
 12Who can know their flaws?
Absolve me from those I know not.

 13Keep your servant from wilful sins —
from falling under their sway:
then blameless and clear will I be
from great offense.

 14May the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart 
be pleasing to you, Lord,
my rock and redeemer. 
Psalm 20 — A Prayer for Victory
For the leader. A psalm of David. 
 20The 1Lord answer you in the day of distress,
the name of the Jacob's God protect you,
 2sending you help from the temple,
out of Zion supporting you.

 3All your meal-offerings may he remember,
your burnt-offerings look on with favor. Selah
 4May he grant you your heart's desire,
and bring all your plans to pass.
 5We will shout then for joy at your victory,
and rejoice in the name of our God.
May the Lord grant your every request.

 6Now I am sure that the Lord
will help his anointed.
From his temple in heaven he will answer
by his mighty triumphant right hand.
 7Some in chariots are strong, some in horses;
but our strength is the Lord our God.
 8They will totter and fall,
while we rise and stand firm.

 9Give victory, Lord, to the king,
and answer us when we call. 
Psalm 21 — A Prayer after a Victory 
For the leader. A psalm of David. 
 21The king rejoices, 1Lord, in your might,
how he exults because of your help!
 2You have granted to him his heart's desire,
you have not withheld his lips' request. Selah

 3You came to meet him with rich blessings,
you set on his head a golden crown.
 4He asked you for life, you gave it — 
many long days, forever and ever.

 5Great is his glory because of your help,
honor and majesty you lay upon him.
 6For you make him most blessed forever,
you make him glad with the joy of your presence.

 7For the king puts always his trust in the Lord;
the Most High, in his love, will preserve him unshaken.
 8Your hand will reach all your foes,
your right hand, all who hate you.
 9You will make them like a furnace of fire,
when you appear, Lord. 
The Lord will swallow them up in his wrath.
The fire will devour them.
 10You will sweep their offspring from the earth,
their children from humanity.
 11When they scheme against you
and hatch evil plots — they will fail.
 12For you aim your bow at their faces,
make them turn in flight.

 13Be exalted, Lord, in your strength,
to your might we shall sing and make music. 
Psalm 22 — The Sufferer's Triumph
For the leader; set to ‘Deer of the Dawn’. A psalm of David.
 22My God, my God, why have you left me,
1my rescue so far from the words of my roaring?
 2I cry in the day, you do not answer,
I cry in the night but find no rest.

 3You are the Holy One,
throned on the praises of Israel.
 4In you our ancestors trusted,
they trusted and you delivered them.
 5They cried to you, and found safety,
in you did they trust and were not put to shame.

 6But I am a worm, not a person;
insulted by others, despised by the people.
 7All who see me mock me,
with mouths wide open and wagging heads:
 8“He relies on the Lord; let him save him.
Let him rescue the one he holds dear!”

 9But you drew me from the womb,
laid me safely on my mother's breasts.
 10On your care was I cast from my very birth,
you are my God from my mother's womb.
 11Be not far from me, for trouble is nigh,
and there is none to help.

 12I am circled by many bulls,
beset by the mighty of Bashan,
 13who face me with gaping jaws,
like ravening roaring lions.
 14Poured out am I like water,
and all my bones are loosened.
My heart is become like wax,
melted within me.

 15My palate is dry as a sherd,
my tongue sticks to my jaws;
in the dust of death you lay me.
 16For dogs are round about me,
a band of knaves encircles me,
gnawing my hands and my feet.
 17I can count my bones, every one.
As for them, they feast their eyes on me.
 18They divide my garments among them,
and over my raiment cast lots.

 19But you, O Lord, be not far,
O my strength, hasten to help me.
 20Deliver my life from the sword
my life from the power of the dogs.
 21Save me from the jaws of the lion,
from the horns of the wild oxen help me. 

 22I will tell of your fame to my kindred,
and in the assembly will praise you.
 23Praise the Lord, you who fear him.
All Jacob's seed, give him glory.
All Israel's seed, stand in awe of him.

 24For he has not despised nor abhorred
the sorrow of the sorrowful.
He hid not his face from me,
but he listened to my cry for help.

 25Of you is my praise in the great congregation;
my vows I will pay before those who fear him.
 26The afflicted will eat to their heart's desire,
and those who seek after the Lord will praise him.
Lift up your hearts forever.
 27All will call it to mind, to the ends of the earth,
and turn to the Lord;
and all tribes of the nations will bow down before you.
 28For the kingdom belongs to the Lord:
he is the Lord of the nations.
 29To him will bow down all who sleep in the earth,
and before him bend all who go down to the dust,
and those who could not preserve their lives.
 30My descendants will tell of the Lord
to the next generation;
 31they will declare his righteousness
to people yet to be born:
He has done it. 
Psalm 23 — The Good Shepherd
A psalm of David. 
 23The 1Lord is my shepherd: I am never in need.
 2He lays me down in green pastures.
He gently leads me to waters of rest,
 3he refreshes my life.
He guides me along paths that are straight,
true to his name.

 4And when my way lies through a valley of gloom,
I fear no evil, for you are with me.
Your rod and your staff comfort me.

 5You spread a table for me
in face of my foes;
with oil you anoint my head,
and my cup runs over.
 6Surely goodness and love will pursue me —
all the days of my life.
In the house of the Lord I will live
through the length of the days. 
Psalm 24 — The True Worshipper
Of David. A psalm.
 24The earth is the 1Lord's and all that it holds,
the world and those who live in it.
 2For he founded it on the seas,
and on the floods he sustains it.

 3Who may ascend the hill of the Lord?
Who may stand in his holy place?
 4The clean of hands, the pure of heart,
who sets not their heart upon sinful things,
nor swears with intent to deceive:
 5they win from the Lord a blessing:
God is their champion and savior.
 6Such must be those who resort to him,
and seek the face of the God of Jacob. Selah
The Lords's Triumphal Entry into the Sanctuary
 7Lift high your heads, you gates —
Higher, you ancient doors;
welcome the glorious king.
 8“Who is the glorious king?”
“The Lord strong and heroic, 
the Lord heroic in battle.”

 9Lift high your heads, you gates —
Higher, you ancient doors;
welcome the glorious king.
 10“Who is the glorious king?”
“The Lord, the God of hosts,
he is the glorious king.” Selah 
Psalm 25 — A Prayer for Forgiveness and Protection
A psalm of David. 
 25To you, O 1Lord, I lift up my heart:
all the day I wait for you.
 2In you I trust, put me not to shame;
let not my foes exult over me.
 3None will be shamed who wait for you,
but shame will fall upon wanton traitors.
 4Make me, O Lord, to know your ways:
teach me your paths.
 5In your faithfulness guide me and teach me,
for you are my God and my savior.
 6Remember your pity, O Lord, and your kindness,
for they have been ever of old.
 7Do not remember the sins of my youth;
remember me in kindness,
because of your goodness, Lord.
 8Good is the Lord and upright,
so he teaches sinners the way.
 9The humble he guides in the right,
he teaches the humble his way.
 10All his ways are loving and loyal
to those who observe his charges and covenant.
 11Be true to your name Lord,
forgive my many sins.
 12Who then is the person who fears the Lord?
He will teach them the way to choose.
 13They will live in prosperity,
their children will inherit the land.
 14The Lord gives guidance to those who fear him,
and with his covenant he makes them acquainted.
 15My eyes are ever toward the Lord,
for out of the net he brings my foot.
 16Turn to me with your favor,
for I am lonely and crushed
 17In my heart are strain and storm;
bring me out of my distresses.
 18Look on my misery and trouble,
and pardon all my sins,
 19look on my foes oh, so many!
And their cruel hatred towards me.
 20Deliver me, keep me, and shame not
one who takes refuge in you.
 21May integrity and innocence preserve me,
for I wait for you, O Lord.

 22Redeem Israel, O God,
from all its distresses. 
Psalm 26 — Prayer of a Devout Worshipper
A psalm of David. 
 26Defend me, O 1Lord, for my walk has been blameless;
in the Lord have I trusted unswervingly:
 2Examine me, Lord, and test me;
test my heart and my mind.
 3For your love is before my eyes,
and your faithfulness governs my way.

 4I never sat down with the worthless,
nor companied with dissemblers.
 5I hate the assembly of knaves,
I would never sit down with the wicked;
 6but, with hands washed in innocence,
I would march round your altar, O Lord,
 7singing loud songs of thanks,
and telling of all your wonders.
 8O Lord, I love your house,
the place where your glory lives.

 9Do not gather me up with sinners;
slay me not with people of blood,
 10whose hands are stained with villainy,
and whose right hand is filled with bribes.
 11But my walk is blameless!
O redeem me, be gracious to me.
 12My foot stands on even ground,
in the choirs I will bless the Lord. 
Psalm 27 — If God is for Me
A psalm of David. 
 27The 1Lord is my light and my savior;
whom then should I fear?
The Lord protects my life;
whom then should I dread?

 2When the wicked drew near to assail me
and eat up my flesh,
it was those who distressed and opposed me
who stumbled and fell.

 3Though against me a host should encamp,
yet my heart would be fearless:
though battle should rise up against me,
still would I be trustful.

 4One thing have I asked of the Lord,
and that do I long for —
To live in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
to gaze on the grace of the Lord
and inquire in his temple.

 5For he will hide me in his shelter
in the day of misfortune.
In his sheltering tent he hides me:
he lifts me up on a rock.

 6And now that my head he has lifted
above my encircling foes,
I will march round the altar and sacrifice,
shouting with joy, in his tent,
making music and song to the Lord.
The Serenity of Faith
 7Hear, O Lord, my loud cry,
and graciously answer me.
 8My heart has said to you,
“Your face, O Lord, I seek.”

 9Hide not your face from me,
reject not your servant in anger:
for you have been my help.
Abandon me not, nor forsake me,
O God of my help:
 10for father and mother have left me;
but the Lord will take me up.

 11Teach me your way, O Lord:
lead me in an even path,
because of my enemies.
 12Give me not up, O Lord,
unto the rage of my foes;
for against me have risen false witnesses,
breathing out cruelty.

 13Firm is the faith I cherish,
that I, in the land of the living,
will yet see the goodness of God.
 14Let your heart be courageous and strong,
and wait on the Lord. 
Psalm 28 — An Answered Prayer for Help
Of David.
 28Unto you, O 1Lord, do I cry;
my rock, be not deaf to me:
lest, through holding your peace, I become
like those who go down to the pit.
 2Hear my loud entreaty,
as I cry for help to you,
lifting my hands, O Lord,
towards your holy chancel.

 3Take me not off with the wicked,
nor with the workers of wrong,
whose speech to their neighbors is friendly,
while evil is in their heart.
 4Give them as they have done,
as their wicked deeds deserve.
As their hands have wrought, so give to them:
requite to them their deserts.
 5They are blind to all that the Lord does,
to all that his hands have wrought;
and so he will tear them down,
to build them up no more.

 6Blest be the Lord, who has heard
my voice as I plead for mercy.
 7The Lord is my strength and my shield;
my heart trusts in him.
I was helped: so my heart is exultant,
and in my song I will praise him.

 8The Lord is the strength of his people,
the fortress who saves his anointed.
 9O save your people,
and bless your inheritance.
Be their shepherd
and carry them forever. 
Psalm 29 — The Lord's Glory in the Storm
A psalm of David.
 29Ascribe to the 1Lord, you heavenly beings, 
ascribe to the Lord glory and power
 2Ascribe to the Lord the glory he manifests:
bow to the Lord in holy array.

 3The Lord's voice peals on the waters.
The God of glory has thundered.
He peals o'er the mighty waters.
 4The Lord's voice sounds with strength,
the Lord's voice sounds with majesty.

 5The Lord's voice breaks the cedars,
he breaks the cedars of Lebanon,
 6making Lebanon dance like a calf,
Sirion like a young wild ox.

 7The Lord's voice hews out flames of fire.
 8The Lord's voice rends the desert,
he rends the desert of Kadesh.

 9The Lord's voice whirls the oaks,
and strips the forests bare;
and all in his temple say “Glory.”

 10The Lord was king at the flood,
the Lord sits throned forever.
 11The Lord gives strength to his people,
he blesses his people with peace. 
Psalm 30 — A Song of Thanksgiving for Deliverance
A psalm of David. A song for the dedication of the Temple.
 30I will extol you, O 1Lord,
because you have lifted me up,
and not suffered my foes to rejoice over me.

 2I cried to you for help,
O Lord my God, and you healed me.
 3You have brought me up, Lord, from Sheol,
from my way to the pit back to life you have called me.

 4Sing praise to the Lord, faithful people;
give thanks to his holy name.
 5For his anger lasts only a moment,
his favor endures for a lifetime.
Weeping may lodge for the night,
but the morning brings shouts of joy.

 6When all went well, I imagined
that never should I be shaken.
 7For by your favor, O Lord,
you had set me on mountains strong:
but you hide your face,
and I was confounded.

 8Then to you, Lord, I cried,
to the Lord I begged for mercy,
 9“What profit is there in my blood,
if I go down to the pit?
Can you be praised by dust?
Can it tell of your faithfulness?
 10Hear, Lord, and show me your favor,
Lord be a helper to me.”

 11You have turned my mourning to dancing;
my sackcloth you have unloosed,
and clothed me with joy:
 12that unceasingly I should sing your praise,
and give thanks to you, Lord my God, forever. 
Psalm 31 — A Prayer for Deliverance from Troubles
For the leader. A psalm of David. 
 31In you, O 1Lord, I take refuge;
let me never be put to shame.
Rescue me in your faithfulness;
 2incline to me your ear.
Deliver me speedily.
Be to me a rock of defence,
a fortified house, to save me. 
 3For my rock and my fortress are you;
lead me and guide me so your name will be honored.
 4Draw me out of the net they have hid for me,
for you yourself are my refuge.
 5Into your hand I commend my spirit:
you ransom me, Lord, faithful God.
 6I hate those devoted to worthless idols;
I trust in the Lord.
 7I will rejoice and be glad in your love,
because you have looked on my misery,
and cared for me in my distress.
 8You have not given me into the enemy's hand,
you have set my feet in a spacious place.

 9Be gracious to me, Lord, for I am distressed;
my eye is wasted away with sorrow.
 10For my life is consumed with grief,
and my years with sighing.
My strength is broken with misery,
my bones waste away.
 11The scorn of all my foes,
the butt of my neighbors am I,
a terror to my acquaintance.
At the sight of me in the street
people turn quickly away.
 12I am clean forgotten like the dead,
am become like a ruined vessel.
 13I hear the whispers of many —
terror on every side —
scheming together against me,
plotting to take my life.

 14But my trust is in you, Lord.
“You are my God,” I say;
 15my times are in your hand, save me
from the hand of the foes who pursue me.
 16Make your face to shine on your servant,
save me in your love.
 17Put me not, O Lord, to shame,
for I have called upon you.
Let the wicked be put to shame
silent in Sheol.
 18Strike the false lips dumb,
that speak proudly against the righteous
with haughtiness and contempt.

 19How great is the goodness
you have treasured for those who fear you,
and wrought for those who take refuge in you,
in plain sight of all!
 20In your sheltering wings you hide them
from plottings of people,
you keep them safe in a bower
from the chiding of tongues.

 21Blest be the Lord
for the wonderful love he has shown me
in time of distress.
 22For I had said in panic,
“I am driven clean out of your sight.”
But you heard my plea,
when I cried to you for help.

 23Love the Lord, all you faithful;
the Lord protects the loyal,
but repays the haughty in full.
 24Let your hearts be courageous and strong,
all you who wait on the Lord. 
Psalm 32 — A Prayer of Confession and Joy
Of David. A maskil.
 32Happy those whose transgression is pardoned,
1whose sin is covered.
 2Happy are those, free from falseness of spirit,
to whom the Lord reckons no debt of guilt.

 3When I held my peace, my bones wore away
with my endless groaning;
 4for day and night did your hand
lie heavy upon me.
The sap of my life was dried up
as with fierce summer-heat. Selah

 5I began to acknowledge my sin,
not concealing my guilt;
and the moment I vowed to confess
to the Lord my transgression,
then you yourself did pardon
the guilt of my sin. Selah

 6For this cause let all who are faithful
pray to you in the time of distress;
then, when the great waters rush,
they will not reach to him.
 7For you are my shelter,
you protect me from trouble,
and surround me with deliverance. Selah

 8“With my eye steadfastly upon you,
I will instruct and teach you
The way you should go.
 9Do not be like the horse or the mule,
that have no understanding,
but need bridle and halter to curb them,
else they will not come near to you.”

 10The godless have many sorrows,
but those who trust in the Lord
will be compassed about by his kindness.
 11Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, you righteous;
and ring out your joy, all you upright in heart. 
Psalm 33 — A Hymn of Thanksgiving
 33Shout for joy in the 1Lord, you righteous:
praise for the upright is seemly.
 2Give thanks to the Lord on the lyre,
play to him on a ten-stringed harp.
 3Sing to him a new song,
play skilfully and shout merrily.
 4For the Lord is straight in his promise;
and all that he does is in faithfulness.
 5Justice and right he loves;
the earth is full of his kindness.

 6By his word the heavens were made,
all their host by the breath of his mouth.
 7He gathers the sea in a bottle,
the ocean he puts into store-houses.
 8Let the whole world honor the Lord,
let all who live on earth be in awe.
 9For at his word it came into being,
at his command it stood forth.

 10The Lord frustrates the designs of the nations,
what the peoples have purposed, he brings to nought,
 11but the Lord's own design will stand forever,
and what his heart has purposed, through all generations.
 12Happy the nation whose God is the Lord,
the people he chose for himself as his own.

 13The Lord looks down from heaven,
he sees all of humanity;
 14from where he rules he gazes
on all who inhabit the earth.
 15He fashions the hearts of them all,
and gives heed to all that they do.

 16It is not by great armies that kings are victorious,
it is not by great strength that a warrior saves himself;
 17false hope is the war-horse to usher in victory,
for all its great might it can provide no escape.

 18See! The eye of the Lord is on those who fear him,
on those who hope in his kindness;
 19to deliver their life from death,
and to keep them alive in famine.

 20We wait for the Lord:
he is our help and our shield.
 21For in him our heart is glad,
we trust in his holy name.

 22Let your kindness, O Lord, be upon us,
as is our hope in you. 
Psalm 34 — The Lord is Mindful of His Own
Of David, when he feigned madness in the presence of Abimelech, who drove him away, and he left. 
 34I will bless the 1Lord at all times,
in my mouth will his praise be forever.
 2In the Lord will my heart make her boast,
the humble will hear and be glad.
 3O magnify the Lord with me
and let us extol his name together.
 4I sought the Lord, and, in answer,
he saved me from all my terrors.
 5Look to him and you will be radiant,
with faces unashamed.
 6Here is one who was crushed,
but cried and was heard by the Lord,
and brought safe out of every trouble.
 7The Lord's angel encamps
about those who fear him, and rescues them.
 8O taste and see that the Lord is good,
happy those who take refuge in him.
 9Fear the Lord, all his people,
for they who fear him lack nothing.
 10Even young lions may be poor and hungry,
but those who seek the Lord
will not lack any good thing.

 11Come, children, listen to me.
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
 12Which of you is desirous of life,
loves many and happy days?
 13Then guard your tongue from evil,
and your lips from speaking deceit.
 14Depart from evil, and do good;
seek peace, and pursue it.
 15The eyes of the Lord are towards the righteous,
his ears are towards their cry for help.
 16The Lord sets his face against those who do evil,
to root their memory out of the earth. 
 17When righteous cry, they are heard by the Lord,
and he saves them from all their distresses.
 18The Lord is near to the broken-hearted,
he helps those whose spirit is crushed.
 19Many misfortunes befall the righteous,
but the Lord delivers them out of them all.
 20He guards all their bones,
none are broken.
 21Misfortune will slay the ungodly;
those who hate the righteous are doomed.
 22The Lord ransoms the life of his servants,
and none will be doomed who takes refuge in him. 
Psalm 35 — A Prayer for Deliverance from Malicious Foes
Of David.
 35Contend, 1Lord, with those who contend with me,
do battle with those who do battle with me.
 2Grasp shield and buckler,
and rise up as my help.
 3Draw spear and battle-axe,
confront those who pursue me.
Assure me that you will help me.
 4Dishonor and shame be on those
who are seeking my life!
Defeat and confusion on those
who are planning my hurt!
 5As chaff before wind may they be,
with the Lord's angel pursuing them.
 6Slippery and dark be their way,
with his angel thrusting them on.
 7For they wantonly hid their net for me,
and dug a pit to destroy me.

 8Upon them may ruin come unawares;
may the net which they hid catch themselves,
and into the pit may they fall.
 9Then I will exult in the Lord,
and be joyful because of his help;
 10and all my being will say,
“Who, O Lord, is like you,
who save the helpless from those too strong for them,
the poor and the helpless from those who despoil them?”

 11Violent witnesses rise,
and ask of me things that I know not.
 12Evil for good they requite me,
leaving me inwardly comfortless. 

 13But when they were sick, I put on sackcloth,
and chastened myself with fasting.
I prayed with head bowed low,
 14as if for my friend or my brother.
I went about bowed and in mourning,
as one who laments his mother.

 15When I stumbled, they gleefully gathered,
strangers gathered around me, 
and tore at me without ceasing,
 16impiously mocking and mocking,
bearing their teeth at me.

 17How long, Lord, will you look on?
Rescue me from their roaring,
my precious life from the lions.
 18I will then give you thanks in the great congregation,
and praise you before many people.
 19Suffer not those to rejoice over me
who are falsely my foes,
suffer not those who without cause abhor me
to wink with the eye.

 20For it is not peace that they speak
of those who are quiet in the land;
but treacherous charges they plot.
 21With wide open mouths they shout,
“Hurrah! Hurrah!
With our own eyes we saw it.”

 22But you have seen, too, O Lord,
keep not silence, O Lord,
be not far from me.
 23Bestir you, awake, for my right
my God, my Lord, for my cause.

 24You are just, Lord: win for me justice,
let them not rejoice over me,
 25inwardly saying, “Hurrah!
The desire of our hearts at last!
Now we have swallowed him up.”
 26Shame and confusion together
on those who rejoice at my hurt!
Clothed with shame and dishonor
be those who are haughty to me!

 27Let such as delight in my cause
ring out their gladness,
and say evermore,
“Great is the Lord whose delight
is the well-being of his servant.”
 28Then my tongue will tell of your justice,
and all the day long of your praise. 
Psalm 36 — The Triumphant Power of God's Love
For the leader. Of the servant of the 36Lord, of David. 
 1Sin whispers within the heart of the wicked,
who have no dread of God before their eyes.
 2It flatters them in their eyes
that their sin will not be found out. 

 3First, their speech becomes wicked and false,
they give up acting wisely and well.
 4Then they plot deliberate wrong,
take their stand on the wicked way,
without the least shrinking from evil.

 5Your love, O Lord, touches the heavens,
your faithfulness reaches the clouds.
 6Your justice is like the great mountains, 
your judgments are like the broad sea.
Lord, you save people and animals.
 7How precious your love, O God!
All may seek shelter in the shadow of your wings.
 8They feast on the fat of your house,
they drink of your brook of delights.
 9For with you is the fountain of life,
in the light that is yours we see light.

 10O continue your grace to the faithful,
your love to the upright in heart.
 11Let no arrogant foot tread upon me,
no wicked hand drive me to exile.

 12There the workers of wrong lie prostrate,
thrust down to rise up no more. 
Psalm 37 — Trust in the Lord and Do Good
Of David.
 37Be not kindled to wrath at the wicked,
1nor envious of those who work wrong;
 2for, like grass, they will speedily wither,
and fade like the green of young grass.

 3Trust in the Lord, and do good;
remain in the land, and deal faithfully:
 4then the Lord will be your delight,
he will grant you your heart's petitions.

 5Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him, and he will act,
 6making clear as the light your right,
and your just cause clear as the noon-day.

 7In silence and patience wait on the Lord.
Be not kindled to anger at those who prosper.
At those who execute evil devices.

 8Desist from anger, abandon wrath:
be not kindled to anger it leads but to evil:
 9for evildoers will be cut off,
but the land will be theirs, who wait on the Lord.

 10Yet but a little, and the wicked vanish:
look at their place: they are there no more.
 11But the humble will have the land,
and the rapture of peace in abundance.

 12The wicked plots against the righteous,
 snarls like a wild animal;
 13the Lord laughs,
for he sees that his day is coming.

 14The wicked have drawn the sword, and bent the bow,
to fell the poor, to slay those who walk uprightly;
 15but their sword will pierce their own heart,
and their bows will be broken in pieces.

 16Better is the righteous person's little
than the wealth of many wicked.
 17For the arms of the wicked will be broken,
but the Lord upholds the righteous.

 18The Lord watches over the days of the blameless,
their heritage will continue forever.
 19They will not be shamed in the evil time,
in the days of famine they will be satisfied.

 20Because the wicked will perish:
but the foes of the Lord, like a brand in the oven,
will vanish, like smoke they will vanish.

 21The wicked must borrow and cannot pay back,
but the righteous is lavish and gives.
 22For those blest by the Lord inherit the land,
while those whom he curses will be cut off.

 23The Lord supports the steps
of those with whom he is pleased.
 24Though they fall, they will not be cast headlong,
for the Lord holds their hands.

 25Never, from youth to age,
have I seen the righteous forsaken,
or their children begging bread.
 26They are ever lavishly lending,
and their children are fountains of blessing.

 27Turn away from evil and do good
and you will live in the land forever.
 28For the Lord loves justice,
he does not forsake his friends.

The unrighteous will be destroyed forever,
and the seed of the wicked will be cut off.
 29But the land will belong to the righteous,
they will live upon it forever,

 30The mouth of the righteous murmurs wisdom,
and words of justice are on their tongues.
 31The law of their God is in their heart,
their steps are never unsteady.

 32The wicked watches the righteous,
and seeks to put them to death.
 33But the Lord leaves them not in their hand:
at their trial they will not be held guilty.

 34Wait on the Lord, and observe his way:
he will lift you to honor the land will be yours,
you will feast your eyes on the doom of the wicked.

 35I have seen the wicked exultant,
lifting themselves like a cedar of Lebanon.
 36But the moment I passed, they vanished!
I sought for them, but they could not be found.

 37Preserve your honor and practise uprightness,
for such a person fares well in the end.
 38But transgressors will perish together.
Cut off are the wicked forever.

 39The righteous are saved by the Lord,
who in time of distress is their refuge:
 40the Lord helps and rescue them,
from the wicked he rescues and saves them,
because they take refuge in him. 
Psalm 38 — A Confession and Prayer for Deliverance
A Psalm of David. A lament.
 38Reprove me not, 1Lord, in your anger,
and chasten me not in your wrath;
 2for your arrows have sunk into me,
and your hand lies heavy upon me.

 3In my flesh is no soundness
because of your anger,
no health in my bones,
because of my sin.
 4For that my guilt
is gone over my head:
it weighs like a burden
too heavy for me.

 5My wounds stink and fester,
for my foolishness I am tormented.
 6Bent and bowed am I utterly,
all the day going in mourning.

 7My loins are filled with burning,
and in my flesh is no soundness.
 8I am utterly crushed and numb;
I cry louder than lion roars.

 9Lord, you know all that I long for,
my groans are not hidden from you.
 10My heart is throbbing,
my strength has failed me.
The light of my eyes—
even it is gone from me.

 11My dear ones and friends keep aloof,
and my neighbors stand afar off.
 12They who aim at my life lay their snares,
they who seek my hurt speak of ruin,
nursing treachery all the day long.

 13But I turn a deaf ear and hear not;
like the dumb I open not my mouth.
 14I am like one without hearing,
with no arguments in my mouth.

 15For my hope, O Lord, is in you.
You will answer, O Lord my God,
 16when I utter the hope that those
who made scorn of my tottering feet
may not rejoice over me.

 17For I am ready to fall,
my pain forsakes me never.
 18I acknowledge my guilt,
I am anxious because of my sin:

 19My wanton assailants are strong,
those who wrongfully hate me are many,
 20who render me evil for good,
and oppose me, because I make good my goal.

 21Do not forsake me, O Lord;
my God, be not far from me.
 22Hasten to help me,
O Lord my savior. 
Psalm 39 — The Pathos of Life
For the leader; for Jeduthun. A psalm of David.
 39I vowed to watch my words,
1and sin not with my tongue,
but to put on my mouth a muzzle,
while the wicked were in my presence.
 2I was silent and dumb,
speechless:
but my pain was stirred up.
 3My heart grew hot within me;
as I mused, the fire was kindled,
till at last the words came to my tongue.

 4“Teach me, O Lord, my end,
and the sum of my days what it is.
Let me know how transient I am.
 5See! My days you have made but a span,
and my life is as nothing before you.
It is but as a breath that everyone stands: Selah
 6it is but in mere semblance we walk to and fro,
and all our noise is for nothing.
We heap up, and know not who will gather.”

 7And now, what wait I for, Lord?
My hope is in you.
 8From all my transgressions deliver me;
make me not the scorn of the fool.
 9I am dumb, never opening my mouth,
for this is your own doing.
 10Remove your stroke from off me:
by the might of your hand I am spent.
 11When you rebuke someone to punish their sins,
you consume, like a moth, what they treasures.
Everyone is only a breath. Selah

 12Hear my prayer, O Lord;
attend to my cry for help.
Hold not your peace at my tears.
For I am but a guest of yours,
a stranger visiting, like all my ancestors.
 13Look away from me, let me smile again,
before I die and am gone. 
Psalm 40 — Thanksgiving and Petition
For the leader. A psalm of David.
 40For the 1Lord I waited and waited,
till, inclining to me,
he heard my cry.
 2From the horrible pit he drew me,
up out of the miry clay;
he set my feet on a rock,
and my steps he made firm.
 3He put a new song in my mouth,
of praise to our God.
Many see it, and, filled with awe,
put their trust in the Lord.

 4Happy the person who has put
in the Lord their trust,
not looking to false gods
or turning to idols.
 5With us you have wrought in rich measure,
O Lord our God,
your marvels and purposes for us —
none may compare with you —
were I to declare or to tell them,
past counting are they.

 6In offerings bloody or bloodless
you have no delight,
but with open ears you have made me. 
Burnt-offering and offering for sin
are not what you ask.
 7Then said I, “Here I am,
as the roll of the book has enjoined.
 8My delight, O God, is to do your will,
and your law is within my heart.”
 9Well, O Lord, you know
that, with lips unrestrained,
your righteousness I told
in the great congregation,
 10not hiding it in my heart.
I have told of your steadfast help,
from the great congregation I hid not
your love and your faithfulness.
 11So do not restrain, Lord,
your pity from us.
Your love and your faithfulness — ever
may they be our shield.

 12For evils that cannot be numbered
have compassed me round.
My transgressions have followed me up —
I can bear it no more.
They are more than the hairs of my head,
and my heart has forsaken me.
 13O Lord, be pleased to deliver me,
haste to my help, O Lord.
 14May those who are seeking my life
be ashamed and confounded together;
may those who delight in my hurt
be defeated and brought to dishonor.
 15May those who hurrah over me
be dumbfounded because of their shame.
 16But may all who seek after you
rejoice and be glad in you.
May all those eager for your aid,
say, “Great is the Lord” evermore.
 17I am weak and needy,
yet the Lord cares for me.
You are my help and deliverer;
don't delay, my God. 
Psalm 41 — A Prayer for Healing and Vindication
For the leader; for Jeduthun. A psalm of David.
 41Happy are those who consider the weak;
1in the day of misfortune the Lord will deliver them.
 2He will keep them safe, happy, and long in the land,
and not give them up to the rage of their foes.
 3The Lord will sustain them on bed of languishing;
tending their sickness, as long as they lie.

 4For this cause I say, “Lord, show me your favor;
heal me, because I have sinned against you.”
 5My enemies speak of me nothing but evil,
“When will he die, and his name pass away?”
 6When one comes to see me, their words ring hollow;
their heart keeps gathering mischief the while;
and when they go out, they give it speech.
 7In secret they whisper together against me,
all those who hate me plot evil against me.
 8“Some fatal disease has fastened upon him;
and now that he lies, he will rise up no more.”
 9My most trusted friend, on whom I relied,
who ate of my bread, has turned against me.

 10But do you, Lord, graciously raise me up,
that I may pay them their due reward.
 11By this will I know you delight in me:
if my foes may not shout over me in triumph.
 12For my innocence you uphold me,
and set me forever before your face.

 13Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting,
Amen and Amen. 
Book Two
Psalm 42 — Yearning for God
For the leader. A maskil of the Korahites.
 42Like the hart which longs
1for brooks of water,
I long
for you, God.

 2I thirst for God,
for my living God.
When shall I enter in,
and see the face of God?
 3My tears have been my food
by day and by night;
for they say to me all the day long,
“Where is your God?”

 4My heart floods with sorrow,
as I call to mind:
how I used to pass on with the throng,
at their head, to the house of God,
with glad shouts and giving of thanks,
in the throng who kept festival. 

 5Why am I downcast?
Why this moaning within me?
Hope in God;
for yet will I praise him,
my help, my God.

 6I am sunk in my misery;
I will therefore call you to mind
from the land of Jordan and Hermon,
the mountain Mizar.
 7Flood is calling to flood
at the noise of your cataracts;
all your waves and your breakers
have passed over me.

 8In the day I cry to the Lord
to summon his kindness;
and the song that I sing in the night
is a prayer to the living God.
 9I say to God my rock,
“Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I walk so sadly,
so hard pressed by the foe?”
 10It pierces me to the heart
to hear the enemy's taunts,
as all the day long they say to me,
“Where is your God?”

 11Why am I downcast?
Why this moaning within me?
Hope in God;
for yet will I praise him,
my help, my God. 
Psalm 43 — Plea for Help
 43Right me, defend my cause
1against a pitiless people.
From the crafty and crooked,
O God, deliver me.
 2For you are God my protector:
why have you cast me off?
Why must I walk so sadly,
so hard pressed by the foe?
 3Send forth your light and your truth,
let them be my guides:
to your holy hill let them bring me,
to the place where you live.
 4Then will I go to God's altar,
to God my rejoicing;
and with joy on the lyre I will praise you,
O God, my God. 

 5Why am I downcast?
Why this moaning within me?
Hope in God;
for yet will I praise him,
my help, my God. 
Psalm 44 — A Lament in Defeat
For the leader. Of the Korahites. A maskil.
 44O God, we have heard with our ears,
1all our ancestors have told us 
of the work that you wrought in their day,
your wonders in days of old,
 2uprooting and crushing the nations,
then planting and settling them. 
For it wasn't their own sword that won them the land,
 3it was not their own arm that brought them the victory.
Yours was the hand and the arm,
yours was the face that shone on them with favor.
 4It was you, my king and my God,
that ordained the victories of Jacob.

 5Through you we can thrust back our foes,
and by your name tread down our assailants:
 6for not in my bow do I trust,
nor can my sword win me the victory.
 7Our victory comes from you,
and confusion to those who hate us.
 8In God we boast all the day long,
and your name will we praise forever. Selah

 9Yet you have spurned and disgraced us,
in not going forth with our armies,
 10and in making us flee from the foe,
so that those who hated us plundered us.
 11You have let us be eaten like sheep,
you have scattered us over the world,
 12sold your people for a pittance,
and getting no gain from their price.
 13You have made us the butt of our neighbors,
the derision and scorn of all round us.
 14O'er the world you have made us a byword,
the nations at us shake their heads.
 15My disgrace is forever before me,
my face is covered with shame,
 16at the words of blasphemer and scoffer,
at the sight of the foe and the vengeful.

 17All this has come upon us,
yet we have not forgotten you
nor falsely dealt with your covenant.
 18Our heart has not turned back,
nor our steps declined from your way,
 19that you thus should have crushed us down,
and covered us over with gloom,
in the place where the jackals roam.
 20Had we forgotten the name of our God,
or stretched out our hands to a god that was strange,
 21would God not have searched this out?
For he knows the heart and its secrets.
 22But in your cause it is we are killed all the day,
and counted as sheep for the slaughter.

 23Rouse yourself, why do you sleep Lord?
Awake, cast us not off forever.
 24Why do you hide your face,
forgetting our stress and our misery?
 25For we have sunk down to the dust,
our bodies cling to the ground.
 26Arise, come to our help:
for your love's sake, ransom us. 
Psalm 45 — Song for the Marriage of a King
For the leader; on shoshannim. Of the Korahites. A maskil. A love song.
 45My heart is astir with beautiful words:
1I will sing a song, concerning the king,
with tongue like the pen of a ready writer.

 2Your beauty is more than mortal,
grace is shed over your lips:
therefore God has blessed you forever.
 3Warrior, strap your sword on your thigh.
What glory and splendor!

 4Good fortune attend you, as forth you ride
in the cause of good faith, and as champion of justice.
May your arm instruct you in deeds of dread.
 5Sharp are your arrows; nations fall under you:
pierced to the heart are the foes of the king.

 6Your throne shall endure for ever and ever
your royal sceptre a sceptre of equity.
 7Right you love and wrong you hate:
therefore the Lord your God anoints you
With oil of gladness above your fellows.

 8With myrrh, aloes, and cassia your robes are all fragrant,
you are gladdened by music of ivory harps.
 9King's daughters stand ready with jewels for you,
at your right hand the queen in gold of Ophir.

 10Listen, daughter, and see; and incline your ear:
forget your folk and your father's house.
 11And when the king desires your beauty,
bow to him, for he is your lord.
 12So shall the Tyrians come with gifts,
and the richest of people will do you homage.

 13The king's daughter is glorious altogether,
with dress of pearls inwrought with gold.
 14In many-coloured robes she is led to the king,
with the virgin companions she brought in her train.
 15The king's palace they enter with joy and rejoicing.

 16May sons of yours take the place of your fathers,
whom you will make princes in all the land.
 17Your name will I celebrate world without end,
so that nations shall praise you for ever and ever. 
Psalm 46 — Our God is a Mighty Fortress
For the leader. Of the Korahites, on alamoth. A song.
 46God is our refuge and strength,
1a very present help in trouble.
 2So we have no fear, though earth should change,
and the hills totter into the heart of the ocean.
 3Let its waters roar and foam,
let the mountains shake with the swelling thereof.
On our side is the Lord of hosts,
our sure defence is the God of Jacob. Selah

 4A river there is, whose streams make glad
God's city, the home the Most High has hallowed.
 5God is within her: she cannot be shaken.
God helps her at the turn of the morning.
 6Nations roared, kingdoms tottered:
he uttered his voice, earth melted away.
 7On our side is the Lord of hosts,
our sure defence is the God of Jacob.

 8Come and see what the Lord has done,
working appallingly in the earth.
 9He stills wars to the ends of the earth-
breaking the bow, snapping the spear,
burning the chariots in the fire.
 10“Refrain; and know surely that I am God,
high over the nations, high over the world.” 
 11On our side is the Lord of Hosts,
our sure defence is the God of Jacob. Selah 
Psalm 47 — The Lord's Universal Sovereignty
For the leader. Of the Korahites. A psalm.
 47Clap your hands, all you peoples:
1shout to God in ringing cries.
 2For the Lord is most high and dread,
a great king over all the earth.

 3He subdues the peoples under us,
the nations under our feet;
 4he chooses our heritage for us,
the glory of Jacob whom he loves. Selah

 5God is gone up with a shout,
the Lord with the sound of a trumpet.
 6Sing praise to our God, sing praises:
sing praise to our king, sing praises.

 7For king of all earth is he:
praise God in a skilful song.
 8God is king over all the nations,
God sits on his holy throne.

 9Princes of nations gather
with the people of Abraham's God:
for the shields of the earth are God's;
greatly exalted is he. 
Psalm 48 — The Marvelous Deliverance of Zion
A song. A psalm of the Korahites.
 48Great is the 1Lord and worthy all praise
in the city of our God.
His holy mountain, 2that rises so fair,
is the joy of all the world.
Like the mount of the gods is Mount Zion,
the city of the great king.

 3Once God made himself known
as the defence of her palaces.
 4For see! A concert of kings
passed over the frontier together.
 5But one glance, and they were astounded;
they hastened away in dismay.
 6Trembling took hold of them there,
like the pains of a woman in labor.
 7They were shattered, as east wind shatters
the giant ships in pieces.
 8What we heard, we now have seen
in the city of the Lord of hosts,
the city of our God.
God will uphold her forever. Selah

 9We think, O God, of your love,
in the midst of your temple.
 10Your fame, O God, like your name, shall extend
to the ends of the earth.
Victory fills your hand.
 11Let mount Zion be glad;
let the daughters of Judah rejoice
because of your judgments.
 12Walk about Zion, go round her;
count her towers.
 13Set your mind on her ramparts,
consider her palaces;
that you tell to the next generation
 14That such is God,
our God he it is who shall guide us
for ever and ever. 
Psalm 49 — The Problem of the Prosperity of the Wicked
For the leader. Of the Korahites. A psalm.
 49Hear this, you peoples all;
1give ear, all you who live in the world
 2people of low degree and high,
the rich and the poor together.
 3My mouth shall utter wisdom,
the thoughts of a seeing heart.
 4I incline my ear to a proverb, 
on the lyre I will open my riddle.

 5Why should I be afraid in the days of misfortune,
when circled by wicked and cunning foes,
 6who put their trust in their wealth,
and boast of their boundless riches?

 7For assuredly no one can ransom themselves,
or give to God the price of their life,
 8for the ransom of a life is costly,
no payment is ever enough,
 9to keep them alive for ever and ever,
so as never to see the pit at all.

 10But see it they will. Even wise people die,
the fool and the brutish perish alike,
and abandon their wealth to others.
 11The grave is their everlasting home,
the place they shall live in for ever and ever,
though after their own names they called whole lands. 
 12Despite their wealth,
they perish like dumb animals.

 13This is the fate of the confident fool,
and the end of those who are pleased with their portion. Selah
 14Like sheep they descend to Sheol
with Death for their shepherd;
down they go straight to the grave,
and their form wastes away in their home below. 

 15But God will assuredly ransom my life
from the hand of Sheol;
for he will receive me. Selah
 16So be not afraid when someone grows rich,
when the wealth of their house increases.
 17Not a shred of it all can they take when they die,
wealth cannot follow them down.
 18Though they count themselves happy, when they are alive,
and win praise from many for faring so well,
 19they must join their ancestors,
who see the light nevermore.
 20The wealthy are without understanding,
they perish like dumb animals. 
Psalm 50 — True Worship
A psalm of Asaph.
 50The 1Lord God has spoken: He summons the earth
from sunrise to sunset.
 2From Zion, perfection of beauty,
God's glory shines forth.
 3Our God comes, he cannot keep silence,
devouring fire is before him,
and furious tempest around him.
 4He summons the heavens above
and the earth to judge his people.
 5Gather to him his saints
by covenant-sacrifice bound to him;
 6that the heavens may declare his justice,
for a God of justice is he. Selah

 7“Hear, O my people, and I will speak,
and protest to you, O Israel:
I am the Lord, your God.
 8Not for your sacrifices will I reprove you
your burnt-offerings are ever before me
 9Not a bullock will I take from your house,
nor he-goats out of your folds;
 10for all beasts of the forest are mine,
and the kine on a thousand hills.
 11I know all the birds of the air,
all that moves on the fields is mine.
 12Were I hungry, I would not tell you,
for the world and its fulness are mine.
 13Am I such as to eat bulls' flesh,
or drink the blood of goats?
 14Offer to God a thank-offering, 
pay the Most High your vows.
 15Summon me in the day of distress,
I will rescue you, so will you honor me.”

 16But to the wicked God says:
“What right have you to talk of my statutes,
or take my covenant into your mouth
 17while you yourself hate correction,
and cast my words behind you?
 18When you see a thief, you run with them;
with adulterers you keep company.
 19You let your mouth loose for evil,
your tongue contrives deceit.
 20You shamefully speak of your kin,
and slander your own mother's son.
 21And because I kept silence at this,
you did take me for one like yourself.
But I will convict you and show you plainly.

 22“Now you who forget God, mark this,
lest I rend you, past hope of deliverance.
 23Those who bring a thank-offering honor me;
but to those: who follows my way,
I will show the salvation of God.” 
Psalm 51 — God be Merciful to Me, the Sinner
For the leader. A psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet come to him after he had been with Bathsheba.
 51In your kindness, O God, be gracious to me,
1in your own great pity blot out my transgressions.
 2Wash me clean of my guilt,
make me pure of my sin.

 3For well I know my transgressions,
my sin is ever before me.
 4Against you, only you, have I sinned,
and done that which is wrong in your sight:
you therefore are just when you speak,
and clear when you utter judgment.
 5See! In guilt was I brought to the birth,
and in sin did my mother conceive me.
 6It's the innermost truth you desire,
give me therefore true wisdom of heart.

 7Purge me clean with hyssop,
wash me whiter than snow.
 8Fill me with joy and gladness,
let the bones you have broken rejoice.
 9Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out my guilt altogether.

 10Create me a clean heart, O God,
put a new steadfast spirit within me.
 11Cast me not forth from your presence,
withdraw not your holy spirit.
 12Give me back the joy of your help,
with a willing spirit sustain me.

 13I will teach your ways to transgressors,
and sinners shall turn to you.
 14Save me from blood, O God,
and my tongue shall ring out your faithfulness.
 15Open my lips, O Lord,
and my mouth shall declare your praise.

 16For in sacrifice you have no pleasure,
in gifts of burnt-offering no delight.
 17The sacrifice pleasing to God
is a spirit that is broken;
a heart that is crushed, O God,
you will not despise.

 18Do good in your pleasure to Zion,
build the walls of Jerusalem.
 19Then will you welcome the due forms of sacrifice,
then on your altars shall bullocks be offered. 
Psalm 52 — The Doom of Arrogance
For the leader. A maskil of David, when Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul that David had gone to Abimelech's house.
 52Why glory in mischief, you hero?
1God's kindness is all the day.
 2Engulfing ruin you plot,
your tongue like a razor sharpened,
you practiser of deceit.
 3Evil, not good, you love,
and falsehood, not words of truth. Selah
 4But you love all words that devour,
and a tongue that is given to deceit.

 5But God, on his part, shall destroy you forever,
grasp you and pluck you out of your tent,
and root you out of the land of the living. Selah
 6Smitten with awe at the sight,
the righteous shall laugh at you.
 7“Look” (they will say) “at the hero
who did not make God his stronghold,
but trusted in his great wealth
and in the strength of his riches.”

 8But I am like a fresh olive-tree
in the house of God.
I trust in the kindness of God
for ever and evermore.
 9I will render you thanks for ever
for what you have done.
I will tell how good you are
in the presence of those who love you. 
Psalm 53 — The Folly of Denying God
For the leader. On mahalath. A maskil of David.
 53Fools say in their heart,
1“There is no God.”
Vile, hateful their life is;
not one does good.

 2From heaven God looks out
on humans, to see
if any are wise,
and care for God.

 3But all have turned bad,
the taint is on all;
not one does good,
no, not one.

 4Have they learned their lesson,
those workers of evil?
Who ate up my people,
eating, devouring,
never calling to the Lord.

 5Sore afraid will they be,
where no fear was;
when God scatters the bones
of the godless people.
They will be put to shame,
when God rejects them.

 6If only help from Zion
would come for Israel!
When God brings his people
a change of fortune,
how glad will be Jacob,
and Israel how joyful! 
Psalm 54 — A Prayer for Deliverance from Oppression
For the leader. With stringed instruments. A maskil of David, when the Ziphites came and said to Saul, ‘David is in hiding among us’.
 54Save me, O God, by your name,
1by your power secure for me justice.
 2Listen, O God, to my prayer,
give ear to the words of my mouth.
 3For proud men have risen against me,
and terrible men seek my life,
men who do not set God before them. Selah

 4But see! God is my helper,
the Lord is sustaining my life.
 5Let their evil fall back on my foes:
cut them off in your faithfulness, Lord.

 6Then will I bring you glad sacrifice,
praising your gracious name;
 7for from all distress you have saved me,
and feasted my eyes on my foes. 
Psalm 55 — Betrayed by a Friend
For the leader. With stringed instruments. A maskil of David. 
 55Listen, God, to my prayer.
1Don't hide yourself from my pleading.
 2Hear me, and answer;
for bitter is my lament.
 3I am wild with the noise of the foe,
with the clamor of the ungodly;
for they hurl disaster upon me,
and attack me with fury.
 4My heart shudders within me,
terrors of deaths press on me,
 5fear and trembling attack me,
and horror wraps me round.
 6O for the wings of a dove:
I would fly away and rest.
 7I would wander far away,
find refuge in the wilderness. Selah
 8I would find myself a shelter
from raging wind and tempest.

 9Confuse them, Lord, upset their plans;
for I see violence and strife in the city.
 10By day and by night they make their rounds
on the city walls,
while within is crime and trouble,
 11within is ruin.
Her market-place is never free
of deceit and tyranny.
The Treacherous Friend
 12The taunts were not those of a foe
that I could have borne;
the disdain was not that of an enemy
I could have shunned them:
 13but it was you, my equal,
my dear and familiar friend.
 14We used to be so close,
together we walked in God's house with the crowd.
 15May death suddenly take them,
may they go down to Sheol alive,
for evil lives in their homes and their hearts.

 16But I will call on God,
the Lord will save me.
 17Evening and morning and noon
I lament and moan.
He will hear my voice; 
 18though I am attacked by many
he will rescue me, 
unharmed from the war.
 19God, who sits on his ancient throne
will hear and will humble them,
for they never change,
they never fear God. Selah

 20My friend turned against me,
betrayed his word.
 21His mouth was smoother than butter,
but war filled his heart.
His words were softer than oil,
but sharper than swords.
 22Cast your burden on the Lord,
and he will sustain you.
He will never let the righteous
be shaken.
 23But you, God, will hurl them down
to the deepest pit.
Bloody and treacherous people
will not live out half their days;
but I will trust you. 
Psalm 56 — A Prayer of Trust in God
For the leader. On jonath elem rehokim. Of David. A michtam, when the Philistines seized him in Gath.
 56O God, be gracious to me,
1for people trample upon me,
all the day righting and pressing me.
 2All the day enemies trample me;
many there be
who contend with me bitterly.
 3In the day of my terror
I trust in you.
 4In God I maintain my cause,
in God I fearlessly trust.
What can flesh do to me?

 5They torture me all the day,
they ceaselessly plan to hurt me,
 6banded together in secret,
watching my every step,
as those who hope for my death.
 7Pay them out for their sin, O God,
hurl down the strong in your anger.
 8You yourself count my wanderings.
Put in your bottle my tears
are they not in your book? 
 9Then shall my foes be turned back
in the day that I call.
Of this I am sure,
because God is for me.
 10In God I maintain my cause,
in the Lord I maintain my cause.
 11In God I fearlessly trust,
what can people do to me?

 12Your vows are upon me, O God,
I will render thank-offerings to you;
 13because you have saved me from death,
my feet from stumbling,
to the end that I walk before God
in the light of the living. 
Psalm 57 — A Prayer for Protection from Persecution
For the leader. Al tashheth. A michtam of David, when he fled from Saul into a cave.
 57Be gracious, O God, be gracious to me,
1for in you I take shelter.
In your sheltering wings I take refuge,
till ruin be over past.
 2I cry to the Most High God,
to the God who accomplishes for me.
 3He will send me his succour from heaven,
he will thrust away those who would trample me. Selah
 4In the midst of lions I lie,
who devour human prey.
Their teeth are spears and arrows,
and their tongue is a sharpened sword.
 5Be exalted, God, o'er the heavens,
and your glory o'er all the earth.

 6They set a net for my feet,
but in it was their own foot caught.
Before me they dug a pit,
but they fell into it themselves. Selah

 7My heart is steadfast, O God,
my heart is steadfast.
I would sing, I would make music;
 8awake, my soul.
Awake, harp and lyre;
I would wake the dawn.
 9I would praise you among the peoples, O Lord,
and make music among the nations to you;
 10for great to heaven is your love,
and your faithfulness to the clouds.
 11Be exalted, God, o'er the heavens,
and your glory o'er all the earth. 
Psalm 58 — A Prayer for Vengeance on Unjust Judges
For the leader. Al tashheth. Of David. A michtam.
 58Do you speak what is right, you gods?
1With equity judge you your people?
 2In the land you practise iniquity — all of you;
violence do you dispense with your hands.
 3The wicked go astray from the womb
liars take the wrong path from their birth.
 4Venom have they like the venom of snakes,
they are like the deaf adder that stops her ears,
 5and refuses to listen to the voice of the charmer,
or binder of spells, no matter how cunning.

 6O God, break to pieces the teeth in their mouth,
tear out the great teeth of the young lions, Lord.
 7May they melt away like running water!
Like tender grass, cut down may they be!
 8Like the snail that dissolves on its crawling path,
like the birth untimely which sees not the sunlight.
 9Faster than a thorn-fire heats your pots,
he will come with his tempest and sweep them away. 
 10The sight of such vengeance will gladden the righteous;
their feet they will wash in the blood of the wicked.
 11People will say, “Yes, the just are rewarded:
yes, on the earth is a God who is Judge.” 
Psalm 59 — A Prayer for Safety
For the leader. Al tashheth. Of David. A michtam, when Saul sent men to watch his house in order to kill him.
 59Save me, O God, from my enemies;
1secure me from my assailants.
 2Save me from those who do wrong,
save me from the bloodthirsty.
 3For see! They lay ambush for me,
strong men are banded against me
not for sin or transgression of mine,
for no guilt of mine, O Lord,
 4they run and make ready. Awake!
Come forth to meet me, and see!
 5You, O Lord of hosts,
God of Israel, awake!
And punish the proud, every one;
spare none of the traitors vile. Selah

 6At evening they come,
and, howling like dogs,
make their round in the city.
 7Look at their venomous mouths,
tongues like swords,
they think no one
hears them.
 8But you, Lord, laugh at them,
you mock all the insolent.
 9My strength, I will sing to you,
for God is my sure retreat.
 10My God with his love will meet me,
and feast my eyes on my foes.

 11Slay them not, lest my people forget,
let your hosts keep them roaming and wandering.
 12In their sinful speech snare them, O Lord;
and may they be trapped in their pride,
for the curses and lies that they utter.
 13In your wrath make a clean end of them,
that people, to the ends of the earth,
may know that God rules in Jacob. Selah

 14At evening they come,
and, howling like dogs,
make their round in the city.
 15They roam about for a feast,
and snarl, if they get not their fill.
 16But I will sing of your might;
I will ring out your love in the morning.
For to me you have been a sure refuge,
a retreat in the day of my trouble.
 17My strength, I will sing praise to you,
for God is my sure retreat,
my faithful God. 
Psalm 60 — A Prayer after Defeat in Battle
For the leader. On shushan eduth. A michtam of David (for teaching), when he fought with Aram-naharaim and Aram-zobah, and Joab returned and defeated twelve thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt. 
 60O God, you have spurned and broken us,
1routing us in your wrath — restore us!
 2You have shaken the land and cleft it;
heal its tottering breaches.
 3You have made your people drink hardship,
and given us wine of reeling.

 4You have given those who fear you a banner,
a rallying-place from the bow, Selah
 5for the rescue of your beloved.
Save by your right hand and answer us.

 6God did solemnly swear:
“As victor will I divide Shechem,
and mete out the valley of Succoth.
 7Mine is Gilead, mine is Manasseh,
Ephraim is the defence of my head,
Judah my sceptre of rule,
 8Moab the pot that I wash in,
Edom — I cast my shoe over it, 
I shout o'er Philistia in triumph.”

 9O to be brought to the fortified city!
O to be led into Edom!
 10Have you not spurned us, O God?
You do not march forth with our armies.
 11Grant us help from the foe,
for human help is worthless.
 12With God we shall yet do bravely:
he himself will tread down our foes. 
Psalm 61 — Our God is a Strong Tower
For the leader. On stringed instruments. Of David.
 61Hear my cry, O God,
1be attentive to my prayer.
 2From the ends of the earth I call
unto you, when my heart is faint:
lead me to the rock
that is high above me.
 3For you are a refuge to me,
a strong tower in face of the foe.

 4O to be guest in your tent forever,
hiding beneath your sheltering wings! Selah
 5For you, O God, do hear my vows,
and grant the desires of those who fear you.
 6Add many days to the life of the king;
may his years endure throughout all generations.
 7In the presence of God be he throned forever;
may kindness and faithfulness watch over him.
 8And I will sing praise to your name forever,
paying my vows day after day. 
Psalm 62 — Quietness and Confidence
For the leader. On jeduthun. A psalm of David.
 62I wait alone in silence for God;
1From him comes my help.
 2Yes, he is my rock, my help, my retreat,
I shall not be shaken too sorely.
 3How long will you, all of you, batter a man,
as one might a leaning wall?
 4From his height 
they are planning to topple him.
They take pleasure in falsehood; they bless with their mouth,
but inwardly they curse. Selah

 5I wait alone in silence for God;
for from him comes my hope.
 6Yes, he is my rock, my help, my retreat,
I shall not be shaken too sorely.
 7On God rests my honor and safety,
in God is my strong rock, my refuge.
 8Trust in him, all you people assembled,
pour out your heart in his presence;
God is a refuge for us. Selah

 9The lowly are nought but a breath,
the lofty are but an illusion:
in the balances up they go,
they are lighter than breath altogether.
 10Trust not in gain of extortion,
set no vain hopes in robbery.
As for wealth, if it bears fruit,
set not your heart upon it.

 11One thing God has uttered,
two things there are which I heard
that power belongs to God,
 12and to you, too, O Lord, belongs kindness;
for you requite each person
according to what they have done. 
Psalm 63 — Athirst for God
A psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah.
 63O God, my God, you, you do I seek:
1my heart thirsts for you,
my body faints for you
in a parched and waterless land.

 2As I in the temple have seen you,
beholding your power and your glory,
 3for better than life is your kindness:
my lips shall utter your praise.

 4So, while I live, I will bless you,
and lift up my hands in your name.
 5As with marrow and fat am I feasted;
with joyful lips I will praise you.

 6I call you to mind on my bed,
and muse on you in the night watches;
 7for you have been my help,
I joyfully sing in the shadow of your wings.
 8I cling close after you,
your right hand holds me up.

 9But those who seek after my life
shall go down to the depths of the earth,
 10given o'er to the power of the sword,
or as prey for jackals to devour.

 11But the king shall rejoice in God:
all who own his allegiance will glory.
For the mouth of the false shall be stopped. 
Psalm 64 — A Prayer for Deliverance from Malicious Foes
For the leader. A psalm of David.
 64Hear, O my God, the voice of my lament:
1guard my life from the foe who affrights me.
 2Hide me from villains who secretly plot,
from the blustering throng of the workers of evil,
 3who have sharpened their tongue like a sword,
and aimed bitter words like arrows,
 4which from ambush they launch at the blameless,
shooting swiftly and unafraid.

 5They strengthen their wicked purpose,
they tell of the snares they have hidden,
they say to themselves, “Who can see?”
 6They think out their crimes full cunningly
hidden deep in their crafty hearts. 

 7But God with his arrow will shoot them,
swiftly shall they be smitten.
 8For their tongue he will bring them to ruin,
all will shudder with horror at the sight of them.

 9Then every person, touched to awe,
as they ponder what God has wrought,
will tell the tale of his deeds.
 10In the Lord shall the righteous rejoice,
in him shall they take refuge;
and all the true-hearted shall glory. 
Psalm 65 — Hymn for a Thanksgiving Festival
For the leader. A psalm of David. A song.
 65It is seemly to praise you, O God, in Zion,
1and to you shall the vow be performed in Jerusalem.
 2O you who hear prayer,
unto you shall all flesh come.
 3Our sins are too mighty for us,
our transgressions you only can cover them.
 4Happy the person who you choose
to live beside you in your courts.
O may we be filled with the joys
of your house, of your holy temple.

 5In dread deeds you loyally answer us,
O God of our salvation,
whom all ends of the earth put their trust in,
and islands far away.
 6By your strength you establish the hills,
you are armed with might;
 7you still the roaring of seas,
and the turmoil of nations,
 8so that those who live at earth's bounds
are awed at your signs:
the lands of the sunrise and sunset
you make to ring with joy.

 9You visit and water the earth;
you greatly enrich her
with the river of God, which is full of water.
You prepare the corn thereof,
 10watering her furrows,
settling her ridges;
you make her soft with showers,
and bless what grows thereon.
 11You crown the year with your goodness,
your chariot-tracks drip with fatness.
 12The desert pastures are lush,
the hills greened with joy.
 13The meadows are clothed with flocks,
the valleys are covered with corn;
they shout to each other and sing. 
Psalm 66 — Thanksgiving for National Deliverance
For the leader. A song. A psalm.
 66Shout to God, all the earth,
 2sing praise to his glorious name,
sing his glorious praise.
 3Say to God, “How dread are your works,
so great is your might that your enemies cringe to you.
 4All the earth does homage to you,
singing praises to you,
singing praise to your name.” Selah

 5Come and see what God has done,
awe-inspiring is he in his works among people.
 6He turns the sea into dry land,
and people cross the river on foot.
Let us therefore rejoice in him,
 7the mighty Ruler eternal,
whose eyes keep watch on the nations,
that no rebel lift up his head. Selah

 8O bless our God, you peoples;
sound aloud his praise,
 9who keeps us in life,
and keeps our feet from slipping.
 10For you, God, have tested us,
have tried us, as silver is tried.
 11You did bring us into prison,
and put chains upon us,
 12you did let people ride over our head.
We went through fire and through water,
but you led us out to a spacious place.

 13I will enter your house with burnt-offerings,
I will pay to you my vows,
 14which my open lips have uttered,
arid my mouth has declared in my straits.
 15I will offer you offerings of fatlings,
with the odour of burning rams,
I will sacrifice bullocks with goats. Selah

 16Come and hear my story
all who fear God —
of what he has done for me.
 17For my mouth had no sooner invoked him
than his praise was under my tongue.
 18Had I cherished sin in my heart,
the Lord would never have listened.
 19But assuredly God has listened,
and attended to my loud prayer.

 20Blessed be God, who turned not aside
my prayer, nor withdrew his kindness from me. 
Psalm 67 — A Harvest Thanksgiving
For the leader. On stringed instruments. A psalm. A song.
 67Bless us, O God, with your favor,
1let the light of your face fall upon us; Selah
 2that the world may know your way,
and all nations your power to save.

 3Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let the peoples all of them praise you.
 4Let the nations ring out their joy;
for you govern the peoples with equity,
and guide the nations on earth. Selah
 5Let the peoples praise you, O God,
let the peoples, all of them, praise you.

 6The earth has yielded her increase
by the blessing of God, our God.
 7May this blessing of ours win people to him
to all the ends of the earth. 
Psalm 68 — Victory
For the leader. Of David. A psalm. A song.
 68God arises, his enemies scatter:
1they who hate him flee before him.
 2As smoke before wind is driven,
as wax melts before fire,
so before God vanish the wicked.
 3But the righteous rejoice in God's presence,
they exult with exceeding joy.

 4Sing to God, make music to his name,
his name is the Lord, praise him who rides on the clouds,
and exult in his presence.
 5Father of orphans, defender of widows,
is God in his holy abode.
 6God brings home the lonely,
he leads forth the prisoner to comfort,
so that none but the rebel lives cheerless. 

 7God, when you went in front of your people
in your march through the desert, Selah
 8earth shook, the heavens poured rain
at the presence of God, Sinai's God
at the presence of God, Israel's God.
 9Rain in abundance, God, you did sprinkle,
restoring the languishing land of your heritage.
 10A dwelling therein your people found:
in your goodness, O God, you did care for the poor.

 11The Lord spoke the glad tidings of victory,
a great army of women proclaim it:
 12“Kings of armies they flee, they flee,
and the housewife divides the spoil:
 13dove's wings covered with silver
and pinions with shimmer of gold,
 14set with stones, like snow upon Zalmon.” 

 15A mountain of God is the mountain of Bashan,
a mountain of peaks is the mountain of Bashan.
 16You high-peaked mountains, why look you askance
at the mountain which God has desired for his home
whereon the Lord will live forever?
 17The chariots of God are twice ten thousand:
the Lord came from Sinai, his holy place.
 18You did mount the height with trains of your captives,
and gifts that you had received from the people.
The rebels shall live with the Lord God.

 19Blest be the Lord who sustains us daily,
the God who is also our savior. Selah
 20Our God is a God who is savior.
The ways of escape from death
are known to the Lord God.
 21Yes, God will shatter the head of his foes
the rough scalp of those who strut on in their sins.
 22The Lord said: “I will bring you home from Bashan,
home from the depths of the sea,
 23that your feet you may bathe in blood,
and your dogs lick their share of the foe.”

 24In the temple appear God's triumphal processions,
processions in praise of my king and my God,
 25with singers in front, and minstrels behind,
and maidens with timbrels between them, singing,
 26“You of the well-spring of Israel,
bless the Lord God in the dance.”
 27There, in front, is Benjamin the little,
the princes of Judah beside them, 
the princes of Zebulon, princes of Naphtali.

 28God, show your strength,
your godlike might,
as you did in the past,
 29from your temple that crowns Jerusalem.
Kings shall bring tribute to you.
 30Rebuke the beast of the reed, 
the herd of bulls, with the calves of the peoples. 
Trample down the lovers of lies. 
Scatter the nations whose joy is in war.
 31May they come from Egypt with gifts of oil, 
Ethiopia haste with full hands to God.

 32Sing to God, O you kingdoms of earth,
make melody to the Lord. Selah
 33Praise him who rides on the ancient heavens.
See! He utters his voice, his mighty voice.
 34Ascribe strength to the God over Israel,
whose strength and majesty live in the skies.
 35Awe-inspiring is God in his holy place,
it is Israel's God
who gives strength and might to his people.
Blessed be God. 
Psalm 69 — A Prayer for Deliverance and Vengeance
For the leader. On shoshannim. Of David.
 69Save me, O God; for the waters
1are threatening my life.
 2I am sunk in depths of mire,
where ground there is none.
I am come into deep deep waters,
the flood overwhelms me.
 3I am weary of crying, my throat is parched,
my eyes are wasted with waiting for God.

 4More than the hairs of my head
are those who wantonly hate me.
More than my bones in number
are those who are falsely my foes.
That which I never robbed,
how am I then to restore?
 5O God, you know my folly,
my guilt is not hidden from you.
 6Through me let not any be shamed,
who wait for you, Lord God of hosts.
Through me let not those be confounded
who seek you, O God of Israel.
 7It's in your cause that I have borne taunts,
and my face has been covered with shame;
 8I became to my kindred a foreigner,
to my mother's sons a stranger.

 9It was zeal for your house that consumed me,
and the insults they hurled at you fell upon me.
 10When I chastened myself with fasting,
they took occasion to taunt me.
 11When I put on a garment of sackcloth,
they made me the theme of a taunt-song.
 12Those who sit in the gate make sport of me
in the music of drunken songs.

 13But I pray to you, Lord,
for a time of favor.
In your great love answer me;
with your loyal help, save me
 14from sinking down in the mire.
Lift me out of the deep deep waters,
 15that the rushing flood may not drown me,
that the deep may not swallow me up,
nor the pit close her mouth upon me.
 16Answer me, Lord, in your gracious kindness,
turn to me in your great compassion.
 17Hide not your face from your servant,
for I am in trouble; O answer me speedily.
 18Draw near to me, redeem me;
because of my enemies, ransom me.

 19You know how I am insulted;
in your sight are all my foes.
 20Insult has broken my heart,
past cure are my shame and confusion.
For pity I looked — there was none!
And for comforters, but I found none.
 21Poison they gave me for food,
and to slake my thirst they gave vinegar.

 22May their table, outspread, be a trap to them,
and their peace-offerings be a snare.
 23May their eyes be darkened and blind,
make them shake without ceasing.
 24Pour your indignation upon them,
let your burning wrath overtake them.
 25May their camp be a desolation,
in their tents be there none to live.
 26For those whom you struck, they persecute,
and those whom you wounded, they pain yet more.
 27Charge them with sin upon sin,
may they not be acquitted by you.
 28From the book of life be they blotted,
may their names not be written with the righteous.

 29Lift me, O God, by your help
above my pain and misery.
 30Then will I praise God in song
and magnify him with thanksgiving,
 31which shall please the Lord better than ox,
or than bullock with horns and hoofs.
 32The oppressed shall rejoice at the sight.
You who seek after God, let your heart revive.
 33For the Lord listens to the poor,
he does not despise his prisoners.

 34Let the heavens and the earth sing his praises,
the seas, and all creatures that move in them.
 35For God will bring help to Zion,
and build up the cities of Judah,
his people shall live there in possession.
 36His servants' children shall have it for heritage,
and those who love him shall live therein. 
Psalm 70 — A Cry for Help in Persecution
For the leader. Of David. For commemoration. 
 70Quickly, God, deliver me,
1hasten to help me, Lord.
 2May those who are seeking my life,
be ashamed and confounded.
 3May those who delight in my hurt
be defeated and brought to dishonor.
 4But may all who seek after you
rejoice and be glad in you.
May all who love your salvation
say, “Glory to God,” evermore.
 5I am weak and needy:
make haste, God, to me.
You are my help and deliverer;
Lord, don't delay. 
Psalm 71 — Forsake me not, when I am Old
 71In you, O 1Lord, I take refuge,
let me never be put to shame.
 2In your faithfulness save me and rescue me,
bend your ear to me and save me.
 3Be to me a rock of defence,
a fortified house, to save me;
for my rock and my fortress are you. 

 4Save me, my God, from the hand of the wicked,
from the grasp of the unjust and cruel.
 5For you, Lord, are my hope,
in whom from my youth I have trusted.
 6On you have I leaned from my birth;
from my mother's womb it was you who did draw me.
In you is my hope evermore.

 7I have been as a wonder to many,
for you are my refuge and strength.
 8All the day long my mouth
is filled with your praise and your glory.
 9Cast me not off in the time of old age;
when my strength is spent, forsake me not.
 10For my foes whisper against me,
they who watch me take counsel together;
 11“God has left him,” they say: “pursue
and seize him, for he is helpless.”

 12O God, be not far from me,
haste, O my God, to my help.
 13Put my foes to shame and dishonor,
with insult and shame be they covered.
 14But I will never stop hoping,
and more and yet more will I praise you.
 15All the day long shall my mouth
tell your faithfulness and your salvation,
though I know not how they may be counted.

 16I will tell of the might of the Lord,
and your faithfulness praise, you alone.
 17You have taught me, O God, from my youth,
and till now have I told of your wonders.
 18Even in old age and grey hair,
O God, do not forsake me.
Still would I tell of your might
unto all generations to come.

 19Your power and your justice, O God,
extend as far as the heavens:
for great are the things you have done.
Who is like you, O God?
 20You have caused us to see troubles many,
but you will revive us again.
From the depths of the earth
you will bring me up again.
 21You will multiply my greatness,
and comfort me again.

 22So with harp I will praise you,
and your faithfulness, O my God;
and make music to you on the lyre,
O you Holy One of Israel.
 23My lips shall ring out their joy,
my mouth shall sing praises to you;
all of me, which you have redeemed.
 24Yes, all the day long shall my tongue
utter your righteousness;
for ashamed and confounded are they
who were seeking my hurt. 
Psalm 72 — A Prayer for a Just and Glorious Reign
Of Solomon.
 72Give the king, O God, your own spirit of justice
1your spirit of right to the son of the king,
 2that with right he may judge your people,
and your downtrodden ones with justice.

 3May the mountains bear weal for the people,
and the hills yield fruits of justice.
 4The weak may he help to their rights,
may he save the sons of the needy
and crush the oppressor in pieces.

 5May he live as long as the sun,
while the moon shines — for ages and ages.
 6May he be like the rain on the meadow,
like showers that water the earth.

 7In his days may justice flourish,
and welfare abound, till the moon be no more.
 8May he reign from ocean to ocean,
from the river to the ends of the earth.

 9May his foes bow down before him,
his enemies lick the dust.
 10May tribute be rendered by kings
of the isles and of Tarshish;
may gifts be brought by the kings
of Sheba and Seba.

 11May all kings fall prostrate before him,
and all nations yield him their service.
 12For he saves the poor when he cries,
the helpless and the downtrodden.

 13He pities the weak and the poor,
he saves the lives of the poor.
 14He redeems them from wrong and from violence,
for dear is their blood in his sight.

 15Long may he live;
and may gold of Sheba be given him;
prayer, too, be made for him ceaselessly,
all the day long may men bless him.

 16May the land have abundance of corn,
to the tops of the hills may it wave.
May the fruit thereof flourish like Lebanon,
may men spring from the city like grass of the earth.

 17May his name be blessed forever,
may his fame endure as the sun.
May all nations envy his blessedness,
all tribes of the earth call him happy.

 18Blest be the Lord God, Israel's God,
who alone does wonders;
 19And blest be forever his glorious name.
Let all the earth be filled with his glory.
Amen and Amen.

 20Here end the prayers of David, son of Jesse. 
Book Three
Psalm 73 — Fellowship with God Here and Hereafter
A psalm of Asaph.
 73Yes, God is good to the upright,
1the Lord to the pure in heart.
 2But my feet were almost gone,
my steps had nearly slipped,
 3through envy of godless braggarts,
when I saw how well they fared.

 4For never a pang have they,
their body is sound and sleek.
 5They have no trouble like mortals,
no share in human pain.
 6So they wear their pride like a necklace,
they put on the garment of wrong,
 7their eyes stand out with fatness,
their heart swells with riotous fancies.
 8Their speech is mocking and evil,
condescending and crooked their speech.
 9They have set their mouth in the heavens,
while their tongue struts about on the earth.
 10Small wonder that people resort to them,
and drink deep draughts of their lore. 
 11“How does God know?” they say,
“And has the Most High any knowledge?”
 12See! These are the godless,
with wealth and ease ever increasing.

 13Yes, in vain have I kept my heart pure,
and washed my hands in innocence;
 14for all the day long was I plagued
not a morning but I was chastised.
 15But to resolve to speak like they do
would be treachery to your children.

 16So I sought to understand it,
but a wearisome task it seemed:
 17till I entered the holy world of God
and saw clearly their destiny.

 18Yes, you set them on slippery places;
down to destruction you hurl them.
 19One moment and then what a horror of ruin!
They are finished and ended in terrors.
 20Like a dream, when one wakes, shall they be,
whose phantoms the waker despises.

 21So my bitterness of mind
and the pain that stabbed my heart
 22show how dull I was and stupid
just like a beast before you.

 23But I am always with you,
you have hold of my right hand.
 24By a plan of yours you guide me
and will afterward take me to glory.

 25Whom have I in the heavens but you?
And on earth there is none I desire beside you.
 26Though flesh and heart waste away,
yet God is the rock of my heart,
yet God is my portion forever.

 27For see! Those who are far from you must perish,
you destroy all who are false to you.
 28But I am happy when close to God;
the Lord my God I have made my refuge,
that I may recount all the things you have done. 
Psalm 74 — Lament on the Devastation of the Temple
A maskil of Asaph.
 74Why, O God, have you spurned us forever?
1Why smokes your wrath against the sheep of your pasture?
 2Remember the community you purchased of old
to become by redemption the tribe of your heritage,
Zion, the mountain you made your home.
 3Rouse yourself, visit its ruins complete.
In the temple the foe has made havoc of all things.

 4Like lions your enemies roared through your house,
replacing our symbols by signs of their own,
 5hacking, like woodsmen who lift
axes on thickets of trees,
 6smashing with hatchets and hammers
all of its carved work together.
 7They have set your temple on fire,
to the very ground they have outraged
the place where lives your name.
 8They have said in their heart, “Let us utterly crush them.”
They have burned all the houses of God in the land.

 9No symbol of ours do we see any more:
no prophet is there any more,
none is with us who knows how long.
 10How long, O God, is the foe to insult?
Shall the enemy spurn your name forever?
 11Why, O Lord, do you hold back your hand,
why keep your right hand in the folds of your robe?

 12Yet God is our king from the ancient days,
in the midst of the earth working deeds of salvation.
 13It was you who did cleave the sea by your might,
and shatter the heads of the ocean monsters.
 14It was you who did crush many-headed Leviathan,
and give him as food to the beasts of the wilderness.
 15It was you who did cleave the fountains and torrents;
it was you who did dry the perennial streams.
 16Yours is the day; yours, too, is the night,
it was you who did establish the sun and the star.
 17It was you who did fix all the borders of earth:
summer and winter it's you who have made them.

 18Yet, for all this, the foe has insulted you, Lord,
and a nation of fools has reviled your name.
 19Do not give your dove to the beasts,
do not forget your afflicted forever.
 20Look to the sleek ones - how full they are:
the dark places of earth are the dwellings of violence.
 21O let not the downtrodden turn back ashamed:
let the poor and the needy sing praise to your name.

 22Arise, God, and defend your cause:
remember how fools all the day insult you.
 23Do not forget the uproar of your enemies,
the din of your foes that ascends evermore. 
Psalm 75 — God the Judge
For the leader; al tashheth. A psalm of Asaph, a song.
 75We praise you, God, we praise you:
1we would call on your name and declare your wonders.

 2“At the time I choose,
I will judge fairly.
 3Though earth melt and all her inhabitants,
it is I who keep steady her pillars.” Selah
 4I say to the boasters, “Boast not”;
to the wicked, “Lift not up your horn:
 5lift not your horn on high,
speak not boldly against the Rock.” 

 6For not from east nor west,
not from desert nor mountains; 
 7but God himself is the judge,
humbling one and exalting another.

 8In the hand of the Lord is a cup
foaming wine, richly spiced.
Out of this he pours a draught,
and all the wicked of earth
must drain it down to the dregs.

 9But I will rejoice forever,
singing praise to the God of Jacob.
 10I will hew all the horns of the wicked,
but the horns of the just shall be lifted. 
Psalm 76 — A Song of Victory
For the leader. With instrumental music. A psalm of Asaph, a song.
 76God has made himself known in Judah,
1his name is great in Israel.
 2His tent is in Salem, 
his dwelling in Zion.

 3There he broke the lightning arrows,
shield, sword, and weapons of war. Selah
 4Terrible is your splendor
on the everlasting mountains.

 5Despoiled were the stout of heart;
in the sleep into which they had fallen,
none of the warriors
could lift a hand.

 6At your rebuke, God of Jacob,
sank chariot and horse to sleep.
 7Awful are you: who can stand
before you, when once you are angry?

 8The judgment you gave from heaven
frightened the earth into silence,
 9when God arose to judgment
to save the oppressed of the earth. Selah

 10The fiercest will praise you,
to you will the remnant hold festival. 
 11Vow and pay to Lord your God,
and let all who are round him bring presents.

 12He lops off the courage of princes,
and with terror fills kings of the earth. 
Psalm 77 — A Prayer for Preservation as in the Days of Old
For the leader. On Jeduthun. Of Asaph, a psalm.
 77Loudly will I lift my cry to God,
1loudly to God, so he hears to me.
 2In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord;
in the night I lift my hands in prayer,
refusing all comfort.

 3When I think of God, I moan;
when I muse, my spirit is faint. Selah
 4When you hold my eyes awake,
and I am restless and speechless,
 5I think of the days of old,
call to mind distant years.
 6I commune with my heart in the night,
I muse with inquiring spirit.
 7“Will the Lord cast us off forever,
will he be gracious no more?
 8Has his love vanished forever?
Is his faithfulness utterly gone?
 9Has God forgotten to be gracious,
or in anger withheld his compassion?” Selah

 10Then I said, “This it is that grieves me,
that the hand of the Most High has changed.”
 11I will think of the deeds of the Lord,
and remember your wonders of old.
 12I will muse on all you have wrought,
and meditate on your deeds.
 13Then your way, O God, was majestic:
what God was great as our God?
 14You were a God who did marvels,
you did show your power to the world
 15by your arm you rescued your people,
the children of Jacob and Joseph. Selah

 16The waters saw you, O God.
The waters saw you and shivered;
to their depths they trembled.
 17Clouds poured torrents of water,
thunder rolled in the sky,
your arrows sped to and fro.
 18Loud was the roll of your thunder,
lightnings lit up the world.
Earth quaked and trembled.
 19In your way, Lord, through the sea,
in your path through the mighty waters,
your footsteps were all unseen.
 20You did guide your folk like a flock
by the hand of Moses and Aaron. 
Psalm 78 — The Warnings of History
A maskil of Asaph.
 78My people, give ear to my teaching:
1bend your ears to the words of my mouth,
 2as I open my mouth in a poem
on the riddling story of the past.

 3What we have heard and known,
and what our ancestors have told us,
 4we will not hide from their children.
We will tell to the next generation
the praises and might of the Lord,
and the wonders that he has done.

 5He set up a testimony in Jacob,
a law he appointed in Israel,
which he commanded our ancestors
to make known to their children,
 6that the next generation should know it,
that the children yet to be born
should arise and tell their children;
 7that in God they might put their confidence,
and not forget God's works;
but that they might keep his commandments,
 8and not be like their ancestors,
a generation defiant and stubborn,
a generation with heart unsteady,
and spirit unfaithful towards God.

 9Ephraimites, armed bowmen,
turned back in the day of battle.
 10They did not keep God's covenant,
they refused to walk in his law.
 11They forgot what he had done,
and the wonders he had shown them.

 12He did wonders before their ancestors
in the country of Zoan in Egypt.
 13Through the sea which he split he brought them,
making waters stand up like a heap;
 14he led them by day with a cloud,
all the night with a light of fire.

 15From the rocks which he split in the wilderness,
he gave them to drink as of ocean's abundance.
 16He brought streams out of the rock,
and made water run down like rivers.

 17Yet they still went on sinning against him,
they defied the Most High in the desert.
 18They willfully challenged God,
demanding the food that they longed for.
 19“Is God able,” such was their challenge,
“to spread in the desert a table?
 20From the rock that he struck there gushed water,
and torrents that overflowed;
but can he also give bread,
or provide his people with meat?”

 21When the Lord heard this, he was furious,
and fire was kindled on Jacob,
anger flared up against Israel.

 22For they put no trust in God,
no confidence in his help.
 23So he summoned the clouds above;
and, opening the doors of heaven,
 24he rained manna upon them for food,
and grain of heaven he gave them.
 25Everyone ate the bread of angels;
he sent them food to the full.

 26He launched the east wind in the heavens,
and guided the south by his power.
 27He rained meat upon them like dust,
winged bird like the sand of the sea.
 28In the midst of their camp he dropped it,
all around their tents.

 29They ate and were more than filled;
he had brought them the thing they desired.
 30But the thing they desired became loathsome:
while their food was still in their mouths,
 31the wrath of God rose against them.
He slew the stoutest among them,
and laid low the young men of Israel.

 32Yet for all this they sinned yet more,
and refused to believe in his wonders.
 33So he ended their days in a breath,
and their years in sudden dismay.
 34When he slew them, then they sought after him,
they turned and sought God with diligence.

 35They remembered that God was their rock,
and the Most High God their redeemer.
 36But they flattered him with their mouth,
and lied to him with their tongue.
 37Their heart was not steady with him,
they were faithless to his covenant.

 38But he is full of pity:
he pardons sin and destroys not.
Often he turns his anger away,
without stirring his wrath at all.
 39So he remembered that they were but flesh,
breath that passes and does not return.

 40But how often they rebelled in the desert,
and caused him grief in the wilderness,
 41tempting God again and again,
provoking the Holy One of Israel.
 42They did not remember his strength,
nor the day he redeemed from the foe,
 43how he set his signs in Egypt,
in the country of Zoan his wonders.

 44He turned their canals into blood,
their streams undrinkable.
 45He sent forth flies, which devoured them;
frogs, too, which destroyed them.
 46Their crops he gave to the caterpillar,
and the fruits of their toil to the locust.
 47He slew their vines with hail,
and their sycamore trees with frost.
 48He delivered their cattle to the hail,
and their flocks to bolts of fire.

 49He let loose his hot anger among them,
fury and wrath and distress,
a band of destroying angels.
 50He cleared a path for his anger,
did not spare them from death,
but gave them over to pestilence.

 51He struck down all the first-born in Egypt,
the first fruits of their strength in the tents of Ham.
 52He led forth his people like sheep,
he was guide to his flock in the desert.
 53Securely he led them, and free from fear,
while their foes were drowned in the sea.

 54To his holy realm he brought them,
to the mountain his right hand had purchased.
 55He drove out the nations before them,
and allotted their land for possession,
and their tents for Israel to live in.

 56Yet they tempted and angered the Most High God,
they did not observe his decrees.
 57They drew back, false like their ancestors;
they failed like a treacherous bow.
 58Their shrines stirred him to anger,
their idols moved him to jealousy.

 59When God heard of this, he was furious,
and he spurned Israel utterly.
 60He abandoned his home in Shiloh,
the tent he had pitched among people.
 61He gave his strength up to captivity,
his glory to the hands of the foe.

 62He gave his people to the sword,
he was furious with his own.
 63Fire devoured their young men,
and their maidens had no marriage-song.
 64Their priests fell by the sword,
and their widows could not weep.

 65Then the Lord awoke as from sleep,
like a warrior flushed with wine;
 66and he beat back his foes,
putting them to perpetual scorn.
 67He disowned the tent of Joseph,
he rejected the tribe of Ephraim;
 68but he chose the tribe of Judah,
Mount Zion, which he loves.
 69And he built like the heights his sanctuary,
like the earth which he founded forever.

 70And he chose David his servant,
taking him from the sheepfolds.
 71From the mother-ewes he brought him,
to be shepherd to Jacob his people,
and to Israel his inheritance.
 72With upright heart did he shepherd them,
and with skilful hands did he guide them. 
Psalm 79 — A National Prayer for Deliverance
A psalm of Asaph.
 79Heathen, O God, have come into your land,
1defiling your holy temple,
and laying Jerusalem in ruins.
 2They have given the bodies of your dead servants
to the birds of the air to devour,
and the flesh of your faithful to the beasts of the field.
 3Round about Jerusalem
they have poured out their blood like water;
and there was no one to bury them.
 4On every side our neighbors
revile us and mock us and jeer at us.

 5How long will you be angry, O Lord?
Will your jealousy burn like fire forever?
 6Pour out your wrath on the nations that don't know you,
on the kingdoms that do not call on your name.
 7For Jacob they devoured,
they have desolated his home.
 8Do not remember against us our ancestors' sins;
O meet us soon with your pity,
for utterly weak are we.

 9Help us, O God our savior,
for the renown of your name:
for your reputation deliver us
and cover over our sins.
 10Why should the nations say,
“Where is their God?”
Let revenge for the outpoured blood of your servants
be shown on the heathen before our eyes.
 11May the groans of the prisoner come before you;
free the children of death by your mighty arm.
 12Pay our neighbors back sevenfold
for the scorn they have heaped upon you, O Lord.

 13Then we, your people, the flock of your pasture,
will give thanks to you for evermore,
and tell your praise to all generations. 
Psalm 80 — A Prayer for the Preservation of Israel
For the leader. On shoshannim, eduth. Of Asaph, a psalm.
 80Listen, Shepherd of Israel,
1who leads Joseph like a flock of sheep;
from your throne on the cherubs shine forth
 2before Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin.
Stir up your mighty power,
come to our help.
 3God, restore us:
show us the light of your face,
so we may be saved.

 4O Lord of hosts,
how long is your anger to smoke,
despite the prayer of your people?
 5You have fed them with bread of tears,
you have made them drink tears by the measure.
 6The scorn of our neighbors you make us,
the laughing-stock of our foes.
 7God of hosts, restore us:
show us the light of your face,
so we may be saved.

 8A vine out of Egypt you brought;
you did drive out the nations, and plant her;
 9in the ground you did clear she struck root,
and she filled all the land.
 10The shade of her covered the mountains,
her branches the cedars of God.
 11She sent forth her shoots to the sea,
and her branches as far as the River.
 12Why have you torn down her fences, and left her
to be plucked at by all who pass by,
 13to be gnawed by the boar from the forest,
and devoured by the beasts of the field?

 14O God of hosts, return:
look down from heaven and see
and visit this vine, and restore her
 15the vine which your right hand has planted.
 16She is burned with fire and cut down
before your stern face they are perishing.
 17Support the one you have chosen,
the one you have raised for yourself;
 18then from you we will never draw back.
Preserve us, and we will call on your name.
 19Lord, God of hosts, restore us:
Show us the light of your face,
so we may be saved. 
Psalm 81 — For the Feast of Tabernacles
For the leader. On the gittith. Of Asaph.
 81Sing aloud to God our strength,
1shout for joy to the God of Jacob.
 2Raise a song, sound the timbrel,
sweet lyre and harp.
 3On the new moon blow the horn,
at the full moon, the day of our festival.
 4For this is a statute for Israel,
a ruling of the God of Jacob,
 5a witness he set up in Joseph,
when he marched against Egypt's land,
where he heard an unknown voice say:

 6“I removed from your shoulder the burden,
and freed your hands from the basket.
 7At your call of distress I delivered you,
from the thundercloud I answered you.
At Meribah's waters I tested you. Selah

 8“Listen, my people, to my warning,
O Israel, if you would but listen!
 9There must not be a strange god among you,
you must bow to no foreign god.
 10I am the Lord your God
who brought you up out of Egypt.
Open your mouth, that I fill it.

 11“But my people did not listen to my voice,
Israel would have none of me.
 12So to their own hard hearts I left them,
to follow their own devices.
 13O that my people would listen,
that Israel would walk in my ways.
 14Soon would I humble their enemies,
and turn my hand on their foes.
 15Those who hate the Lord would cringe before him
in everlasting terror.
 16But you would I feed with the richest wheat,
and with honey from the rock to your heart's desire.” 
Psalm 82 — God the Upholder of Justice
A psalm of Asaph.
 82God has taken his stand
1in the divine assembly:
in the midst of the gods he holds judgment.
 2“How long will you crookedly judge,
and favor the wicked? Selah
 3Do right by the weak and the orphan,
acquit the innocent poor.
 4Rescue the weak and the needy,
save them from the hand of the wicked.

 5“They have neither knowledge nor insight,
in darkness they walk to and fro,
while the earth's foundations totter.
 6It was I who appointed you gods,
children of the Most High all of you.
 7Yet like mortals you will surely die,
you will fall like any prince.” 

 8Arise, O God, judge the earth,
for all nations are yours by inheritance. 
Psalm 83 — A Prayer for the Destruction of the Enemies of Judah
A song, a psalm of Asaph. 
 83Do not keep silent, O God:
1hold not your peace, be not still, God.
 2For see! Your enemies roar,
those who hate you lift up their heads,
 3laying crafty plans for your people,
and plotting against those you treasure. 
 4“Come, let us wipe them out as a nation,
so Israel's name will be mentioned no more.”

 5For, conspiring with one accord,
they have made a league against you
 6Tents of Edom, and Ishmaelites,
Moab, and the Hagrites.
 7Gebal and Ammon and Amalek,
Philistia, with the people of Tyre;
 8Syria, too, is confederate,
they have strengthened the children of Lot. Selah

 9Deal with them as you dealt with Midian,
with Sisera, with Jabin, at the torrent of Kishon,
 10who at Endor were destroyed,
and became dung for the field.
 11Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb,
all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna, 
 12who said, “Let us take for ourselves
the meadows of God.”

 13Whirl them, my God, like dust,
like stubble before the wind.
 14As the fire that kindles the forest,
as flame that sets mountains ablaze,
 15so with your tempest pursue them,
terrify them with your hurricane.
 16Make them blush with shame;
until they seek your name, O Lord.
 17Everlasting shame and confusion,
disgrace and destruction be theirs.
 18Teach those who you alone
are most high over all the earth. 
Psalm 84 — The Song of the Pilgrims
For the leader. On the gittith. Of the Korahites, a psalm.
 84How dearly loved is the place where you live,
1Lord of hosts!
 2How I long and yearn 
for the courts of the Lord.
Now heart and flesh cry for joy
to the living God.

 3Even the sparrow has found her a home
and the swallow a nest,
to lay her young,
near your altar,
Lord of hosts,
my king and my God.
 4Happy those who live in your house,
praising you evermore. Selah

 5Happy those whose strength is in you,
people with pilgrim hearts.
 6As they pass through the valley of tears, 
they make it a place of fountains,
clothed with the blessings of early rain.
 7From rampart to rampart on they march,
till at last God reveals himself in Zion. 

 8Lord, God of hosts, hear my prayer,
give ear, O God of Jacob. Selah
 9Behold, O God, our defender,
and look upon your anointed, 
 10for better a single day in your courts
than a thousand in my own chambers:
better stand at the door of the house of my God
than live in the tents of ungodliness, 
 11for the Lord is sun and shield,
the Lord gives grace and glory.
He withholds no good thing from the life that is blameless.
 12Lord of hosts,
happy those whose trust is in you. 
Psalm 85 — A Prayer for National Restoration
For the leader. Of the Korahites, a psalm. 
 85Once, 1Lord, you did favor your land,
granting change of fortune to Jacob,
 2forgiving the guilt of your people,
pardoning all their sin, Selah
 3withdrawing all your fury,
turning from your hot anger.

 4Restore us, O God our savior,
put away your displeasure against us.
 5Will you cherish your anger against us forever,
prolonging your wrath to all generations?
 6Will you not revive us again,
that your people may be glad in you?
 7Show us your kindness, O Lord,
grant us your salvation.

 8Let me hear what God the Lord will speak;
for he will speak of peace
to his people, to those who love him,
and turn their hearts to him. 
 9Soon those who fear him shall see how he saves,
and glory shall live in our land.

 10Kindness and loyalty meet;
peace and righteousness kiss.
 11Loyalty springs from the earth;
righteousness looks from the sky.
 12The Lord shall give all that is good,
our land yielding its increase,
 13righteousness marching before him,
and peace on the path he treads. 
Psalm 86 — A Prayer for Divine Guidance and Favor
A prayer of David. 
 86Incline your ear, 1Lord, and answer me,
for I am afflicted and needy.
 2Guard me, for I am loyal:
save your servant, who trusts in you.
 3Lord, be gracious to me, for you are my God;
I cry to you all the day.
 4Gladden the heart of your servant;
for to you, Lord, I set my hope.
 5For you, Lord, are good and forgiving,
rich in love towards all who call on you.

 6Listen, O Lord, to my prayer;
attend to my plea for mercy.
 7In the day of my trouble I call on you,
with assurance that you will answer me.
 8None of the gods is like you, Lord,
nor are any works like yours.
 9All the nations you have made
will come and bow down before you,
giving glory, O Lord, to your name.
 10For great are you, and a doer of wonders;
you alone are God.

 11Teach me, O Lord, your way,
that I may walk in your truth:
so my heart shall rejoice in your name.
 12I will give you thanks, O Lord,
with all my heart, my God,
I will honor your name forever.
 13For great is your love towards me,
from the depths of Sheol you have saved me.

 14Haughty men have risen up against me, O God,
a band of the violent seeking my life,
who think nothing of you.
 15But you are a God of pity and grace,
patient and rich in kindness and faithfulness;
turn to me with your grace, O Lord.
 16Grant your strength to your servant,
and save the child of your handmaid.
 17Show me a sign of your favor,
which those who hate me may see with confusion,
since you, Lord, are my helper and comforter. 
Psalm 87 — Zion, City of God
Of the Korahites, a psalm. A song.
 87On the holy mountain stands
1the city he founded.
 2The Lord loves the gates of Zion
more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
 3Glorious things he is speaking of you,
you city of God. Selah

 4“Among those who are mine I name Rahab and Babylon,
Philistia, Tyre, Ethiopia,
their people will say I was born in Zion.
 5As for Zion it will be said
each and all were born in her.”
The Lord will preserve her.

 6The Lord will count, when enrolling the peoples,
“This one was born there, and that one was born there.” Selah
 7Singers and dancers alike will say
“All my springs are in you.” 
Psalm 88 — The Prayer of Despair
 88O 1Lord my God,
I cry for help in the day-time,
in the night my cry is before you;
 2let my prayer come into your presence,
incline your ear to my cry.

 3For I am sated with sorrow,
my life draws near to Sheol.
 4I am counted with those who go down to the pit;
 without strength am I.

 5My home is among the dead,
like the slain that lie in the grave,
whom you remember no more
cut off as they are from your hand.

 6In the deepest pit you have put me,
in shadows deep and dark.
 7Your wrath lies heavy upon me,
waves of your anger roll over me. Selah

 8You have put my friends far from me,
you have made them shun me.
I am shut in, and cannot escape,
 9my eyes are wasted with sorrow.
I call on you, Lord, every day,
spreading my hands out to you.

 10For the dead can you work wonders?
Can the shades rise again to praise you? Selah
 11Can your kindness be told in the grave,
your faithfulness in the tomb?
 12Can your wonders be known in the darkness,
or your help in the land of forgetfulness?

 13I cry for help to you,
in the morning my prayer comes before you.
 14Why, O Lord, do you spurn me,
and hide your face from me?
 15From my youth I am wretched and dying,
I am numbed by the terrors I bear.

 16The fires of your wrath have passed over me,
your terrors destroy me,
 17surging around me forever,
hemming me in altogether.
 18Those who love me you put far from me;
the dark is my only friend. 
Psalm 89 — The Promise to David
A song. A psalm of the Korahites.
 89I will sing evermore of the love of the 1Lord,
proclaiming to all generations his faithfulness.
 2For your love you did promise to build up forever,
your faithfulness firm as the heavens themselves.

 3“I have made with my chosen a covenant,
and sworn to David my servant,
 4to establish his seed forever,
and to build up his throne to all ages.” Selah

 5Then the holy assembly in heaven
praised your marvelous faithfulness, Lord.
 6For who in the skies may compare with the Lord?
Who is like the Lord among the gods?

 7A God to be feared in the holy assembly,
awful and great above all who are round him.
 8O Lord God of hosts, who is mighty as you?
Your strength and faithfulness, Lord, surround you.

 9You are the Lord of the raging sea:
when its waves surge, it is you who still them.
 10It was you who did pierce and crush Rahab in pieces,
and scatter your foes by your mighty arm.

 11Yours are the heavens, yours also the earth,
the world and its fulness, it's you who did found them.
 12The north and the south, it's you have created them;
Tabor and Hermon shout praise to your name.

 13You have an arm with the might of a hero;
strong is your hand, high uplifted your right hand.
 14Justice and right are the base of your throne,
kindness and faithfulness ever attend you.

 15Happy the people who know the glad shout, 
who walk, O Lord, in the light of your face.
 16They exult in your name all the day,
and your righteousness they extol.

 17For you are our strength and our pride.
Your favor will lift us to honor. 
 18For the holy Lord of Israel
keeps our defender and king.

 19In a vision of old you did speak
in this way to the one whom you loved: 
“A crown I have set on the hero
I chose to be over the people

 20“I found my servant David,
and anointed with holy oil.
 21My hand will be with him forever,
my arm will give him strength.

 22“No enemy will dare to assail him,
nor the wicked to oppress him;
 23but his foes I will shatter before him,
I will strike down those who hate him.

 24“My loyal love shall attend him,
and I will lift him to honor. 
 25I will set his hand on the sea,
and his right hand on the rivers.

 26“As for him, he will call me ‘My father,
my God, and my rock of salvation.’
 27And I will make him my first-born,
highest of kings on the earth.

 28“My love will I keep for him ever,
my covenant with him shall stand fast.
 29His line will I make everlasting,
and his throne as the days of the heavens.

 30“If his children forsake my law,
and walk not as I have ordained;
 31if they profane my statutes,
and do not keep my commandments;

 32“I will punish their sin with the rod,
their iniquity with scourges.
 33But my love will I not take from him,
nor will I belie my faithfulness.

 34“I will not profane my covenant
by changing the word that has passed my lips.
 35Once have I solemnly sworn
and I would not lie to David,

 36“that his line should endure forever,
and his throne as the sun before me,
 37firm as the moon which for ever
and ever is fixed in the sky.” Selah

 38But you have cast off in contempt,
and been furious with your anointed.
 39You have spurned the covenant with your servant,
and his sacred crown dashed to the ground.

 40You have broken down all his walls,
and laid his bulwarks in ruins.
 41All who pass on their way despoil him,
the scorn of his neighbors is he now.

 42You have given his foes the victory, 
and made all his enemies glad.
 43You have turned back his sword from the foe,
you did not lift him up in the battle.

 44The sceptre you took from his hand,
and his throne you did hurl to the ground.
 45You have shortened the days of his youth,
and covered him with shame. Selah

 46How long, Lord will you hide you forever?
How long are the fires of your wrath to burn?
 47Remember, Lord, the shortness of life
how fleeting you made all people.

 48Who can live without seeing death?
Who can rescue their life from the clutch of Sheol? Selah
 49Where, Lord, is your kindness of old,
which you in your faithfulness swore to David?

 50Remember, O Lord, how your servants are mocked,
how I bear in my heart the scorn of all nations
 51The scorn which your enemies hurl, O Lord,
which they hurl at the footsteps of your anointed.

 52Blest be the Lord, for ever and ever.
Amen and Amen. 
Book Four
Psalm 90 — Hymn of Eternity
A prayer of Moses, the man of God.
 90Lord1, you have been a home to us
one generation after another.
 2Before the mountains were born,
or the earth and the world were brought forth,
from everlasting to everlasting
you are God.

 3You bring us back to the dust,
you summon mortals to return.
 4For you see a thousand years
as the passing of yesterday,
as a watch in the night.

 5Your floods sweep them away;
they are like a dream,
or like grass which sprouts in the morning,
 6which blossoms and sprouts in the morning,
but by evening is cut and withered.

 7For your anger consumes us,
the heat of your wrath confounds us.
 8Our sins you have set before you,
our secrets in the light of your face.
 9For through your wrath our days are declining,
we bring our years to an end as a sigh.

 10The span of our life is seventy years,
or, if we are strong, maybe eighty;
yet is their breadth but empty toil,
for swiftly they go, and we fly away.

 11Who lays to heart the power of your anger?
Or who stands in reverent awe of your wrath?
 12O teach us to count our days
so our minds may learn wisdom.

 13Return, O Lord; why so long?
Relent on your servants.
 14Grant us your love to the full in the morning,
that all our days we may shout for joy.

 15Make us glad for the days you have humbled us,
for the evil years we have seen.
 16Let your servants see you in action,
show your majesty to their children.
 17Let the grace of the Lord our God be upon us,
uphold what our hands are striving to do. 
Psalm 91 — In the Shelter of the Most High
 91You whose home is the shelter of God Most High,
1whose abode is the shadow of God Almighty,
 2can say to the Lord, “My refuge, my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”

 3For he saves you from fowler's snare,
from deadly plague,
 4he shelters you with his pinions,
and under his wings you can hide.

His truth will be a shield and buckler.

 5You need not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
 6nor the plague that stalks in darkness,
nor the pestilence raging at noon. 

 7A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand:
but it will not draw near to you.

 8You will only look on with your eyes,
and see how the wicked are punished.
 9You have made the Lord your refuge,
you have made the Most High your defence.

 10You will never be met by misfortune,
no plague will come near your tent,
 11for he orders his angels to guard you,
wherever you go.

 12They will carry you with their hands,
so you don't hurt your foot on a stone.
 13You will trample down lions and snakes,
tread on young lions and cobras.

 14“Because of their love for me, I will deliver them,
I will protect those who trust my name.
 15I will answer their cry and be with them in trouble,
bringing them forth into safety and honor.
 16I will give them a life of many days,
I will show them my salvation.”  
Psalm 92 — The Ways of God
A psalm. A song; for the sabbath day.
 92It is good to give thanks to the 1Lord,
to sing praise to your name, O Most High,
 2to declare your love in the morning,
and your faithfulness in the night,
 3with voice and a ten-stringed harp,
with music that throbs on the lyre.
 4For you make me glad by your deeds, Lord,
at the work of your hands I will ring out my joy.

 5How great are your works, O Lord;
how deep are your thoughts!
 6The insensitive cannot know,
nor can a fool understand,
 7that, though the wicked flourish like grass,
and evil-doers all blossom,
they will perish forever.

 8But you are exalted forever.
 9For see! Your enemies, Lord
For see! Your enemies perish,
all evil-doers are scattered.
 10But you lift me to honor, 
and anoint me afresh with oil.
 11My eyes will feast on my foes,
and my ears will hear of the doom of the wicked.

 12The righteous will sprout like the palm,
 will grow like a cedar of Lebanon.
 13In the house of the Lord are they planted,
in the courts of our God they will sprout.
 14They will still bear fruit in old age,
all sappy and fresh will they be
 15So they proclaim the Lord to be just,
my rock, in whom is no wrong. 
Psalm 93 — The Lord, King of all the World
 93The 1Lord has taken his seat on the throne,
clothed with majesty, armed with might.
Now the world stands firm, to be shaken no more,
 2firm stands your throne from all eternity.
You are from everlasting.

 3The floods, O Lord, have lifted,
the floods have lifted their voice,
the floods lift up their roar.
 4But more grand than the great roaring waters,
more grand than the ocean waves,
grand on the height stands the Lord.

 5What you have ordained is most sure;
most sure shall your house stand inviolate,
O Lord, for ever and ever. 
Psalm 94 — A Prayer for Vengeance on the Cruel
 94Lord1, God of vengeance,
God of vengeance, shine forth.
 2Rise up, judge of the earth,
pay back the proud what they deserve.

 3Lord, how long shall the wicked,
how long shall the wicked exult,
 4with their blustering arrogant words,
their braggart and wicked speech,
 5crushing your people, Lord,
and afflicting your heritage,
 6murdering widows and strangers,
slaying the fatherless?
 7They think that the Lord does not see,
nor the God of Jacob regard it.

 8Take heed, you dullest of people;
when will you be wise, you fools?
 9Is he deaf, who shaped the ear?
Is he blind, who fashioned the eye?
 10Can he who trains nations not punish them
he who teaches knowledge to people?
 11The Lord knows the thoughts of people,
that only a breath are they.

 12Happy are those whom you chasten,
and teach out of your law,
 13keeping them calm in the day of misfortune,
till a pit be dug for the wicked.

 14For the Lord will not leave his people,
he will not forsake his inheritance.
 15For the righteous shall come to their rights,
and all true-hearted people shall follow them.

 16Who will rise up for me against those who do evil?
Who will stand up for me against workers of wrong?
 17Were it not for the help of the Lord,
I would soon have gone to the silent grave.
 18When I thought that my foot was slipping,
your kindness, Lord, held me up.
 19When with cares my heart was crowded,
your comforts make me glad.

 20Can corrupt justice be your ally,
framing mischief by statute?
 21They assail the life of the righteous,
and innocent blood condemn.
 22But the Lord is my sure retreat,
my God is the rock of my refuge.
 23He will bring back their sin upon them,
for their wickedness he will destroy them;
the Lord our God will destroy them. 
Psalm 95 — For a Festival. A Hymn of Praise and a Solemn Warning
 95Come! Let us ring out our joy to the 1Lord,
let us merrily shout to our rock of salvation.
 2Before his face let us come with thanks,
with songs of praise let us shout to him.

 3For the Lord is a great God,
king above all gods.
 4In his hand are the depths of the earth,
the heights of the mountains are his.
 5The sea is his, for he made it:
the dry land was formed by his hands.

 6Come! Let us worship and bow
on our knees to the Lord our creator.
 7For he is our God; and we
are the people he tends, the sheep in his care.

If only you would heed his voice today:
 8“Do not harden your hearts as at Meribah,
or at Massah, that day in the desert,
 9when your ancestors tempted and tried me,
though they had seen my deeds.

 10“For forty years I was filled with loathing
for that generation, so I said:
‘A people with wandering hearts are they,
and ignorant of my ways.’
 11So I solemnly swore to them in my anger,
that never would they enter my place of rest.”  
Psalm 96 — The Lord's Rule
 96Sing to the 1Lord a new song,
sing to the Lord, all the earth.
 2Sing to the Lord, bless his name,
from day to day herald his victory.
 3Tell his glory among the nations,
his wonders among all peoples.

 4For great is the Lord and worthy all praise;
held in awe, above all gods:
 5for all the gods of the nations are idols,
but the Lord created the heavens.
 6Before him are splendor and majesty,
beauty and strength in his holy place.

 7Ascribe to the Lord, you tribes of the nations,
ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
 8Ascribe to the Lord the glory he manifests:
bring you an offering, enter his courts.
 9Bow to the Lord in holy array:
tremble before him, all the earth.

 10Say to the nations, “The Lord is king.”
The world stands firm to be shaken no more.
He will judge the peoples with equity.
 11Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice,
let the sea and its fulness thunder.

 12Let the field, and all that is in it, exult;
let the trees of the forest ring out their joy
 13before the Lord: for he comes,
he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with justice
and the nations with faithfulness. 
Psalm 97 — The Lord's Judgment
 97The 1Lord is king, let the earth rejoice:
let her many isles be glad.
 2Clouds and darkness are round about him,
justice and right are the base of his throne.
 3Fire goes before him,
and blazes around his steps,
 4his lightnings illumine the world:
the earth quakes at the sight.
 5Mountains melt like wax
before the Lord of all the earth.
 6The heavens proclaim his justice,
all nations behold his glory.

 7Shamed are all image-worshippers,
who make a boast of their idols.
All the gods bow before him.
 8Zion is glad at the tidings,
the towns of Judah rejoice
because of your judgments, Lord.
 9For you are most high over all the earth,
greatly exalted above all gods.

 10The Lord loves those who hate evil,
he guards the lives of the faithful:
from the hand of the wicked he saves them.
 11Light arises for the righteous,
and joy for the upright in heart.
 12Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous:
give thanks to his holy name. 
Psalm 98 — A Song of Praise to the Lord
A psalm.
 98Sing a new song to the 1Lord,
for he has done wonders;
his right hand and holy arm
have won him the victory.
 2The Lord has made his victory known,
and revealed to the eyes of the nations his righteousness.
 3Mindful he was of his kindness to Jacob,
faithful he was to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the victory of our God.

 4Shout, all the earth, to the Lord:
break into cries and music.
 5Play on the lyre to the Lord,
on the lyre and with loud melody.
 6With trumpet and sound of horn,
shout before the king.

 7Let the sea and its fulness roar,
the world and the dwellers upon it.
 8Let the streams clap their hands,
let the hills shout for gladness together
 9before the Lord for he comes,
he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with justice
and the nations with equity. 
Psalm 99 — The Lord's Just and Holy Rule
 99The 1Lord is king; let the nations tremble:
he is throned upon cherubs; let earth quake.
 2The Lord is great in Zion,
he is high over all the nations.
 3Let them praise your great and terrible name.
Holy is he.

 4You are a king who loves justice,
equity you have established:
justice and right you have wrought for Jacob.
 5Exalt the Lord our God,
bow down at his footstool.
Holy is he.

 6Among his priests were Moses and Aaron,
Samuel among those who called on his name.
They called to the Lord, and he gave them answer.
 7He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud,
they kept his commands and the statute he gave them.
 8Lord our God, you gave them answer.
A God of forgiveness were you to them,
who suffered their deeds to go unpunished.
 9Exalt the Lord our God;
bow down at his holy mountain.
For holy is the Lord our God. 
Psalm 100 — A Call to Worship
A psalm of praise.
 100Shout, all the earth, to the 1Lord.
 2Serve the Lord with gladness,
approach him with ringing cries.
 3Be sure that the Lord alone is God.
It is he who has made us, and his we are
his people, the sheep of his pasture.

 4Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him, bless his name.
 5For the Lord is good, his love is forever,
and to all ages endures his faithfulness. 
Psalm 101 — A Model King
Of David, a psalm.
 101If kindness and justice I sing,
1making melody to you, Lord.
 2I would look to the way that is blameless,
and make it my own.

Within my own house I would walk
with an innocent heart.
 3I would never direct my eyes
to a thing that is base.

The impulse to stray I abhor
it shall not cling to me.
 4Far from me be perverseness of heart,
or kinship with evil.

 5Who slanders their neighbor in secret,
I bring them to silence:
haughty looks and proud hearts
I will not abide.

 6I will favor the true in the land,
they shall live in my court.
Those who walk in a way that is blameless
will be my attendant.

 7No one will live in my house
who practises guile.
No one that speaks a lie
will abide in my presence.

 8Morn by morn I will wholly wipe out
all the bad in the land,
and cut off from the Lord's own city
all workers of evil. 
Psalm 102 — A Prayer for Pity and for the Restoration of Zion 
 102Hear my prayer, O 1Lord;
let my cry for help come to you.
 2Hide not your face from me
in the day of my distress.
Incline your ear to me:
when I call, answer me speedily.

 3For my days pass away like smoke:
my bones are burned through as with fire.
 4My heart is scorched, withered like grass;
I forget to eat my bread.
 5By reason of my loud groaning,
my flesh clings to my bones.

 6Like a desert-owl of the wilderness,
like an owl among ruins am I.
 7I make my sleepless lament
like a bird on the house-top alone.
 8All the day wild foes revile me,
using my name for a curse.

 9For ashes have been my bread,
and tears have been mixed with my cup.
 10Because of your passionate anger,
you did raise me, then hurl me to the ground.
 11My days come to an end, shadows lengthen,
I wither like grass.

 12But you, O Lord, are enthroned forever,
your fame endures to all generations.
 13You will arise and have pity on Zion;
it's time to be gracious; her hour has come.
 14For even her stones are dear to your servants,
even the dust of her ruins they look on with love.

 15Then the nations will revere the name of the Lord
and all the kings of the earth his glory,
 16when the Lord shall have built up Zion,
and revealed himself in his glory,
 17in response to the prayer of the destitute,
whose prayer he will not despise.

 18Let this be recorded for ages to come,
that the Lord may be praised by a people yet unborn.
 19For he shall look down from his holy height,
from the heavens the Lord will gaze on the earth,
 20to hear the groans of the prisoner,
to free those who are doomed to die;
 21that people may recount the Lord's fame in Zion,
and the praise of him in Jerusalem,
 22when the nations are gathered together,
and the kingdoms, to worship the Lord.

 23He has broken my strength on the way,
he has shortened my days.
 24I will say, “My God, take me not hence
in the midst of my days.

“Your years endure age after age.
 25Of old you have founded the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
 26They shall perish; but you do stand.
They shall all wax old like a garment,
and change as a robe you will change them.
 27But you are the same, your years are endless.
 28The children of your servants abide,
evermore shall their seed be before you.” 
Psalm 103 — Bless the Lord, O my Soul
Of David.
 103O my soul, bless the 1Lord;
and all that is in me, his holy name.
 2O my soul, bless the Lord;
and forget not one of his benefits.
 3He pardons all your sins,
he heals all your diseases.
 4He ransoms your life from the pit,
he crowns you with kindness and pity.
 5He gives you your heart's desire, 
renewing your youth like the eagle's.

 6The Lord executes justice -
and right for all who are wronged.
 7He revealed his ways to Moses,
his acts to the children of Israel.
 8Full of pity and grace is the Lord,
patient, and rich in kindness:
 9he will not always chide,
nor cherish his anger forever.
 10Not after our sins has he dealt with us,
nor requited us after our wickedness.

 11For high as the heavens o'er the earth
is his love over those who fear him.
 12Far as is east from the west
has he put our transgressions from us.
 13As a father pities his children,
so the Lord pities those who fear him;
 14for well he knows our frame,
he remembers that we are dust.

 15A person's days are as grass;
blossoms like a flower of the meadow.
 16At the breath of the wind it is gone,
and the place thereof knows it no more.
 17But the love of the Lord is eternal,
and his kindness to children's children,
 18to those who keep his covenant
and mindfully do his behests.

 19The Lord has set his throne in the heavens;
the whole world is under his sway.
 20Bless the Lord, you angels of his,
mighty heroes performing his word.
 21Bless the Lord, all you his hosts,
you servants who do his will.
 22Bless the Lord, all you his works,
far as his sway extends.
O my soul, bless the Lord. 
Psalm 104 — The Hymn of Creation
 104Bless the 1Lord, O my soul.
O Lord my God, you are very great,
clad in awful splendor,
 2covered with robe of light.
You stretch out the heavens like the cloth of a tent.
 3He lays the beams of his chambers on water.
He takes dark clouds for his chariot,
and rides on the wings of the wind.
 4He takes the winds for his messengers,
the fire and the flame for his servants.

 5He founded the earth upon pillars,
to sustain it unshaken forever.
 6With the garment of ocean he covered it,
waters towered over the mountains.
 7But at your rebuke they fled,
scared by the roar of your thunder,
 8mountains rose, valleys sank down
to the place appointed for them.
 9They dared not pass the bounds set for them,
or cover the earth any more.

 10He sent brooks into the valleys,
they meander between the mountains.
 11The wild beasts all drink from them,
and the wild asses quench their thirst.
 12The birds have their home by the banks,
and sing in the branches.
 13From his chambers above he gives drink to the mountains,
and satisfies earth with the vials of heaven.

 14He makes grass grow for the cattle,
and herbs for people. 
He brings bread out of the earth;
 15wine, to gladden hearts;
oil, to make faces shine;
bread, to strengthen hearts.
 16The trees of the Lord drink their fill
the cedars he planted on Lebanon,
 17where the little birds build their nest,
and the stork whose home is the cypress.
 18The high hills are for the wild goats,
and the rocks are for coneys to hide in.

 19He created the moon to mark seasons,
and told the sun when to set.
 20You make it dark: night comes,
when all the wild beasts creep out.
 21Young lions that roar for their prey,
seeking their meat from God.
 22At sunrise they slink away,
and lie down in their dens.
 23Then people go forth to their work,
and toil till evening.

 24How many, O Lord, are your works,
all of them made in wisdom!
The earth is filled with your creatures.
 25And there is the great broad sea,
where are countless things in motion,
living creatures, both great and small.
 26There go the ships, 
and the Leviathan you made to play there.

 27They all look in hope to you,
to give them their food in due season.
 28And you give with open hand;
they gather and eat to their heart's desire.
 29When you hide your face, they are terrified;
when you take their breath away,
they die and go back to their dust.
 30But a breath from your lips creates them,
and renews the face of the earth.

 31May the glory of the Lord be forever,
may the Lord rejoice in his works.
 32A glance of his makes the earth tremble,
a touch of his makes the hills smoke.
 33I will sing to the Lord while I live,
I will play to my God while I am.
 34May my musing be sweet to him.
for I rejoice in the Lord.
 35But may sinners be swept from the earth,
and the wicked vanish forever.
O my soul, bless the Lord.
Hallelujah. 
Psalm 105 — The Inspiration of the Past 
 105Give thanks to the 1Lord, call on his name:
make known his deeds among the nations.
 2Sing to him, make music to him,
tell of all his wondrous works.
 3Make your boast in his holy name,
be glad at heart, you who seek the Lord.
 4Seek after the Lord and his strength,
seek his face evermore.
 5Remember the wonders he did,
his portents, the judgments he uttered,
 6you who are offspring of Abraham, his servant, 
the children of Jacob, his chosen ones.

 7He is the Lord our God:
in all the earth are his judgments.
 8He remembers forever his covenant,
his promise for a thousand generations
 9The covenant he made with Abraham,
the oath he swore to Isaac,
 10and confirmed as a statute to Jacob,
a pact everlasting to Israel
 11to give them the land of Canaan
as the lot which they should inherit.

 12And when they were very few,
few and but pilgrims therein,
 13wandering from nation to nation,
journeying from people to people,
 14he allowed no one to oppress them,
even punishing kings for their sakes.
 15He forbade them to touch his anointed,
or do any hurt to his prophets.

 16When he called down famine on the land,
and cut off the bread which sustained them,
 17he sent before them a man,
Joseph, who was sold as a slave.
 18His feet were galled with fetters,
he was laid in chains of iron,
 19till the time that his word came to pass,
the word of the Lord that had tried him.

 20The king sent and freed him,
the ruler of nations released him.
 21He made him lord of his household,
and ruler of all his possessions,
 22to admonish his princes at will
and instruct his elders in wisdom.

 23Thus Israel came into Egypt,
Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham.
 24His people he made very fruitful,
and mightier than their foes.
 25He inspired them to hate his people,
and to deal with his servants craftily.

 26He sent his servant Moses,
and Aaron whom he had chosen,
 27portents he wrought in Egypt,
and signs in the land of Ham.
 28Darkness he sent, and it fell:
yet they gave no heed to his word.

 29He turned their waters into blood,
thus causing their fish to die.
 30Their land was alive with frogs,
swarming even in the royal chambers.
 31At his command came flies,
and lice in all their borders.
 32He gave them hail for rain
and fire that flashed through the land,
 33smiting their vines and figs,
breaking the trees of their border.

 34At his command came locusts,
young locusts beyond all counting,
 35which ate every herb in the land,
ate up, too, the fruit of their ground.
 36He struck down in their land all the first-born,
the firstlings of all their strength
 37Then forth he led Israel with silver and gold,
and among his tribes no one was weary.

 38Egypt was glad when they left,
for terror had fallen upon them.
 39He spread out a cloud to screen them,
and fire to give light in the night.
 40He sent quails at their entreaty,
and heavenly bread in abundance.
 41He opened the rock; waters gushed:
in the desert they ran like a river.
 42For he remembered his holy promise
to Abraham his servant.

 43So he led out his people with joy,
his elect with a ringing cry.
 44And he gave them the lands of the nations,
the fruit of their toil for possession,
 45that so they might keep his statutes,
and be of his laws observant.
Hallelujah. 
Psalm 106 — The Nation's Sin against the Lord 
 106Hallelujah!
1Give thanks to the Lord for his goodness,
for his kindness endures forever.
 2Who can describe his heroic deeds,
or publish all his praise?
 3Happy they who act justly,
and do righteousness evermore.

 4Remember me, Lord, as you remember your people,
and visit me with your gracious help.
 5May I see the good fortune of your elect,
may I share in the joy of your nation,
and in the pride of your heritage.

 6We, like our fathers, have sinned,
we have done perversely and wickedly
 7In the land of Egypt our fathers,
all heedless of your wonders,
and unmindful of your great kindness,
at the Red Sea defied the Most High.
 8But true to his name he saved them,
in order to show his might.
 9He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried;
they marched through the depths as through desert,
 10saved from the hand of the hostile,
redeemed from the hand of the foe.
 11The waters covered their enemies:
not one of them was left.
 12So then they believed in his words,
and began to sing his praise.

 13But soon they forgot his deeds:
they did not wait for his counsel.
 14Their greed was ravenous in the desert;
they put God to the test in the wilderness.
 15He gave them the thing they had asked for,
but sent wasting disease among them.

 16The camp grew jealous of Moses
and of Aaron, holy one of the Lord.
 17The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan,
and covered Abiram's company.
 18Fire broke out on their company,
flame kindled upon the wicked.

 19They made a calf in Horeb,
and bowed to the molten image.
 20They exchanged their glorious God
for the image of ox that eats grass.
 21They forgot the God who had saved them
by mighty deeds in Egypt
 22Wonders in the land of Ham,
terrors by the Red Sea.
 23So he vowed, and would have destroyed them,
but for Moses his elect,
who stepped into the breach before him,
to divert his deadly wrath.

 24They spurned the delightsome land,
they refused to believe in his word.
 25They grumbled in their tents,
would not listen to the voice of the Lord.
 26So he swore with uplifted hand
to lay them low in the wilderness;
 27to disperse their seed among heathen,
to scatter them over the world.

 28Then they joined them to Baal of Peor,
and ate what was offered the dead.
 29They provoked him to wrath by their deeds,
and plague broke out among them.
 30Then Phinehas stood between,
and so the plague was stayed;
 31and it was counted to him for righteousness
unto all generations forever.

 32They angered him at the waters of Meribah,
through them it went ill with Moses.
 33They rebelled against his spirit,
and he uttered speech that was rash.

 34They did not destroy the nations,
as the Lord had commanded them;
 35but they mingled with the heathen,
and learned to do as they did.
 36Their idol gods they worshipped,
and they were ensnared by them.
 37They sacrificed their sons
and their daughters to the demons.
 38They poured out innocent blood
the blood of their sons and daughters
whom they offered to Canaan's idols,
and the land was polluted with blood.
 39They became unclean by their works,
and adulterous in their deeds.
 40Then the Lord's fury was on his people,
filled with horror at his inheritance.
 41He delivered them to the heathen,
to the sway of those who hated them.
 42Their enemies oppressed them,
and subdued them under their hand.
 43Many a time he saved them,
but they rebelled at his counsel,
and were brought low by their wrongdoing.
 44Yet he looked upon their distress,
when he heard their cry.
 45He remembered his covenant,
and, in his great kindness, relented.
 46He caused them to be pitied
by all who carried them captive.

 47Save us, O Lord our God,
and gather us out of the nations,
to give thanks to your holy name,
and to make our boast of your praise.

 48Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting.
And let all the people say “Amen.”
Praise the Lord. 
Book Five
Psalm 107 — The Song of the Redeemed
 107Give thanks to the 1Lord for his goodness
for his kindness endures forever.
 2Let this be the song of the ransomed,
whom the Lord has redeemed from distress,
 3gathering them from all lands,
east, west, north, and south.

 4In the wastes of the desert some wandered,
finding no way to a city inhabited.
 5Full of hunger and thirst,
their spirit failed.
 6Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
and he saved them from their distresses,
 7guiding them straight on the way,
till they reached an inhabited city.
 8Let them thank the Lord for his kindness,
for his wonderful deeds for people;
 9for the thirsty he satisfies,
and the hungry he fills with good things.

 10Some sat in darkness and gloom
prisoners in irons and misery,
 11for rebelling against God's word,
and spurning the Most High's counsel.
 12Their heart was bowed with toil;
there was no one to help when they stumbled.
 13Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
and he saved them from their distresses.
 14Out of darkness and gloom he brought them,
and burst their chains.
 15Let them praise the Lord for his kindness,
for his wonderful deeds for people.
 16For he shattered the gates of bronze,
and broke bars of iron.

 17Some were sick from their wicked ways,
and suffering because of their sins.
 18All manner of food they hated;
they had come to the gates of death.
 19Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
and he saved them from their distresses.
 20He sent his word and healed them,
and delivered their life from the pit.
 21Let them praise the Lord for his kindness,
for his wonderful deeds for people.
 22Let them offer to him thankofferings,
and with joy tell what things he has done.

 23Some crossed the sea in ships,
doing business in great waters.
 24They have seen what the Lord can do,
and his wonderful deeds on the deep.
 25At his command rose a tempest,
which lifted the waves on high.
 26Up to heaven they went, down to the depths;
their courage failed them.
 27They staggered and reeled like drunkards;
all their skills useless.
 28Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
and he saved them from their distresses.
 29He stilled the storm to a whisper,
and the waves of the sea were hushed.
 30They were glad, because it was quiet;
they were led to the haven they longed for.
 31Let them praise the Lord, for his kindness,
for his wonderful deeds for people.
 32Where the people assemble, extol him,
and praise him in council of elders.

 33He turns streams into a wilderness,
springs of water into thirsty land,
 34fruitful land into a salt waste,
because of the sin of the people.
 35A desert he makes pools of water,
a land of drought into springs of water.
 36He settles the hungry therein,
they establish a city to live in.
 37They sow fields and plant vineyards,
which furnish a fruitful yield.
 38By his blessing they multiply greatly,
and he lets not their cattle decrease.

 39Yet when they are bowed and diminished
by oppression, misfortune, or sorrow,
 40he pours contempt upon princes,
and on trackless wastes leads them astray
 41He lifts the poor out of misery,
and makes families fruitful as flocks.
 42At this sight shall the upright be glad,
and all wicked mouths shall be stopped.
 43Let those who are wise observe this,
and consider the love of the Lord 
Psalm 108 — A Prayer for Victory
A song. A psalm of David.
 108My heart is steadfast, O God,
1my heart is steadfast.
I would sing, I would make music;
awake, my soul.
 2Awake, harp and lyre;
I would wake the dawn.
 3I would praise you among the peoples, O Lord;
make music among the nations to you.
 4For great to heaven is your love,
and your faithfulness to the clouds.
 5Be exalted, O God, o'er the heavens,
and your glory o'er all the earth.

 6So those you love may be rescued,
save by your right hand and answer us.
 7God did solemnly swear:
“As victor will I divide Shechem,
portion out the valley of Succoth.
 8Mine is Gilead, mine is Manasseh,
Ephraim is my helmet,
Judah my sceptre of rule,
 9Moab the pot that I wash in,
on Edom I hurl my sandal,
I shout o'er Philistia in triumph.”

 10O to be brought to the fortified city!
O to be led into Edom!
 11Have you not spurned us, O God?
You do not march forth with our armies.

 12Grant us help from the foe,
for human help is worthless.
 13With God we shall yet do bravely,
he himself will tread down our foes. 
Psalm 109 — A Prayer for the Lord's Help
For the leader. Of David, a psalm.
 109O God whom I praise, keep not silence;
 2for their wicked mouths they have opened against me,
they speak to me with tongues that are false,
 3they beset me with words of hatred,
and fight without cause against me.
 4My love they requite with hostility,
while for them I lift up my prayer.
 5Evil for good they reward me,
and hatred for my love.

 6“Set over him one who is godless,” they say,
“an opponent at his right hand.
 7From his trial let him come forth guilty,
may his prayer be counted as sin.
 8Grant that his days may be few,
that his office be seized by another.
 9Grant that his children be fatherless,
and that his wife be a widow.
 10Up and down may his children go begging,
expelled from their desolate home.
 11May all that he owns be seized by the creditor
may strangers plunder the fruits of his toil.

 12“May none extend to him kindness,
or pity his fatherless children.
 13His descendants be doomed to destruction!
Blotted out be his name in one generation!
 14May his father's guilt be remembered,
and his mother's sin not blotted out:
 15on record always before the Lord,
and his memory root from the earth;
 16for he gave no thought to show kindness,
but pursued the poor and the needy,
drove the downhearted to death.

 17“May the curses he loved light upon him,
may the blessings he loathed be afar.
 18Like a garment he clothed him with curses;
may they pierce to his inwards like water,
and cling to his bones like oil.
 19Let them be like the robe he wraps round him,
like the belt he wears every day.”
 20Be this the reward of my adversaries,
of those who speak evil against me.

 21But you, Lord my God,
be true to your name, 
deal kindly with me;
in your gracious kindness 
save me.
 22For I am poor and needy,
and my heart is wounded within me.
 23I am gone like a lengthening shadow,
I am shaken off like a locust.
 24My knees totter from fasting,
my flesh is shrivelled and spare.
 25They heap insults upon me:
when they see me, they shake their head.

 26Help me, O Lord my God,
and save me in your kindness.
 27Teach them that this is your hand,
and your own doing, O Lord.
 28Let them curse, if only you bless.
Put my assailants to shame,
and make your servant glad.
 29My opponents be clothed with dishonor,
and wrapped in a robe of shame.

 30I give thanks to you, Lord, with loud voice,
I give praise in the midst of the throng;
 31for he stands by the poor, at his right hand,
to save them from those who condemn them. 
Psalm 110 — A Promise of Victory to the King
Of David, a psalm. 
 110This said the 1Lord concerning my lord,
“Sit at my right hand,
till I set your foot on the neck of your foes.”

 2On Zion the Lord is wielding
your sceptre of might, and charges you
to rule over the foes that surround you.

 3The day that you march to battle
your people will follow you gladly
young warriors in holy array,
like dew-drops, born of the morning.

 4The Lord has sworn and will not repent,
“As for you, you are priest for ever
as Melchizedek was.”

 5By your side will the Lord shatter kings
on the day of his wrath.
 6He will execute judgment
filling the valleys with dead,
the broad fields with shattered heads.
 7He will drink of the brook by the way,
and march onward with uplifted head. 
Psalm 111 — In Praise of the Divine Goodness 
 111Hallelujah.
1I will thank the Lord with all my heart,
in the assembled congregation of his people.
 2Great are the things that the Lord has done,
worthy of study by those who love them.
 3Majestic and glorious is his work,
and his righteousness abides forever.
 4For his marvelous deeds he has won renown;
the Lord is gracious and full of compassion.
 5Food he gives to those who fear him,
always he remembers his covenant.
 6His mighty works he has shown to his people,
in giving to them the nations for heritage.
 7All that he does is faithful and right,
all his behests are firm and sure.
 8They are established for ever and ever,
executed with truth and uprightness.
 9To his people he sent redemption,
he has appointed his covenant forever.
His name is holy and awe-inspiring.
 10The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom
those who keep it are wise indeed.
His praise abides for ever and ever. 
Psalm 112 — The Blessings of Godliness 
 112Hallelujah.1Happy are those who fear the Lord,
and greatly delight in his commandments.
 2Mighty on earth shall be their seed;
a blessing shall rest on the race of the upright.
 3Wealth and riches are in their houses,
their prosperity stands forever.
 4To the upright arises light in the darkness;
full of favor and pity and kindness are they.
 5It is well with those who show pity and lend,
who support all their affairs upon justice.
 6For they will never be shaken;
the just will be forever remembered.
 7They will not be afraid of evil tidings,
with steady heart they trust the Lord.
 8Their heart is firm and unafraid:
they know they will feast their eyes on their enemies.
 9With lavish hands they give to the poor,
and their prosperity stands forever.
They are lifted to heights of triumph and honor.
 10The sight of them fills the wicked with anger:
grinding their teeth with despair.
The hopes of the wicked will come to nothing. 
Psalm 113 — The Lord loves the Humble
 113Hallelujah.
1Praise the Lord, you his servants,
praise the name of the Lord.
 2The name of the Lord be blessed
from now and for evermore.
 3From sunrise to sunset
is the name of the Lord to be praised.

 4High is the Lord above all nations,
above the heavens is his glory.
 5Who is like the Lord our God,
seated on high?
 6He bends down to look
at the heavens and earth.

 7He raises the weak from the dust,
he lifts the poor from the dunghill,
 8and sets them beside the princes,
even the princes of his people.
 9He gives the childless woman a home,
and makes her the happy mother of children.
Hallelujah. 
Psalm 114 — The Marvel of the Exodus
 114When Israel went out of Egypt,
1Jacob's house from a barbarous people,
 2God chose Judah for himself, 
Israel became his kingdom.

 3The sea saw it, and fled,
Jordan river ran backwards.
 4Mountains skipped like rams,
hills like the young of the flock.

 5Why, sea, do you flee?
Jordan, why run backwards?
 6Mountains, why skip ram-like?
Why, hills, like the young of the flock?

 7Earth, tremble before the Lord,
at the presence of Jacob's God,
 8who turns rocks into pools of water,
and flint into fountains of water. 
Psalm 115 — Israel's Incomparable God
 115Not to us, 1Lord, not to us,
but to your name give glory,
for your kindness' and faithfulness' sake.
 2Why should the heathen say,
“Where is now their God?”
 3Our God he is in heaven;
whatever he wishes, he does.
 4Their idols are silver and gold,
made by human hands.
 5They have mouths, but cannot speak;
they have eyes, but cannot see.
 6They have ears, but cannot hear;
they have noses, but cannot smell.
 7They have hands, but cannot feel;
they have feet, but cannot walk:
no sound comes from their throats.
 8Their makers become like them,
so do all who trust in them.

 9O Israel, trust in the Lord:
he is their help and their shield.
 10House of Aaron, trust in the Lord:
he is their help and their shield.
 11You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord
he is their help and their shield.

 12The Lord, mindful of us, will bless us:
he will bless the house of Israel,
he will bless the house of Aaron.
 13He will bless those who fear the Lord,
the small and the great together.

 14May the Lord add to your numbers
to you and to your children.
 15Blessed be you of the Lord,
creator of heaven and earth.

 16The heavens are the heavens of the Lord,
but the earth has he given to people.
 17The dead cannot praise the Lord,
nor those who go down into silence.
 18But we will bless the Lord
from now and for evermore.
Hallelujah. 
Psalm 116 — Song of Thanksgiving for Deliverance
 116I love the 1Lord, for he hears
my voice, my pleas for mercy.
 2For he has inclined his ear to me:
I will call upon him as long as I live.

 3About me were snares of death,
the anguish of Sheol was upon me:
distress and sorrow were mine.
 4Then I called on the name of the Lord:
“I beseech you, O Lord, deliver me.”

 5Gracious and just is the Lord,
compassionate is our God.
 6The Lord preserves the simple;
when I was drooping, he saved me.
 7Be at peace, my heart, once more,
for the Lord has been good to you.

 8You have rescued me from death,
my eyes from tears,
my feet from stumbling.
 9Before the Lord I will walk
in the land of the living.

 10I held fast my faith, though I said,
“Ah me! I am sore afflicted,”
 11though in my alarm I said,
“Everyone is a liar.”

 12What shall I render the Lord
for all his bounty to me?
 13I will lift up the cup of salvation,
and call on the name of the Lord.
 14I will pay my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people.

 15Grave in the eyes of the Lord
is the death of his loyal and loved ones. 
 16Ah, Lord! I am your servant,
your servant, child of your handmaid.
You have loosened my bonds.

 17I will offer to you a thank-offering,
and call on the name of the Lord.
 18I will pay my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people,
 19in the courts of the house of the Lord,
in the midst of you, O Jerusalem.
Hallelujah. 
Psalm 117 — A Call to Praise
 117Praise the 1Lord, all you nations:
laud him, all you peoples.
 2For his mighty love is over us:
the Lord is faithful forever.
Hallelujah. 
Psalm 118 — Thanksgiving for Victory
 118Give thanks to the 1Lord for his goodness,
his kindness endures forever.
 2Let the house of Israel now say:
his kindness endures forever.
 3Let the house of Aaron now say:
his kindness endures forever.
 4Let those who fear the Lord now say:
his kindness endures forever.

 5Out of straits I called on the Lord,
the Lord answered and gave me room.
 6The Lord is mine; I am fearless.
What can mere people do to me?
 7The Lord is mine, as my help:
I shall feast my eyes on my foes.
 8It is better to hide in the Lord
than to trust in mortals.
 9It is better to hide in the Lord
than to put any trust in princes.
 10Everywhere heathen swarmed round me;
in the name of the Lord I cut them down.
 11They swarmed, swarmed around me;
in the name of the Lord I cut them down,
 12they swarmed around me like bees,
they blazed like a fire of thorns:
in the name of the Lord I cut them down.

 13Sore they pushed me, to make me fall;
but the Lord gave me his help.
 14The Lord is my strength and my song,
and he is become my salvation.
 15Hark! In the tents of the righteous
glad cries of victory are ringing.
The hand of the Lord has wrought bravely,
 16the hand of the Lord is exalted,
the hand of the Lord has wrought bravely.

 17I shall not die: nay, I shall live,
to declare the works of the Lord.
 18Though the Lord has chastened me sore,
he has not given me over to death.

(The Procession arrives at the Temple)

 19“Open to me the gates of victory.
I would enter therein and give thanks to the Lord.”

(The Welcome)

 20“This is the gate of the Lord:
the righteous may enter therein;”

 21I thank you because you have heard me,
and are become my salvation.

 22The stone which the builders despised
is become the head-stone of the corner.
 23This has been wrought by the Lord;
it is marvelous in our eyes.

 24This day is the Lord's own creation:
in it let us joy and be glad.
 25O Lord, save us, we pray,
O Lord, prosper, we pray.

 26Blessed the one who enters
in the name of the Lord.
From the house of the Lord we bless you.
 27The Lord is God,
he has given us light.
Wreathe the dance with boughs,
till they touch the horns of the altar.
 28You are my God, I will thank you;
O my God, I will exalt you.
 29Give thanks to the Lord for his goodness:
his kindness endures forever. 
Psalm 119 — The Power and Comfort of the Word of God
 119Happy they whose life is blameless,
1who walk by the law of the Lord.
 2Happy they who keep his charges,
and seek him with all their hearts;
 3who have done no wrong,
but walk in his ways.
 4You yourself have appointed your precepts
to be kept with diligence.

 5O to be steadily guided
in the keeping of your statutes!
 6Then unashamed shall I be,
when I look towards all your commandments.
 7I will thank you with heart unfeigned,
when I learn your righteous judgments.
 8I will observe your statutes:
O forsake me not utterly.

 9How can a young person keep their life pure?
By giving heed to your word.
 10With all my heart have I sought you,
let me not stray from your commandments.
 11In my heart have I treasured your word,
to keep from sinning against you.
 12Blessed are you, O Lord;
teach me your statutes.
 13With my lips have I rehearsed
all the judgments of your mouth.
 14I delight in the way of your charges,
more than in riches of all sorts.
 15I will muse upon your precepts,
and look to your paths.
 16In your statutes I delight,
I will not forget your word.

 17Grant that your servant may live,
and I will observe your word.
 18Open my eyes, that I see
wondrous things out of your law.
 19But a guest am I on the earth:
hide not your commandments from me.
 20My heart is crushed with longing
for your ordinances, at all times.
 21You rebuke the proud, the accursed,
who wander from your commandments.
 22Roll away from me scorn and contempt,
for I have observed your charges.
 23Though princes sit plotting against me,
your servant will muse on your statutes.
 24Your charges are my delight,
they are my counsellors.

 25I lie grovelling in the dust;
revive me, as you have promised.
 26I told of my ways, you made answer;
teach me your statutes.
 27Grant me insight into your precepts,
and I will muse on your wonders.
 28I am overcome with sorrow;
raise me up, as you have promised.
 29Put the way of falsehood from me,
and graciously grant me your law.
 30I have chosen the way of fidelity,
your ordinances I long for.
 31I hold fast to your charges:
O put me not, Lord, to shame.
 32I will run in the way of your commandments,
for you give me room of heart.

 33Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes,
and I will keep it to the end,
 34instruct me to keep your law,
and I will observe it with all my heart.
 35Guide me in the path of your commandments,
for therein do I delight.
 36Incline my heart to your charges,
and not to greed of gain.
 37Turn away my eyes from vain sights,
revive me by your word.
 38Confirm to your servant the promise
which is given to those who fear you.
 39Remove the reproach which I dread,
because your judgments are good.
 40Behold, I long for your precepts.
Quicken me in your righteousness.

 41Visit me, Lord, with your love
and salvation, as you have promised.
 42So shall I answer my slanderers,
for my trust is in your word.
 43Snatch not from my mouth the word of truth,
for in your judgments I hope.
 44I will keep your law continually,
for ever and evermore.
 45So shall I walk in wide spaces,
for I give my mind to your precepts.
 46I will speak of your charge before kings,
and will not be ashamed thereof.
 47Your commandments are my delight,
I love them exceedingly.
 48I will lift up my hands to your commandments,
and muse upon your statutes.

 49Remember your word to your servant,
on which you have made me to hope.
 50This is my comfort in trouble,
that your word gives life to me.
 51The arrogant utterly scorn me,
but I have not declined from your law.
 52When I think of your judgments of old,
O Lord, I take to me comfort.
 53I am seized with glowing anger
at the wicked who forsake your law.
 54Your statutes have been to me songs
in the house of my pilgrimage.
 55I remember your name in the night,
O Lord and observe your law.
 56My lot has been this,
that I have kept your precepts.

 57My portion are you, O Lord:
I have promised to keep your words.
 58I entreat you with all my heart;
grant me your promised favor.
 59I have thought upon my ways,
and turned my feet to your charges.
 60I hasted and tarried not
to give heed to your commandments.
 61Though the godless have wound their cords round me,
I have not forgotten your law.
 62At midnight I rise to praise you
because of your righteous judgments.
 63With all those who fear you I company,
aid with those who observe your precepts.
 64The earth, Lord, is full of your kindness;
teach me your Statutes.

 65Well have you dealt with your servant,
as you have promised, O Lord.
 66Teach me discretion and knowledge,
for I have believed your commandments.
 67Till trouble came I was a wanderer,
but now I observe your word.
 68You are good and do good;
teach me your statutes.
 69The proud have forged lies against me,
but I keep your precepts with all my heart.
 70Their heart is gross like fat,
but I delight in your law.
 71It was good for me to be humbled,
that I should learn your statutes.
 72The law of your mouth is better to me
than thousands of pieces of silver and gold.

 73Your hands have made me and fashioned me;
make me wise to learn your commandments.
 74Those who fear you shall see me with joy,
for in your word have I hoped.
 75I know, O Lord, that your judgments are right,
and in faithfulness you have afflicted me.
 76Let your love be a comfort to me,
for so have you promised your servant.
 77Visit me with your quickening pity,
for your law is my delight.
 78Put the proud to shame, who have wronged me falsely:
I will muse on your precepts.
 79Let those turn to me who fear you,
that they may learn your charges.
 80Let my heart be sound in your statutes,
that I may not be put to shame.

 81My long for you to rescue me,
I put my hope in your word.
 82My eyes pine away for your promise:
saying, “When will you comfort me?”
 83Though shrivelled like wine-skin in smoke,
your statutes I have not forgotten.
 84How few are the days of your servant!
When will you judge those who harass me?
 85Proud people have dug for me pits
people who do not conform to your law.
 86All your commandments are trusty.
With falsehood they harass me: help me.
 87They had nearly made an end of me,
yet I did not forget your precepts.
 88Spare me in your kindness,
and I will observe the charge of your mouth.

 89Forever, O Lord, is your word
fixed firmly in the heavens.
 90Your truth endures age after age;
it is established on earth, and it stands.
 91By your appointment they stand this day,
for all are your servants.
 92Had not your law been my joy,
in my misery then had I perished.
 93I will never forget your precepts,
for through them you have put life in me.
 94I am yours, O save me,
for I give my mind to your precepts.
 95The wicked lay wait to destroy me,
but I give heed to your charge.
 96I have seen a limit to all things:
but your commandment is spacious exceedingly.

 97O how I love your law!
All the day long I muse on it.
 98Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies:
for it is mine forever.
 99I am prudent above all my teachers,
for your charges are my meditation.
 100I have insight more than the aged,
because I observe your precepts.
 101I refrain my foot from all wicked ways,
that I may keep your word.
 102I turn not aside from your judgments,
for you yourself are my teacher.
 103How sweet are your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!
 104Insight I win through your precepts,
therefore every false way I hate.

 105Your word is a lamp to my feet,
and a light to my path.
 106I have sworn an oath, and will keep it,
to observe your righteous judgments.
 107I am afflicted sorely:
revive me, O Lord, as you said.
 108Accept, Lord, my willing praise,
and teach me your judgments.
 109My life is in ceaseless peril;
but I do not forget your law.
 110The wicked set traps for me,
yet I do not stray from your precepts. 
 111In your charges are my everlasting inheritance,
they are the joy of my heart.
 112I am resolved to perform your statutes
forever, to the utmost.

 113I hate people of divided heart,
but your law do I love.
 114You are my shelter and shield:
in your word do I hope.
 115Begone, you wicked people,
I will keep the commands of my God.
 116Uphold me and spare me, as you have promised:
O disappoint me not.
 117Hold me up, and I shall be saved:
and your statutes shall be my unceasing delight.
 118All who swerve from your statutes you spurn:
their cunning is in vain.
 119All the wicked of earth you count as dross,
therefore I love your charges.
 120My flesh, for fear of you, shudders,
and I stand in awe of your judgments.

 121Justice and right have I practised,
do not leave me to my oppressors.
 122Be your servant's surety for good,
let not the proud oppress me.
 123My eyes pine for your salvation,
and for your righteous promise.
 124Deal in your love with your servant,
and teach me your statutes.
 125Your servant am I; instruct me,
that I may know your charges.
 126It is time for the Lord to act:
they have violated your law.
 127Therefore I love your commandments
above gold, above fine gold.
 128So by all your precepts I guide me,
and every false way I hate.

 129Your decrees are wonderful,
gladly I keep them.
 130When your word is unfolded, light breaks;
it imparts to the simple wisdom.
 131With open mouth I pant
with longing for your commandments.
 132Turn to me with your favor,
as is just to those who love you.
 133Steady my steps by your word,
so that sin have no power over me.
 134Set me free from those who oppress me,
and I shall observe your precepts.
 135Shine with your face on your servant,
and teach me your statutes.
 136My eyes run down with rills of water,
because your law is not kept.

 137Righteous are you, O Lord,
and right are your ordinances.
 138The laws you has ordered are just,
and trusty exceedingly.
 139My jealousy has undone me,
that my foes have forgotten your words.
 140Your word has been tested well;
and your servant loves it.
 141I am little and held in contempt,
but your precepts I have not forgotten.
 142Just is your justice forever,
and trusty is your law.
 143Stress and strain are upon me,
but your commandments are my delight.
 144Right are your charges forever,
instruct me that I may live.

 145With my whole heart I cry; O answer me.
I would keep your statutes, O Lord.
 146I cry to you: O save me,
and I will observe your charges.
 147Ere the dawn I cry for your help:
in your word do I hope.
 148Awake I meet the night-watches,
to muse upon your sayings.
 149Hear my voice in your kindness:
O Lord, by your judgments revive me.
 150Near me are wicked tormentors,
who are far from thoughts of your law;
 151but near, too, are you, O Lord,
and all your commandments are trusty.
 152Long have I known from your charges
that you have founded them for all time.

 153Look on my misery, and rescue me;
for I do not forget your law.
 154Defend my cause and redeem me:
revive me, as you have promised.
 155Salvation is far from the wicked,
for their mind is not in your statutes.
 156Great is your pity, O Lord:
Revive me, as you have ordained.
 157My foes and tormentors are many,
but I have not declined from your charges.
 158I behold the traitors with loathing,
for they do not observe your word.
 159Behold how I love your precepts:
revive me, O Lord!, in your kindness.
 160The sum of your word is truth,
all your laws are just and eternal.

 161Princes have harassed me wantonly:
but my heart stands in awe of your word.
 162Over your word I rejoice
as one who finds great spoil.
 163Falsehood I hate and abhor,
but your law do I love.
 164Seven times a day do I praise you
because of your righteous judgments.
 165Right well do they fare who love your law:
they go on their way without stumbling.
 166I hope for your salvation;
O Lord I do your commandments.
 167I observe your charges:
I love them greatly.
 168I observe your precepts and charges:
all my ways are before you.

 169Let my cry come before you, O Lord:
give me insight, as you have promised.
 170Let my prayer enter into your presence:
deliver me, as you have said.
 171My lips shall be fountains of praise,
that you teach me your statutes.
 172My tongue shall sing of your word,
for all your commandments are right.
 173Let your hand be ready to help me,
for your precepts have been my choice.
 174I long, Lord, for your salvation,
and your law is my delight.
 175Revive me that I may praise you,
and let your precepts help me.
 176I have strayed like a wandering sheep
seek your servant, because
I do not forget your commandments. 
Psalm 120 — Prayer for Deliverance from Slander and Treachery
A song of ascents.
 120In distress I cried to the 1Lord,
and he answered me.
 2“Deliver me, Lord,
from the lip that is false
and the tongue that is crafty.”

 3What shall he give to you,
you tongue that is crafty?
What yet shall he give to you?
 4Arrows of warrior, sharpened,
with glowing broom coals together.

 5Woe is me that I sojourn in Meshech,
that I live by the tents of Kedar.
 6Already too long have I dwelt
among those who hate peace.
 7I am for peace:
but when I speak of it,
they are for war. 
Psalm 121 — The Lord Our Protector
A song of ascents
 121I will lift up my eyes to the mountains.
1O whence shall help for me come?
 2From the Lord comes help to me
the creator of heaven and earth.

 3Your foot he will not let totter:
he who guards you will not sleep.
 4The guardian of Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.

 5The Lord is he who guards you
your shelter upon your right hand.
 6The sun by day shall not strike you,
nor the moon by night.

 7From all evil the Lord will guard you,
he will guard your life.
 8The Lord will guard your going and coming
from now and for evermore. 
Psalm 122 — The Joy and the Prayer of the Pilgrims
A song of ascents. Of David.
 122I was glad when they said to me,
1“We will go to the house of the Lord.”
 2Now we are standing,
within your gates, O Jerusalem.

 3O Jerusalem, built close-packed,
like a city without breach or gap,
 4to you do the tribes come,
the tribes of the Lord,
as the law has ordained for Israel,
there to give thanks to the Lord.
 5There once stood thrones of justice
even thrones of the household of David.

 6Pray that all may be well with Jerusalem,
and well with those who love you,
 7well within your ramparts,
and well within your palaces.

 8For the sake of my brethren and friends,
I will wish you now prosperity:
 9for the sake of the house of the Lord
our God, I will seek your good. 
Psalm 123 — A Prayer for Mercy
A song of ascents.
 123I Lift up my eyes to you,
1who are throned in the heavens.
 2As the eyes of a servant
turn to the hand of his master,
or the eyes of a maid
to the hand of her mistress,
so do our eyes turn
to the Lord our God,
until he is gracious to us.

 3Be gracious, be gracious to us, Lord.
Scorn enough, and more, have we borne
 4More than enough have we borne
of derision from those at their ease,
of scorn from those who are haughty. 
Psalm 124 — A Magnificent Deliverance
A song of ascents. Of David.
 124“Had it not been the 1Lord who was for us”
let Israel say
 2“Had it not been the Lord who was for us
when enemies rose against us,
 3then alive they'd have swallowed us up,
when their anger was kindled against us.
 4Then the waters would've swept us away,
and the torrent passed over us clean:
 5then most sure would've passed over us clean
the wild seething waters.”

 6Blest be the Lord who has given us not
to be torn by their teeth.
 7We are like a bird just escaped
from the snare of the fowler.

The snare is broken,
and we are escaped.
 8Our help is the name of the Lord,
the Creator of heaven and earth. 
Psalm 125 — A Sure Defence
A song of ascents.
 125Those who trust in the 1Lord
are like Mount Zion,
that cannot be moved,
but abides forever.
 2Round Jerusalem are the mountains,
and the Lord is round his people
from now and for evermore.

 3For he will not suffer
the sceptre of wrong
to rest on the land
allotted to the righteous;
else the righteous might put forth
their own hand to evil.

 4Do good, O Lord,
to the good,
and to the true-hearted.

 5But those who swerve
into crooked ways
will the Lord lead away
with the workers of evil.

Peace be upon Israel. 
Psalm 126 — Sowing in Tears
A song of ascents.
 126When the 1Lord turned the fortunes of Zion,
we were like dreamers.
 2Then was our mouth filled with laughter,
our tongue with glad shouts;
then among the nations they said,
“The Lord has dealt greatly with them.”
 3The Lord had dealt greatly with us,
and we were rejoicing.

 4Turn our fortunes, O Lord,
as the streams in the Negreb. 
 5They who sow in tears
shall reap with glad shouts.
 6Forth they fare, with their burden of seed,
and they weep as they go.
But home, home, with glad shouts they shall come
with their arms full of sheaves. 
Psalm 127 — The Need of Heavenly Help
A song of ascents. Of Solomon.
 127Unless the 1Lord builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the Lord guards the city,
the watchman wakes in vain.

 2In vain you rise early,
and finish so late,
and so eat sorrow's bread;
for he cares for his loved ones
in their sleep.

 3Children are a gift of the Lord,
the fruit of the womb, a reward.
 4Like arrows wielded by warriors,
are the children of youth.

 5Happy the man who has filled
his quiver full of them.
He will not be ashamed when he speaks
with enemies in the gate. 
Psalm 128 — The Blessings of Home
A song of ascents.
 128Happy all who fear the 1Lord,
who walk in his ways.
 2You will eat what your hands have toiled for,
and be happy and prosperous!

 3Like a fruitful vine shall your wife be
in the innermost room of your house:
your children, like olive shoots,
round about your table.

 4See! This is the blessing
of the man who fears the Lord.
 5The Lord shall bless you from Zion.
You will see Jerusalem nourish
all the days of your life.
 6You will see your children's children.

Peace upon Israel. 
Psalm 129 — A Prayer for the Discomfiture of the Enemies of Zion
A song of ascents.
 129“Sore have they vexed me from youth”
1thus let Israel say
 2“Sore have they vexed me from youth,
but they have not prevailed against me.

 3“The ploughers ploughed on my back,
they made their furrows long.
 4But the Lord, who is righteous, has cut
the cords of the wicked.”

 5Let all who are haters of Zion
be put to shame and defeated.
 6May they be as the grass on the house-top,
which withers before it shoots up;

 7which fills not the arms of the reaper,
nor the lap of the binder of sheaves
 8whereof no one says as they pass,
“The blessing of God be upon you.”

In the name of the Lord we bless you. 
Psalm 130 — Out of the Depths
A song of ascents.
 130Out of the depths
1I call to you, Lord.
 2Lord, hear my voice:
give heed with your ears
to my loud plea.

 3If you should mark sin, Lord,
O Lord, who could stand?
 4But with you is forgiveness,
that you may be feared.

 5I wait for the Lord,
I wait for his word,
 6I look for the Lord
more than watchman for morning,
than watchman for morning.

 7Israel, hope in the Lord:
with the Lord there is love
with him plenteous redemption.
 8And he redeems Israel
from all his iniquities. 
Psalm 131 — As a Little Child
A song of ascents. Of David.
 131O 1Lord, my heart is not haughty,
my eyes are not lofty,
I walk not among great things,
things too wonderful for me.

 2Yes, I have soothed and stilled myself,
like a young child on his mother's lap;
like a young child am I.

 3O Israel, hope in the Lord
from now and for evermore. 
Psalm 132 — The Ancient Promise to David and Zion
 132Remember, O 1Lord, David
all his sufferings,
 2the oath that he swore to the Lord,
and his vow to the Strong One of Jacob,
 3never to enter his tent,
never to lie on his bed,
 4never to give his eyes sleep
or his eyelids slumber,
 5till he had found a place for the Lord,
for the Strong One of Jacob to live in.

 6We heard of it in Ephrathah,
in the fields of Jaar we found it.
 7We went to the place where he dwelt,
we bowed ourselves low at his footstool.
 8“Arise, Lord, and enter your resting-place,
you and your mighty ark.
 9Let your priests wear a garment of righteousness,
your faithful shout aloud for joy.
 10For the sake of David your servant,
do not reject your Anointed.”

 11The Lord swore an oath to David
an oath that he will not break;
“I will set on your throne
a prince of your line.
 12If your sons keep my covenant
and the statutes I teach them,
then their sons, too, forever,
will sit on your throne.”
 13For the choice of the Lord is Zion;
she is the home of his heart.

 14“This is forever my resting-place,
this is the home of my heart.
 15I will royally bless her provision,
and give bread to her poor in abundance.
 16Her priests I will clothe with salvation;
her faithful will shout for joy.
 17There will I raise up for David
a dynasty of power. 
I have set my anointed a lamp
that shall never go out. 
 18Robes of shame I will put on his foes,
but on his head a glittering crown.” 
Psalm 133 — Family together
A song of ascents. Of David.
 133Behold! How good and how pleasant
1is the dwelling of kindred together!
 2Like precious oil on the head
that ran down on the beard,
the beard of Aaron, running
over the collar of his robe:
 3like the dew upon Hermon which falls
on the mountains of Zion.
For there has the Lord ordained blessing —
life that is endless. 
Psalm 134 — An Evening Invocation
A song of ascents.
 134Come, praise the 1Lord,
all you the Lord's servants,
who stand by night
in the house of the Lord.
 2Lift your hands to the holy place,
praise the Lord.

 3The Lord who made heaven and earth,
bless you from Zion. 
Psalm 135 — The Lord's Power Revealed in Nature and History
 135Hallelujah.
1Praise the name of the Lord.
Praise the Lord, you his servants,
 2who stand in the house of the Lord,
in the courts of the house of our God.
 3Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good:
Sing praise to his name it is pleasant.
 4The Lord for himself chose Jacob,
Israel as his own special treasure.

 5For I know that the Lord is great,
that our Lord is above all gods.
 6All that he wills he does
in the heavens and on the earth,
in the seas and in all the abysses.
 7Clouds he brings up from the ends of the earth,
lightnings he makes for the rain,
wind he brings out of his storehouses.

 8The first-born of Egypt he struck,
both humans and animals.
 9Signs and wonders he sent
into your midst, O Egypt,
upon Pharaoh and all his servants.
 10Many nations he struck,
mighty kings he slew
 11Sihon, king of the Amorites,
Og, king of Bashan,
and all the kingdoms of Canaan.
 12He gave their land for possession,
possession to Israel his people.

 13Your name, O Lord, is forever;
your memorial world without end.
 14For the Lord secures right for his people,
and takes pity upon his servants.

 15The idols of heathen are silver
made by human hands.
 16They have mouths, but cannot speak:
they have eyes, but cannot see.
 17They have ears, but cannot hear:
there is no breath in their mouths.
 18Their makers become like them,
so do all who trust in them.

 19House of Israel, praise the Lord:
house of Araon, praise the Lord.
 20House of Levi, praise the Lord:
you who fear the Lord, praise the Lord.
 21Blest be the Lord out of Zion,
who lives in Jerusalem.
Hallelujah. 
Psalm 136 — The Lord's Love Revealed in Nature and History
 136Give thanks to the 1Lord for his goodness:
for his kindness endures forever.
 2Give thanks to the God of gods:
for his kindness endures forever.
 3Give thanks to the Lord of lords:
for his kindness endures forever.

 4To him who alone does great wonders:
for his kindness endures forever.
 5Whose wisdom created the heavens:
for his kindness endures forever.
 6Who spread forth the earth on the waters:
for his kindness endures forever.
 7Who made great lights:
for his kindness endures forever.
 8The sun to rule over the day:
for his kindness endures forever.
 9Moon and stars to rule over the night:
for his kindness endures forever.

 10Who struck the first-born of Egypt:
for his kindness endures forever.
 11And brought Israel out from their midst:
for his kindness endures forever.
 12With strong hand and outstretched arm:
for his kindness endures forever.
 13Who cut the Red Sea in pieces:
for his kindness endures forever.
 14And brought Israel right through the midst:
for his kindness endures forever.
 15And shook Pharaoh with all his host into the sea
for his kindness endures forever.

 16Who led his people through the desert:
for his kindness endures forever.
 17Who struck down great kings:
for his kindness endures forever.
 18And slew noble kings:
for his kindness endures forever.
 19Sihon, king of the Amorites:
for his kindness endures forever.
 20And Og, king of Bashan:
for his kindness endures forever.
 21Who gave their land for possession:
for his kindness endures forever.
 22Possession to Israel his servant:
for his kindness endures forever.

 23Who remembered our low estate:
for his kindness endures forever.
 24And rescued us from our foes:
for his kindness endures forever.
 25Who gives to all flesh food:
for his kindness endures forever.
 26Give thanks to the God of heaven:
for his kindness endures forever. 
Psalm 137 — By the Waters of Babylon
 137By the waters of Babylon there we sat,
1and we wept at the thought of Zion.
 2There on the poplars we hung our harps.
 3For there our captors called for a song:
our tormentors, rejoicing, saying:
“Sing us one of the songs of Zion.”

 4How can we sing the Lord's song
in the foreigner's land?
 5If I forget you, Jerusalem,
may my right hand wither.
 6May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth,
if I am unmindful of you,
or don't set Jerusalem
above my chief joy.

 7Remember the Edomites, Lord,
the day of Jerusalem's fall,
when they said, “Lay her bare, lay her bare,
right down to her very foundation.”

 8Babylon, despoiler,
happy are those who pay you back
for all you have done to us.
 9Happy are they who seize and dash
your children against the rocks. 
Psalm 138 — The Constancy of the Lord's Care
Of David.
 138I will thank you, O 1Lord, with all my heart:
in the sight of the gods I will sing your praise,
 2and prostrate before your holy temple,
will praise your name for your constant love,
for you have exulted your promise above all.

 3When I called you, you answered;
you gave me strength, you inspired me.
 4All the kings of the earth shall praise you, O Lord,
when they shall have heard the words you have uttered;
 5and they shall sing of the ways of the Lord,
and tell of the Lord's transcendent glory.
 6For, high though the Lord is, he looks on the lowly,
and strikes down the haughty from far away.

 7Though my way be distressful, yet you preserve me:
you lay your hand on my angry foes,
and your right hand gives me victory.
 8The Lord will accomplish all that which concerns me.
Your kindness, O Lord, endures forever.
O do not abandon the work of your hands. 
Psalm 139 — The Ever-Present God
For the leader. Of David, a psalm.
 139O 1Lord, you search and know me;
 2when I sit, when I rise you know it,
you perceive my thoughts from afar.

 3When I walk, when I lie you sift it,
familiar with all my ways.
 4There is not a word on my tongue,
but see! Lord, you know it all.

 5Behind and before you beset me,
upon me you lay your hand.
 6It's too wonderful for me to know
too lofty I cannot attain it.

 7Whither shall I go from your spirit?
Or whither shall I flee from your face?
 8If I climb up to heaven, you are there:
or make Sheol my bed, you are there.

 9If I lift up the wings of the morning
and fly to the end of the sea,
 10there also your hand would grasp me,
and your right hand take hold of me.

 11If I say, “Let the darkness cover me,
and night be the light about me,”
 12The dark is not dark for you,
but night is as light as the day.

 13For you did put me together; 
in my mother's womb you did weave me.
 14I give you praise for my fashioning
so full of awe, so wonderful.
Your works are wonderful.

You knew me right well;
 15my bones were not hidden from you,
when I was made in secret,
and woven in the depths of the earth.

 16Your eyes saw all my days:
they stood on your book every one
written down, before they were fashioned,
while none of them yet was mine.

 17But how far, O God, beyond measure
are your thoughts! How mighty their sum!
 18Should I count, they are more than the sand.
When I wake, I am still with you.

 19Will you slay the wicked, O God?
And remove from me the bloodthirsty,
 20who maliciously defy you
and take your name in vain.

 21Do I not hate those who hate you, Lord?
Do I not loathe those who resist you?
 22With perfect hatred I hate them,
I count them my enemies.

 23Search me, O God, know my heart:
test me, and know my thoughts,
 24and see if guile be in me;
and lead me in the way everlasting. 
Psalm 140 — A Prayer for Preservation
 140Rescue me, 1Lord, from evil people;
from the violent guard me
 2from those who plot evil in their heart,
and stir up war continually:
 3who make their tongue as sharp as a serpent's,
and under whose lips is the poison of adders. Selah

 4Preserve me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked,
from the violent guard me
from those who are plotting to trip up my feet.
 5The proud have hidden a trap for me,
cords they have spread as a net for my feet:
snares they have set at the side of my track. Selah

 6I have said to the Lord, “My God are you;
give ear, Lord, to my loud plea.
 7O Lord my Lord, my savior mighty,
you did cover my head in the day of battle.
 8Grant not, O Lord, the desires of the wicked;
and what they have purposed, promote you not.” Selah

 9Let them not lift up their heads against me.
May the mischief they prate bring themselves to destruction,
 10may he rain upon them coals of fire,
may he strike them down swiftly, to rise no more,
 11no place in the land may there be for the slanderer:
may the violent be hunted from sorrow to sorrow.

 12I know that the Lord will do right by the weak,
and will execute justice for those who are needy.
 13Surely the righteous shall praise your name,
and they who are upright shall live in your presence. 
Psalm 141 — A Prayer for Protection from Persecutors
A psalm of David.
 141Lord1, I call to you: hasten, to me,
give ear to my voice, when I call to you.
 2Let my prayer be presented as incense before you,
and my uplifted hands as the evening meal-offering.

 3Set, O Lord, a watch on my mouth,
put a guard on the door of my lips.
 4Incline not my heart to an evil matter,
to busy myself in deeds of wickedness,
in company with workers of evil:
never may I partake of their dainties.

 5A wound or reproof from a good person in kindness
is oil which my head shall never refuse.
In their misfortune my prayer is still with them.

 6Abandoned they are to the hands of their judges:
they shall learn that my words are true.

 7Like stones on a country road cleft and broken
so lie our bones scattered for Death to devour.
 8But my eyes are turned towards you, O Lord.
Do not pour out my life, for in you I take refuge.
 9Keep me safe from the trap they have laid for me,
from the snares of the workers of trouble.
 10Into their own nets let wicked people fall;
while I pass by in safety. 
Psalm 142 — A Prayer for Deliverance from Persecutors
A maskil of David, while he was in the cave, a prayer.
 142Loudly I cry to the 1Lord:
to the Lord plead loudly for mercy,
 2I pour my complaint before him,
I tell my troubles to him.

 3When my spirit is faint within me,
my path is known to you.
In the way I am wont to walk in,
they have hidden a trap for me.

 4I look to the right and the left;
but not a friend have I.
No place of refuge is left me,
not a man to care for me.

 5So I cry to you, O Lord:
I say, “My refuge are you,
all I have in the land of the living.”

 6Attend to my piercing cry,
for very weak am I.
Save me from those who pursue me,
for they are too strong for me.

 7Free me from prison,
that I may give thanks to your name,
for the righteous are patiently waiting
till you show your bounty to me. 
Psalm 143 — A Prayer for Deliverance and Guidance
A psalm of David.
 143Listen, O 1Lord, to my prayer;
give ear to my plea.
In your faithfulness give me answer,
and in your righteousness.
 2With your servant O enter you not into judgment,
for in your sight can no one alive be justified.

 3For the enemy persecutes me,
crushing my life to the ground,
making me live in the darkness,
as those who have long been dead.
 4My spirit is faint within me,
my heart is bewildered within me.

 5I remember the days of old,
and brood over all you have done,
musing on all that your hands have wrought.
 6I spread out my hands to you:
I thirst for you,
like parched earth. Selah

 7Answer me soon, Lord,
because my spirit is spent.
Hide not your face from me,
else become I like those who go down to the pit.
 8Let me learn of your love in the morning,
for my trust is in you.
Teach me the way I should go:
for my heart longs for you.

 9Save me, O Lord, from my foes:
for to you I have fled for refuge.
 10Teach me to do your will,
for you yourself are my God.
Guide me by your good spirit,
O Lord, on a way that is smooth.

 11Be true to your name Lord, spare me,
bring me out of distress in your faithfulness.
 12In your kindness extinguish my enemies,
and all those who vex me destroy;
for I am your servant. 
Psalm 144 — The Warrior's Song
Of David.
 144Blest be the 1Lord my rock,
who trains my hands for war,
my fingers for fighting.
 2My rock and my fortress,
my tower, my deliverer,
my shield, behind whom I take refuge,
who lays nations low at my feet.

 3Lord, what are mortals 
that you care for them,
humans, 
that you think of them?
 4They are like a breath,
their days as a shadow that passes.

 5Lord, bow your heavens and come down:
touch the hills, so that they smoke.
 6Flash forth lightning and scatter them,
your arrows send forth and confound them.

 7Stretch out your hand from on high;
pluck me out of the mighty waters,
out of the hands of foreigners,
 8who speak with the mouth of falsehood,
and lift their right hand to swear lies.

 9O God, a new song I would sing you,
on a ten-stringed harp make you music.
 10For to kings you give the victory,
and David your servant you save.
 11Snatch me from the cruel sword,
rescue me from the hand of foreigners,
who speak with the mouth of falsehood,
and lift their right hand to swear lies.
The Prosperity of the Lord's People
 12May our sons in their youth
be as plants well tended:
our daughters like cornices
carved as in palaces.

 13May our barns be bursting
with produce of all kinds.
In the fields may our sheep bear
by thousands and ten thousands.

 14May our cattle be fat,
our walls unbreached,
may no cry of distress
ring in our streets. 

 15Happy the people
who fares so well:
and so fares the people
whose God is the Lord. 
Psalm 145 — The Kingdom Everlasting
A song of praise. Of David.
 145I will exalt you, my God, O king:
1I will praise your name for ever and ever.
 2I will bless you every day:
I will praise your name for ever and ever.

 3Great is the Lord and worthy all praise,
his greatness is unsearchable.
 4One age to another shall praise your deeds,
declaring the mighty things you have done.

 5Of your glorious majesty they shall tell,
and I will muse of your many wonders.
 6Of the might of your terrible acts they shall speak,
and the tale of your great deeds I will tell.

 7The fame of your abundant goodness
and righteousness they shall pour forth in song.
 8The Lord is full of grace and pity,
patient and rich in loving-kindness.

 9The Lord is good to all the world,
and his pity is over all things that he made.
 10All your works give you thanks, O Lord,
and you are blessed of those who love you.

 11They shall speak of your glorious kingdom,
and of your might shall they discourse,
 12making known to all his mighty acts,
and the glorious majesty of his kingdom.

 13Yours is a kingdom that lives through all ages:
through all generations extends your dominion.
The Lord is faithful in all that he promises,
gracious is he in all that he does. 

 14The Lord upholds all who fall;
he lifts up all who are bowed down.
 15The eyes of all look in hope to you,
and you give them their food in due season.

 16You yourself open your hand,
and fill with your favor all things that live.
 17The Lord is righteous in all his ways,
gracious is he in all that he does.

 18The Lord is near to all who call him,
to all who call upon him in truth.
 19He will fulfil the desires of those who fear him;
he will hear their cry for help and save them.

 20The Lord is the keeper of all who love him,
but all the wicked will he destroy.
 21My mouth will utter the praise of the Lord,
and all life will bless his holy name
for ever and ever. 
Psalm 146 — The Great Protector
 146My soul, praise the 1Lord.
 2I will praise the Lord, while I live;
I will sing to my God, while I am.

 3Put not your trust in princes
mortals, in whom is no help.
 4When their breath goes out,
they go back to the dust:
on that very day
their purposes perish.
 5Happy those whose help
is the God of Jacob:
whose hope is set
on the Lord their God,
 6the Creator of heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them.

He remains eternally loyal.
 7For the wronged he executes justice;
he gives bread to the hungry;
the Lord releases the prisoners.
 8The Lord gives sight to the blind:
the Lord raises those who are bowed.
The Lord loves the righteous.
 9The Lord preserves the stranger,
upholds the widow and orphan,
but the wicked he leads to disaster.

 10The Lord shall reign forever,
your God, O Zion, to all generations.
Hallelujah. 
Psalm 147 — The Lord's Love and Power Revealed in Nature
 147Hallelujah.
1It is good to sing praise to our God,
for praise is sweet and seemly.
 2The Lord builds up Jerusalem,
the outcasts of Israel he gathers.
 3He heals the broken in heart,
and binds up their wounds.
 4He counts the numberless stars,
he gives names to them all.
 5Great is our Lord, rich in power,
and measureless is his wisdom.
 6The Lord lifts up the down-trodden,
the wicked he brings to the ground.

 7Sing songs of thanks to the Lord,
and play on the lyre to our God.
 8For he covers the sky with clouds,
he prepares rain for the earth,
makes grass to grow on the mountains.
 9He gives the cattle their food
the young ravens when they cry.
 10His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse,
his joy is not in the speed of a runner;
 11but the Lord has his pleasure in those who fear him,
in those who wait for his kindness.

 12Praise the Lord, then, O Jerusalem:
sing praise to your God, O Zion.
 13For he strengthens the bars of your gates,
and blesses your children within you.
 14He brings peace to your borders,
and choicest of wheat in abundance.
 15He sends his command to the earth:
his word runs very swiftly.
 16Snow he gives like wool,
frost he scatters like ashes.
 17He casts forth his ice like morsels:
who can stand before his cold?
 18He sends forth his word, and melts them:
his wind blows the waters flow.

 19He declares his word to Jacob,
his statutes and judgments to Israel.
 20No other nation did he do this for,
they know nothing of his judgments.
Hallelujah. 
Psalm 148 — The Universal Chorus of Praise
 148Praise the 1Lord from the heavens,
praise him in the heights.
 2Praise him, all his angels;
praise him, all his hosts.

 3Praise him, sun and moon;
praise him, all stars of light.
 4Praise him, you highest heavens,
and you waters above the heavens.

 5Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for at his command they were made.
 6And he fixed them for ever and ever
by a law which they dare not transgress.

 7Praise the Lord from the earth:
you depths, with your monsters, all.
 8Fire, hail, snow and ice,
and stormy wind doing his word.

 9All you mountains and hills,
all you fruit trees and cedars,
 10all you wild beasts and tame,
creeping things, birds on the wing.

 11All you kings and nations of earth;
all you princes and judges of earth:
 12young men and maidens together,
old men and children together.

 13Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is exalted.
Over heaven and earth is his glory.
 14He has lifted his people to honor.
Wherefore this chorus of praise from his saints,
from Israel, the people who stand in his fellowship.
Hallelujah. 
Psalm 149 — Song of Victory
 149Hallelujah.
1Sing to the Lord a new song,
sound his praise where the faithful are gathered.
 2Let Israel rejoice in its maker,
sons of Zion exult in their king.
 3Let them praise his name in the dance,
making music with lyre and with timbrel.
 4For the Lord delights in his people,
adorning the humble with victory.

 5Let the faithful exult and extol him
with glad ringing cries all night long. 
 6High praises of God in their mouth,
and a two-edged sword in their hand:
 7on the heathen to execute vengeance,
and chastisement sore on the nations,
 8binding their kings with chains,
and their nobles with fetters of iron,
 9to execute on them the doom that is written.

This is the glory of all his faithful.
Hallelujah. 
Psalm 150 — Hallelujah
 150Hallelujah.
1Praise God in his holy place.
Praise him in the sky, his stronghold.
 2Praise him for his deeds of power.
Praise him for his boundless greatness.

 3Praise him with blast of horn;
praise him with harp and lyre.
 4Praise him with timbrel and dance;
praise him with strings and pipe.
 5Praise him with resounding cymbals,
praise him with clashing cymbals.
 6Let all that has breath praise the Lord.
Hallelujah.