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For the director of music. For teaching. A miktam of David when he fought against Aram Naharaim and Aram Zobah. That was when Joab returned and struck down 12,000 people from Edom in the Valley of Salt. To the tune of “The Lily of the Covenant.”

60 God, you have turned away from us. You have attacked us.
    You have been angry. Now turn back to us!
You have shaken the land and torn it open.
    Fix its cracks, because it is falling apart.
You have shown your people hard times.
    You have made us drink the wine of your anger.
    Now we can’t even walk straight.

But you lead into battle those who have respect for you.
    You give them a flag to wave against the enemy’s weapons.

Save us and help us by your power.
    Do this so that those you love may be saved.
God has spoken from his temple.
    He has said, “I will win the battle.
Then I will divide up the land around Shechem.
    I will divide up the Valley of Sukkoth.
Gilead belongs to me.
    So does the land of Manasseh.
Ephraim is the strongest tribe.
    It is like a helmet for my head.
Judah is the royal tribe.
    It is like a ruler’s scepter.
Moab serves me like one who washes my feet.
    I toss my sandal on Edom to show that I own it.
    I shout to Philistia that I have won the battle.”

Who will bring me to the city that has high walls around it?
    Who will lead me to the land of Edom?
10 God, isn’t it you, even though you have now turned away from us?
    Isn’t it you, even though you don’t lead our armies into battle anymore?
11 Help us against our enemies.
    The help people give doesn’t amount to anything.
12 With your help we will win the battle.
    You will walk all over our enemies.

For the director of music. A psalm of David to be played on stringed instruments.

61 God, hear my cry for help.
    Listen to my prayer.

From a place far away I call out to you.
    I call out as my heart gets weaker.
    Lead me to the safety of a rock that is high above me.
You have always kept me safe from my enemies.
    You are like a strong tower to me.

I long to live in your holy tent forever.
    There I find safety in the shadow of your wings.
God, you have heard my promises.
    You have given me what belongs to those who worship you.

Add many days to the king’s life.
    Let him live on and on for many years.
May he always enjoy your blessing as he rules.
    Let your love and truth keep him safe.

Then I will always sing praise to you.
    I will keep my promises day after day.

For the director of music. For Jeduthun. A psalm of David.

62 It is surely true that I find my rest in God.
    He is the God who saves me.
It is surely true that he is my rock. He is the God who saves me.
    He is like a fort to me. I will always be secure.

How long will you enemies attack me?
    Will all of you throw me down?
I’m like a leaning wall.
    I’m like a fence about to fall.
Surely my enemies only want to pull me down
    from my place of honor.
    They take delight in telling lies.
They bless me with what they say.
    But in their hearts they ask for bad things to happen to me.

Yes, I must find my rest in God.
    He is the God who gives me hope.
It is surely true that he is my rock and the God who saves me.
    He is like a fort to me, so I will always be secure.
I depend on God to save me and to honor me.
    He is my mighty rock and my place of safety.
Trust in him at all times, you people.
    Tell him all your troubles.
    God is our place of safety.

Surely ordinary people are only a breath.
    Important people are not what they seem to be.
If they were weighed on a scale, they wouldn’t amount to anything.
    Together they are only a breath.
10 Don’t trust in money you have taken from others.
    Don’t put false hope in things you have stolen.
Even if your riches grow,
    don’t put your trust in them.

11 God, I have heard you say two things.
    One is that power belongs to you, God.
12     The other is that your love, Lord, never ends.
You will reward everyone
    in keeping with what they have done.

A psalm of David when he was in the Desert of Judah.

63 God, you are my God.
    I seek you with all my heart.
With all my strength I thirst for you
    in this dry desert
    where there isn’t any water.

I have seen you in the sacred tent.
    There I have seen your power and your glory.
Your love is better than life.
    So I will bring glory to you with my lips.
I will praise you as long as I live.
    I will call on your name when I lift up my hands in prayer.
I will be as satisfied as if I had eaten the best food there is.
    I will sing praise to you with my mouth.

As I lie on my bed I remember you.
    I think of you all night long.
Because you have helped me,
    I sing in the shadow of your wings.
I hold on to you tightly.
    Your powerful right hand takes good care of me.

Those who want to kill me will be destroyed.
    They will go down into the grave.
10 They will be killed by swords.
    They will become food for wild dogs.

11 But the king will be filled with joy because of what God has done.
    All those who make promises in God’s name will be able to brag.
    But the mouths of liars will be shut.

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

64 God, hear me as I tell you my problem.
    Don’t let my enemies kill me.
Hide me from evil people who talk about how to harm me.
    Hide me from those people who are planning to do evil.

They make their tongues like sharp swords.
    They aim their mean words like deadly arrows.
They shoot from their hiding places at people who aren’t guilty.
    They shoot quickly and aren’t afraid of being caught.

They help one another make evil plans.
    They talk about hiding their traps.
    They say, “Who can see what we are doing?”
They make plans to do what is evil.
    They say, “We have thought up a perfect plan!”
    The hearts and minds of people are so clever!

But God will shoot my enemies with his arrows.
    He will suddenly strike them down.
He will turn their own words against them.
    He will destroy them.
All those who see them will shake their heads
    and look down on them.

All people will respect God.
    They will tell about his works.
    They will think about what he has done.
10 Godly people will be full of joy because of what the Lord has done.
    They will go to him for safety.
    All those whose hearts are honest will be proud of what he has done.

For the director of music. A psalm of David. A song.

65 Our God, we look forward to praising you in Zion.
    We will keep our promises to you.
All people will come to you,
    because you hear and answer prayer.
When our sins became too much for us,
    you forgave our lawless acts.
Blessed are those you choose
    and bring near to worship you.
You bring us into the courtyards of your holy temple.
    There in your house we are filled with all kinds of good things.

God our Savior, you answer us with right and wonderful deeds.
People all over the world and beyond the farthest oceans
    put their hope in you.
You formed the mountains by your power.
    You showed how strong you are.
You calmed the oceans and their roaring waves.
    You calmed the angry words and actions of the nations.
Everyone on earth is amazed at the wonderful things you have done.
    What you do makes people from one end of the earth to the other sing for joy.

You take care of the land and water it.
    You make it able to grow many crops.
You fill your streams with water.
    You do that to provide the people with grain.
    That’s what you have decided to do for the land.
10 You water its rows.
    You smooth out its bumps.
You soften it with showers.
    And you bless its crops.
11 You bring the year to a close with huge crops.
    You provide more than enough food.
12 The grass grows thick even in the desert.
    The hills are dressed with gladness.
13 The meadows are covered with flocks and herds.
    The valleys are dressed with grain.
    They sing and shout for joy.

For the director of music. A song. A psalm.

66 Shout to God for joy, everyone on earth!
    Sing about the glory of his name!
    Give him glorious praise!
Say to God, “What wonderful things you do!
    Your power is so great
    that your enemies bow down to you in fear.
Everyone on earth bows down to you.
    They sing praise to you.
    They sing the praises of your name.”

Come and see what God has done.
    See what wonderful things he has done for people!
He turned the Red Sea into dry land.
    The people of Israel passed through the waters on foot.
    Come, let us be full of joy because of what he did.
He rules by his power forever.
    His eyes watch the nations.
    Let no one who refuses to obey him rise up against him.

Praise our God, all you nations.
    Let the sound of the praise you give him be heard.
He has kept us alive.
    He has kept our feet from slipping.
10 God, you have tested us.
    You put us through fire to make us like silver.
11 You put us in prison.
    You placed heavy loads on our backs.
12 You let our enemies ride their chariots over our heads.
    We went through fire and water.
But you brought us to a place
    where we have everything we need.

13 I will come to your temple with burnt offerings.
    I will keep my promises to you.
14 I made them with my lips.
    My mouth spoke them when I was in trouble.
15 I will sacrifice fat animals to you as burnt offerings.
    I will offer rams, bulls and goats to you.

16 Come and hear, all you who have respect for God.
    Let me tell you what he has done for me.
17 I cried out to him with my mouth.
    I praised him with my tongue.
18 If I had enjoyed having sin in my heart,
    the Lord would not have listened.
19 But God has surely listened.
    He has heard my prayer.
20 Give praise to God.
    He has accepted my prayer.
    He has not held back his love from me.

For the director of music. A psalm. A song to be played on stringed instruments.

67 God, have mercy on us and bless us.
    May you be pleased with us.
Then your ways will be known on earth.
    All nations will see that you have the power to save.

God, may the nations praise you.
    May all the people on earth praise you.
May the nations be glad and sing for joy.
    You rule the people of the earth fairly.
    You guide the nations of the earth.
God, may the nations praise you.
    May all the people on earth praise you.

The land produces its crops.
    God, our God, blesses us.
May God continue to bless us.
    Then people from one end of the earth to the other
    will have respect for him.

For the director of music. A psalm of David. A song.

68 May God rise up and scatter his enemies.
    May they turn and run away from him.
    May you, God, blow them away like smoke.
As fire melts wax,
    so may God destroy sinful people.
But may those who do what is right be glad
    and filled with joy when they are with him.
    May they be happy and joyful.

Sing to God, sing praise to his name.
    Lift up a song to the God who rides on the clouds.
    Be glad when you are with him.
    His name is the Lord.
God is in his holy temple.
    He is a father to children whose fathers have died.
    He takes care of women whose husbands have died.
God gives lonely people a family.
    He sets prisoners free, and they go out singing.
But those who refuse to obey him
    live in a land that is baked by the sun.

God, you led your people out.
    You marched through the desert.
The ground shook
    when you, the God of Sinai, appeared.
The heavens poured down rain
    when you, the God of Israel, appeared.
God, you gave us plenty of rain.
    You renewed your worn-out land.
10 God, your people made their homes in it.
    From all your riches, you provided for those who were poor.

11 The Lord gives the message.
    The women who make it known are a huge group.
12 They said, “Kings and armies are running away.
    The women at home are dividing up
    the things the army took from their enemies.
13 Even while the soldiers sleep near the sheep pens,
    God wins the battle for them.
He gives the enemy’s silver and gold
    to Israel, his dove.”
14 The Mighty One has scattered the kings around the land.
    It was like snow falling on Mount Zalmon.

15 Mount Bashan is a majestic mountain.
    Mount Bashan is a very rocky mountain.
16 Why are you jealous of Mount Zion, you rocky mountain?
    That’s where God chooses to rule.
    That’s where the Lord himself will live forever.
17 God has come with tens of thousands of his chariots.
    He has come with thousands and thousands of them.
The Lord has come from Mount Sinai.
    He has entered his holy place.
18 When he went up to his place on high,
    he took many prisoners.
He received gifts from people,
    even from those who refused to obey him.
    The Lord God went up to live on Mount Zion.

19 Give praise to the Lord. Give praise to God our Savior.
    He carries our heavy loads day after day.
20 Our God is a God who saves.
    He is the King and the Lord. He saves us from death.

21 God will certainly smash the heads of his enemies.
    He will break the hairy heads of those who keep on sinning.
22 The Lord says, “I will bring your enemies from Bashan.
    I will bring them up from the bottom of the sea.
23 Then your feet can wade in their blood.
    The tongues of your dogs can lick up all the blood they want.”

24 God, those who worship you come marching into view.
    My God and King, those who follow you have entered the sacred tent.
25 The singers are walking in front.
    Next come the musicians.
    Young women playing tambourines are with them.
26 The leaders sing, “Praise God among all those who worship him.
    Praise the Lord in the community of Israel.”
27 The little tribe of Benjamin leads the worshipers.
    Next comes the great crowd of Judah’s princes.
    Then come the princes of Zebulun and the princes of Naphtali.

28 God, show us your power.
    Show us your strength.
    God, do as you have done before.
29 Do it from your temple at Jerusalem,
    where kings will bring you gifts.
30 Give a strong warning to Egypt, that beast among the tall grass.
    It is like a herd of bulls among the calves.
May that beast bow down before you with gifts of silver.
    Scatter the nations who like to make war.
31 Messengers will come from Egypt.
    The people of Cush will be quick to bring gifts to you.

32 Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth.
    Sing praise to the Lord.
33 He rides across the highest places in heaven.
He rides across the ancient skies above.
    He thunders with his mighty voice.
34 Tell how powerful God is.
    He rules as king over Israel.
    The skies show how powerful he is.
35 How wonderful is God in his holy place!
    The God of Israel gives power and strength to his people.

Give praise to God!

For the director of music. A psalm of David to the tune of “Lilies.”

69 God, save me.
    My troubles are like a flood.
    I’m up to my neck in them.
I’m sinking in deep mud.
    I have no firm place to stand.
I am out in deep water.
    The waves roll over me.
I’m worn out from calling for help.
    My throat is very dry.
My eyes grow tired
    looking for my God.
Those who hate me without any reason
    are more than the hairs on my head.
Many people who don’t have any reason to be my enemies
    are trying to destroy me.
They force me to give back
    what I didn’t steal.

God, you know how foolish I’ve been.
    My guilt is not hidden from you.

Lord, you are the Lord who rules over all.
    May those who put their hope in you not be dishonored because of me.
You are the God of Israel.
    May those who worship you not be put to shame because of me.
Because of you, people laugh at me.
    My face is covered with shame.
I’m an outsider to my own family.
    I’m a stranger to my own mother’s children.
My great love for your house destroys me.
    Those who make fun of you make fun of me also.
10 When I weep and go without eating,
    they laugh at me.
11 When I put on rough clothing to show how sad I am,
    people make jokes about me.
12 Those who gather in public places make fun of me.
    Those who get drunk make up songs about me.

13 But Lord, I pray to you.
    May this be the time you help me.
God, answer me because you love me so much.
    Save me, as you always do.
14 Save me from the trouble I’m in.
    It’s like slippery mud, so don’t let me sink in it.
Save me from those who hate me.
    Save me from the deep water I’m in.
15 Don’t let the floods cover me.
    Don’t let the deep water swallow me up.
    Don’t let the grave close its mouth over me.
16 Lord, answer me because your love is so good.
    Turn to me because you are so kind.
17 Don’t turn your face away from me.
    Answer me quickly. I’m in trouble.
18 Come near and save me.
    Set me free from my enemies.

19 You know how they make fun of me.
    They dishonor me and put me to shame.
    You know all about my enemies.
20 They have broken my heart by saying evil things about me.
    It has left me helpless.
I looked for pity, but I didn’t find any.
    I looked for someone to comfort me, but I didn’t find anyone.
21 They put bitter spices in my food.
    They gave me vinegar when I was thirsty.

22 Let their feast be a trap and a snare.
    Let my enemies get what’s coming to them.
23 Let their eyes grow weak so they can’t see.
    Let their backs be bent forever.
24 Pour out your anger on them.
    Let them feel what it is like.
25 May their homes be deserted.
    May no one live in their tents.
26 They attack those you have wounded.
    They talk about the pain of those you have hurt.
27 Charge them with one crime after another.
    Don’t save them.
28 May their names be erased from the book of life.
    Don’t include them in the list of those who do right.

29 I’m in pain. I’m in deep trouble.
    God, save me and keep me safe.

30 I will praise God’s name by singing to him.
    I will bring him glory by giving him thanks.
31 That will please the Lord more than offering him an ox.
    It will please him more than offering him a bull with its horns and hooves.
32 Poor people will see it and be glad.
    The hearts of those who worship God will be strengthened.
33 The Lord hears those who are in need.
    He doesn’t forget his people in prison.

34 Let heaven and earth praise him.
    Let the oceans and everything that moves in them praise him.
35 God will save Zion.
    He will build the cities of Judah again.
Then people will live in them and own the land.
36     The children of those who serve God will receive it.
    Those who love him will live there.

For the director of music. A prayer of David.

70 God, hurry and save me.
    Lord, come quickly and help me.
Let those who are trying to kill me be put to shame.
    Let them not be honored.
Let all those who want to destroy me
    be turned back in shame.
Some people make fun of me.
    Let them be turned back when their plans fail.
But let all those who seek you
    be joyful and glad because of what you have done.
Let those who want you to save them always say,
    “The Lord is great!”

But I am poor and needy.
    God, come quickly to me.
You are the God who helps me and saves me.
    Lord, please don’t wait any longer.

71 Lord, I have gone to you for safety.
    Let me never be put to shame.
You do what is right, so save me and help me.
    Pay attention to me and save me.
Be my rock of safety
    that I can always go to.
Give the command to save me.
    You are my rock and my fort.
My God, save me from the power of sinners.
    Save me from the hands of those who are mean and evil.

You are the King and the Lord. You have always been my hope.
    I have trusted in you ever since I was young.
From the time I was born I have depended on you.
    You brought me out of my mother’s body.
    I will praise you forever.
To many people I am an example of how much you care.
    You are my strong place of safety.
My mouth is filled with praise for you.
    All day long I will talk about your glory.

Don’t push me away when I’m old.
    Don’t desert me when my strength is gone.
10 My enemies speak against me.
    Those who want to kill me get together and make evil plans.
11 They say, “God has deserted him.
    Go after him and grab him.
    No one will save him.”
12 God, don’t be far away from me.
    My God, come quickly and help me.
13 May those who bring charges against me die in shame.
    May those who want to harm me
    be covered with shame and dishonor.

14 But I will always have hope.
    I will praise you more and more.
15 I will tell other people about all the good things you have done.
    All day long I will talk about how you have saved your people.
    But there’s no way I could say how many times you’ve done this.
16 Lord and King, I will come and announce your mighty acts.
    I will announce all the good things that you alone do.
17 God, ever since I was young you have taught me.
    To this very day I tell about your wonderful acts.
18 God, don’t leave me
    even when I’m old and have gray hair.
Let me live to tell my children about your power.
    Let me tell all of them about your mighty acts.

19 God, your saving acts reach to the skies.
    You have done great things.
    God, who is like you?
20 You have sent many bitter troubles my way.
    But you will give me new life.
Even if I’m almost in the grave,
    you will bring me back.
21 You will honor me more and more.
    You will comfort me once again.

22 My God, I will use the harp to praise you
    because you are always faithful.
Holy One of Israel,
    I will use the lyre to sing praise to you.
23 My lips will shout with joy
    when I sing praise to you.
    You have saved me.
24 All day long my tongue will say
    that you have done what is right.
Those who wanted to harm me have been put to shame.
    They have not been honored.

A psalm of Solomon.

72 God, give the king the ability to judge fairly.
    He is your royal son. Help him to do what is right.
May he rule your people in the right way.
    May he be fair to those among your people who are hurting.
May the mountains and the hills produce rich crops,
    because the people will do what is right.
May the king stand up for those who are hurting.
    May he save the children of those who are in need.
    May he crush those who treat others badly.

May the king rule as long as the sun shines
    and the moon gives its light.
    May he rule for all time to come.
May he be like rain falling on the fields.
    May he be like showers watering the earth.
May godly people do well as long as he rules.
    May they have more than they need as long as the moon lasts.

May the king rule from sea to sea.
    May his kingdom reach from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.
May the desert tribes bow down to him.
    May his enemies lick the dust.
10 May the kings of Tarshish and of places far away
    bring him gifts.
May the kings of Sheba and Seba
    give him presents.
11 May all kings bow down to him.
    May all nations serve him.

12 The king will save needy people who cry out to him.
    He will save those who are hurting and have no one else to help.
13 He will take pity on those who are weak and in need.
    He will save them from death.
14 He will save them from people who treat others badly.
    He will save them from people who do mean things to them.
    Their lives are very special to him.

15 May the king live a long time!
    May gold from Sheba be given to him.
May people always pray for him.
    May they ask the Lord to bless him all day long.
16 May there be plenty of grain everywhere in the land.
    May it sway in the wind on the tops of the hills.
May the crops grow well, like those in Lebanon.
    May they grow like the grass of the field.
17 May the king’s name be remembered forever.
    May his fame last as long as the sun shines.

Then all nations will be blessed because of him.
    They will call him blessed.

18 Give praise to the Lord God, the God of Israel.
    Only he can do wonderful things.
19 Give praise to his glorious name forever.
    May his glory fill the whole earth.
Amen and Amen.

20 The prayers of David, the son of Jesse, end here.

Book III

Psalms 73–89

A psalm of Asaph.

73 God is truly good to Israel.
    He is good to those who have pure hearts.

But my feet had almost slipped.
    I had almost tripped and fallen.
I saw that proud and sinful people were doing well.
    And I began to long for what they had.

They don’t have any troubles.
    Their bodies are healthy and strong.
They don’t have the problems most people have.
    They don’t suffer as other people do.
Their pride is like a necklace.
    They put on meanness as if it were their clothes.
Many sins come out of their hard and stubborn hearts.
    There is no limit to the evil things they can think up.
They laugh at others and speak words of hatred.
    They are proud. They warn others about the harm they can do to them.
They brag as if they owned heaven itself.
    They talk as if they controlled the earth.
10 So people listen to them.
    They lap up their words like water.
11 They say, “How would God know what we’re doing?
    Does the Most High God know anything?”

12 Here is what sinful people are like.
    They don’t have a care in the world.
    They keep getting richer and richer.

13 It seems as if I have kept my heart pure for no reason.
    It didn’t do me any good to wash my hands
    to show that I wasn’t guilty of doing anything wrong.
14 Day after day I’ve been in pain.
    God has punished me in a new way every morning.

15 What if I had talked like that?
    Then I wouldn’t have been faithful to God’s children.
16 I tried to understand it all.
    But it was more than I could handle.
17 It troubled me until I entered God’s temple.
    Then I understood what will finally happen to bad people.

18 God, I’m sure you will make them slip and fall.
    You will throw them down and destroy them.
19 It will happen very suddenly.
    A terrible death will take them away completely.
20 A dream goes away when a person wakes up.
    Lord, it will be like that when you rise up.
    It will be as if those people were only a dream.

21 At one time my heart was sad
    and my spirit was bitter.
22 I didn’t have any sense. I didn’t know anything.
    I acted like a wild animal toward you.

23 But I am always with you.
    You hold me by my right hand.
24 You give me wise advice to guide me.
    And when I die, you will take me away
    into the glory of heaven.
25 I don’t have anyone in heaven but you.
    I don’t want anything on earth besides you.
26 My body and my heart may grow weak.
    God, you give strength to my heart.
    You are everything I will ever need.

27 Those who don’t want anything to do with you will die.
    You destroy all those who aren’t faithful to you.
28 But I am close to you. And that’s good.
    Lord and King, I have made you my place of safety.
    I will talk about everything you have done.

A maskil of Asaph.

74 God, why have you turned your back on us for so long?
    Why are you so angry with us? We are your very own sheep.
Remember the nation that you chose as your own so long ago.
    Remember that you set us free from slavery to be your very own people.
    Remember Mount Zion, where you lived.
Walk through this place that has been torn down beyond repair.
    See how completely your enemies have destroyed the temple!

In the place where you used to meet with us,
    your enemies have shouted, “We’ve won the battle!”
    They have set up their flags to show they have beaten us.
They acted like people cutting down a forest with axes.
    They smashed all the beautiful wooden walls
    with their axes and hatchets.
They burned your temple to the ground.
    They polluted the place where your Name is.
They had said in their hearts, “We will crush them completely!”
    They burned every place where you were worshiped in the land.
We don’t get signs from God anymore.
    There aren’t any prophets left.
    None of us knows how long that will last.

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