Psalm 81

English Standard Version

Oh, That My People Would Listen to Me

To the choirmaster: according to ^(A)The Gittith.^[a] Of ^(B)Asaph.

81 ^(C)Sing aloud to God our strength;
    ^(D)shout for joy to the God of Jacob!
²Raise a song; sound ^(E)the tambourine,
    ^(F)the sweet lyre with ^(G)the harp.
³Blow the trumpet at ^(H)the new moon,
    at the full moon, on our feast day.

⁴For it is a statute for Israel,
    a rule^[b] of the God of Jacob.
⁵He made it ^(I)a decree in ^(J)Joseph
    when he ^(K)went out over^[c] the land of Egypt.
^(L)I hear a language ^(M)I had not known:
⁶“I ^(N)relieved your^[d] shoulder of ^(O)the burden;
    your hands were freed from the basket.
⁷In distress you ^(P)called, and I delivered you;
    I ^(Q)answered you in the secret place of thunder;
    I ^(R)tested you at the waters of Meribah. Selah
⁸^(S)Hear, O my people, while I admonish you!
    O Israel, if you would but listen to me!
⁹There shall be no ^(T)strange god among you;
    you shall not bow down to a ^(U)foreign god.
¹⁰^(V)I am the Lord your God,
    who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.
    ^(W)Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.

¹¹“But my people did not listen to my voice;
    Israel ^(X)would not submit to me.
¹²So I ^(Y)gave them over to their ^(Z)stubborn hearts,
    to follow their own ^(AA)counsels.
¹³^(AB)Oh, that my people would listen to me,
    that Israel would ^(AC)walk in my ways!
¹⁴I would soon subdue their enemies
    and ^(AD)turn my hand against their foes.
¹⁵Those who hate the Lord would ^(AE)cringe toward him,
    and their fate would last forever.
¹⁶But he would feed you^[e] with ^(AF)the finest of the wheat,
    and with ^(AG)honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”