Psalm 136-138
Amplified Bible
Thanks for the Lord’s Goodness to Israel.
136 [a]Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;
For His lovingkindness (graciousness, mercy, compassion) endures forever.
2
Give thanks to the God of gods,
For His lovingkindness endures forever.
3
Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
For His lovingkindness endures forever.
4
To Him who alone does great wonders,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
5
To Him who made the heavens with skill,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
6
To Him who stretched out the earth upon the waters,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
7
To Him who made the great lights,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
8
The sun to rule over the day,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
9
The moon and stars to rule by night,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
10
To Him who struck the firstborn of Egypt,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;(A)
11
And brought Israel out from among them,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;(B)
12
With a strong hand and with an outstretched arm,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
13
To Him who divided the [b]Red Sea into parts,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;(C)
14
And made Israel pass through the midst of it,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
15
But tossed Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
16
To Him who led His people through the wilderness,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
17
To Him who struck down great kings,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
18
And killed mighty kings,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;(D)
19
Sihon, king of the Amorites,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;(E)
20
And Og, king of Bashan,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;(F)
21
And gave their land as a heritage,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
22
Even a heritage to Israel His servant,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;(G)
23
Who [faithfully] remembered us in our lowly condition,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
24
And has rescued us from our enemies,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
25
Who gives food to all flesh,
For His lovingkindness endures forever;
26
Give thanks to the God of heaven,
For His lovingkindness (graciousness, mercy, compassion) endures forever.
An Experience of the Captivity.
137 By the rivers of Babylon,
There we [captives] sat down and wept,
When we remembered Zion [the city God imprinted on our hearts].
2
On the willow trees in the midst of Babylon
We hung our harps.
3
For there they who took us captive demanded of us a song with words,
And our tormentors [who made a mockery of us demanded] amusement, saying,
“Sing us one of the songs of Zion.”
4
How can we sing the Lord’s song
In a strange and foreign land?
5
If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
Let my right hand forget [her skill with the harp].
6
Let my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
If I do not remember you,
If I do not prefer Jerusalem
Above my chief joy.(H)
7
Remember, O Lord, against the sons of Edom,
The day of [the fall of] Jerusalem,
Who said “Down, down [with her]
To her very foundation.”
8
O daughter of Babylon, you devastator,
How blessed will be the one
Who repays you [with destruction] as you have repaid us.(I)
9
How blessed will be the one who seizes and dashes your little ones
Against the rock.
Thanksgiving for the Lord’s Favor.
A Psalm of David.
138 I will give You thanks with all my heart;
I sing praises to You before the [pagan] gods.
2
I will bow down [in worship] toward Your holy temple
And give thanks to Your name for Your lovingkindness and Your truth;
For You have magnified Your word together with Your name.
3
On the day I called, You answered me;
And You made me bold and confident with [renewed] strength in my life.
4
All the kings of the land will give thanks and praise You, O Lord,
When they have heard of the promises of Your mouth [which were fulfilled].
5
Yes, they will sing of the ways of the Lord [joyfully celebrating His wonderful acts],
For great is the glory and majesty of the Lord.
6
Though the Lord is exalted,
He regards the lowly [and invites them into His fellowship];
But the proud and haughty He knows from a distance.(J)
7
Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me;
You will stretch out Your hand against the wrath of my enemies,
And Your right hand will save me.(K)
8
The Lord will accomplish that which concerns me;
Your [unwavering] lovingkindness, O Lord, endures forever—
Do not abandon the works of Your own hands.(L)
Footnotes
- Psalm 136:1 The ancient rabbis said that the twenty-six verses of this Psalm correspond to the twenty-six generations from Adam to Moses. They maintained that since these generations were not given the Torah (Law), they could not earn merit and were sustained only by God’s “lovingkindness.”
- Psalm 136:13 Lit Sea of Reeds.
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