Psalm 42
Legacy Standard Bible
BOOK 2
My Soul Thirsts for God
For the choir director. A [a]Maskil of the sons of Korah.
42 As the deer [b]pants for the water brooks,
So my soul [c](A)pants for You, O God.
2 My soul (B)thirsts for God, for the (C)living God;
When shall I come and [d](D)appear before God?
3 My (E)tears have been my food day and night,
While they (F)say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
4 These things I remember and I (G)pour out my soul within me.
For I (H)used to go along with the throng and [e]lead them in procession to the house of God,
With the sound of a (I)shout of joy and thanksgiving, a multitude keeping festival.
5 (J)Why are you [f](K)in despair, O my soul?
And why are you (L)disturbed within me?
(M)Wait for God, for I shall still praise Him,
[g]For the [h](N)salvation of His presence.
6 O my God, my soul is [i]in despair within me;
Therefore I (O)remember You from (P)the land of the Jordan
And the [j]peaks of (Q)Hermon, from Mount Mizar.
7 Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls;
All Your (R)breakers and Your waves have rolled over me.
8 By day, Yahweh will (S)command His lovingkindness;
And (T)by night, His song will be with me,
A prayer to (U)the God of my life.
9 I say to God (V)my rock, “Why have You forgotten me?
Why do I go (W)mourning [k]because of the (X)oppression of the enemy?”
10 As a shattering of my bones, my adversaries reproach me,
While they (Y)say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
11 (Z)Why are you [l]in despair, O my soul?
And why are you disturbed within me?
Wait for God, for I shall still praise Him,
The salvation of my presence and my God.
Footnotes
- Psalm 42 Title Possibly Contemplative, Didactic, Skillful Psalm
- Psalm 42:1 Lit longs
- Psalm 42:1 Lit longs
- Psalm 42:2 Some mss see the face of God
- Psalm 42:4 Or move slowly with them
- Psalm 42:5 Or sunk down
- Psalm 42:5 Some ancient versions The help of my countenance and my God
- Psalm 42:5 Or saving acts
- Psalm 42:6 Or sunk down
- Psalm 42:6 Lit Hermons
- Psalm 42:9 Or while the enemy oppresses
- Psalm 42:11 Or sunk down
Psalm 42
The Message
42 1-3 A white-tailed deer drinks
from the creek;
I want to drink God,
deep drafts of God.
I’m thirsty for God-alive.
I wonder, “Will I ever make it—
arrive and drink in God’s presence?”
I’m on a diet of tears—
tears for breakfast, tears for supper.
All day long
people knock at my door,
Pestering,
“Where is this God of yours?”
4 These are the things I go over and over,
emptying out the pockets of my life.
I was always at the head of the worshiping crowd,
right out in front,
Leading them all,
eager to arrive and worship,
Shouting praises, singing thanksgiving—
celebrating, all of us, God’s feast!
5 Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul?
Why are you crying the blues?
Fix my eyes on God—
soon I’ll be praising again.
He puts a smile on my face.
He’s my God.
6-8 When my soul is in the dumps, I rehearse
everything I know of you,
From Jordan depths to Hermon heights,
including Mount Mizar.
Chaos calls to chaos,
to the tune of whitewater rapids.
Your breaking surf, your thundering breakers
crash and crush me.
Then God promises to love me all day,
sing songs all through the night!
My life is God’s prayer.
9-10 Sometimes I ask God, my rock-solid God,
“Why did you let me down?
Why am I walking around in tears,
harassed by enemies?”
They’re out for the kill, these
tormentors with their obscenities,
Taunting day after day,
“Where is this God of yours?”
11 Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul?
Why are you crying the blues?
Fix my eyes on God—
soon I’ll be praising again.
He puts a smile on my face.
He’s my God.
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Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson