Psalm 78-79

New American Standard Bible

⁵ For He established a ^(I)testimony in Jacob,
And appointed a ^(J)law in Israel,
Which He ^(K)commanded our fathers
That they were to ^[c](L)teach them to their children,
^6 (M)So that the generation to come would know, ^(N)the children yet to be born,
That they would arise and ^(O)tell them to their children,
⁷ So that they would put their confidence in God
And ^(P)not forget the works of God,
But ^(Q)comply with His commandments,
⁸ And ^(R)not be like their fathers,
A ^(S)stubborn and rebellious generation,
A generation that ^(T)did not ^[d]prepare its heart
And whose spirit was not ^(U)faithful to God.

⁹ The sons of Ephraim ^[e]were ^(V)archers equipped with bows,
Yet ^(W)they turned back on the day of battle.
¹⁰ They ^(X)did not keep the covenant of God
And refused to ^(Y)walk in His Law;
¹¹ They ^(Z)forgot His deeds
And His ^[f]miracles that He had shown them.
^12 (AA)He performed wonders before their fathers
In the land of Egypt, in the ^(AB)field of Zoan.
¹³ He ^(AC)divided the sea and caused them to pass through,
And He made the waters stand ^(AD)up like a heap.
¹⁴ Then He led them with the cloud by ^(AE)day
And all the night with a ^(AF)light of fire.
¹⁵ He ^(AG)split the rocks in the wilderness
And gave them plenty to drink like the ocean depths.
¹⁶ He ^(AH)brought forth streams from the rock
And made waters run down like rivers.

¹⁷ Yet they still continued to sin against Him,
To ^(AI)rebel against the Most High in the desert.
¹⁸ And in their heart they ^(AJ)put God to the test
By asking for ^(AK)food ^[g]that suited their taste.
¹⁹ Then they spoke against God;
They said, “^(AL)Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?
²⁰ Behold, He ^(AM)struck the rock so that waters gushed out,
And streams were overflowing;
Can He also provide bread?
Will He prepare ^(AN)meat for His people?”

²¹ Therefore the Lord heard and ^[h]was ^(AO)full of wrath;
And a fire was kindled against Jacob,
And anger also mounted against Israel,
²² Because they ^(AP)did not believe in God
And did not trust in His salvation.
²³ Yet He commanded the clouds above
And ^(AQ)opened the doors of heaven;
²⁴ He ^(AR)rained down manna upon them to eat,
And gave them ^[i](AS)food from heaven.
²⁵ Man ate the bread of ^[j]angels;
He sent them ^[k]food ^[l](AT)in abundance.
²⁶ He ^(AU)made the east wind blow in the sky
And by His ^[m]power He directed the south wind.
²⁷ When He rained meat upon them like the dust,
Even ^(AV)winged fowl like the sand of the seas,
²⁸ He let them fall in the midst of ^[n]their camp,
All around their dwellings.
²⁹ So they ^(AW)ate and were well filled,
And He ^[o]satisfied their longing.
^30 [p]Yet before they had abandoned their longing,
^(AX)While their food was in their mouths,
³¹ The ^(AY)anger of God rose against them
And killed ^[q]some of their ^(AZ)strongest ones,
And ^[r]subdued the choice men of Israel.
³² In spite of all this they ^(BA)still sinned
And ^(BB)did not believe in His wonderful works.
³³ So He brought ^(BC)their days to an end in futility,
And their years to an end in sudden terror.

³⁴ When He killed them, then they ^(BD)sought Him,
And they returned and searched ^(BE)diligently for God;
³⁵ And they remembered that God was their ^(BF)rock,
And the Most High God their ^(BG)Redeemer.
³⁶ But they ^(BH)flattered Him with their mouth
And ^(BI)lied to Him with their tongue.
³⁷ For their heart was not ^(BJ)steadfast toward Him,
Nor were they faithful with His covenant.
³⁸ But He, being ^(BK)compassionate, ^[s](BL)forgave their wrongdoing and did not destroy them;
And often He ^[t](BM)restrained His anger
And did not stir up all His wrath.
³⁹ So ^(BN)He remembered that they were only ^(BO)flesh,
A ^[u](BP)wind that passes and does not return.

⁴⁰ How often they ^(BQ)rebelled against Him in the wilderness
And ^(BR)grieved Him in the ^(BS)desert!
⁴¹ Again and again they ^[v](BT)tempted God,
And pained the ^(BU)Holy One of Israel.
⁴² They ^(BV)did not remember ^(BW)His ^[w]power,
The day when He ^(BX)redeemed them from the enemy,
⁴³ When He performed His ^(BY)signs in Egypt
And His ^(BZ)marvels in the field of Zoan,
⁴⁴ And ^(CA)turned their rivers to blood,
And their streams, so that they could not drink.
⁴⁵ He sent swarms of ^(CB)flies among them that devoured them,
And ^(CC)frogs that destroyed them.
⁴⁶ He also gave their crops to the ^(CD)grasshopper
And the product of their labor to the ^(CE)locust.
⁴⁷ He ^[x]destroyed their vines with ^(CF)hailstones
And their sycamore trees with frost.
⁴⁸ He also turned their ^(CG)cattle over to the hailstones,
And their herds to bolts of lightning.
⁴⁹ He ^(CH)sent His burning anger upon them,
Fury and indignation and trouble,
A band of ^[y]destroying angels.
⁵⁰ He leveled a path for His anger;
He did not spare their souls from death,
But ^(CI)turned their lives over to the plague,
⁵¹ And ^(CJ)struck all the firstborn in Egypt,
The ^(CK)first and best of their vigor in the tents of ^(CL)Ham.
⁵² But He ^(CM)led His own people out like sheep,
And guided them in the wilderness ^(CN)like a flock;
⁵³ He led them ^(CO)safely, so that they did not fear;
But ^(CP)the sea engulfed their enemies.

⁵⁴ So ^(CQ)He brought them to His holy ^[z]land,
To this ^[aa](CR)hill country ^(CS)which His right hand had gained.
⁵⁵ He also ^(CT)drove out the nations from them
And ^(CU)apportioned them as an inheritance by measurement,
And had the tribes of Israel dwell in their tents.
⁵⁶ Yet they ^[ab](CV)tempted and ^(CW)rebelled against the Most High God
And did not keep His testimonies,
⁵⁷ But turned back and ^(CX)acted treacherously like their fathers;
They ^(CY)turned aside like a treacherous bow.
⁵⁸ For they ^(CZ)provoked Him with their ^(DA)high places
And ^(DB)moved Him to jealousy with their ^(DC)carved images.
⁵⁹ When God heard them, He ^[ac]was filled with ^(DD)wrath
And He utterly ^(DE)rejected Israel;
⁶⁰ So that He ^(DF)abandoned the ^(DG)dwelling place at Shiloh,
The tent ^[ad]which He had pitched among people,
⁶¹ And He gave up His ^(DH)strength to captivity
And His glory ^(DI)into the hand of the enemy.
⁶² He also ^(DJ)turned His people over to the sword,
And ^[ae]was filled with wrath at His inheritance.
^63 (DK)Fire devoured ^[af]His young men,
And ^[ag]His ^(DL)virgins had no wedding songs.
^64 [ah]His ^(DM)priests fell by the sword,
And ^[ai]His ^(DN)widows could not weep.

⁶⁵ Then the Lord ^(DO)awoke as if from sleep,
Like a ^(DP)warrior ^[aj]overcome by wine.
⁶⁶ He ^[ak](DQ)drove His adversaries backward;
He put on them an everlasting disgrace.
⁶⁷ He also ^(DR)rejected the tent of Joseph,
And did not choose the tribe of Ephraim,
⁶⁸ But chose the tribe of Judah,
Mount ^(DS)Zion, which He loved.
⁶⁹ And He ^(DT)built His sanctuary like the heights,
Like the earth which He has established forever.
⁷⁰ He also ^(DU)chose His servant David
And took him from the sheepfolds;
⁷¹ From ^[al](DV)the care of the ^[am]ewes ^(DW)with nursing lambs He brought him
To ^(DX)shepherd Jacob His people,
And Israel ^(DY)His inheritance.
⁷² So he shepherded them according to the ^(DZ)integrity of his heart,
And guided them with his skillful hands.

^8 (EP)Do not ^[ap]hold us responsible for ^[aq]the guilty deeds of our forefathers;
Let Your compassion come quickly to ^(EQ)meet us,
For we have ^(ER)become very low.
^9 (ES)Help us, God of our salvation, for the glory of ^(ET)Your name;
And save us and ^[ar](EU)forgive our sins ^(EV)for the sake of Your name.
^10 (EW)Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?”
Let ^(EX)vengeance for the blood of Your servants which has been shed
Be known among the nations in our sight.
¹¹ Let ^(EY)the groaning of the prisoner come before You;
According to the greatness of Your ^[as]power, let ^[at]those who are ^(EZ)doomed to die remain.
¹² And return to our neighbors ^(FA)seven times as much ^(FB)into their lap
Their ^(FC)taunts with which they have taunted You, Lord.
¹³ So we Your people and the ^(FD)sheep of Your ^[au]pasture
Will ^(FE)give thanks to You forever;
To all generations we will ^(FF)tell of Your praise.