Old/New Testament
Psalm 143
A Cry for Help
A Davidic psalm.
1 Lord, hear my prayer.
In Your faithfulness listen to my plea,
and in Your righteousness answer me.(A)
2 Do not bring Your servant into judgment,(B)
for no one alive is righteous in Your sight.(C)
3 For the enemy has pursued me,
crushing me to the ground,
making me live in darkness
like those long dead.(D)
4 My spirit is weak within me;
my heart is overcome with dismay.(E)
5 I remember the days of old;
I meditate on all You have done;
I reflect on the work of Your hands.(F)
6 I spread out my hands to You;
I am like parched land before You.(G)
7 Answer me quickly, Lord;
my spirit fails.(H)
Don’t hide Your face from me,
or I will be like those
going down to the Pit.(I)
8 Let me experience
Your faithful love in the morning,
for I trust in You.(J)
Reveal to me the way I should go
because I long for You.(K)
9 Rescue me from my enemies, Lord;
I come to You for protection.[a](L)
10 Teach me to do Your will,
for You are my God.(M)
May Your gracious Spirit
lead me on level ground.(N)
11 Because of Your name, Yahweh,
let me live.
In Your righteousness deliver me from trouble,(O)
12 and in Your faithful love destroy my enemies.
Wipe out all those who attack me,
for I am Your servant.(P)
Psalm 144
A King’s Prayer
Davidic.
1 May the Lord, my rock, be praised,(Q)
who trains my hands for battle
and my fingers for warfare.(R)
2 He is my faithful love and my fortress,
my stronghold and my deliverer.
He is my shield,(S) and I take refuge in Him;(T)
He subdues my people[b] under me.(U)
3 Lord, what is man, that You care for him,
the son of man, that You think of him?(V)
4 Man is like a breath;
his days are like a passing shadow.(W)
5 Lord, part Your heavens and come down.(X)
Touch the mountains, and they will smoke.(Y)
6 Flash Your lightning and scatter the foe;[c]
shoot Your arrows and rout them.(Z)
7 Reach down[d] from heaven;(AA)
rescue me from deep water, and set me free
from the grasp of foreigners(AB)
8 whose mouths speak lies,
whose right hands are deceptive.(AC)
9 God, I will sing a new song to You;
I will play on a ten-stringed harp for You(AD)—
10 the One who gives victory to kings,
who frees His servant David
from the deadly sword.(AE)
11 Set me free and rescue me
from the grasp of foreigners(AF)
whose mouths speak lies,
whose right hands are deceptive.(AG)
12 Then our sons will be like plants
nurtured in their youth,
our daughters, like corner pillars
that are carved in the palace style.(AH)
13 Our storehouses will be full,
supplying all kinds of produce;(AI)
our flocks will increase by thousands
and tens of thousands in our open fields.(AJ)
14 Our cattle will be well fed.[e]
There will be no breach in the walls,
no going into captivity,[f]
and no cry of lament in our public squares.(AK)
15 Happy are the people with such blessings.
Happy are the people whose God is Yahweh.(AL)
Psalm 145
Praising God’s Greatness
A Davidic hymn.
1 I[g] exalt You, my God the King,
and praise Your name forever and ever.(AM)
2 I will praise You every day;
I will honor Your name forever and ever.(AN)
3 Yahweh is great and is highly praised;(AO)
His greatness is unsearchable.(AP)
4 One generation will declare Your works to the next
and will proclaim Your mighty acts.(AQ)
5 I[h] will speak of Your splendor and glorious majesty
and[i] Your wonderful works.(AR)
6 They will proclaim the power of Your awe-inspiring acts,
and I will declare Your greatness.[j](AS)
7 They will give a testimony of Your great goodness
and will joyfully sing of Your righteousness.(AT)
8 The Lord is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and great in faithful love.(AU)
9 The Lord is good to everyone;(AV)
His compassion rests on all He has made.(AW)
10 All You have made will thank You, Lord;
the[k] godly will praise You.(AX)
11 They will speak of the glory of Your kingdom
and will declare Your might,(AY)
12 informing all people of Your mighty acts
and of the glorious splendor of Your[l] kingdom.(AZ)
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom;
Your rule is for all generations.(BA)
The Lord is faithful in all His words
and gracious in all His actions.[m](BB)
14 The Lord helps all who fall;
He raises up all who are oppressed.[n](BC)
15 All eyes look to You,
and You give them their food at the proper time.(BD)
16 You open Your hand
and satisfy the desire of every living thing.(BE)
17 The Lord is righteous in all His ways
and gracious in all His acts.(BF)
18 The Lord is near all who call out to Him,
all who call out to Him with integrity.(BG)
19 He fulfills the desires of those who fear Him;
He hears their cry for help and saves them.(BH)
20 The Lord guards all those who love Him,
but He destroys all the wicked.(BI)
21 My mouth will declare Yahweh’s praise;
let every living thing
praise His holy name forever and ever.(BJ)
21 It is written in the law:
I will speak to these people
by people of other languages
and by the lips of foreigners,
and even then, they will not listen to Me,(A)[a]
says the Lord. 22 It follows that speaking in other languages is intended as a sign,[b] not for believers but for unbelievers. But prophecy is not for unbelievers but for believers. 23 Therefore, if the whole church assembles together and all are speaking in other languages and people who are uninformed or unbelievers come in, will they not say that you are out of your minds? 24 But if all are prophesying and some unbeliever or uninformed person comes in, he is convicted by all and is judged by all. 25 The secrets of his heart will be revealed, and as a result he will fall facedown and worship God, proclaiming, “God is really among you.”(B)
Order in Church Meetings
26 What then is the conclusion, brothers? Whenever you come together, each one[c] has a psalm, a teaching, a revelation, another language, or an interpretation.(C) All things must be done for edification. 27 If any person speaks in another language, there should be only two, or at the most three, each in turn, and someone must interpret. 28 But if there is no interpreter, that person should keep silent in the church and speak to himself and to God. 29 Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should evaluate.(D) 30 But if something has been revealed to another person sitting there, the first prophet should be silent. 31 For you can all prophesy one by one, so that everyone may learn and everyone may be encouraged.(E) 32 And the prophets’ spirits are under the control of the prophets, 33 since God is not a God of disorder but of peace.
As in all the churches of the saints,(F) 34 the women[d] should be silent in the churches,(G) for they are not permitted to speak, but should be submissive, as the law also says. 35 And if they want to learn something, they should ask their own husbands(H) at home, for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church meeting. 36 Did the word of God originate from you, or did it come to you only?
37 If anyone thinks he is a prophet or spiritual, he should recognize that what I write to you is the Lord’s command. 38 But if anyone ignores this, he will be ignored.[e] 39 Therefore, my brothers, be eager(I) to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in other languages. 40 But everything must be done decently(J) and in order.
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