Psalm 115

New International Version

Psalm 115^(A)

¹Not to us, Lord, not to us
but to your name be the glory,^(B)
because of your love and faithfulness.^(C)

²Why do the nations say,
    “Where is their God?”^(D)
³Our God is in heaven;^(E)
    he does whatever pleases him.^(F)
⁴But their idols are silver and gold,^(G)
    made by human hands.^(H)
⁵They have mouths, but cannot speak,^(I)
    eyes, but cannot see.
⁶They have ears, but cannot hear,
    noses, but cannot smell.
⁷They have hands, but cannot feel,
    feet, but cannot walk,
    nor can they utter a sound with their throats.
⁸Those who make them will be like them,
    and so will all who trust in them.

⁹All you Israelites, trust^(J) in the Lord—
    he is their help and shield.
¹⁰House of Aaron,^(K) trust in the Lord—
    he is their help and shield.
¹¹You who fear him,^(L) trust in the Lord—
    he is their help and shield.

¹²The Lord remembers^(M) us and will bless us:^(N)
    He will bless his people Israel,
    he will bless the house of Aaron,
¹³he will bless those who fear^(O) the Lord—
    small and great alike.

¹⁴May the Lord cause you to flourish,^(P)
both you and your children.
¹⁵May you be blessed by the Lord,
the Maker of heaven^(Q) and earth.

¹⁶The highest heavens belong to the Lord,^(R)
    but the earth he has given^(S) to mankind.
¹⁷It is not the dead^(T) who praise the Lord,
    those who go down to the place of silence;
¹⁸it is we who extol the Lord,^(U)
    both now and forevermore.^(V)

Praise the Lord.^[a]^(W)

Footnotes

Psalm 115:18 Hebrew Hallelu Yah

Ezra 9:5-15

New International Version

⁵Then, at the evening sacrifice,^(A) I rose from my self-abasement, with my tunic and cloak torn, and fell on my knees with my hands^(B) spread out to the Lord my God ⁶and prayed:

“I am too ashamed^(C) and disgraced, my God, to lift up my face to you, because our sins are higher than our heads and our guilt has reached to the heavens.^(D) ⁷From the days of our ancestors^(E) until now, our guilt has been great. Because of our sins, we and our kings and our priests have been subjected to the sword^(F) and captivity,^(G) to pillage and humiliation^(H) at the hand of foreign kings, as it is today.

⁸“But now, for a brief moment, the Lord our God has been gracious^(I) in leaving us a remnant^(J) and giving us a firm place^[a]^(K) in his sanctuary, and so our God gives light to our eyes^(L) and a little relief in our bondage. ⁹Though we are slaves,^(M) our God has not forsaken us in our bondage. He has shown us kindness^(N) in the sight of the kings of Persia: He has granted us new life to rebuild the house of our God and repair its ruins,^(O) and he has given us a wall of protection in Judah and Jerusalem.

¹⁰“But now, our God, what can we say after this? For we have forsaken the commands^(P) ¹¹you gave through your servants the prophets when you said: ‘The land you are entering^(Q) to possess is a land polluted^(R) by the corruption of its peoples. By their detestable practices^(S) they have filled it with their impurity from one end to the other. ¹²Therefore, do not give your daughters in marriage to their sons or take their daughters for your sons. Do not seek a treaty of friendship with them^(T) at any time, that you may be strong^(U) and eat the good things^(V) of the land and leave it to your children as an everlasting inheritance.’^(W)

¹³“What has happened to us is a result of our evil^(X) deeds and our great guilt, and yet, our God, you have punished us less than our sins deserved^(Y) and have given us a remnant like this. ¹⁴Shall we then break your commands again and intermarry^(Z) with the peoples who commit such detestable practices? Would you not be angry enough with us to destroy us,^(AA) leaving us no remnant^(AB) or survivor? ¹⁵Lord, the God of Israel, you are righteous!^(AC) We are left this day as a remnant. Here we are before you in our guilt, though because of it not one of us can stand^(AD) in your presence.^(AE)”

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Footnotes

Ezra 9:8 Or a foothold

John 16:16-24

New International Version

The Disciples’ Grief Will Turn to Joy

¹⁶Jesus went on to say, “In a little while^(A) you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me.”^(B)

¹⁷At this, some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying, ‘In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me,’^(C) and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?”^(D) ¹⁸They kept asking, “What does he mean by ‘a little while’? We don’t understand what he is saying.”

¹⁹Jesus saw that they wanted to ask him about this, so he said to them, “Are you asking one another what I meant when I said, ‘In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me’? ²⁰Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn^(E) while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy.^(F) ²¹A woman giving birth to a child has pain^(G) because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. ²²So with you: Now is your time of grief,^(H) but I will see you again^(I) and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.^(J) ²³In that day^(K) you will no longer ask me anything. Very truly I tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.^(L) ²⁴Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive,^(M) and your joy will be complete.^(N)