Psalm 81-85
American Standard Version
God’s goodness and Israel’s waywardness.
For the Chief Musician; set to the Gittith. A Psalm of Asaph.
81 Sing aloud unto God our strength:
Make a joyful noise unto the God of Jacob.
2 Raise a song, and [a]bring hither the timbrel,
The pleasant harp with the psaltery.
3 Blow the trumpet at the new moon,
At the full moon, on our feast-day.
4 For it is a statute for Israel,
An ordinance of the God of Jacob.
5 He appointed it in Joseph for a testimony,
When he went out [b]over the land of Egypt,
Where I heard [c]a language that I knew not.
6 I removed his shoulder from the burden:
His hands were freed from the basket.
7 Thou calledst in trouble, and I delivered thee;
I answered thee in the secret place of thunder;
I proved thee at the waters of Meribah. Selah
8 Hear, O my people, and I will testify unto thee:
O Israel, if thou wouldest hearken unto me!
9 There shall no strange god be in thee;
Neither shalt thou worship any foreign god.
10 I am Jehovah thy God,
Who brought thee up out of the land of Egypt:
Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it.
11 But my people hearkened not to my voice;
And Israel would none of me.
12 So I let them go after the stubbornness of their heart,
That they might walk in their own counsels.
13 Oh that my people would hearken unto me,
That Israel would walk in my ways!
14 I would soon subdue their enemies,
And turn my hand against their adversaries.
15 The haters of Jehovah should [d]submit themselves unto him:
But their time should endure for ever.
16 He would feed them also with the [e]finest of the wheat;
And with honey out of the rock would I satisfy thee.
Unjust judgments rebuked.
A Psalm of Asaph.
82 God standeth in the congregation of God;
He judgeth among the gods.
2 How long will ye judge unjustly,
And respect the persons of the wicked? Selah
3 Judge the [f]poor and fatherless:
Do justice to the afflicted and destitute.
4 Rescue the [g]poor and needy:
Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked.
5 They know not, neither do they understand;
They walk to and fro in darkness:
All the foundations of the earth are shaken.
6 I said, Ye are gods,
And all of you sons of the Most High.
7 Nevertheless ye shall die like men,
And fall like one of the princes.
8 Arise, O God, judge the earth;
For thou shalt inherit all the nations.
God implored to confound his enemies.
A Song, a Psalm of Asaph.
83 O God, keep not thou silence:
Hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God.
2 For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult;
And they that hate thee have lifted up the head.
3 They take crafty counsel against thy people,
And consult together against thy hidden ones.
4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation;
That the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
5 For they have consulted together with one consent;
Against thee do they make a covenant:
6 The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites;
Moab, and the [h]Hagarenes;
7 Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalek;
Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre:
8 Assyria also is joined with them;
They have [i]helped the children of Lot. Selah
9 Do thou unto them as unto Midian,
As to Sisera, as to Jabin, at the river Kishon;
10 Who perished at Endor,
Who became as dung for the earth.
11 Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb;
Yea, all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna;
12 Who said, Let us take to ourselves in possession
The [j]habitations of God.
13 O my God, make them like the whirling dust;
As stubble before the wind.
14 As the fire that burneth the forest,
And as the flame that setteth the mountains on fire,
15 So pursue them with thy tempest,
And terrify them with thy storm.
16 Fill their faces with confusion,
That they may seek thy name, O Jehovah.
17 Let them be put to shame and dismayed for ever;
Yea, let them be confounded and perish;
18 That they may know that [k]thou alone, whose name is Jehovah,
Art the Most High over all the earth.
Longing for the Temple worship.
For the Chief Musician; set to the Gittith. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.
84 How [l]amiable are thy tabernacles,
O Jehovah of hosts!
2 My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of Jehovah;
My heart and my flesh [m]cry out unto the living God.
3 Yea, the sparrow hath found her a house,
And the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young,
Even thine altars, O Jehovah of hosts,
My King, and my God.
4 Blessed are they that dwell in thy house:
They will be still praising thee. Selah
5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee;
In whose heart are the highways to Zion.
6 Passing through the valley of [n]Weeping they make it a place of springs;
Yea, the early rain covereth it with blessings.
7 They go from strength to strength;
Every one of them appeareth before God in Zion.
8 O Jehovah God of hosts, hear my prayer;
Give ear, O God of Jacob. Selah
9 [o]Behold, O God our shield,
And look upon the face of thine anointed.
10 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand.
I had rather [p]be a doorkeeper in the house of my God,
Than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.
11 For Jehovah God is a sun and a shield:
Jehovah will give grace and glory;
No good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.
12 O Jehovah of hosts,
Blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.
Prayer for God’s mercy upon the nation.
For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.
85 Jehovah, thou hast been favorable unto thy land;
Thou hast [q]brought back the captivity of Jacob.
2 Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people;
Thou hast covered all their sin. Selah
3 Thou hast taken away all thy wrath;
Thou hast turned thyself from the fierceness of thine anger.
4 [r]Turn us, O God of our salvation,
And cause thine indignation toward us to cease.
5 Wilt thou be angry with us for ever?
Wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations?
6 Wilt thou not quicken us again,
That thy people may rejoice in thee?
7 Show us thy lovingkindness, O Jehovah,
And grant us thy salvation.
8 I will hear what God Jehovah will speak;
For he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints:
But let them not turn again to folly.
9 Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear him,
That glory may dwell in our land.
10 Mercy and truth are met together;
Righteousness and peace have kissed each other.
11 Truth springeth out of the earth;
And righteousness hath looked down from heaven.
12 Yea, Jehovah will give that which is good;
And our land shall yield its increase.
13 Righteousness shall go before him,
And shall [s]make his footsteps a way to walk in.
Footnotes
- Psalm 81:2 Or, strike the timbrel
- Psalm 81:5 Or, against
- Psalm 81:5 Or, the speech of one that etc.
- Psalm 81:15 Or, yield feigned obedience. Hebrew lie.
- Psalm 81:16 Hebrew fat of wheat.
- Psalm 82:3 Or, weak
- Psalm 82:4 Or, weak
- Psalm 83:6 Or, Hagrites. See 1 Chr. 5:10.
- Psalm 83:8 Hebrew been an arm to the children of Lot.
- Psalm 83:12 Or, pastures
- Psalm 83:18 Or, thou, whose name alone is Jehovah, art etc.
- Psalm 84:1 Or, lovely
- Psalm 84:2 Or, sing for joy
- Psalm 84:6 Or, balsam-trees. Hebrew Baca. See 2 Sam. 5:23.
- Psalm 84:9 Or, Behold our shield, O God
- Psalm 84:10 Or, stand at the threshold of etc.
- Psalm 85:1 Or, returned to
- Psalm 85:4 Or, Turn to us
- Psalm 85:13 Or, set us in the way of his steps
Public Domain (Why are modern Bible translations copyrighted?)