Psalm 60-64
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Psalm 60
Prayer for National Victory after Defeat
To the leader: according to the Lily of the Covenant. A Miktam of David; for instruction; when he struggled with Aram-naharaim and with Aram-zobah, and when Joab on his return killed twelve thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
1 O God, you have rejected us, broken our defenses;
you have been angry; now restore us!(A)
2 You have caused the land to quake; you have torn it open;
repair the cracks in it, for it is tottering.(B)
3 You have made your people suffer hard things;
you have given us wine to drink that made us reel.(C)
4 You have set up a banner for those who fear you,
to rally to it out of bowshot.[a] Selah(D)
5 Give victory with your right hand and answer us,[b]
so that those whom you love may be rescued.(E)
6 God has promised in his sanctuary,[c]
“With exultation I will divide up Shechem
and portion out the Vale of Succoth.(F)
7 Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine;
Ephraim is my helmet;
Judah is my scepter.(G)
8 Moab is my washbasin;
on Edom I hurl my shoe;
over Philistia I shout in triumph.”(H)
9 Who will bring me to the fortified city?
Who will lead me to Edom?
10 Have you not rejected us, O God?
You do not go out, O God, with our armies.(I)
11 O grant us help against the foe,
for human help is worthless.(J)
12 With God we shall do valiantly;
it is he who will tread down our foes.(K)
Psalm 61
Assurance of God’s Protection
To the leader: with stringed instruments. Of David.
1 Hear my cry, O God;
listen to my prayer.(L)
2 From the end of the earth I call to you,
when my heart is faint.
Lead me to the rock
that is higher than I,(M)
3 for you are my refuge,
a strong tower against the enemy.(N)
4 Let me abide in your tent forever,
find refuge under the shelter of your wings. Selah(O)
5 For you, O God, have heard my vows;
you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name.(P)
6 Prolong the life of the king;
may his years endure to all generations!(Q)
7 May he be enthroned forever before God;
appoint steadfast love and faithfulness to watch over him!(R)
8 So I will always sing praises to your name,
as I pay my vows day after day.(S)
Psalm 62
Song of Trust in God Alone
To the leader: according to Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
1 For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.(T)
2 He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall never be shaken.(U)
3 How long will you assail a person,
will you batter your victim, all of you,
as you would a leaning wall, a tottering fence?(V)
4 Their only plan is to bring down a person of prominence.
They take pleasure in falsehood;
they bless with their mouths,
but inwardly they curse. Selah(W)
5 For God alone my soul waits in silence,
for my hope is from him.
6 He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.(X)
7 On God rests my deliverance and my honor;
my mighty rock, my refuge is in God.(Y)
8 Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;
God is a refuge for us. Selah(Z)
9 Those of low estate are but a breath;
those of high estate are a delusion;
in the balances they go up;
they are together lighter than a breath.(AA)
10 Put no confidence in extortion,
and set no vain hopes on robbery;
if riches increase, do not set your heart on them.(AB)
11 Once God has spoken;
twice have I heard this:
that power belongs to God,(AC)
12 and steadfast love belongs to you, O Lord.
For you repay to all
according to their work.(AD)
Psalm 63
Comfort and Assurance in God’s Presence
A Psalm of David, when he was in the Wilderness of Judah.
1 O God, you are my God; I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.(AE)
2 So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
beholding your power and glory.(AF)
3 Because your steadfast love is better than life,
my lips will praise you.(AG)
4 So I will bless you as long as I live;
I will lift up my hands and call on your name.(AH)
5 My soul is satisfied as with a rich feast,[d]
and my mouth praises you with joyful lips(AI)
6 when I think of you on my bed
and meditate on you in the watches of the night,(AJ)
7 for you have been my help,
and in the shadow of your wings I sing for joy.(AK)
8 My soul clings to you;
your right hand upholds me.(AL)
9 But those who seek to destroy my life
shall go down into the depths of the earth;(AM)
10 they shall be given over to the power of the sword;
they shall be prey for jackals.
11 But the king shall rejoice in God;
all who swear by him shall exult,
for the mouths of liars will be stopped.(AN)
Psalm 64
Prayer for Protection from Enemies
To the leader. A Psalm of David.
1 Hear my voice, O God, in my complaint;
preserve my life from the dread enemy.(AO)
2 Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked,
from the scheming of evildoers,(AP)
3 who whet their tongues like swords,
who aim bitter words like arrows,(AQ)
4 shooting from ambush at the blameless;
they shoot suddenly and without fear.(AR)
5 They hold fast to their evil purpose;
they talk of laying snares secretly,
thinking, “Who can see us?[e](AS)
6 Who can search out our crimes?[f]
We have thought out a cunningly conceived plot.”
For the human heart and mind are deep.(AT)
7 But God will shoot his arrow at them;
they will be wounded suddenly.
8 Because of their tongue he will bring them to ruin;[g]
all who see them will shake with horror.(AU)
9 Then everyone will fear;
they will tell what God has brought about
and ponder what he has done.(AV)
10 Let the righteous rejoice in the Lord
and take refuge in him.
Let all the upright in heart glory.(AW)
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.