Psalm 73-74
Holman Christian Standard Bible
BOOK III
(Psalms 73–89)
Psalm 73
God’s Ways Vindicated
A psalm of Asaph.(A)
1 God is indeed good to Israel,
to the pure in heart.(B)
2 But as for me, my feet almost slipped;
my steps nearly went astray.(C)
3 For I envied the arrogant;
I saw the prosperity of the wicked.(D)
4 They have an easy time until they die,[a]
and their bodies are well fed.[b](E)
5 They are not in trouble like others;
they are not afflicted like most people.(F)
6 Therefore, pride is their necklace,
and violence covers them like a garment.(G)
7 Their eyes bulge out from fatness;
the imaginations of their hearts run wild.(H)
8 They mock, and they speak maliciously;
they arrogantly threaten oppression.(I)
9 They set their mouths against heaven,
and their tongues strut across the earth.(J)
10 Therefore His people turn to them[c]
and drink in their overflowing words.[d](K)
11 The wicked say, “How can God know?
Does the Most High know everything?”(L)
12 Look at them—the wicked!
They are always at ease,
and they increase their wealth.(M)
13 Did I purify my heart
and wash my hands in innocence for nothing?(N)
14 For I am afflicted all day long
and punished every morning.(O)
15 If I had decided to say these things aloud,
I would have betrayed Your people.[e](P)
16 When I tried to understand all this,
it seemed hopeless[f](Q)
17 until I entered God’s sanctuary.
Then I understood their destiny.(R)
18 Indeed, You put them in slippery places;
You make them fall into ruin.(S)
19 How suddenly they become a desolation!
They come to an end, swept away by terrors.(T)
20 Like one waking from a dream,
Lord, when arising, You will despise their image.(U)
21 When I became embittered
and my innermost being[g] was wounded,(V)
22 I was stupid and didn’t understand;
I was an unthinking animal toward You.(W)
23 Yet I am always with You;
You hold my right hand.(X)
24 You guide me with Your counsel,
and afterward You will take me up in glory.[h](Y)
25 Who do I have in heaven but You?
And I desire nothing on earth but You.(Z)
26 My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength[i] of my heart,
my portion forever.(AA)
27 Those far from You will certainly perish;
You destroy all who are unfaithful to You.(AB)
28 But as for me, God’s presence is my good.
I have made the Lord God my refuge,
so I can tell about all You do.(AC)
Psalm 74
Prayer for Israel
A Maskil of Asaph.(AD)
1 Why have You rejected us forever, God?
Why does Your anger burn
against the sheep of Your pasture?(AE)
2 Remember Your congregation,
which You purchased long ago
and redeemed as the tribe for Your own possession.(AF)
Remember Mount Zion where You dwell.(AG)
3 Make Your way[j] to the everlasting ruins,
to all that the enemy has destroyed in the sanctuary.(AH)
4 Your adversaries roared in the meeting place
where You met with us.[k]
They set up their emblems as signs.(AI)
5 It was like men in a thicket of trees,
wielding axes,(AJ)
6 then smashing all the carvings
with hatchets and picks.(AK)
7 They set Your sanctuary on fire;
they utterly[l] desecrated
the dwelling place of Your name.(AL)
8 They said in their hearts,
“Let us oppress them relentlessly.”
They burned down every place throughout the land
where God met with us.[m](AM)
9 There are no signs for us to see.
There is no longer a prophet.
And none of us knows how long this will last.(AN)
10 God, how long will the enemy mock?
Will the foe insult Your name forever?(AO)
11 Why do You hold back Your hand?
Stretch out[n] Your right hand and destroy them!(AP)
12 God my King is from ancient times,
performing saving acts on the earth.(AQ)
13 You divided the sea with Your strength;
You smashed the heads of the sea monsters in the waters;(AR)
14 You crushed the heads of Leviathan;
You fed him to the creatures of the desert.(AS)
15 You opened up springs and streams;(AT)
You dried up ever-flowing rivers.(AU)
16 The day is Yours, also the night;
You established the moon and the sun.(AV)
17 You set all the boundaries of the earth;
You made summer and winter.(AW)
18 Remember this: the enemy has mocked Yahweh,
and a foolish people has insulted Your name.(AX)
19 Do not give the life of Your dove to beasts;[o]
do not forget the lives of Your poor people forever.(AY)
20 Consider the covenant,(AZ)
for the dark places of the land are full of violence.(BA)
21 Do not let the oppressed turn away in shame;
let the poor and needy praise Your name.(BB)
22 Rise up, God, defend Your cause!(BC)
Remember the insults
that fools bring against You all day long.(BD)
23 Do not forget the clamor of Your adversaries,
the tumult of Your opponents that goes up constantly.(BE)
Footnotes
- Psalm 73:4 Lit For there are no pangs to their death
- Psalm 73:4 Lit fat
- Psalm 73:10 Lit turn here
- Psalm 73:10 Lit and waters of fullness are drained by them
- Psalm 73:15 Lit betrayed the generation of Your sons
- Psalm 73:16 Lit it was trouble in my eyes
- Psalm 73:21 Lit my kidneys
- Psalm 73:24 Or will receive me with honor
- Psalm 73:26 Lit rock
- Psalm 74:3 Lit Lift up Your steps
- Psalm 74:4 Lit in Your meeting place
- Psalm 74:7 Lit they to the ground
- Psalm 74:8 Lit every meeting place of God in the land
- Psalm 74:11 Lit From Your bosom
- Psalm 74:19 One Hb ms, LXX, Syr read Do not hand over to beasts a soul that praises You
Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville Tennessee. All rights reserved.
