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(A special psalm by Ethan the Ezrahite.)

The Lord's Agreement with David

(A) Our Lord, I will sing
    of your love forever.
Everyone yet to be born
will hear me praise
    your faithfulness.
I will tell them, “God's love
    can always be trusted,
and his faithfulness lasts
    as long as the heavens.”

You said, “David, my servant,
    is my chosen one,
and this is the agreement
    I made with him:
(B) David, one of your descendants
    will always be king.”

Our Lord, let the heavens
    now praise your miracles,
and let all your angels
    praise your faithfulness.

None who live in the heavens
    can compare with you.
You are the most fearsome
    of all who live in heaven;
all the others fear
    and greatly honor you.
You are Lord God All-Powerful!
No one is as loving
    and faithful as you are.
You rule the roaring sea
    and calm its waves.
10 You crushed the monster Rahab,[a]
and with your powerful arm
    you scattered your enemies.
11 The heavens and the earth
    belong to you.
And so does the world
    with all its people
because you created them
12     and everything else.[b]

Mount Tabor and Mount Hermon
    gladly praise you.
13 You are strong and mighty!
14 Your kingdom is ruled
    by justice and fairness
with love and faithfulness
    leading the way.

15 Our Lord, you bless those
    who join in the festival
and walk in the brightness
    of your presence.
16 We are happy all day
    because of you,
and your saving power
    brings honor to us.
17 Your own glorious power
    makes us strong,
and because of your kindness,
    our strength increases.
18 Our Lord and our King,
the Holy One of Israel,
    you are truly our shield.

19 In a vision, you once said
    to your faithful followers:
“I have helped a mighty hero.
I chose him from my people
    and made him famous.
20 (C) David, my servant, is the one
    I chose to be king,
21 and I will always be there
    to help and strengthen him.

22 “No enemy will outsmart David,
and he won't be defeated
    by any hateful people.
23 I will strike down and crush
    his troublesome enemies.
24 He will always be able
    to depend on my love,
and I will make him strong
    with my own power.
25 I will let him rule the lands
    across the rivers and seas.
26 He will say to me,
‘You are my Father
    and my God,
as well as the mighty rock[c]
    where I am safe.’

27 (D) “I have chosen David
    as my first-born son,
and he will be the ruler
    of all kings on earth.
28 My love for him will last,
and my agreement with him
    will never be broken.

29 “One of David's descendants
    will always be king,
and his family will rule
    until the sky disappears.
30 Suppose some of his children
should reject my Law
    and refuse my instructions.
31 Or suppose they should disobey
    all of my teachings.
32 Then I will correct
and punish them
    because of their sins.
33 But I will always love David
and faithfully keep all
    of my promises to him.

34 “I won't break my agreement
    or go back on my word.
35 I have sworn once and for all
by my own holy name,
    and I won't lie to David.
36 His family will always rule.
    I will let his kingdom last
as long as the sun 37 and moon
    appear in the sky.”

38 You are now angry, Lord,
and you have turned your back
    on your chosen king.
39 You broke off your agreement
    with your servant, the king,
and you completely destroyed
    his kingdom.
40 The walls of his city
    have been broken through,
and every fortress
    now lies in ruins.
41 All who pass by
    take what they want,
and nations everywhere
    joke about the king.

42 You made his enemies powerful
    and let them celebrate.
43 But you forced him to retreat
because you did not fight
    on his side.
44 You took his crown[d]
and threw his throne
    in the dirt.
45 You made an old man of him
    and put him to shame.

46 How much longer, Lord?
    Will you hide forever?
How long will your anger
    keep burning like fire?
47 Remember, life is short![e]
Why did you empty our lives
    of all meaning?
48 No one can escape the power
    of death and the grave.

49 Our Lord, where is the love
    you have always shown
and that you promised
    so faithfully to David?
50 Remember your servant, Lord!
People make jokes about me,
    and I suffer many insults.
51 I am your chosen one,
but your enemies chase
    and make fun of me.

52 Our Lord, we praise you
    forever. Amen and amen.

BOOK IV

(Psalms 90–106)

(A prayer by Moses, the man of God.)

God Is Eternal

Our Lord, in all generations
    you have been our home.
You have always been God—
long before the birth
    of the mountains,
even before you created
    the earth and the world.

At your command we die
    and turn back to dust,
(E) but a thousand years
    mean nothing to you!
They are merely a day gone by
    or a few hours in the night.

You bring our lives to an end
    just like a dream.
We are merely tender grass
    that sprouts and grows
in the morning,
    but dries up by evening.
Your furious anger frightens
    and destroys us,
and you know all our sins,
    even those we do in secret.

Your anger is a burden
each day we live,
    then life ends like a sigh.
10 (F) We can expect seventy years,
or maybe eighty,
    if we are healthy,
but even our best years
    bring trouble and sorrow.
Suddenly our time is up,
    and we disappear.
11 No one knows the full power
    of your furious anger,
but it is as great as the fear
    that we owe to you.
12 Teach us to use wisely
    all the time we have.

13 Help us, Lord! Don't wait!
    Pity your servants.
14 When morning comes,
let your love satisfy
    all our needs.
Then we can celebrate
and be glad for what time
    we have left.
15 Make us happy for as long
as you caused us trouble
    and sorrow.
16 Do wonderful things for us,
    your servants,
and show your mighty power
    to our children.
17 Our Lord and our God,
    treat us with kindness
and let all go well for us.
    Please let all go well!

Footnotes

  1. 89.10 Rahab: Many people in the ancient world thought that the world was controlled by this sea monster that the Lord destroyed at the time of creation (see Isaiah 51.9).
  2. 89.12 and everything else: The Hebrew text has “Zaphon and Yamin,” which may either be the names of mountains or refer to the directions “north and south,” with the meaning “everything from north to south.”
  3. 89.26 mighty rock: See the note at 18.2.
  4. 89.44 You took … crown: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
  5. 89.47 Remember … short: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.

Psalm 89[a]

A maskil[b] of Ethan the Ezrahite.

I will sing(A) of the Lord’s great love forever;
    with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known(B)
    through all generations.
I will declare that your love stands firm forever,
    that you have established your faithfulness in heaven itself.(C)
You said, “I have made a covenant with my chosen one,
    I have sworn to David my servant,
‘I will establish your line forever
    and make your throne firm through all generations.’”[c](D)

The heavens(E) praise your wonders, Lord,
    your faithfulness too, in the assembly(F) of the holy ones.
For who in the skies above can compare with the Lord?
    Who is like the Lord among the heavenly beings?(G)
In the council(H) of the holy ones(I) God is greatly feared;
    he is more awesome than all who surround him.(J)
Who is like you,(K) Lord God Almighty?(L)
    You, Lord, are mighty, and your faithfulness surrounds you.

You rule over the surging sea;
    when its waves mount up, you still them.(M)
10 You crushed Rahab(N) like one of the slain;
    with your strong arm you scattered(O) your enemies.
11 The heavens are yours,(P) and yours also the earth;(Q)
    you founded the world and all that is in it.(R)
12 You created the north and the south;
    Tabor(S) and Hermon(T) sing for joy(U) at your name.
13 Your arm is endowed with power;
    your hand is strong, your right hand exalted.(V)

14 Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;(W)
    love and faithfulness go before you.(X)
15 Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you,
    who walk(Y) in the light(Z) of your presence, Lord.
16 They rejoice in your name(AA) all day long;
    they celebrate your righteousness.
17 For you are their glory and strength,(AB)
    and by your favor you exalt our horn.[d](AC)
18 Indeed, our shield[e](AD) belongs to the Lord,
    our king(AE) to the Holy One of Israel.

19 Once you spoke in a vision,
    to your faithful people you said:
“I have bestowed strength on a warrior;
    I have raised up a young man from among the people.
20 I have found David(AF) my servant;(AG)
    with my sacred oil(AH) I have anointed(AI) him.
21 My hand will sustain him;
    surely my arm will strengthen him.(AJ)
22 The enemy will not get the better of him;(AK)
    the wicked will not oppress(AL) him.
23 I will crush his foes before him(AM)
    and strike down his adversaries.(AN)
24 My faithful love will be with him,(AO)
    and through my name his horn[f] will be exalted.
25 I will set his hand over the sea,
    his right hand over the rivers.(AP)
26 He will call out to me, ‘You are my Father,(AQ)
    my God, the Rock(AR) my Savior.’(AS)
27 And I will appoint him to be my firstborn,(AT)
    the most exalted(AU) of the kings(AV) of the earth.
28 I will maintain my love to him forever,
    and my covenant with him will never fail.(AW)
29 I will establish his line forever,
    his throne as long as the heavens endure.(AX)

30 “If his sons forsake my law
    and do not follow my statutes,
31 if they violate my decrees
    and fail to keep my commands,
32 I will punish their sin with the rod,
    their iniquity with flogging;(AY)
33 but I will not take my love from him,(AZ)
    nor will I ever betray my faithfulness.
34 I will not violate my covenant
    or alter what my lips have uttered.(BA)
35 Once for all, I have sworn by my holiness—
    and I will not lie to David—
36 that his line will continue forever
    and his throne endure before me like the sun;(BB)
37 it will be established forever like the moon,
    the faithful witness in the sky.”(BC)

38 But you have rejected,(BD) you have spurned,
    you have been very angry with your anointed one.
39 You have renounced the covenant with your servant
    and have defiled his crown in the dust.(BE)
40 You have broken through all his walls(BF)
    and reduced his strongholds(BG) to ruins.
41 All who pass by have plundered(BH) him;
    he has become the scorn of his neighbors.(BI)
42 You have exalted the right hand of his foes;
    you have made all his enemies rejoice.(BJ)
43 Indeed, you have turned back the edge of his sword
    and have not supported him in battle.(BK)
44 You have put an end to his splendor
    and cast his throne to the ground.
45 You have cut short(BL) the days of his youth;
    you have covered him with a mantle of shame.(BM)

46 How long, Lord? Will you hide yourself forever?
    How long will your wrath burn like fire?(BN)
47 Remember how fleeting is my life.(BO)
    For what futility you have created all humanity!
48 Who can live and not see death,
    or who can escape the power of the grave?(BP)
49 Lord, where is your former great love,
    which in your faithfulness you swore to David?
50 Remember, Lord, how your servant has[g] been mocked,(BQ)
    how I bear in my heart the taunts of all the nations,
51 the taunts with which your enemies, Lord, have mocked,
    with which they have mocked every step of your anointed one.(BR)

52 Praise be to the Lord forever!
Amen and Amen.(BS)

BOOK IV

Psalms 90–106

Psalm 90

A prayer of Moses the man of God.

Lord, you have been our dwelling place(BT)
    throughout all generations.
Before the mountains were born(BU)
    or you brought forth the whole world,
    from everlasting to everlasting(BV) you are God.(BW)

You turn people back to dust,
    saying, “Return to dust, you mortals.”(BX)
A thousand years in your sight
    are like a day that has just gone by,
    or like a watch in the night.(BY)
Yet you sweep people away(BZ) in the sleep of death—
    they are like the new grass of the morning:
In the morning it springs up new,
    but by evening it is dry and withered.(CA)

We are consumed by your anger
    and terrified by your indignation.
You have set our iniquities before you,
    our secret sins(CB) in the light of your presence.(CC)
All our days pass away under your wrath;
    we finish our years with a moan.(CD)
10 Our days may come to seventy years,(CE)
    or eighty,(CF) if our strength endures;
yet the best of them are but trouble and sorrow,(CG)
    for they quickly pass, and we fly away.(CH)
11 If only we knew the power of your anger!
    Your wrath(CI) is as great as the fear that is your due.(CJ)
12 Teach us to number our days,(CK)
    that we may gain a heart of wisdom.(CL)

13 Relent, Lord! How long(CM) will it be?
    Have compassion on your servants.(CN)
14 Satisfy(CO) us in the morning with your unfailing love,(CP)
    that we may sing for joy(CQ) and be glad all our days.(CR)
15 Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
    for as many years as we have seen trouble.
16 May your deeds be shown to your servants,
    your splendor to their children.(CS)

17 May the favor[h] of the Lord our God rest on us;
    establish the work of our hands for us—
    yes, establish the work of our hands.(CT)

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 89:1 In Hebrew texts 89:1-52 is numbered 89:2-53.
  2. Psalm 89:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
  3. Psalm 89:4 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verses 37, 45 and 48.
  4. Psalm 89:17 Horn here symbolizes strong one.
  5. Psalm 89:18 Or sovereign
  6. Psalm 89:24 Horn here symbolizes strength.
  7. Psalm 89:50 Or your servants have
  8. Psalm 90:17 Or beauty

Don't Criticize Others

14 (A) Welcome all the Lord's followers, even those whose faith is weak. Don't criticize them for having beliefs that are different from yours. Some think it is all right to eat anything, while those whose faith is weak will eat only vegetables. But you should not criticize others for eating or for not eating. After all, God welcomes everyone. What right do you have to criticize someone else's servants? Only their Lord can decide if they are doing right, and the Lord will make sure that they do right.

Some of the Lord's followers think one day is more important than another. Others think all days are the same. But each of you should make up your own mind. Any followers who count one day more important than another day do it to honor their Lord. And any followers who eat meat give thanks to God, just like the ones who don't eat meat.

Whether we live or die, it must be for God, rather than for ourselves. Whether we live or die, it must be for the Lord. Alive or dead, we still belong to the Lord. This is because Christ died and rose to life, so that he would be the Lord of the dead and of the living. 10 (B) Why do you criticize other followers of the Lord? Why do you look down on them? The day is coming when God will judge all of us. 11 (C) In the Scriptures God says,

“I swear by my very life
that everyone will kneel down
    and praise my name!”

12 And so, each of us must give an account to God for what we do.

Don't Cause Problems for Others

13 We must stop judging others. We must also make up our minds not to upset anyone's faith. 14 The Lord Jesus has made it clear to me that God considers all foods fit to eat. But if you think some foods are unfit to eat, then for you they are not fit.

15 If you are hurting others by the foods you eat, you are not guided by love. Don't let your appetite destroy someone Christ died for. 16 Don't let your right to eat bring shame to Christ. 17 God's kingdom isn't about eating and drinking. It is about pleasing God, about living in peace, and about true happiness. All this comes from the Holy Spirit. 18 If you serve Christ in this way, you will please God and be respected by people. 19 We should try[a] to live at peace and help each other have a strong faith.

20 Don't let your appetite destroy what God has done. All foods are fit to eat, but it is wrong to cause problems for others by what you eat. 21 It is best not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything else that causes problems for other followers of the Lord. 22 What you believe about these things should be kept between you and God. You are fortunate, if your actions don't make you have doubts. 23 But if you do have doubts about what you eat, you are going against your beliefs. And you know that is wrong, because anything you do against your beliefs is sin.

Footnotes

  1. 14.19 We should try: Some manuscripts have “We try.”

The Weak and the Strong

14 Accept the one whose faith is weak,(A) without quarreling over disputable matters. One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables.(B) The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt(C) the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge(D) the one who does, for God has accepted them. Who are you to judge someone else’s servant?(E) To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.

One person considers one day more sacred than another;(F) another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God;(G) and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives for ourselves alone,(H) and none of us dies for ourselves alone. If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.(I) For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life(J) so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.(K)

10 You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister[a]? Or why do you treat them with contempt?(L) For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat.(M) 11 It is written:

“‘As surely as I live,’(N) says the Lord,
‘every knee will bow before me;
    every tongue will acknowledge God.’”[b](O)

12 So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.(P)

13 Therefore let us stop passing judgment(Q) on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister.(R) 14 I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself.(S) But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean.(T) 15 If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love.(U) Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died.(V) 16 Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil.(W) 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking,(X) but of righteousness, peace(Y) and joy in the Holy Spirit,(Z) 18 because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.(AA)

19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace(AB) and to mutual edification.(AC) 20 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food.(AD) All food is clean,(AE) but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble.(AF) 21 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.(AG)

22 So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn(AH) himself by what he approves. 23 But whoever has doubts(AI) is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.[c]

Footnotes

  1. Romans 14:10 The Greek word for brother or sister (adelphos) refers here to a believer, whether man or woman, as part of God’s family; also in verses 13, 15 and 21.
  2. Romans 14:11 Isaiah 45:23
  3. Romans 14:23 Some manuscripts place 16:25-27 here; others after 15:33.