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A Prayer of Praise[a]

27 The Lord is my light and my salvation;
    I will fear no one.
The Lord protects me from all danger;
    I will never be afraid.

When evil people attack me and try to kill me,
    they stumble and fall.
Even if a whole army surrounds me,
    I will not be afraid;
even if enemies attack me,
    I will still trust God.[b]

I have asked the Lord for one thing;
    one thing only do I want:
to live in the Lord's house all my life,
    to marvel there at his goodness,
    and to ask for his guidance.
In times of trouble he will shelter me;
    he will keep me safe in his Temple
    and make me secure on a high rock.
So I will triumph over my enemies around me.
    With shouts of joy I will offer sacrifices in his Temple;
    I will sing, I will praise the Lord.

Hear me, Lord, when I call to you!
    Be merciful and answer me!
When you said, “Come worship me,”
I answered, “I will come, Lord.”
    Don't hide yourself from me!

Don't be angry with me;
    don't turn your servant away.
You have been my help;
    don't leave me, don't abandon me,
    O God, my savior.
10 My father and mother may abandon me,
    but the Lord will take care of me.

11 Teach me, Lord, what you want me to do,
    and lead me along a safe path,
    because I have many enemies.
12 Don't abandon me to my enemies,
    who attack me with lies and threats.

13 I know that I will live to see
    the Lord's goodness in this present life.
14 Trust in the Lord.
    Have faith, do not despair.
Trust in the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 27:1 HEBREW TITLE: By David.
  2. Psalm 27:3 still trust God; or not lose courage.

Psalm 27

Of David.

The Lord is my light(A) and my salvation(B)
    whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold(C) of my life—
    of whom shall I be afraid?(D)

When the wicked advance against me
    to devour[a] me,
it is my enemies and my foes
    who will stumble and fall.(E)
Though an army besiege me,
    my heart will not fear;(F)
though war break out against me,
    even then I will be confident.(G)

One thing(H) I ask from the Lord,
    this only do I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
    all the days of my life,(I)
to gaze on the beauty of the Lord
    and to seek him in his temple.
For in the day of trouble(J)
    he will keep me safe(K) in his dwelling;
he will hide me(L) in the shelter of his sacred tent
    and set me high upon a rock.(M)

Then my head will be exalted(N)
    above the enemies who surround me;(O)
at his sacred tent I will sacrifice(P) with shouts of joy;(Q)
    I will sing(R) and make music(S) to the Lord.

Hear my voice(T) when I call, Lord;
    be merciful to me and answer me.(U)
My heart says of you, “Seek his face!(V)
    Your face, Lord, I will seek.
Do not hide your face(W) from me,
    do not turn your servant away in anger;(X)
    you have been my helper.(Y)
Do not reject me or forsake(Z) me,
    God my Savior.(AA)
10 Though my father and mother forsake me,
    the Lord will receive me.
11 Teach me your way,(AB) Lord;
    lead me in a straight path(AC)
    because of my oppressors.(AD)
12 Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes,
    for false witnesses(AE) rise up against me,
    spouting malicious accusations.

13 I remain confident of this:
    I will see the goodness of the Lord(AF)
    in the land of the living.(AG)
14 Wait(AH) for the Lord;
    be strong(AI) and take heart
    and wait for the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 27:2 Or slander

(By David.)

A Prayer of Praise

You, Lord, are the light
    that keeps me safe.
I am not afraid of anyone.
You protect me,
    and I have no fears.
Brutal people may attack
and try to kill me,
    but they will stumble.
Fierce enemies may attack,
    but they will fall.
Armies may surround me,
    but I won't be afraid;
war may break out,
    but I will trust you.

I ask only one thing, Lord:
Let me live in your house
    every day of my life
to see how wonderful you are
    and to pray in your temple.

In times of trouble, Lord,
    you will protect me.
You will hide me in your tent
and keep me safe
    on top of a mighty rock.[a]
You will let me defeat
    all my enemies.
Then I will celebrate,
    as I enter your tent
with animal sacrifices
    and songs of praise.

Please listen when I pray!
    Have pity. Answer my prayer.
My heart tells me to pray.
I am eager to see your face,
    so don't hide from me.
I am your servant, Lord,
and you have helped me.
    Don't turn from me in anger.
You alone keep me safe.
    Don't reject or desert me.
10 Even if my father and mother
should desert me,
    you will take care of me.

11 Teach me to follow, Lord,
and lead me on the right path
    because of my enemies.
12 Don't let them do to me
    what they want.
People tell lies about me
    and make violent threats,
13 but I know I will live
    to see how kind you are.

14 Trust the Lord!
Be brave and strong
    and trust the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. 27.5 mighty rock: See the note at 18.2.

Psalm 27

A psalm of David.

The Lord is my light and my salvation—
    so why should I be afraid?
The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger,
    so why should I tremble?
When evil people come to devour me,
    when my enemies and foes attack me,
    they will stumble and fall.
Though a mighty army surrounds me,
    my heart will not be afraid.
Even if I am attacked,
    I will remain confident.

The one thing I ask of the Lord
    the thing I seek most—
is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
    delighting in the Lord’s perfections
    and meditating in his Temple.
For he will conceal me there when troubles come;
    he will hide me in his sanctuary.
    He will place me out of reach on a high rock.
Then I will hold my head high
    above my enemies who surround me.
At his sanctuary I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy,
    singing and praising the Lord with music.

Hear me as I pray, O Lord.
    Be merciful and answer me!
My heart has heard you say, “Come and talk with me.”
    And my heart responds, “Lord, I am coming.”
Do not turn your back on me.
    Do not reject your servant in anger.
    You have always been my helper.
Don’t leave me now; don’t abandon me,
    O God of my salvation!
10 Even if my father and mother abandon me,
    the Lord will hold me close.

11 Teach me how to live, O Lord.
    Lead me along the right path,
    for my enemies are waiting for me.
12 Do not let me fall into their hands.
    For they accuse me of things I’ve never done;
    with every breath they threaten me with violence.
13 Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness
    while I am here in the land of the living.

14 Wait patiently for the Lord.
    Be brave and courageous.
    Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.

A Song of Trust in God

Of David.

27 The Lord is my light and the one who saves me.
    So why should I fear anyone?
The Lord protects my life.
    So why should I be afraid?
Evil people may try to destroy my body.
    My enemies and those who hate me attack me,
but they are overwhelmed and defeated.
If an army surrounds me,
    I will not be afraid.
If war breaks out,
    I will trust the Lord.

I ask only one thing from the Lord.
    This is what I want:
Let me live in the Lord’s house
    all my life.
Let me see the Lord’s beauty
    and look with my own eyes at his Temple.
During danger he will keep me safe in his shelter.
    He will hide me in his Holy Tent,
    or he will keep me safe on a high mountain.
My head is higher than my enemies around me.
I will offer joyful sacrifices in his Holy Tent.
    I will sing and praise the Lord.

Lord, hear me when I call;
    have mercy and answer me.
My heart said of you, “Go, worship him.”
    So I come to worship you, Lord.
Do not turn away from me.
    Do not turn your servant away in anger;
    you have helped me.
Do not push me away or leave me alone,
    God, my Savior.
10 If my father and mother leave me,
    the Lord will take me in.
11 Lord, teach me your ways,
    and guide me to do what is right
    because I have enemies.
12 Do not hand me over to my enemies,
    because they tell lies about me
    and say they will hurt me.

13 I truly believe
    I will live to see the Lord’s goodness.
14 Wait for the Lord’s help.
    Be strong and brave,
    and wait for the Lord’s help.