Old/New Testament
The Reign of the Righteous King.
A Psalm of Solomon.
72 Give the king (A)Your judgments, God,
And (B)Your righteousness to the king’s son.
2 [a]May [b]he (C)judge Your people with righteousness
And [c](D)Your afflicted with justice.
3 [d]May the mountains bring [e](E)peace to the people,
And the hills, in righteousness.
4 [f]May he (F)vindicate the [g]afflicted of the people,
Save the children of the needy,
And crush the oppressor.
5 [h]May they fear You (G)while the sun shines,
And [i]as long as the moon shines, throughout all generations.
6 [j]May he come down (H)like rain upon the mown grass,
Like (I)showers that water the earth.
7 [k]May the (J)righteous flourish in his days,
As well as an (K)abundance of peace, until the moon is no more.
8 May he also rule (L)from sea to sea,
And from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.
9 [l]May (M)the nomads of the desert (N)bow before him,
And his enemies (O)lick the dust.
10 [m]May the kings of (P)Tarshish and of the [n](Q)islands bring gifts;
May the kings of (R)Sheba and (S)Seba (T)offer tributes.
11 [o]And may all (U)kings bow down before him,
All (V)nations serve him.
12 For he will (W)save the needy when he cries for help,
The [p]afflicted also, and him who has no helper.
13 He will have (X)compassion on the poor and needy,
And he will save the [q]lives of the needy.
14 He will [r](Y)rescue their [s]life from oppression and violence,
And their blood will be (Z)precious in his sight;
15 So may he live, and may the (AA)gold of Sheba be given to him;
And [t]they are to pray for him continually;
[u]They are to bless him all day long.
16 May there be abundance of grain on the earth on top of the mountains;
Its fruit will wave like the cedars of (AB)Lebanon;
And may those from the city flourish like the (AC)vegetation of the earth.
17 May his (AD)name endure forever;
May his name produce descendants [v](AE)as long as the sun shines;
And may people (AF)wish blessings on themselves by him;
(AG)May all nations call him blessed.
18 (AH)Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
Who alone (AI)works wonders.
19 And blessed be His (AJ)glorious name forever;
And may the whole (AK)earth be filled with His glory.
(AL)Amen and Amen.
20 The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.
BOOK 3
The End of the Wicked Contrasted with That of the Righteous.
A Psalm of Asaph.
73 God certainly is (AM)good to Israel,
To those who are (AN)pure in heart!
2 But as for me, (AO)my feet came close to stumbling,
My steps [w]had almost slipped.
3 For I was (AP)envious of the [x]arrogant
As I saw the (AQ)prosperity of the wicked.
4 For there are no pains in their death,
And their belly is fat.
5 They are (AR)not [y]in trouble like other people,
Nor are they (AS)tormented together with the rest of mankind.
6 Therefore arrogance is (AT)their necklace;
The (AU)garment of violence covers them.
7 Their eye [z]bulges from (AV)fatness;
The imaginations of their heart overflow.
8 They (AW)mock and [aa]wickedly speak of oppression;
They (AX)speak from on high.
9 They have (AY)set their mouth [ab]against the heavens,
And their tongue [ac]parades through the earth.
10 Therefore [ad]his people return here,
And (AZ)abundant waters are drunk by them.
11 They say, “(BA)How does God know?
And is there knowledge [ae]with the Most High?”
12 Behold, (BB)these are the wicked;
And always (BC)at ease, they have increased in wealth.
13 Surely (BD)in vain I have [af]kept my heart pure
And (BE)washed my hands in innocence;
14 For I have been stricken (BF)all day long,
And [ag](BG)punished every morning.
15 If I had said, “I will speak this way,”
Behold, I would have betrayed the (BH)generation of Your children.
16 When I (BI)thought of understanding this,
It was [ah]troublesome in my sight
17 Until I entered the [ai](BJ)sanctuary of God;
Then I perceived their (BK)end.
18 You indeed put them on (BL)slippery ground;
You dropped them into [aj](BM)ruin.
19 How they are [ak](BN)destroyed in a moment!
They are utterly swept away by (BO)sudden terrors!
20 Like a (BP)dream when one awakes,
Lord, when (BQ)stirred, You will (BR)despise their image.
21 When my (BS)heart was embittered
And I was (BT)pierced [al]within,
22 Then I was (BU)stupid and ignorant;
I was like an (BV)animal [am]before You.
23 Nevertheless (BW)I am continually with You;
You have taken hold of my right hand.
24 You will (BX)guide me with Your plan,
And afterward (BY)receive me [an]to glory.
25 (BZ)Whom do I have in heaven but You?
And with You, I desire nothing on earth.
26 My (CA)flesh and my heart may fail,
But God is the [ao]strength of my heart and my (CB)portion forever.
27 For, behold, (CC)those who are far from You will (CD)perish;
You have destroyed all those who [ap](CE)are unfaithful to You.
28 But as for me, (CF)the nearness of God is good for me;
I have made the Lord [aq]God my (CG)refuge,
So that I may (CH)tell of all Your works.
Deep Concern for Israel
9 (A)I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying; my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, 2 that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. 3 For (B)I could [a]wish that I myself were (C)accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my countrymen, my kinsmen (D)according to the flesh, 4 who are (E)Israelites, to whom belongs (F)the adoption as sons and daughters, (G)the glory, (H)the covenants, (I)the giving of the Law, (J)the temple service, and (K)the promises; 5 whose are (L)the fathers, and (M)from whom is the [b]Christ according to the flesh, (N)who is over all, (O)God (P)blessed [c]forever. Amen.
6 But it is not as though (Q)the word of God has failed. (R)For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; 7 nor are they all children (S)because they are Abraham’s [d](T)descendants, but: “[e](U)through Isaac your [f]descendants shall be named.” 8 That is, it is not the children of the flesh [g]who are (V)children of God, but the (W)children of the promise are regarded as [h](X)descendants. 9 For this is the word of promise: “(Y)At this time I will come, and Sarah will have a son.” 10 (Z)And not only that, but there was also (AA)Rebekah, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac; 11 for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that (AB)God’s purpose according to His choice would [i]stand, not [j]because of works but [k]because of Him who calls, 12 it was said to her, “(AC)The older will serve the younger.” 13 Just as it is written: “(AD)Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.”
14 (AE)What shall we say then? (AF)There is no injustice with God, is there? [l](AG)Far from it! 15 For He says to Moses, “(AH)I will have mercy on whomever I have mercy, and I will show compassion to whomever I show compassion.”
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