81 The Lord makes us strong! Sing praises! Sing to Israel’s God!

² Sing, accompanied by drums; pluck the sweet lyre and harp. ³ Sound the trumpet! Come to the joyous celebrations at full moon, new moon, and all the other holidays. ⁴ For God has given us these times of joy; they are scheduled in the laws of Israel. ⁵ He gave them as reminders of his war against Egypt where we were slaves on foreign soil.

I heard an unknown voice that said, ⁶ “Now I will relieve your shoulder of its burden; I will free your hands from their heavy tasks.” ⁷ He said, “You cried to me in trouble, and I saved you; I answered from Mount Sinai^[a] where the thunder hides. I tested your faith at Meribah, when you complained there was no water. ⁸ Listen to me, O my people, while I give you stern warnings. O Israel, if you will only listen! ⁹ You must never worship any other god, nor ever have an idol in your home.^{[b] 10} For it was I, Jehovah your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt. Only test me!^[c] Open your mouth wide and see if I won’t fill it. You will receive every blessing you can use!

¹¹ “But no, my people won’t listen. Israel doesn’t want me around. ¹² So I am letting them go their blind and stubborn way, living according to their own desires.

¹³ “But oh, that my people would listen to me! Oh, that Israel would follow me, walking in my paths! ¹⁴ How quickly then I would subdue her enemies! How soon my hands would be upon her foes! ¹⁵ Those who hate the Lord would cringe before him; their desolation would last forever. ¹⁶ But he would feed you with the choicest foods. He would satisfy you with honey for the taking.”^[d]