The Blessedness of Answered Prayer

A Psalm. A Song (A)at the dedication of the house of David.

30 I will extol You, O Lord, for You have (B)lifted me up,
And have not let my foes (C)rejoice over me.
O Lord my God, I cried out to You,
And You (D)healed me.
O Lord, (E)You brought my soul up from the grave;
You have kept me alive, [a]that I should not go down to the pit.

(F)Sing praise to the Lord, you saints of His,
And give thanks at the remembrance of [b]His holy name.
For (G)His anger is but for a moment,
(H)His favor is for life;
Weeping may endure for a night,
But [c]joy comes in the morning.

Now in my prosperity I said,
“I shall never be [d]moved.”
Lord, by Your favor You have made my mountain stand strong;
(I)You hid Your face, and I was troubled.

I cried out to You, O Lord;
And to the Lord I made supplication:
“What profit is there in my blood,
When I go down to the pit?
(J)Will the dust praise You?
Will it declare Your truth?
10 Hear, O Lord, and have mercy on me;
Lord, be my helper!”

11 (K)You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;
You have put off [e]my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness,
12 To the end that my [f]glory may sing praise to You and not be silent.
O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 30:3 So with Qr., Tg.; Kt., LXX, Syr., Vg. from those who descend to the pit
  2. Psalm 30:4 Or His holiness
  3. Psalm 30:5 a shout of joy
  4. Psalm 30:6 shaken
  5. Psalm 30:11 The sackcloth of my mourning
  6. Psalm 30:12 soul

Psalm 30

A song of David. For the dedication of the temple.

I praise You, Eternal One. You lifted me out of that deep, dark pit
    and denied my opponents the pleasure of rubbing in their success.
Eternal One, my True God, I cried out to You for help;
    You mended the shattered pieces of my life.
You lifted me from the grave with a mighty hand,
    gave me another chance,
    and saved me from joining those in that dreadful pit.

Sing, all you who remain faithful!
    Pour out your hearts to the Eternal with praise and melodies;
    let grateful music fill the air and bless His name.
His wrath, you see, is fleeting,
    but His grace lasts a lifetime.
The deepest pains may linger through the night,
    but joy greets the soul with the smile of morning.

When things were quiet and life was easy, I said in arrogance,
    “Nothing can shake me.”
By Your grace, Eternal,
    I thought I was as strong as a mountain;
But when You left my side and hid away,
    I crumbled in fear.

O Eternal One, I called out to You;
    I pleaded for Your compassion and forgiveness:
I’m no good to You dead! What benefits come from my rotting corpse?
    My body in the grave will not praise You.
No songs will rise up from the dust of my bones.
    From dust comes no proclamation of Your faithfulness.
10 Hear me, Eternal Lord—please help me,
    Eternal One—be merciful!”

11 You did it: You turned my deepest pains into joyful dancing;
    You stripped off my dark clothing
    and covered me with joyful light.
12 You have restored my honor. My heart is ready to explode, erupt in new songs!
    It’s impossible to keep quiet!
    Eternal One, my God, my Life-Giver, I will thank You forever.