¹ O God, why have you rejected us so long?
    Why is your anger so intense against the sheep of your own pasture?
² Remember that we are the people you chose long ago,
    the tribe you redeemed as your own special possession!
    And remember Jerusalem,^[b] your home here on earth.
³ Walk through the awful ruins of the city;
    see how the enemy has destroyed your sanctuary.

⁴ There your enemies shouted their victorious battle cries;
    there they set up their battle standards.
⁵ They swung their axes
    like woodcutters in a forest.
⁶ With axes and picks,
    they smashed the carved paneling.
⁷ They burned your sanctuary to the ground.
    They defiled the place that bears your name.
⁸ Then they thought, “Let’s destroy everything!”
    So they burned down all the places where God was worshiped.

⁹ We no longer see your miraculous signs.
    All the prophets are gone,
    and no one can tell us when it will end.
¹⁰ How long, O God, will you allow our enemies to insult you?
    Will you let them dishonor your name forever?
¹¹ Why do you hold back your strong right hand?
    Unleash your powerful fist and destroy them.

¹² You, O God, are my king from ages past,
    bringing salvation to the earth.
¹³ You split the sea by your strength
    and smashed the heads of the sea monsters.
¹⁴ You crushed the heads of Leviathan^[c]
    and let the desert animals eat him.
¹⁵ You caused the springs and streams to gush forth,
    and you dried up rivers that never run dry.
¹⁶ Both day and night belong to you;
    you made the starlight^[d] and the sun.
¹⁷ You set the boundaries of the earth,
    and you made both summer and winter.

¹⁸ See how these enemies insult you, Lord.
    A foolish nation has dishonored your name.
¹⁹ Don’t let these wild beasts destroy your turtledoves.
    Don’t forget your suffering people forever.

²⁰ Remember your covenant promises,
    for the land is full of darkness and violence!
²¹ Don’t let the downtrodden be humiliated again.
    Instead, let the poor and needy praise your name.

²² Arise, O God, and defend your cause.
    Remember how these fools insult you all day long.
²³ Don’t overlook what your enemies have said
    or their growing uproar.

¹ O God, pagan nations have conquered your land,
    your special possession.
They have defiled your holy Temple
    and made Jerusalem a heap of ruins.
² They have left the bodies of your servants
    as food for the birds of heaven.
The flesh of your godly ones
    has become food for the wild animals.
³ Blood has flowed like water all around Jerusalem;
    no one is left to bury the dead.
⁴ We are mocked by our neighbors,
    an object of scorn and derision to those around us.

⁵ O Lord, how long will you be angry with us? Forever?
    How long will your jealousy burn like fire?
⁶ Pour out your wrath on the nations that refuse to acknowledge you—
    on kingdoms that do not call upon your name.
⁷ For they have devoured your people Israel,^[a]
    making the land a desolate wilderness.
⁸ Do not hold us guilty for the sins of our ancestors!
    Let your compassion quickly meet our needs,
    for we are on the brink of despair.

⁹ Help us, O God of our salvation!
    Help us for the glory of your name.
Save us and forgive our sins
    for the honor of your name.
¹⁰ Why should pagan nations be allowed to scoff,
    asking, “Where is their God?”
Show us your vengeance against the nations,
    for they have spilled the blood of your servants.
¹¹ Listen to the moaning of the prisoners.
    Demonstrate your great power by saving those condemned to die.

¹² O Lord, pay back our neighbors seven times
    for the scorn they have hurled at you.
¹³ Then we your people, the sheep of your pasture,
    will thank you forever and ever,
    praising your greatness from generation to generation.

⁵ If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
    let my right hand forget how to play the harp.
⁶ May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth
    if I fail to remember you,
    if I don’t make Jerusalem my greatest joy.

⁷ O Lord, remember what the Edomites did
    on the day the armies of Babylon captured Jerusalem.
“Destroy it!” they yelled.
    “Level it to the ground!”
⁸ O Babylon, you will be destroyed.
    Happy is the one who pays you back
    for what you have done to us.
⁹ Happy is the one who takes your babies
    and smashes them against the rocks!