10 Who among you fears the Lord
    and obeys (A)the voice of his servant?
(B)Let him who walks in darkness
    and has no light
trust in the name of the Lord
    and rely on his God.

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10 Who among you fears(A) the Lord
    and obeys(B) the word of his servant?(C)
Let the one who walks in the dark,
    who has no light,(D)
trust(E) in the name of the Lord
    and rely on their God.

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That You May Know

13 I write (A)these things to you who (B)believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.

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Concluding Affirmations

13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God(A) so that you may know that you have eternal life.(B)

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I Cry Out Day and Night Before You

A Song. A Psalm of (A)the Sons of Korah. To the choirmaster: according to (B)Mahalath Leannoth. A Maskil[a] of (C)Heman the Ezrahite.

88 O Lord, (D)God of my salvation,
    I (E)cry out day and night before you.
Let my prayer come before you;
    (F)incline your ear to my cry!

For my soul is full of troubles,
    and (G)my life draws near to (H)Sheol.
I am counted among those who (I)go down to the pit;
    I am a man who has no strength,
like one set loose among the dead,
    like the slain that lie in the grave,
like those whom (J)you remember no more,
    for they are (K)cut off from your hand.
You have put me in (L)the depths of the pit,
    in the (M)regions dark and (N)deep.
Your wrath (O)lies heavy upon me,
    and you overwhelm me with (P)all your waves. Selah

You have caused (Q)my companions to shun me;
    you have made me (R)a horror[b] to them.
I am (S)shut in so that I cannot escape;
    (T)my eye grows dim through sorrow.
Every day I call upon you, O Lord;
    I (U)spread out my hands to you.
10 Do you work wonders for the dead?
    (V)Do the departed rise up to praise you? Selah
11 Is your steadfast love declared in the grave,
    or your faithfulness in Abaddon?
12 Are your (W)wonders known in (X)the darkness,
    or your righteousness in the land of (Y)forgetfulness?

13 But I, O Lord, cry (Z)to you;
    (AA)in the morning my prayer comes before you.
14 O Lord, why (AB)do you cast my soul away?
    Why (AC)do you hide your face from me?
15 Afflicted and close to death from my youth up,
    I suffer your terrors; I am helpless.[c]
16 Your wrath has swept over me;
    your (AD)dreadful assaults destroy me.
17 They (AE)surround me like a flood (AF)all day long;
    they (AG)close in on me together.
18 You have caused (AH)my beloved and my friend to shun me;
    my companions have become darkness.[d]

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 88:1 Probably musical or liturgical terms
  2. Psalm 88:8 Or an abomination
  3. Psalm 88:15 The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain
  4. Psalm 88:18 Or darkness has become my only companion

Psalm 88[a]

A song. A psalm of the Sons of Korah. For the director of music. According to mahalath leannoth.[b] A maskil[c] of Heman the Ezrahite.

Lord, you are the God who saves me;(A)
    day and night I cry out(B) to you.
May my prayer come before you;
    turn your ear to my cry.

I am overwhelmed with troubles(C)
    and my life draws near to death.(D)
I am counted among those who go down to the pit;(E)
    I am like one without strength.(F)
I am set apart with the dead,
    like the slain who lie in the grave,
whom you remember no more,
    who are cut off(G) from your care.

You have put me in the lowest pit,
    in the darkest depths.(H)
Your wrath(I) lies heavily on me;
    you have overwhelmed me with all your waves.[d](J)
You have taken from me my closest friends(K)
    and have made me repulsive to them.
I am confined(L) and cannot escape;(M)
    my eyes(N) are dim with grief.

I call(O) to you, Lord, every day;
    I spread out my hands(P) to you.
10 Do you show your wonders to the dead?
    Do their spirits rise up and praise you?(Q)
11 Is your love declared in the grave,
    your faithfulness(R) in Destruction[e]?
12 Are your wonders known in the place of darkness,
    or your righteous deeds in the land of oblivion?

13 But I cry to you for help,(S) Lord;
    in the morning(T) my prayer comes before you.(U)
14 Why, Lord, do you reject(V) me
    and hide your face(W) from me?

15 From my youth(X) I have suffered(Y) and been close to death;
    I have borne your terrors(Z) and am in despair.(AA)
16 Your wrath(AB) has swept over me;
    your terrors(AC) have destroyed me.
17 All day long they surround me like a flood;(AD)
    they have completely engulfed me.
18 You have taken from me friend(AE) and neighbor—
    darkness is my closest friend.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 88:1 In Hebrew texts 88:1-18 is numbered 88:2-19.
  2. Psalm 88:1 Title: Possibly a tune, “The Suffering of Affliction”
  3. Psalm 88:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
  4. Psalm 88:7 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verse 10.
  5. Psalm 88:11 Hebrew Abaddon

In the Day of Trouble I Seek the Lord

To the choirmaster: according to (A)Jeduthun. A Psalm of (B)Asaph.

77 I (C)cry aloud to God,
    aloud to God, and he will hear me.
(D)In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord;
    in (E)the night my (F)hand is stretched out without wearying;
    my soul (G)refuses to be comforted.
When I remember God, I (H)moan;
    when I meditate, my spirit faints. Selah

You hold my eyelids open;
    I am so (I)troubled that I cannot speak.

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Psalm 77[a]

For the director of music. For Jeduthun. Of Asaph. A psalm.

I cried out to God(A) for help;
    I cried out to God to hear me.
When I was in distress,(B) I sought the Lord;
    at night(C) I stretched out untiring hands,(D)
    and I would not be comforted.(E)

I remembered(F) you, God, and I groaned;(G)
    I meditated, and my spirit grew faint.[b](H)
You kept my eyes from closing;
    I was too troubled to speak.(I)

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 77:1 In Hebrew texts 77:1-20 is numbered 77:2-21.
  2. Psalm 77:3 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verses 9 and 15.

“Will the Lord (A)spurn forever,
    and never again (B)be favorable?
Has his steadfast love forever ceased?
    Are his (C)promises at an end for all time?
(D)Has God forgotten to be gracious?
    (E)Has he in anger shut up his compassion?” Selah

10 Then I said, “I will appeal to this,
    to the years of the (F)right hand of the Most High.”[a]

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 77:10 Or This is my grief: that the right hand of the Most High has changed

“Will the Lord reject forever?(A)
    Will he never show his favor(B) again?
Has his unfailing love(C) vanished forever?
    Has his promise(D) failed for all time?
Has God forgotten to be merciful?(E)
    Has he in anger withheld his compassion?(F)

10 Then I thought, “To this I will appeal:
    the years when the Most High stretched out his right hand.(G)

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(A)Then I said, ‘I am driven away
    from your sight;
(B)yet I shall again look
    upon your holy temple.’

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I said, ‘I have been banished
    from your sight;(A)
yet I will look again
    toward your holy temple.’(B)

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