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The Lord's Goodness to His People

106 (A)Praise the Lord!
Give thanks to the Lord, because he is good;
    his love is eternal.
Who can tell all the great things he has done?
    Who can praise him enough?
Happy are those who obey his commands,
    who always do what is right.

Remember me, Lord, when you help your people;
    include me when you save them.
Let me see the prosperity of your people
    and share in the happiness of your nation,
    in the glad pride of those who belong to you.

We have sinned as our ancestors did;
    we have been wicked and evil.
(B)Our ancestors in Egypt did not understand God's wonderful acts;
    they forgot the many times he showed them his love,
    and they rebelled against the Almighty[a] at the Red Sea.
But he saved them, as he had promised,
    in order to show his great power.
(C)He gave a command to the Red Sea,
    and it dried up;
    he led his people across on dry land.
10 He saved them from those who hated them;
    he rescued them from their enemies.
11 But the water drowned their enemies;
    not one of them was left.
12 (D)Then his people believed his promises
    and sang praises to him.

13 But they quickly forgot what he had done
    and acted without waiting for his advice.
14 (E)They were filled with craving in the desert
    and put God to the test;
15 so he gave them what they asked for,
    but also sent a terrible disease among them.

16 (F)There in the desert they were jealous of Moses
    and of Aaron, the Lord's holy servant.
17 Then the earth opened up and swallowed Dathan
    and buried Abiram and his family;
18 fire came down on their followers
    and burned up those wicked people.

19 (G)They made a gold bull-calf at Sinai
    and worshiped that idol;
20 they exchanged the glory of God
    for the image of an animal that eats grass.
21 They forgot the God who had saved them
    by his mighty acts in Egypt.
22 What wonderful things he did there!
    What amazing things at the Red Sea!
23 When God said that he would destroy his people,
    his chosen servant, Moses, stood up against God
    and kept his anger from destroying them.

24 (H)Then they rejected the pleasant land,
    because they did not believe God's promise.
25 They stayed in their tents and grumbled
    and would not listen to the Lord.
26 So he have them a solemn warning
    that he would make them die in the desert
27 (I)and scatter their descendants among the heathen,
    letting them die in foreign countries.

28 (J)Then at Peor, God's people joined in the worship of Baal
    and ate sacrifices offered to dead gods.
29 They stirred up the Lord's anger by their actions,
    and a terrible disease broke out among them.
30 But Phinehas stood up and punished the guilty,
    and the plague was stopped.
31 This has been remembered in his favor ever since
    and will be for all time to come.

32 (K)At the springs of Meribah the people made the Lord angry,
    and Moses was in trouble on their account.
33 They made him so bitter
    that he spoke without stopping to think.

34 (L)They did not kill the heathen,
    as the Lord had commanded them to do,
35 but they intermarried with them
    and adopted their pagan ways.
36 God's people worshiped idols,
    and this caused their destruction.
37 (M)They offered their own sons and daughters
    as sacrifices to the idols of Canaan.
38 (N)They killed those innocent children,
    and the land was defiled by those murders.
39 They made themselves impure by their actions
    and were unfaithful to God.

40 (O)So the Lord was angry with his people;
    he was disgusted with them.
41 He abandoned them to the power of the heathen,
    and their enemies ruled over them.
42 They were oppressed by their enemies
    and were in complete subjection to them.
43 Many times the Lord rescued his people,
    but they chose to rebel against him
    and sank deeper into sin.
44 Yet the Lord heard them when they cried out,
    and he took notice of their distress.
45 For their sake he remembered his covenant,
    and because of his great love he relented.
46 He made all their oppressors
    feel sorry for them.

47 (P)Save us, O Lord our God,
    and bring us back from among the nations,
so that we may be thankful
    and praise your holy name.

48 Praise the Lord, the God of Israel;
    praise him now and forever!
    Let everyone say, “Amen!”

Praise the Lord!

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 106:7 Probable text the Almighty; Hebrew the sea.

Psalm 106

A Confession of Israel’s Sins

Praise the Lord!
    O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
    for his steadfast love endures forever.(A)
Who can utter the mighty doings of the Lord
    or declare all his praise?(B)
Happy are those who observe justice,
    who do righteousness at all times.(C)

Remember us,[a] O Lord, when you show favor to your people;
    help us[b] when you deliver them,(D)
that we may see the prosperity of your chosen ones,
    that we may rejoice in the gladness of your nation,
    that we may glory in your heritage.(E)

Both we and our ancestors have sinned;
    we have committed iniquity, have done wickedly.(F)
Our ancestors, when they were in Egypt,
    did not consider your wonderful works;
they did not remember the abundance of your steadfast love
    but rebelled against the Most High[c] at the Red Sea.[d](G)
Yet he saved them for his name’s sake,
    so that he might make known his mighty power.(H)
He rebuked the Red Sea,[e] and it became dry;
    he led them through the deep as through a desert.(I)
10 So he saved them from the hand of the foe
    and delivered them from the hand of the enemy.(J)
11 The waters covered their adversaries;
    not one of them was left.(K)
12 Then they believed his words;
    they sang his praise.(L)

13 But they soon forgot his works;
    they did not wait for his counsel.(M)
14 But they had a wanton craving in the wilderness
    and put God to the test in the desert;(N)
15 he gave them what they asked
    but sent a wasting disease among them.(O)

16 They were jealous of Moses in the camp
    and of Aaron, the holy one of the Lord.(P)
17 The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan
    and covered the faction of Abiram.(Q)
18 Fire also broke out in their company;
    the flame burned up the wicked.(R)

19 They made a calf at Horeb
    and worshiped a cast image.(S)
20 They exchanged the glory of God[f]
    for the image of an ox that eats grass.(T)
21 They forgot God, their Savior,
    who had done great things in Egypt,(U)
22 wondrous works in the land of Ham,
    and awesome deeds by the Red Sea.[g](V)
23 Therefore he said he would destroy them—
    had not Moses, his chosen one,
stood in the breach before him,
    to turn away his wrath from destroying them.(W)

24 Then they despised the pleasant land,
    having no faith in his promise.(X)
25 They grumbled in their tents
    and did not obey the voice of the Lord.(Y)
26 Therefore he raised his hand and swore to them
    that he would make them fall in the wilderness(Z)
27 and would disperse[h] their descendants among the nations,
    scattering them over the lands.(AA)

28 Then they attached themselves to the Baal of Peor
    and ate sacrifices offered to the dead;(AB)
29 they provoked the Lord to anger with their deeds,
    and a plague broke out among them.
30 Then Phinehas stood up and interceded,
    and the plague was stopped.(AC)
31 And that has been reckoned to him as righteousness
    from generation to generation forever.(AD)

32 They angered the Lord[i] at the waters of Meribah,
    and it went ill with Moses on their account,(AE)
33 for they made his spirit bitter,
    and he spoke words that were rash.(AF)

34 They did not destroy the peoples,
    as the Lord had commanded them,(AG)
35 but they mingled with the nations
    and learned to do as they did.(AH)
36 They served their idols,
    which became a snare to them.(AI)
37 They sacrificed their sons
    and their daughters to the demons;(AJ)
38 they poured out innocent blood,
    the blood of their sons and daughters,
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan,
    and the land was polluted with blood.(AK)
39 Thus they became unclean by their acts
    and prostituted themselves in their doings.(AL)

40 Then the anger of the Lord was kindled against his people,
    and he abhorred his heritage;(AM)
41 he gave them into the hand of the nations,
    so that those who hated them ruled over them.(AN)
42 Their enemies oppressed them,
    and they were brought into subjection under their power.
43 Many times he delivered them,
    but they were rebellious in their purposes
    and were brought low through their iniquity.(AO)
44 Nevertheless, he regarded their distress
    when he heard their cry.(AP)
45 For their sake he remembered his covenant
    and showed compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love.(AQ)
46 He caused them to be pitied
    by all who held them captive.(AR)

47 Save us, O Lord our God,
    and gather us from among the nations,
that we may give thanks to your holy name
    and glory in your praise.(AS)

48 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
    from everlasting to everlasting.
And let all the people say, “Amen.”
    Praise the Lord!(AT)

Footnotes

  1. 106.4 Heb mss Gk: MT me
  2. 106.4 Heb mss Gk: MT me
  3. 106.7 Cn: Heb rebelled at the sea
  4. 106.7 Or Sea of Reeds
  5. 106.9 Or Sea of Reeds
  6. 106.20 Compare Gk mss: Heb exchanged their glory
  7. 106.22 Or Sea of Reeds
  8. 106.27 Syr: Heb cause to fall
  9. 106.32 Heb him

106 Halleluyah!

Give thanks to Adonai; for he is good,
for his grace continues forever.
Who can express Adonai’s mighty doings
or proclaim in full his praise?
How happy are those who act justly,
who always do what is right!

Remember me, Adonai, when you show favor to your people,
keep me in mind when you save them;
so I can see how well things are going
with those whom you have chosen,
so that I can rejoice in your nation’s joy,
and glory in your heritage.

Together with our ancestors, we have sinned,
done wrong, acted wickedly.
Our ancestors in Egypt failed to grasp
the meaning of your wonders.
They didn’t keep in mind your great deeds of grace
but rebelled at the sea, at the Sea of Suf.
Yet he saved them for his own name’s sake,
to make known his mighty power.
He rebuked the Sea of Suf, and it dried up;
he led them through its depths as through a desert.
10 He saved them from hostile hands,
redeemed them from the power of the foe.
11 The water closed over their adversaries;
not one of them was left.

12 Then they believed his words,
and they sang his praise.
13 But soon they forgot his deeds
and wouldn’t wait for his counsel.

14 In the desert they gave way to insatiable greed;
in the wastelands they put God to the test.
15 He gave them what they wanted
but sent meagerness into their souls.

16 In the camp they were jealous of Moshe
and Aharon, Adonai’s holy one.
17 The earth opened up and swallowed Datan
and closed over Aviram’s allies.
18 A fire blazed out against that group,
the flames consumed the wicked.

19 In Horev they fashioned a calf,
they worshipped a cast metal image.
20 Thus they exchanged their Glory
for the image of an ox that eats grass!
21 They forgot God, who had saved them,
who had done great things in Egypt,
22 wonders in the land of Ham,
fearsome deeds by the Sea of Suf.
23 Therefore he said that he would destroy them,
[and he would have,] had not Moshe his chosen one
stood before him in the breach
to turn back his destroying fury.

24 Next, they rejected the beautiful land,
they didn’t trust his promise;
25 and they complained in their tents,
they didn’t obey Adonai.
26 Therefore, raising his hand, he swore to them
that he would strike them down in the desert
27 and strike down their descendants among the nations,
dispersing them in foreign lands.

28 Now they joined themselves to Ba‘al-P‘or
and ate meat sacrificed to dead things.
29 Thus they provoked him to anger with their deeds,
so that a plague broke out among them.
30 Then Pinchas stood up and executed judgment;
so the plague was checked.
31 That was credited to him as righteousness,
through all generations forever.

32 They angered him at the M’rivah Spring,
and Moshe suffered on their account;
33 for when they embittered his spirit,
[Moshe] spoke up without thinking.

34 They failed to destroy the peoples,
as Adonai had ordered them to do,
35 but mingled with the nations
and learned to follow their ways.
36 They went on to serve their idols,
which became a snare for them.
37 They even sacrificed their sons
and their daughters to demons.
38 Yes, they shed innocent blood,
the blood of their own sons and daughters,
whom they sacrificed to Kena‘an’s false gods,
polluting the land with blood.
39 Thus they were defiled by their deeds;
they prostituted themselves by their actions,

40 For this Adonai’s fury blazed up against his people,
and he detested his heritage.
41 He handed them over to the power of the nations,
and those who hated them ruled over them.
42 Their enemies oppressed them
and kept them in subjection to their power.
43 Many times [God] rescued them,
but they kept making plans to rebel.
Thus they were brought low
by their own wrongdoing.

44 Still he took pity on their distress
whenever he heard their cry.
45 For their sakes he kept in mind his covenant
and in his limitless grace relented,
46 causing them to be treated with compassion
by all who had taken them captive.

47 Save us, Adonai our God!
Gather us from among the nations,
so that we can thank your holy name
and glory in praising you.

48 Blessed be Adonai, the God of Isra’el,
from eternity past to eternity future.
Now let all the people say,
Amen! Halleluyah!”