My Rock and My Fortress

Of David.

144 Blessed be the Lord, my (A)rock,
    (B)who trains my hands for war,
    and my fingers for battle;
he is my (C)steadfast love and my (D)fortress,
    my (E)stronghold and my deliverer,
my (F)shield and he in whom I take refuge,
    who (G)subdues peoples[a] under me.

O Lord, (H)what is man that you (I)regard him,
    or the son of man that you think of him?
(J)Man is like a breath;
    his days are like (K)a passing (L)shadow.

(M)Bow your heavens, O Lord, and come down!
    (N)Touch the mountains so that they smoke!
(O)Flash forth the lightning and scatter them;
    (P)send out your arrows and rout them!
(Q)Stretch out your hand from on high;
    (R)rescue me and deliver me from the many waters,
    from the hand (S)of foreigners,
whose mouths speak (T)lies
    and whose right hand is (U)a right hand of falsehood.

I will sing (V)a new song to you, O God;
    upon (W)a ten-stringed harp I will play to you,
10 who gives victory to kings,
    who (X)rescues David his servant from the cruel sword.
11 Rescue me and deliver me
    from the hand (Y)of foreigners,
whose mouths speak (Z)lies
    and whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.

12 May our sons in their youth
    be like (AA)plants full grown,
our daughters like (AB)corner pillars
    cut for the structure of a palace;
13 (AC)may our granaries be full,
    (AD)providing all kinds of produce;
may our sheep bring forth thousands
    and ten thousands in our fields;
14 may our cattle be heavy with young,
    suffering no mishap or failure in bearing;[b]
may there be no (AE)cry of distress in our streets!
15 (AF)Blessed are the people to whom such blessings fall!
    (AG)Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 144:2 Many Hebrew manuscripts, Dead Sea Scroll, Jerome, Syriac, Aquila; most Hebrew manuscripts subdues my people
  2. Psalm 144:14 Hebrew with no breaking in or going out

144 (Mizmor of Dovid). Baruch Hashem my Tzur (rock) which teacheth my hands for war, and my fingers for milchamah (battle);

My Chesed, and my Metzudah (Fortress); my Stronghold, and my Deliverer; my Mogen, and He in Whom I take refuge; Who subdueth my people under me.

Hashem, what is adam, that Thou takest knowledge of him! Or the ben enosh, that Thou takest account of him!

Adam is like hevel; his days are as a tzel that passeth away.

Part Thy heavens, Hashem, and come down; touch the harim, and they shall smoke.

Cast forth lightning, and scatter them; shoot Thine khitzim (arrows), and destroy them.

Send Thine Yad from above; rescue me, and deliver me out of mayim rabbim, from the yad Bnei Nekhar;

Whose mouth speaketh shav (lies), and their right hand is a right hand of sheker.

I will sing a shir chadash unto Thee, O Elohim; upon a nevel of ten strings will I make music unto Thee.

10 It is He that giveth Teshu’ah (deliverance, salvation) unto melachim; Who delivereth Dovid His eved from the cherev ra’ah.

11 Rescue me, and save me from the yad Bnei Nekhar, whose mouth speaketh shav (lies) and their right hand is a right yad of sheker;

12 In their youth, may baneinu (our sons) be like plants full grown; may benoteinu (our daughters) be like cornerstones, columns wrought for the Heikhal;

13 That our barns may be full, affording all manner of provision; that our tzon may bring forth thousands and ten thousands in our meadows;

14 That our oxen may be strong to labor; that there be no peretz (breach) nor golus; that there be no cry of anquish in our streets.

15 Ashrei are such people; Ashrei is the people that Hashem is Elohav.