Prayer of an Old Man for Rescue.

71 (A)In You, Lord, I have taken refuge;
Let me never be put to shame.
(B)In Your righteousness rescue me and save me;
(C)Extend Your ear to me and help me.
(D)Be to me a rock of (E)dwelling to which I may continually come;
You have given the (F)commandment to save me,
For You are (G)my rock and my fortress.
(H)Save me, my God, from the hand of the wicked,
From the [a]grasp of the wrongdoer and the ruthless,
For You are my (I)hope;
Lord [b]God, You are my (J)confidence from my youth.
I have (K)leaned on you since my birth;
You are He who (L)took me from my mother’s womb;
My (M)praise is continually [c]of You.

I have become a (N)marvel to many,
For You are (O)my strong refuge.
My (P)mouth is filled with Your praise
And with (Q)Your glory all day long.
Do not cast me away at the (R)time of my old age;
Do not abandon me when my strength fails.
10 For my enemies have spoken [d]against me;
And those who (S)watch for my [e]life (T)have consulted together,
11 Saying, “(U)God has abandoned him;
Pursue and seize him, for there is (V)no one to save him.”

12 God, (W)do not be far from me;
My God, (X)hurry to my aid!
13 May those who are enemies of my soul be (Y)put to shame and consumed;
May they be (Z)covered with disgrace and dishonor, who (AA)seek [f]to injure me.
14 But as for me, I will (AB)wait continually,
And will [g](AC)praise You yet more and more.
15 My (AD)mouth shall tell of Your righteousness
And of (AE)Your salvation all day long;
For I (AF)do not know the art of writing.
16 I will come (AG)with the mighty deeds of the Lord [h]God;
I will (AH)make mention of Your righteousness, Yours alone.

17 God, You (AI)have taught me from my youth,
And I still (AJ)declare Your wondrous deeds.
18 And even when I am (AK)old and gray, God, do not abandon me,
Until I (AL)declare Your [i]strength to this generation,
Your power to all who are to come.
19 [j]For Your (AM)righteousness, God, reaches to the [k]heavens,
You who have (AN)done great things;
God, (AO)who is like You?
20 You who have (AP)shown [l]me many troubles and distresses
Will (AQ)revive [m]me again,
And will bring [n]me up again (AR)from the depths of the earth.
21 May You increase my (AS)greatness
And turn to (AT)comfort me.

22 I will also praise You with [o](AU)a harp,
And Your [p]truth, my God;
I will sing praises to You with the (AV)lyre,
(AW)Holy One of Israel.
23 My lips will (AX)shout for joy when I sing praises to You;
And my (AY)soul, which You have redeemed.
24 My (AZ)tongue also will tell of Your righteousness all day long;
For they are (BA)put to shame, for they are humiliated who seek [q]my harm.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 71:4 Lit palm
  2. Psalm 71:5 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  3. Psalm 71:6 Lit in
  4. Psalm 71:10 Lit with reference to
  5. Psalm 71:10 Lit soul
  6. Psalm 71:13 Lit my injury
  7. Psalm 71:14 Lit add upon all Your praise
  8. Psalm 71:16 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  9. Psalm 71:18 Lit arm
  10. Psalm 71:19 Or And
  11. Psalm 71:19 Lit height
  12. Psalm 71:20 Another reading is us
  13. Psalm 71:20 Another reading is us
  14. Psalm 71:20 Another reading is us
  15. Psalm 71:22 Lit an instrument of a harp
  16. Psalm 71:22 Or faithfulness
  17. Psalm 71:24 Or to injure me

God the Rock of Salvation

71 In (A)You, O Lord, I put my trust;
Let me never be put to shame.
(B)Deliver me in Your righteousness, and cause me to escape;
(C)Incline Your ear to me, and save me.
(D)Be my [a]strong refuge,
To which I may resort continually;
You have given the (E)commandment to save me,
For You are my rock and my fortress.

(F)Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked,
Out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.
For You are (G)my hope, O Lord God;
You are my trust from my youth.
(H)By You I have been [b]upheld from birth;
You are He who took me out of my mother’s womb.
My praise shall be continually of You.

(I)I have become as a wonder to many,
But You are my strong refuge.
Let (J)my mouth be filled with Your praise
And with Your glory all the day.

Do not cast me off in the time of old age;
Do not forsake me when my strength fails.
10 For my enemies speak against me;
And those who lie in wait for my life (K)take counsel together,
11 Saying, “God has forsaken him;
Pursue and take him, for there is none to deliver him.

12 (L)O God, do not be far from me;
O my God, (M)make haste to help me!
13 Let them be [c]confounded and consumed
Who are adversaries of my life;
Let them be covered with reproach and dishonor
Who seek my hurt.

14 But I will hope continually,
And will praise You yet more and more.
15 My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness
And Your salvation all the day,
For I do not know their limits.
16 I will go in the strength of the Lord God;
I will make mention of Your righteousness, of Yours only.

17 O God, You have taught me from my (N)youth;
And to this day I declare Your wondrous works.
18 Now also (O)when I am old and grayheaded,
O God, do not forsake me,
Until I declare Your strength to this generation,
Your power to everyone who is to come.

19 Also (P)Your righteousness, O God, is [d]very high,
You who have done great things;
(Q)O God, who is like You?
20 (R)You, who have shown me great and severe troubles,
(S)Shall revive me again,
And bring me up again from the depths of the earth.
21 You shall increase my greatness,
And comfort me on every side.

22 Also (T)with the lute I will praise You—
And Your faithfulness, O my God!
To You I will sing with the harp,
O (U)Holy One of Israel.
23 My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing to You,
And (V)my soul, which You have redeemed.
24 My tongue also shall talk of Your righteousness all the day long;
For they are confounded,
For they are brought to shame
Who seek my hurt.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 71:3 Lit. rock of refuge or rock of habitation
  2. Psalm 71:6 sustained from the womb
  3. Psalm 71:13 ashamed
  4. Psalm 71:19 great, lit. to the height of heaven