Psalm 1-2
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Book I
(Psalms 1–41)
Psalm 1
The Two Ways
1 Happy are those
who do not follow the advice of the wicked
or take the path that sinners tread
or sit in the seat of scoffers,(A)
2 but their delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law they meditate day and night.(B)
3 They are like trees
planted by streams of water,
which yield their fruit in its season,
and their leaves do not wither.
In all that they do, they prosper.(C)
4 The wicked are not so
but are like chaff that the wind drives away.(D)
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous,(E)
6 for the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.(F)
Psalm 2
God’s Promise to His Anointed
1 Why do the nations conspire
and the peoples plot in vain?(G)
2 The kings of the earth set themselves,
and the rulers take counsel together,
against the Lord and his anointed, saying,(H)
3 “Let us burst their bonds apart
and cast their cords from us.”
4 He who sits in the heavens laughs;
the Lord has them in derision.(I)
5 Then he will speak to them in his wrath
and terrify them in his fury, saying,(J)
6 “I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.”(K)
7 I will tell of the decree of the Lord:
He said to me, “You are my son;
today I have begotten you.(L)
8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage
and the ends of the earth your possession.(M)
9 You shall break them with a rod of iron
and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”(N)
10 Now therefore, O kings, be wise;
be warned, O rulers of the earth.
11 Serve the Lord with fear;
with trembling(O) 12 kiss his feet,[a]
or he will be angry, and you will perish in the way,
for his wrath is quickly kindled.
Happy are all who take refuge in him.(P)
Psalm 15
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Psalm 15
Who Shall Abide in God’s Sanctuary?
A Psalm of David.
1 O Lord, who may abide in your tent?
Who may dwell on your holy hill?(A)
2 Those who walk blamelessly and do what is right
and speak the truth from their heart;(B)
3 who do not slander with their tongue
and do no evil to their friends
nor heap shame upon their neighbors;(C)
4 in whose eyes the wicked are despised
but who honor those who fear the Lord;
who stand by their oath even to their hurt;(D)
5 who do not lend money at interest
and do not take a bribe against the innocent.
Those who do these things shall never be moved.(E)
Psalm 22-24
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Psalm 22
Plea for Deliverance from Suffering and Hostility
To the leader: according to The Deer of the Dawn. A Psalm of David.
1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning?(A)
2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer;
and by night but find no rest.(B)
3 Yet you are holy,
enthroned on the praises of Israel.(C)
4 In you our ancestors trusted;
they trusted, and you delivered them.
5 To you they cried and were saved;
in you they trusted and were not put to shame.(D)
6 But I am a worm and not human,
scorned by others and despised by the people.(E)
7 All who see me mock me;
they sneer at me; they shake their heads;(F)
8 “Commit your cause to the Lord; let him deliver—
let him rescue the one in whom he delights!”(G)
9 Yet it was you who took me from the womb;
you kept me safe on my mother’s breast.(H)
10 On you I was cast from my birth,
and since my mother bore me you have been my God.(I)
11 Do not be far from me,
for trouble is near,
and there is no one to help.
12 Many bulls encircle me;
strong bulls of Bashan surround me;(J)
13 they open wide their mouths at me,
like a ravening and roaring lion.(K)
14 I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint;
my heart is like wax;
it is melted within my breast;(L)
15 my mouth[a] is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue sticks to my jaws;
you lay me in the dust of death.(M)
16 For dogs are all around me;
a company of evildoers encircles me;
they bound my hands and feet.[b](N)
17 I can count all my bones.
They stare and gloat over me;
18 they divide my clothes among themselves,
and for my clothing they cast lots.(O)
19 But you, O Lord, do not be far away!
O my help, come quickly to my aid!
20 Deliver my soul from the sword,
my life[c] from the power of the dog!(P)
21 Save me from the mouth of the lion!
From the horns of the wild oxen you have rescued[d] me.(Q)
22 I will tell of your name to my brothers and sisters;[e]
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:(R)
23 You who fear the Lord, praise him!
All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him;
stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!(S)
24 For he did not despise or abhor
the affliction of the afflicted;
he did not hide his face from me[f]
but heard when I[g] cried to him.(T)
25 From you comes my praise in the great congregation;
my vows I will pay before those who fear him.(U)
26 The poor[h] shall eat and be satisfied;
those who seek him shall praise the Lord.
May your hearts live forever!(V)
27 All the ends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
shall worship before him.[i](W)
28 For dominion belongs to the Lord,
and he rules over the nations.(X)
29 To him,[j] indeed, shall all who sleep in[k] the earth bow down;
before him shall bow all who go down to the dust,
and I shall live for him.[l](Y)
30 Posterity will serve him;
future generations will be told about the Lord(Z)
31 and[m] proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn,
saying that he has done it.(AA)
Psalm 23
The Divine Shepherd
A Psalm of David.
1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.(AB)
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters;[n](AC)
3 he restores my soul.[o]
He leads me in right paths[p]
for his name’s sake.(AD)
4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley,[q]
I fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.(AE)
5 You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.(AF)
6 Surely[r] goodness and mercy[s] shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
my whole life long.[t](AG)
Psalm 24
Entrance into the Temple
Of David. A Psalm.
1 The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it,
the world, and those who live in it,(AH)
2 for he has founded it on the seas
and established it on the rivers.
3 Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?
And who shall stand in his holy place?(AI)
4 Those who have clean hands and pure hearts,
who do not lift up their souls to what is false
and do not swear deceitfully.(AJ)
5 They will receive blessing from the Lord
and vindication from the God of their salvation.(AK)
6 Such is the company of those who seek him,
who seek the face of the God of Jacob.[u] Selah
7 Lift up your heads, O gates!
and be lifted up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in!(AL)
8 Who is the King of glory?
The Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord, mighty in battle.(AM)
9 Lift up your heads, O gates!
and be lifted up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in!(AN)
10 Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of hosts,
he is the King of glory. Selah
Footnotes
- 22.15 Cn: Heb strength
- 22.16 Meaning of Heb uncertain
- 22.20 Heb my only one
- 22.21 Heb answered
- 22.22 Or kindred
- 22.24 Heb him
- 22.24 Heb he
- 22.26 Or afflicted
- 22.27 Gk Syr Jerome: Heb you
- 22.29 Cn: Heb They have eaten and
- 22.29 Cn: Heb all the fat ones
- 22.29 Compare Gk Syr Vg: Heb and he who cannot keep himself alive
- 22.31 Compare Gk: Heb it will be told about the Lord to the generation,
they will come and - 23.2 Heb waters of rest
- 23.3 Or life
- 23.3 Or paths of righteousness
- 23.4 Or the valley of the shadow of death
- 23.6 Or Only
- 23.6 Or kindness
- 23.6 Heb for length of days
- 24.6 Gk Syr: Heb your face, O Jacob
Psalm 47
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Psalm 47
God’s Rule over the Nations
To the leader. Of the Korahites. A Psalm.
1 Clap your hands, all you peoples;
shout to God with loud songs of joy.(A)
2 For the Lord, the Most High, is awesome,
a great king over all the earth.(B)
3 He subdued peoples under us
and nations under our feet.(C)
4 He chose our heritage for us,
the pride of Jacob whom he loves. Selah(D)
5 God has gone up with a shout,
the Lord with the sound of a trumpet.(E)
6 Sing praises to God, sing praises;
sing praises to our King, sing praises.(F)
7 For God is the king of all the earth;
sing praises with a psalm.[a](G)
8 God is king over the nations;
God sits on his holy throne.(H)
9 The princes of the peoples gather
as the people of the God of Abraham.
For the shields of the earth belong to God;
he is highly exalted.(I)
Footnotes
- 47.7 Heb Maskil
Psalm 68
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Psalm 68
Praise and Thanksgiving
To the leader. Of David. A Psalm. A Song.
1 Let God rise up; let his enemies be scattered;
let those who hate him flee before him.(A)
2 As smoke is driven away, so drive them away;
as wax melts before the fire,
let the wicked perish before God.(B)
3 But let the righteous be joyful;
let them exult before God;
let them be jubilant with joy.(C)
4 Sing to God; sing praises to his name;
lift up a song to him who rides upon the clouds[a]—
his name is the Lord—
be exultant before him.(D)
5 Father of orphans and protector of widows
is God in his holy habitation.(E)
6 God gives the desolate a home to live in;
he leads out the prisoners to prosperity,
but the rebellious live in a parched land.(F)
7 O God, when you went out before your people,
when you marched through the wilderness, Selah(G)
8 the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain
at the presence of God, the God of Sinai,
at the presence of God, the God of Israel.(H)
9 Rain in abundance, O God, you showered abroad;
you restored your heritage when it languished;(I)
10 your flock found a dwelling in it;
in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy.(J)
11 The Lord gives the command;
great is the company of those[b] who bore the tidings:
12 “The kings of the armies, they flee, they flee!”
The women at home divide the spoil,(K)
13 though they stay among the sheepfolds—
the wings of a dove covered with silver,
its pinions with green gold.(L)
14 When the Almighty[c] scattered kings there,
snow fell on Zalmon.(M)
15 O mighty mountain, mountain of Bashan;
O many-peaked mountain, mountain of Bashan!
16 Why do you look with envy, O many-peaked mountain,
at the mount that God desired for his abode,
where the Lord will reside forever?(N)
17 With mighty chariotry, twice ten thousand,
thousands upon thousands,
the Lord came from Sinai into the holy place.[d](O)
18 You ascended the high mount,
leading captives in your train
and receiving gifts from people,
even from those who rebel against the Lord God’s abiding there.(P)
19 Blessed be the Lord,
who daily bears us up;
God is our salvation. Selah(Q)
20 Our God is a God of salvation,
and to God, the Lord, belongs escape from death.(R)
21 But God will shatter the heads of his enemies,
the hairy crown of those who walk in their guilty ways.(S)
22 The Lord said,
“I will bring them back from Bashan;
I will bring them back from the depths of the sea,(T)
23 so that you may bathe[e] your feet in blood,
so that the tongues of your dogs may have their share from the foe.”(U)
24 Your solemn processions are seen,[f] O God,
the processions of my God, my King, into the sanctuary—(V)
25 the singers in front, the musicians last,
between them young women playing tambourines:(W)
26 “Bless God in the great congregation,
the Lord, O you who are of Israel’s fountain!”(X)
27 There is Benjamin, the least of them, in the lead,
the princes of Judah in a body,
the princes of Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali.(Y)
28 Summon your might, O God;
show your strength, O God, as you have done for us before.
29 Because of your temple at Jerusalem,
kings bear gifts to you.(Z)
30 Rebuke the wild animals that live among the reeds,
the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples.
Trample[g] under foot those who lust after tribute;
scatter the peoples who delight in war.[h](AA)
31 Let bronze be brought from Egypt;
let Cush hasten to stretch out its hands to God.(AB)
32 Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth;
sing praises to the Lord, Selah
33 O rider in the heavens, the ancient heavens;
listen, he sends out his voice, his mighty voice.(AC)
34 Ascribe power to God,
whose majesty is over Israel
and whose power is in the skies.(AD)
35 Awesome is God in his[i] sanctuary,
the God of Israel;
he gives power and strength to his people.
Blessed be God!(AE)
Footnotes
- 68.4 Or cast up a highway for him who rides through the deserts
- 68.11 Or company of the women
- 68.14 Traditional rendering of Heb Shaddai
- 68.17 Cn: Heb The Lord among them Sinai in the holy (place)
- 68.23 Gk Syr Tg: Heb shatter
- 68.24 Or have been seen
- 68.30 Cn: Heb Trampling
- 68.30 Meaning of Heb of 68.30 is uncertain
- 68.35 Gk: Heb from your
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.