¹⁹ They ^(A)made a calf in Horeb
    and worshiped a metal image.
²⁰ They ^(B)exchanged the glory of God^[a]
    for the image of an ox that eats grass.
²¹ They ^(C)forgot God, their Savior,
    who had done great things in Egypt,
²² wondrous works in ^(D)the land of Ham,
    and awesome deeds by the Red Sea.
²³ Therefore ^(E)he said he would destroy them—
    had not Moses, his ^(F)chosen one,
^(G)stood in the breach before him,
    to turn away his wrath from destroying them.

²⁴ Then they ^(H)despised ^(I)the pleasant land,
    having ^(J)no faith in his promise.
²⁵ They ^(K)murmured in their tents,
    and did not obey the voice of the Lord.
²⁶ Therefore he ^(L)raised his hand and swore to them
    that he would make them fall in the wilderness,
²⁷ and would make their offspring fall among the nations,
    ^(M)scattering them among the lands.

²⁸ Then they ^(N)yoked themselves to the ^(O)Baal of Peor,
    and ate sacrifices offered to ^(P)the dead;
²⁹ they provoked the Lord to anger with their deeds,
    and a plague broke out among them.
³⁰ Then ^(Q)Phinehas stood up and intervened,
    and the plague was stayed.
³¹ And that was ^(R)counted to him as righteousness
    from generation to generation forever.

³² They ^(S)angered him at the waters of Meribah,
    and it went ill with Moses on their account,
³³ for they ^(T)made his spirit bitter,^[b]
    and he ^(U)spoke rashly with his lips.

³⁴ They did not ^(V)destroy the peoples,
    ^(W)as the Lord commanded them,
³⁵ but they ^(X)mixed with the nations
    and learned to do as they did.
³⁶ They served their idols,
    which became ^(Y)a snare to them.
³⁷ They ^(Z)sacrificed their sons
    and their daughters to ^(AA)the demons;
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 ^(AB)polluted with blood.
³⁹ Thus they ^(AC)became unclean by their acts,
    and ^(AD)played the whore in their deeds.

⁴⁰ Then ^(AE)the anger of the Lord was kindled against ^(AF)his people,
    and he abhorred his ^(AG)heritage;
⁴¹ he ^(AH)gave them into the hand of the nations,
    so that those who hated them ruled over them.
⁴² Their enemies ^(AI)oppressed them,
    and they were brought into subjection under their power.
^43 (AJ)Many times he delivered them,
    but they were rebellious in their ^(AK)purposes
    and were ^(AL)brought low through their iniquity.

⁴⁴ Nevertheless, he looked upon their distress,
    when he ^(AM)heard their cry.
⁴⁵ For their sake he ^(AN)remembered his covenant,
    and ^(AO)relented according to ^(AP)the abundance of his steadfast love.
⁴⁶ He caused them to be ^(AQ)pitied
    by all those who held them captive.

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

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

² “No doubt you are the people,
    and wisdom will die with you.
³ But I have ^(A)understanding as well as you;
    I am not inferior to you.
    Who does not know ^(B)such things as these?
⁴ I am ^(C)a laughingstock to my friends;
    I, who ^(D)called to God and he answered me,
    a just and blameless man, am a laughingstock.
⁵ In the thought of one who is ^(E)at ease there is contempt for misfortune;
    it is ready for those whose feet slip.
^6 (F)The tents of robbers are at peace,
    and those who provoke God are secure,
    who bring their god in their hand.^[a]

⁷ “But ask the beasts, and they will teach you;
    the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you;
⁸ or the bushes of the earth, and they will teach you;^[b]
    and the fish of the sea will declare to you.
⁹ Who among all these does not know
    that ^(G)the hand of the Lord has done this?
¹⁰ In ^(H)his hand is the life of every living thing
    and the breath of all mankind.
¹¹ Does not ^(I)the ear test words
    as the palate tastes food?
¹² Wisdom is with ^(J)the aged,
    and understanding in length of days.

^13 (K)“With God^[c] are wisdom and might;
    he has counsel and understanding.
¹⁴ If he tears down, none can rebuild;
    if he ^(L)shuts a man in, none can open.
¹⁵ If he ^(M)withholds the waters, they dry up;
    if he ^(N)sends them out, they overwhelm the land.
¹⁶ With him are strength and ^(O)sound wisdom;
    the deceived and the deceiver are his.
¹⁷ He leads ^(P)counselors away stripped,
    and ^(Q)judges he makes fools.
¹⁸ He ^(R)looses the bonds of kings
    and binds a waistcloth on their hips.
¹⁹ He leads priests away stripped
    and overthrows the mighty.
²⁰ He deprives of speech those who are trusted
    ^(S)and takes away the discernment of the elders.
²¹ He ^(T)pours contempt on princes
    and loosens the belt of the strong.
²² He ^(U)uncovers the deeps out of darkness
    and brings ^(V)deep darkness to light.
²³ He ^(W)makes nations great, and he destroys them;
    he enlarges nations, and ^(X)leads them away.
²⁴ He takes away understanding from the chiefs of the people of the earth
    and ^(Y)makes them wander in a trackless waste.
²⁵ They ^(Z)grope in the dark without light,
    and he makes them ^(AA)stagger like a drunken man.

^(C)“As I swore in my wrath,
‘They shall not enter my rest,’”

^(E)“They shall not enter my rest.”

^(G)“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts.”