Psalm 123:1-146:7

English Standard Version

^3 (D)Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us,
    for we have had more than enough of ^(E)contempt.
⁴ Our soul has had more than enough
    of ^(F)the scorn of ^(G)those who are at ease,
    of the contempt of ^(H)the proud.

⁶ Blessed be the Lord,
    who has not given us
    as prey to their teeth!
⁷ We have escaped like a bird
    from ^(P)the snare of the fowlers;
the snare is broken,
    and we have escaped!

^8 (Q)Our help is in the name of the Lord,
    who made heaven and earth.

⁴ Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
    like streams in the Negeb!
^5 (AK)Those who sow in tears
    shall reap with shouts of joy!
⁶ He who goes out weeping,
    bearing the seed for sowing,
shall come home with shouts of joy,
    bringing his sheaves with him.

³ Behold, ^(AQ)children are a heritage from the Lord,
    ^(AR)the fruit of the womb a reward.
⁴ Like arrows in the hand of ^(AS)a warrior
    are the children^[a] of one's youth.
⁵ Blessed is the man
    who fills his quiver with them!
He shall not be put to shame
    when he speaks with his enemies ^(AT)in the gate.^[b]

³ Your wife will be like ^(AY)a fruitful vine
    within your house;
your children will be like ^(AZ)olive shoots
    around your table.
⁴ Behold, thus shall the man be blessed
    who fears the Lord.

^5 (BA)The Lord bless you ^(BB)from Zion!
    May you see ^(BC)the prosperity of Jerusalem
    all the days of your life!
⁶ May you see your ^(BD)children's children!
    ^(BE)Peace be upon Israel!

³ If you, O Lord, should ^(BY)mark iniquities,
    O Lord, who could ^(BZ)stand?
⁴ But with you there is ^(CA)forgiveness,
    ^(CB)that you may be feared.

⁵ I ^(CC)wait for the Lord, ^(CD)my soul waits,
    and ^(CE)in his word I hope;
⁶ my soul ^(CF)waits for the Lord
    more than ^(CG)watchmen for ^(CH)the morning,
    more than watchmen for the morning.

⁷ O Israel, ^(CI)hope in the Lord!
    For ^(CJ)with the Lord there is steadfast love,
    and with him is plentiful redemption.
⁸ And he will ^(CK)redeem Israel
    from all his iniquities.

^3 (CR)O Israel, hope in the Lord
    from this time forth and forevermore.

⁶ Behold, we heard of it in ^(CZ)Ephrathah;
    we found it in ^(DA)the fields of Jaar.
⁷ “Let us go to his dwelling place;
    let us ^(DB)worship at his ^(DC)footstool!”

^8 (DD)Arise, O Lord, and go to your ^(DE)resting place,
    you and the ark of your ^(DF)might.
⁹ Let your ^(DG)priests be ^(DH)clothed with righteousness,
    and let your ^(DI)saints shout for joy.
¹⁰ For the sake of your servant David,
    ^(DJ)do not turn away the face of ^(DK)your anointed one.

^11 (DL)The Lord swore to David a sure oath
    ^(DM)from which he will not turn back:
^(DN)“One of the sons of your body^[d]
    I will set on your throne.
¹² If your sons keep my covenant
    and my testimonies that I shall teach them,
their sons also forever
    shall ^(DO)sit on your throne.”

¹³ For the Lord has ^(DP)chosen Zion;
    he has ^(DQ)desired it for his dwelling place:
¹⁴ “This is my ^(DR)resting place forever;
    here I will ^(DS)dwell, for I have desired it.
¹⁵ I will abundantly ^(DT)bless her provisions;
    I will ^(DU)satisfy her poor with bread.
¹⁶ Her ^(DV)priests I will clothe with salvation,
    and her ^(DW)saints will shout for joy.
¹⁷ There I will make ^(DX)a horn to sprout for David;
    I have prepared ^(DY)a lamp for ^(DZ)my anointed.
¹⁸ His enemies I will ^(EA)clothe with shame,
    but on him his crown will shine.”

³ May the Lord ^(EQ)bless you ^(ER)from Zion,
    he who ^(ES)made heaven and earth!

⁵ For I know that ^(FB)the Lord is great,
    and that our Lord is above all gods.
^6 (FC)Whatever the Lord pleases, he does,
    in heaven and on earth,
    in the seas and all deeps.
^7 (FD)He it is who makes the clouds rise at the end of the earth,
    who ^(FE)makes lightnings for the rain
    and brings forth the wind from his ^(FF)storehouses.

⁸ He it was who ^(FG)struck down the firstborn of Egypt,
    both of man and of beast;
⁹ who in your midst, O Egypt,
    sent ^(FH)signs and wonders
    against Pharaoh and all his servants;
^10 (FI)who struck down many nations
    and killed mighty kings,
^11 (FJ)Sihon, king of the Amorites,
    and ^(FK)Og, king of Bashan,
    and ^(FL)all the kingdoms of Canaan,
¹² and ^(FM)gave their land as a heritage,
    a heritage to his people Israel.

^13 (FN)Your name, O Lord, endures forever,
    ^(FO)your renown,^[g] O Lord, throughout all ages.
^14 (FP)For the Lord will vindicate his people
    and ^(FQ)have compassion on his servants.

^15 (FR)The idols of the nations are silver and gold,
    the work of human hands.
¹⁶ They have mouths, but do not speak;
    they have eyes, but do not see;
¹⁷ they have ears, but do not hear,
    nor is there any breath in their mouths.
¹⁸ Those who make them become like them,
    so do all who trust in them.

^19 (FS)O house of Israel, bless the Lord!
    O house of Aaron, bless the Lord!
²⁰ O house of Levi, bless the Lord!
    You who fear the Lord, bless the Lord!
²¹ Blessed be the Lord ^(FT)from Zion,
    he who ^(FU)dwells in Jerusalem!
^(FV)Praise the Lord!

⁴ to him who alone ^(GA)does great wonders,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
⁵ to him who ^(GB)by understanding ^(GC)made the heavens,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
⁶ to him who ^(GD)spread out the earth ^(GE)above the waters,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
⁷ to him who ^(GF)made the great lights,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
⁸ the sun to rule over the day,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
⁹ the moon and stars to rule over the night,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;

¹⁰ to him who ^(GG)struck down the firstborn of Egypt,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
¹¹ and ^(GH)brought Israel out from among them,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
¹² with ^(GI)a strong hand and an outstretched arm,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
¹³ to him who ^(GJ)divided the Red Sea in two,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
^14 (GK)and made Israel pass through the midst of it,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
¹⁵ but ^(GL)overthrew^[h] Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
¹⁶ to him who ^(GM)led his people through the wilderness,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;

¹⁷ to him ^(GN)who struck down great kings,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
¹⁸ and killed mighty kings,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
¹⁹ Sihon, king of the Amorites,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
²⁰ and Og, king of Bashan,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
²¹ and gave their land as a heritage,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
²² a heritage to Israel his ^(GO)servant,
    for his steadfast love endures forever.

²³ It is he who ^(GP)remembered us in our low estate,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
²⁴ and ^(GQ)rescued us from our foes,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
²⁵ he who ^(GR)gives food to all flesh,
    for his steadfast love endures forever.

²⁶ Give thanks to ^(GS)the God of heaven,
    for his steadfast love endures forever.

^4 (GT)How shall we sing the Lord's song
    in a foreign land?
⁵ If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
    ^(GU)let my right hand forget its skill!
⁶ Let my ^(GV)tongue stick to the roof of my mouth,
    if I do not remember you,
if I do not set Jerusalem
    above my highest joy!

⁷ Remember, O Lord, against the ^(GW)Edomites
    ^(GX)the day of Jerusalem,
how they said, ^(GY)“Lay it bare, lay it bare,
    down to its foundations!”
⁸ O daughter of Babylon, ^(GZ)doomed to be destroyed,
    blessed shall he be who ^(HA)repays you
    with what you have done to us!
⁹ Blessed shall he be who takes your little ones
    and ^(HB)dashes them against the rock!

^4 (HG)All the kings of the earth shall give you thanks, O Lord,
    for they have heard the words of your mouth,
⁵ and they shall sing of ^(HH)the ways of the Lord,
    for great is the glory of the Lord.
^6 (HI)For though the Lord is high, he regards the lowly,
    but the haughty he knows from afar.

^7 (HJ)Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
    you ^(HK)preserve my life;
you ^(HL)stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies,
    and your ^(HM)right hand delivers me.
⁸ The Lord will ^(HN)fulfill his purpose for me;
    ^(HO)your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.
    Do not forsake ^(HP)the work of your hands.

^7 (HY)Where shall I go from your Spirit?
    Or where ^(HZ)shall I flee from your presence?
^8 (IA)If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
    ^(IB)If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
⁹ If I take the wings of the morning
    and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
¹⁰ even there your hand shall ^(IC)lead me,
    and your right hand shall hold me.
¹¹ If I say, ^(ID)“Surely the darkness shall cover me,
    and the light about me be night,”
^12 (IE)even the darkness is not dark to you;
    the night is bright as the day,
    for darkness is as light with you.

¹³ For you ^(IF)formed my inward parts;
    you ^(IG)knitted me together in my mother's womb.
¹⁴ I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.^[l]
(IH)Wonderful are your works;
    my soul knows it very well.
^15 (II)My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
    intricately woven in ^(IJ)the depths of the earth.
¹⁶ Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your ^(IK)book were written, every one of them,
    the days that were formed for me,
    when as yet there was none of them.

¹⁷ How precious to me are your ^(IL)thoughts, O God!
    How vast is the sum of them!
^18 (IM)If I would count them, they are more than ^(IN)the sand.
    I awake, and I am still with you.

¹⁹ Oh that you would ^(IO)slay the wicked, O God!
    O ^(IP)men of blood, ^(IQ)depart from me!
²⁰ They ^(IR)speak against you with malicious intent;
    your enemies ^(IS)take your name in vain.^[m]
21 (IT)Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord?
    And do I not ^(IU)loathe those who ^(IV)rise up against you?
²² I hate them with complete hatred;
    I count them my enemies.

²³ Search me, O God, and know my heart!
    ^(IW)Try me and know my thoughts!^[n]
24 And see if there be any grievous way in me,
    and ^(IX)lead me in ^(IY)the way everlasting!^[o]

⁴ Guard me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;
    preserve me from ^(JG)violent men,
    who have planned to trip up my feet.
⁵ The arrogant have ^(JH)hidden a trap for me,
    and with cords they have spread ^(JI)a net;^[p]
    beside the way they have set ^(JJ)snares for me. Selah

^6 (JK)I say to the Lord, You are my God;
    give ear to ^(JL)the voice of my pleas for mercy, O Lord!
⁷ O Lord, my Lord, ^(JM)the strength of my salvation,
    you have covered my head in the day of battle.
^8 (JN)Grant not, O Lord, the desires of the wicked;
    do not further their^[q] evil plot, or ^(JO)they will be exalted! Selah

⁹ As for the head of those who surround me,
    let ^(JP)the mischief of their lips overwhelm them!
¹⁰ Let ^(JQ)burning coals fall upon them!
    Let them be cast into fire,
    into miry pits, no more to rise!
¹¹ Let not the slanderer be established in the land;
    let evil hunt down the violent man speedily!

¹² I know that the Lord will ^(JR)maintain the cause of the afflicted,
    and ^(JS)will execute justice for the needy.
¹³ Surely ^(JT)the righteous shall give thanks to your name;
    ^(JU)the upright shall dwell in your presence.

^3 (JZ)Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth;
    ^(KA)keep watch over the door of my lips!
^4 (KB)Do not let my heart incline to any evil,
    to busy myself with wicked deeds
in company with men who ^(KC)work iniquity,
    and ^(KD)let me not eat of their delicacies!

^5 (KE)Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness;
    let him rebuke me—it is oil for my head;
    let my head not refuse it.
Yet ^(KF)my prayer is continually against their evil deeds.
⁶ When their judges are ^(KG)thrown over the cliff,^[r]
    then they shall hear my words, for they are pleasant.
⁷ As when one plows and breaks up the earth,
    so shall our bones ^(KH)be scattered at the mouth of Sheol.^[s]

⁸ But ^(KI)my eyes are toward you, O God, my Lord;
    ^(KJ)in you I seek refuge; leave me not defenseless!^[t]
9 Keep me from ^(KK)the trap that they have laid for me
    and from the snares of evildoers!
¹⁰ Let the wicked ^(KL)fall into their own nets,
    while I pass by safely.

³ When my spirit ^(KQ)faints within me,
    you know my way!
In the path where I walk
    they have ^(KR)hidden a trap for me.
^4 (KS)Look to the ^(KT)right and see:
    ^(KU)there is none who takes notice of me;
^(KV)no refuge remains to me;
    no one cares for my soul.

⁵ I cry to you, O Lord;
    I say, “You are my ^(KW)refuge,
    my ^(KX)portion in ^(KY)the land of the living.”
^6 (KZ)Attend to my cry,
    for ^(LA)I am brought very low!
Deliver me from my persecutors,
    ^(LB)for they are too strong for me!
^7 (LC)Bring me out of prison,
    that I may give thanks to your name!
The righteous will surround me,
    for you will ^(LD)deal bountifully with me.

³ For the enemy has pursued my soul;
    ^(LJ)he has crushed my life to the ground;
    ^(LK)he has made me sit in darkness like those long dead.
⁴ Therefore my spirit ^(LL)faints within me;
    my heart within me is appalled.

^5 (LM)I remember the days of old;
    ^(LN)I meditate on all that you have done;
    I ponder the work of your hands.
^6 (LO)I stretch out my hands to you;
    ^(LP)my soul thirsts for you like ^(LQ)a parched land. Selah

^7 (LR)Answer me quickly, O Lord!
    ^(LS)My spirit fails!
^(LT)Hide not your face from me,
    ^(LU)lest I be like those who go down to the pit.
^8 (LV)Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love,
    for in you I ^(LW)trust.
^(LX)Make me know the way I should go,
    ^(LY)for to you I lift up my soul.

^9 (LZ)Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord!
    I have fled to you for refuge.^[v]
10 (MA)Teach me to do your will,
    for you are my God!
^(MB)Let your good Spirit ^(MC)lead me
    on ^(MD)level ground!

^11 (ME)For your name's sake, O Lord, ^(MF)preserve my life!
    In your righteousness ^(MG)bring my soul out of trouble!
¹² And in your steadfast love you will ^(MH)cut off my enemies,
    and you will destroy all the adversaries of my soul,
    for I am your ^(MI)servant.

³ O Lord, ^(MQ)what is man that you ^(MR)regard him,
    or the son of man that you think of him?
^4 (MS)Man is like a breath;
    his days are like ^(MT)a passing ^(MU)shadow.

^5 (MV)Bow your heavens, O Lord, and come down!
    ^(MW)Touch the mountains so that they smoke!
^6 (MX)Flash forth the lightning and scatter them;
    ^(MY)send out your arrows and rout them!
^7 (MZ)Stretch out your hand from on high;
    ^(NA)rescue me and deliver me from the many waters,
    from the hand ^(NB)of foreigners,
⁸ whose mouths speak ^(NC)lies
    and whose right hand is ^(ND)a right hand of falsehood.

⁹ I will sing ^(NE)a new song to you, O God;
    upon ^(NF)a ten-stringed harp I will play to you,
¹⁰ who gives victory to kings,
    who ^(NG)rescues David his servant from the cruel sword.
¹¹ Rescue me and deliver me
    from the hand ^(NH)of foreigners,
whose mouths speak ^(NI)lies
    and whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.

¹² May our sons in their youth
    be like ^(NJ)plants full grown,
our daughters like ^(NK)corner pillars
    cut for the structure of a palace;
^13 (NL)may our granaries be full,
    ^(NM)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;^[x]
may there be no ^(NN)cry of distress in our streets!
^15 (NO)Blessed are the people to whom such blessings fall!
    ^(NP)Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!

^4 (NV)One generation shall commend your works to another,
    and shall declare your mighty acts.
⁵ On ^(NW)the glorious splendor of your majesty,
    and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.
⁶ They shall speak of ^(NX)the might of your awesome deeds,
    and I will declare your greatness.
⁷ They shall pour forth the fame of your ^(NY)abundant goodness
    and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.

⁸ The Lord is ^(NZ)gracious and merciful,
    slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
⁹ The Lord is ^(OA)good to all,
    and his mercy is over all that he has made.

^10 (OB)All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,
    and all your ^(OC)saints shall bless you!
¹¹ They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom
    and tell of your power,
¹² to ^(OD)make known to the children of man your^{[z] (OE)}mighty deeds,
    and ^(OF)the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
^13 (OG)Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
    and your dominion endures throughout all generations.

[The Lord is faithful in all his words
    and kind in all his works.]^[aa]
14 The Lord ^(OH)upholds all who are falling
    and ^(OI)raises up all who are bowed down.
¹⁵ The eyes of all ^(OJ)look to you,
    and you give them their food in due season.
¹⁶ You ^(OK)open your hand;
    you ^(OL)satisfy the desire of every living thing.
¹⁷ The Lord is ^(OM)righteous in all his ways
    and ^(ON)kind in all his works.
¹⁸ The Lord is ^(OO)near to all who call on him,
    to all who call on him ^(OP)in truth.
¹⁹ He ^(OQ)fulfills the desire of those who fear him;
    he also ^(OR)hears their cry and saves them.
²⁰ The Lord ^(OS)preserves all who love him,
    but all the wicked he will destroy.

²¹ My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,
    and ^(OT)let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever.

^3 (OX)Put not your trust in princes,
    ^(OY)in a son of man, in whom there is ^(OZ)no salvation.
⁴ When ^(PA)his breath departs, he returns to the earth;
    on that very day his plans perish.

^5 (PB)Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
    whose ^(PC)hope is in the Lord his God,
^6 (PD)who made heaven and earth,
    the sea, and all that is in them,
^(PE)who keeps faith forever;
^{7     (PF)}who executes justice for the oppressed,
    ^(PG)who gives food to the hungry.

^(PH)The Lord sets the prisoners free;