33 1-3 Good people, cheer God!
    Right-living people sound best when praising.
Use guitars to reinforce your Hallelujahs!
    Play his praise on a grand piano!
Compose your own new song to him;
    give him a trumpet fanfare.

4-5 For God’s Word is solid to the core;
    everything he makes is sound inside and out.
He loves it when everything fits,
    when his world is in plumb-line true.
Earth is drenched
    in God’s affectionate satisfaction.

6-7 The skies were made by God’s command;
    he breathed the word and the stars popped out.
He scooped Sea into his jug,
    put Ocean in his keg.

8-9 Earth-creatures, bow before God;
    world-dwellers—down on your knees!
Here’s why: he spoke and there it was,
    in place the moment he said so.

10-12 God takes the wind out of Babel pretense,
    he shoots down the world’s power-schemes.
God’s plan for the world stands up,
    all his designs are made to last.
Blessed is the country with God for God;
    blessed are the people he’s put in his will.

13-15 From high in the skies God looks around,
    he sees all Adam’s brood.
From where he sits
    he overlooks all us earth-dwellers.
He has shaped each person in turn;
    now he watches everything we do.

16-17 No king succeeds with a big army alone,
    no warrior wins by brute strength.
Horsepower is not the answer;
    no one gets by on muscle alone.

18-19 Watch this: God’s eye is on those who respect him,
    the ones who are looking for his love.
He’s ready to come to their rescue in bad times;
    in lean times he keeps body and soul together.

20-22 We’re depending on God;
    he’s everything we need.
What’s more, our hearts brim with joy
    since we’ve taken for our own his holy name.
Love us, God, with all you’ve got—
    that’s what we’re depending on.

Psalm 33

The Sovereignty of the Lord.

Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous,
    for praise is fitting for the upright.
Give thanks to the Lord with the harp;
    make music to Him with an instrument of ten strings.
Sing to Him a new song;
    play an instrument skillfully with a joyful shout.

For the word of the Lord is upright,
    and all His work is done in truth.
He loves righteousness and justice;
    the earth is full of the lovingkindness of the Lord.

By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
    and all their host by the breath of His mouth.
He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap;
    He puts the depths in storehouses.
Let all the earth fear the Lord;
    let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.
For He spoke, and it was done;
    He commanded, and it stood fast.

10 The Lord frustrates the counsel of the nations;
    He restrains the purposes of the people.
11 The counsel of the Lord stands forever,
    the purposes of His heart to all generations.

12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
    the people whom He has chosen as His inheritance.
13 The Lord looks from heaven;
    He sees all the sons of men.
14 From the place of His habitation He gazes
    on all the inhabitants of the earth;
15 He fashions their hearts alike;
    He considers all their works.

16 No king is saved by a great army;
    a mighty man is not delivered by great strength.
17 A horse is a vain hope for safety;
    it will not deliver by its great strength.
18 The eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him,
    on those who hope in His lovingkindness,
19 to deliver their soul from death,
    and to keep them alive in famine.

20 Our soul waits for the Lord;
    He is our help and our shield.
21 For our heart will rejoice in Him,
    because we have trusted in His holy name.
22 Let Your lovingkindness, O Lord, be on us,
    just as we hope in You.

The Sovereignty of the Lord in Creation and History

33 Rejoice (A)in the Lord, O you righteous!
For praise from the upright is beautiful.
Praise the Lord with the harp;
[a]Make melody to Him with an instrument of ten strings.
Sing to Him a new song;
Play skillfully with a shout of joy.

For the word of the Lord is right,
And all His work is done in truth.
He loves righteousness and justice;
The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.

(B)By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
And all the (C)host of them (D)by the breath of His mouth.
(E)He gathers the waters of the sea together [b]as a heap;
He lays up the deep in storehouses.

Let all the earth fear the Lord;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.
For (F)He spoke, and it was done;
He commanded, and it stood fast.

10 (G)The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect.
11 (H)The counsel of the Lord stands forever,
The plans of His heart to all generations.
12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
The people He has (I)chosen as His own inheritance.

13 (J)The Lord looks from heaven;
He sees all the sons of men.
14 From the place of His dwelling He looks
On all the inhabitants of the earth;
15 He fashions their hearts individually;
(K)He [c]considers all their works.

16 (L)No king is saved by the multitude of an army;
A mighty man is not delivered by great strength.
17 (M)A horse is a [d]vain hope for safety;
Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength.

18 (N)Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him,
On those who hope in His mercy,
19 To deliver their soul from death,
And (O)to keep them alive in famine.

20 Our soul waits for the Lord;
He is our help and our shield.
21 For our heart shall rejoice in Him,
Because we have trusted in His holy name.
22 Let Your mercy, O Lord, be upon us,
Just as we hope in You.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 33:2 Lit. Sing to Him
  2. Psalm 33:7 LXX, Tg., Vg. in a vessel
  3. Psalm 33:15 understands
  4. Psalm 33:17 false

33 Sing with joy in Hashem, O ye tzaddikim; for tehillah is fitting for the yesharim (upright ones).

Hodu l’Hashem with kinnor (harp); make music unto Him with the ten stringed nevel (lyre).

Sing unto Him a shir chadash (new song); play skillfully with a teru’ah (shout of joy).

For the Devar Hashem is yashar; and kol ma’aseihu (all His deeds) are done in emunah (faithfulness).

He loveth Tzedakah and Mishpat; ha’aretz is full of the chesed Hashem.

By the Devar Hashem were Shomayim made; and all the tz’va (host) of them by the ruach (breath) of His mouth [MJ 11:3; Yn 1:1; Psa 56:5].

He gathereth the mey hayam (waters of the sea) like a mound; He layeth up the tehomot (ocean depths) in otzarot (storehouses, vaults).

Let kol ha’aretz fear Hashem; let kol yoshvei tevel (all the inhabitants of the world) stand in awe of Him.

For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood firm.

10 Hashem annuls the atzat Goyim (plan of the Goyim); He foils the machsh’vot Amim (schemes of the peoples).

11 The atzat Hashem standeth firm l’olam, the machsh’vot of His lev l’dor va’dor (from generation to generation).

12 Ashrei is the Goy whose Elohav is Hashem; and HaAm whom He hath chosen for His own nachalah.

13 Hashem looketh down from Shomayim: He beholdeth kol Bnei HaAdam.

14 From the place of His habitation He looketh upon kol yoshvei ha’aretz.

15 He formeth their hearts yachad; He considereth all their ma’asim (deeds).

16 There is no melech saved by the multitude of an army; a gibbor is not delivered by rav ko’ach.

17 A sus is a sheker (vain, false thing) for teshu’ah (deliverance, salvation, safety); neither shall it save any by its great strength.

18 Hinei, the eye of Hashem is upon them that fear Him, upon them that hope in His chesed;

19 To deliver their nefesh from mavet (death), and to keep them alive in ra’av (famine).

20 Our nefesh waiteth for Hashem; He is ezrienu (our help) and moginneinu (our shield).

21 For libeinu (our heart) shall rejoice in Him, because we have trusted b’Shem Kadsho (in His holy Name).

22 Let Thy chesed, Hashem, be upon us, even as we have hoped in Thee.