Psalm 87-98

English Standard Version

⁴ Among those who ^(G)know me I mention ^(H)Rahab and Babylon;
    behold, Philistia and Tyre, with ^(I)Cush^[a]—
    “This one was born there,” they say.
⁵ And of Zion it shall be said,
    “This one and that one were born in her”;
    for the Most High himself will ^(J)establish her.
⁶ The Lord records as he ^(K)registers the peoples,
    “This one was born there.” Selah

^7 (L)Singers and ^(M)dancers alike say,
    “All my ^(N)springs are in you.”

³ For my soul is full of troubles,
    and ^(U)my life draws near to ^(V)Sheol.
⁴ I am counted among those who ^(W)go down to the pit;
    I am a man who has no strength,
⁵ like one set loose among the dead,
    like the slain that lie in the grave,
like those whom ^(X)you remember no more,
    for they are ^(Y)cut off from your hand.
⁶ You have put me in ^(Z)the depths of the pit,
    in the ^(AA)regions dark and ^(AB)deep.
⁷ Your wrath ^(AC)lies heavy upon me,
    and you overwhelm me with ^(AD)all your waves. Selah

⁸ You have caused ^(AE)my companions to shun me;
    you have made me ^(AF)a horror^[c] to them.
I am ^(AG)shut in so that I cannot escape;
^{9     (AH)}my eye grows dim through sorrow.
Every day I call upon you, O Lord;
    I ^(AI)spread out my hands to you.
¹⁰ Do you work wonders for the dead?
    ^(AJ)Do the departed rise up to praise you? Selah
¹¹ Is your steadfast love declared in the grave,
    or your faithfulness in Abaddon?
¹² Are your ^(AK)wonders known in ^(AL)the darkness,
    or your righteousness in the land of ^(AM)forgetfulness?

¹³ But I, O Lord, cry ^(AN)to you;
    ^(AO)in the morning my prayer comes before you.
¹⁴ O Lord, why ^(AP)do you cast my soul away?
    Why ^(AQ)do you hide your face from me?
¹⁵ Afflicted and close to death from my youth up,
    I suffer your terrors; I am helpless.^[d]
16 Your wrath has swept over me;
    your ^(AR)dreadful assaults destroy me.
¹⁷ They ^(AS)surround me like a flood ^(AT)all day long;
    they ^(AU)close in on me together.
¹⁸ You have caused ^(AV)my beloved and my friend to shun me;
    my companions have become darkness.^[e]

⁵ Let ^(BI)the heavens praise your ^(BJ)wonders, O Lord,
    your faithfulness in the assembly of ^(BK)the holy ones!
⁶ For ^(BL)who in the skies can be compared to the Lord?
    ^(BM)Who among the heavenly beings^[g] is like the Lord,
⁷ a God greatly ^(BN)to be feared in the council of ^(BO)the holy ones,
    and awesome above all ^(BP)who are around him?
⁸ O Lord God of hosts,
    ^(BQ)who is mighty as you are, O ^(BR)Lord,
    with your faithfulness all around you?
⁹ You rule the raging of the sea;
    when its waves rise, you ^(BS)still them.
¹⁰ You ^(BT)crushed ^(BU)Rahab like a carcass;
    you ^(BV)scattered your enemies with your mighty arm.
^11 (BW)The heavens are yours; the earth also is yours;
    ^(BX)the world and all that is in it, you have ^(BY)founded them.
^12 (BZ)The north and the south, you have created them;
    ^(CA)Tabor and ^(CB)Hermon ^(CC)joyously praise your name.
¹³ You have a mighty arm;
    strong is your hand, high your right hand.
^14 (CD)Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;
    ^(CE)steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.
¹⁵ Blessed are the people who know ^(CF)the festal shout,
    who walk, O Lord, in ^(CG)the light of your face,
¹⁶ who exult in your ^(CH)name all the day
    and in your righteousness are ^(CI)exalted.
¹⁷ For you are ^(CJ)the glory of their strength;
    by your favor our ^(CK)horn is exalted.
¹⁸ For our ^(CL)shield belongs to the Lord,
    our king to ^(CM)the Holy One of Israel.

^19 (CN)Of old you spoke in a vision to your godly one,^[h] and said:
    “I have ^(CO)granted help to one who is ^(CP)mighty;
    I have exalted one ^(CQ)chosen from the people.
^20 (CR)I have found David, my servant;
    with my holy oil I have ^(CS)anointed him,
²¹ so that my ^(CT)hand shall be established with him;
    my arm also shall strengthen him.
²² The enemy shall not outwit him;
    ^(CU)the wicked shall not humble him.
²³ I will ^(CV)crush his foes before him
    and strike down those who hate him.
²⁴ My ^(CW)faithfulness and my ^(CX)steadfast love shall be with him,
    and in my name shall his ^(CY)horn be exalted.
²⁵ I will set his hand on ^(CZ)the sea
    and his right hand on ^(DA)the rivers.
²⁶ He shall cry to me, ‘You are my ^(DB)Father,
    my God, and ^(DC)the Rock of my salvation.’
²⁷ And I will make him the ^(DD)firstborn,
    ^(DE)the highest of the kings of the earth.
²⁸ My steadfast love I will keep for him forever,
    and my ^(DF)covenant will stand firm^[i] for him.
²⁹ I will establish his ^(DG)offspring forever
    and his ^(DH)throne as ^(DI)the days of the heavens.
^30 (DJ)If his children forsake my law
    and do not walk according to my rules,^[j]
31 if they violate my statutes
    and do not keep my commandments,
³² then I will punish their transgression with ^(DK)the rod
    and their iniquity with stripes,
³³ but I will not remove from him my steadfast love
    or be false to my faithfulness.
³⁴ I will not violate my ^(DL)covenant
    or alter the word that went forth from my lips.
³⁵ Once for all I have sworn ^(DM)by my holiness;
    I will not ^(DN)lie to David.
³⁶ His ^(DO)offspring shall endure forever,
    ^(DP)his ^(DQ)throne as long as ^(DR)the sun before me.
³⁷ Like ^(DS)the moon it shall be established forever,
    ^(DT)a faithful witness in the skies.” Selah

³⁸ But now you have ^(DU)cast off and rejected;
    you are full of wrath against your ^(DV)anointed.
³⁹ You have ^(DW)renounced ^(DX)the covenant with your servant;
    you have ^(DY)defiled his ^(DZ)crown in the dust.
⁴⁰ You have ^(EA)breached all his walls;
    you have laid his strongholds in ruins.
^41 (EB)All who pass by plunder him;
    he has become ^(EC)the scorn of his neighbors.
⁴² You have exalted the right hand of his foes;
    you have made all his enemies rejoice.
⁴³ You have also turned back the edge of his sword,
    and you have not made him stand in battle.
⁴⁴ You have made his splendor to cease
    and cast his throne to the ground.
⁴⁵ You have cut short ^(ED)the days of his youth;
    you have ^(EE)covered him with shame. Selah

^46 (EF)How long, O Lord? Will you hide yourself forever?
    How long will your wrath ^(EG)burn like fire?
^47 (EH)Remember ^(EI)how short my ^(EJ)time is!
    For what vanity you have created all the children of man!
^48 (EK)What man can live and never ^(EL)see death?
    Who can deliver his soul from the power of ^(EM)Sheol? Selah

⁴⁹ Lord, where is your ^(EN)steadfast love of old,
    which by your ^(EO)faithfulness you swore to David?
^50 (EP)Remember, O Lord, how your servants are mocked,
    and how I bear in my ^(EQ)heart the insults^[k] of all the many nations,
⁵¹ with which your enemies mock, O Lord,
    with which they mock ^(ER)the footsteps of your ^(ES)anointed.

^52 (ET)Blessed be the Lord forever!
Amen and Amen.

³ You return man to dust
    and say, ^(FA)“Return, ^(FB)O children of man!”^[m]
4 For ^(FC)a thousand years in your sight
    are but as ^(FD)yesterday when it is past,
    or as ^(FE)a watch in the night.

⁵ You ^(FF)sweep them away as with a flood; they are like ^(FG)a dream,
    like ^(FH)grass that is renewed in the morning:
⁶ in ^(FI)the morning it flourishes and is renewed;
    in the evening it ^(FJ)fades and ^(FK)withers.

⁷ For we are brought to an end by your anger;
    by your wrath we are dismayed.
⁸ You have ^(FL)set our iniquities before you,
    our ^(FM)secret sins in the light of your presence.

⁹ For all our days pass away under your wrath;
    we bring our years to an end like a sigh.
¹⁰ The years of our life are seventy,
    or even by reason of strength eighty;
yet their span^[n] is but toil and trouble;
    they are soon gone, and we fly away.
¹¹ Who considers the power of your anger,
    and your wrath according to the fear of you?

^12 (FN)So teach us to number our days
    that we may get a heart of wisdom.
^13 (FO)Return, O Lord! ^(FP)How long?
    Have ^(FQ)pity on your servants!
¹⁴ Satisfy us in the ^(FR)morning with your steadfast love,
    that we may ^(FS)rejoice and be glad all our days.
¹⁵ Make us glad for as many days as you have ^(FT)afflicted us,
    and for as many years as we have seen evil.
¹⁶ Let your ^(FU)work be shown to your servants,
    and your glorious power to their children.
¹⁷ Let the ^(FV)favor^[o] of the Lord our God be upon us,
    and establish ^(FW)the work of our hands upon us;
    yes, establish the work of our hands!

³ For he will deliver you from ^(GC)the snare of the fowler
    and from the deadly pestilence.
⁴ He will ^(GD)cover you with his pinions,
    and under his ^(GE)wings you will ^(GF)find refuge;
    his ^(GG)faithfulness is ^(GH)a shield and buckler.
^5 (GI)You will not fear ^(GJ)the terror of the night,
    nor the arrow that flies by day,
⁶ nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
    nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.

⁷ A thousand may fall at your side,
    ten thousand at your right hand,
    but it will not come near you.
⁸ You will only look with your eyes
    and ^(GK)see the recompense of the wicked.

⁹ Because you have made the Lord your ^(GL)dwelling place—
    the Most High, who is my ^(GM)refuge^[q]—
^10 (GN)no evil shall be allowed to befall you,
    ^(GO)no plague come near your tent.

^11 (GP)For he will command his ^(GQ)angels concerning you
    to ^(GR)guard you in all your ways.
¹² On their hands they will bear you up,
    lest you ^(GS)strike your foot against a stone.
¹³ You will tread on ^(GT)the lion and the ^(GU)adder;
    the young lion and ^(GV)the serpent you will ^(GW)trample underfoot.

¹⁴ “Because he ^(GX)holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him;
    I will protect him, because he ^(GY)knows my name.
¹⁵ When he ^(GZ)calls to me, I will answer him;
    I will be with him in trouble;
    I will rescue him and ^(HA)honor him.
¹⁶ With ^(HB)long life I will satisfy him
    and ^(HC)show him my salvation.”

⁵ How ^(HO)great are your works, O Lord!
    Your ^(HP)thoughts are very ^(HQ)deep!
⁶ The stupid man cannot know;
    the fool cannot understand this:
⁷ that though ^(HR)the wicked sprout like grass
    and all ^(HS)evildoers flourish,
they are doomed to destruction forever;
⁸     but you, O Lord, are ^(HT)on high forever.
⁹ For behold, your enemies, O Lord,
    for behold, your enemies shall perish;
    all evildoers shall be ^(HU)scattered.

¹⁰ But you have exalted my ^(HV)horn like that of ^(HW)the wild ox;
    you have ^(HX)poured over me^[r] fresh oil.
¹¹ My ^(HY)eyes have seen the downfall of my enemies;
    my ears have heard the doom of my evil assailants.

^12 (HZ)The righteous flourish like the palm tree
    and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
¹³ They are planted in the house of the Lord;
    they flourish in ^(IA)the courts of our God.
¹⁴ They still bear fruit in old age;
    they are ever full of sap and green,
^15 (IB)to declare that the Lord is upright;
    he is my ^(IC)rock, and there is ^(ID)no unrighteousness in him.

^3 (IM)The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
    the floods have lifted up their voice;
    the floods lift up their roaring.
⁴ Mightier than the thunders of many waters,
    mightier than the waves of the sea,
    ^(IN)the Lord ^(IO)on high is mighty!

⁵ Your ^(IP)decrees are very trustworthy;
    ^(IQ)holiness befits your house,
    O Lord, forevermore.

^8 (JE)Understand, O dullest of the people!
    Fools, when will you be wise?
^9 (JF)He who planted the ear, does he not hear?
He who formed the eye, does he not see?
¹⁰ He who ^(JG)disciplines the nations, does he not rebuke?
He who ^(JH)teaches man knowledge—
^{11     (JI)}the Lord—knows the thoughts of man,
    that they are ^(JJ)but a breath.^[s]

^12 (JK)Blessed is the man whom you ^(JL)discipline, O Lord,
    and whom you teach out of your law,
¹³ to give him ^(JM)rest from ^(JN)days of trouble,
    until ^(JO)a pit is dug for the wicked.
^14 (JP)For the Lord will not forsake his ^(JQ)people;
    he will not abandon his ^(JR)heritage;
¹⁵ for ^(JS)justice will return to the righteous,
    and all the upright in heart will ^(JT)follow it.

^16 (JU)Who rises up for me against the wicked?
    Who stands up for me against evildoers?
^17 (JV)If the Lord had not been my help,
    my soul would soon have lived in the land of ^(JW)silence.
¹⁸ When I thought, ^(JX)“My foot slips,”
    your steadfast love, O Lord, ^(JY)held me up.
¹⁹ When the cares of my heart are many,
    your consolations cheer my soul.
²⁰ Can ^(JZ)wicked rulers be allied with you,
    those who frame^[t] injustice by ^(KA)statute?
²¹ They ^(KB)band together against the life of the righteous
    and condemn ^(KC)the innocent to death.^[u]
22 But the Lord has become my ^(KD)stronghold,
    and my God ^(KE)the rock of my ^(KF)refuge.
²³ He will bring back on them ^(KG)their iniquity
    and ^(KH)wipe them out for their wickedness;
    the Lord our God will wipe them out.

⁶ Oh come, let us worship and bow down;
    let us ^(KQ)kneel before the Lord, our ^(KR)Maker!
⁷ For he is our ^(KS)God,
    and we are the people of his ^(KT)pasture,
    and the sheep of his hand.
^(KU)Today, if you ^(KV)hear his voice,
^{8     (KW)}do not harden your hearts, as at ^(KX)Meribah,
    as on the day at ^(KY)Massah in the wilderness,
⁹ when your fathers put me to the ^(KZ)test
    and put me to the proof, though they had seen my ^(LA)work.
^10 (LB)For forty years I loathed that generation
    and said, “They are a people who go astray in their heart,
    and they have not known ^(LC)my ways.”
¹¹ Therefore I ^(LD)swore in my wrath,
    “They shall not enter ^(LE)my rest.”

⁷ Ascribe to the Lord, O ^(LN)families of the peoples,
    ^(LO)ascribe to the Lord glory and strength!
⁸ Ascribe to the Lord ^(LP)the glory due his name;
    bring ^(LQ)an offering, and ^(LR)come into his courts!
⁹ Worship the Lord in ^(LS)the splendor of holiness;^{[v]
    (LT)}tremble before him, all the earth!

¹⁰ Say among the nations, ^(LU)“The Lord reigns!
    Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved;
    he will ^(LV)judge the peoples with equity.”

¹¹ Let ^(LW)the heavens be glad, and let ^(LX)the earth rejoice;
    let ^(LY)the sea roar, and all that fills it;
¹²     let ^(LZ)the field exult, and everything in it!
Then shall all ^(MA)the trees of the forest sing for joy
¹³     before the Lord, for he comes,
    for he comes ^(MB)to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness,
    and the peoples in his faithfulness.

^6 (MN)The heavens proclaim his righteousness,
    and all ^(MO)the peoples see his glory.
⁷ All worshipers of images are ^(MP)put to shame,
    who make their boast in ^(MQ)worthless idols;
    ^(MR)worship him, all you gods!

⁸ Zion hears and ^(MS)is glad,
    and the daughters of Judah rejoice,
    because of your judgments, O Lord.
⁹ For you, O Lord, are ^(MT)most high over all the earth;
    you are exalted far above ^(MU)all gods.

¹⁰ O you who love the Lord, ^(MV)hate evil!
    He ^(MW)preserves the lives of his ^(MX)saints;
    he ^(MY)delivers them from the hand of the wicked.
^11 (MZ)Light ^(NA)is sown^[w] for the righteous,
    and joy for the upright in heart.
^12 (NB)Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous,
    and ^(NC)give thanks to his holy name!

^4 (NN)Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth;
    ^(NO)break forth into joyous song and sing praises!
⁵ Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre,
    with the lyre and the ^(NP)sound of melody!
⁶ With ^(NQ)trumpets and the sound of ^(NR)the horn
    ^(NS)make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord!

^7 (NT)Let the sea roar, and ^(NU)all that fills it;
    ^(NV)the world and those who dwell in it!
⁸ Let the rivers ^(NW)clap their hands;
    let ^(NX)the hills sing for joy together
⁹ before the Lord, for he comes
    to ^(NY)judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness,
    and the peoples with equity.