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.

The Happiness of Those Who Trust in God

A Psalm of David (P)when he pretended madness before Abimelech, who drove him away, and he departed.

34 I will (Q)bless the Lord at all times;
His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
My soul shall make its boast in the Lord;
The humble shall hear of it and be glad.
Oh, magnify the Lord with me,
And let us exalt His name together.

I (R)sought the Lord, and He heard me,
And delivered me from all my fears.
They looked to Him and were radiant,
And their faces were not ashamed.
This poor man cried out, and the Lord heard him,
And saved him out of all his troubles.
(S)The [e]angel of the Lord (T)encamps all around those who fear Him,
And delivers them.

Oh, (U)taste and see that the Lord is good;
(V)Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!
Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints!
There is no [f]want to those who fear Him.
10 The young lions lack and suffer hunger;
(W)But those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing.

11 Come, you children, listen to me;
(X)I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
12 (Y)Who is the man who desires life,
And loves many days, that he may see good?
13 Keep your tongue from evil,
And your lips from speaking (Z)deceit.
14 (AA)Depart from evil and do good;
(AB)Seek peace and pursue it.

15 (AC)The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
And His ears are open to their cry.
16 (AD)The face of the Lord is against those who do evil,
(AE)To [g]cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.

17 The righteous cry out, and (AF)the Lord hears,
And delivers them out of all their troubles.
18 (AG)The Lord is near (AH)to those who have a broken heart,
And saves such as [h]have a contrite spirit.

19 (AI)Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
(AJ)But the Lord delivers him out of them all.
20 He guards all his bones;
(AK)Not one of them is broken.
21 (AL)Evil shall slay the wicked,
And those who hate the righteous shall be [i]condemned.
22 The Lord (AM)redeems the soul of His servants,
And none of those who trust in Him shall be condemned.

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
  5. Psalm 34:7 Or Angel
  6. Psalm 34:9 lack
  7. Psalm 34:16 destroy
  8. Psalm 34:18 are crushed in spirit
  9. Psalm 34:21 held guilty

Psalm 33

Sing joyfully(A) to the Lord, you righteous;
    it is fitting(B) for the upright(C) to praise him.
Praise the Lord with the harp;(D)
    make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre.(E)
Sing to him a new song;(F)
    play skillfully, and shout for joy.(G)

For the word of the Lord is right(H) and true;(I)
    he is faithful(J) in all he does.
The Lord loves righteousness and justice;(K)
    the earth is full of his unfailing love.(L)

By the word(M) of the Lord the heavens were made,(N)
    their starry host(O) by the breath of his mouth.
He gathers the waters(P) of the sea into jars[a];(Q)
    he puts the deep into storehouses.
Let all the earth fear the Lord;(R)
    let all the people of the world(S) revere him.(T)
For he spoke, and it came to be;
    he commanded,(U) and it stood firm.

10 The Lord foils(V) the plans(W) of the nations;(X)
    he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.
11 But the plans of the Lord stand firm(Y) forever,
    the purposes(Z) of his heart through all generations.

12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,(AA)
    the people he chose(AB) for his inheritance.(AC)
13 From heaven the Lord looks down(AD)
    and sees all mankind;(AE)
14 from his dwelling place(AF) he watches
    all who live on earth—
15 he who forms(AG) the hearts of all,
    who considers everything they do.(AH)

16 No king is saved by the size of his army;(AI)
    no warrior escapes by his great strength.
17 A horse(AJ) is a vain hope for deliverance;
    despite all its great strength it cannot save.
18 But the eyes(AK) of the Lord are on those who fear him,
    on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,(AL)
19 to deliver them from death(AM)
    and keep them alive in famine.(AN)

20 We wait(AO) in hope for the Lord;
    he is our help and our shield.
21 In him our hearts rejoice,(AP)
    for we trust in his holy name.(AQ)
22 May your unfailing love(AR) be with us, Lord,
    even as we put our hope in you.

Psalm 34[b][c]

Of David. When he pretended to be insane(AS) before Abimelek, who drove him away, and he left.

I will extol the Lord at all times;(AT)
    his praise will always be on my lips.
I will glory(AU) in the Lord;
    let the afflicted hear and rejoice.(AV)
Glorify the Lord(AW) with me;
    let us exalt(AX) his name together.

I sought the Lord,(AY) and he answered me;
    he delivered(AZ) me from all my fears.
Those who look to him are radiant;(BA)
    their faces are never covered with shame.(BB)
This poor man called, and the Lord heard him;
    he saved him out of all his troubles.(BC)
The angel of the Lord(BD) encamps around those who fear him,
    and he delivers(BE) them.

Taste and see that the Lord is good;(BF)
    blessed is the one who takes refuge(BG) in him.
Fear the Lord,(BH) you his holy people,
    for those who fear him lack nothing.(BI)
10 The lions may grow weak and hungry,
    but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.(BJ)
11 Come, my children, listen(BK) to me;
    I will teach you(BL) the fear of the Lord.(BM)
12 Whoever of you loves life(BN)
    and desires to see many good days,
13 keep your tongue(BO) from evil
    and your lips from telling lies.(BP)
14 Turn from evil and do good;(BQ)
    seek peace(BR) and pursue it.

15 The eyes of the Lord(BS) are on the righteous,(BT)
    and his ears are attentive(BU) to their cry;
16 but the face of the Lord is against(BV) those who do evil,(BW)
    to blot out their name(BX) from the earth.

17 The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears(BY) them;
    he delivers them from all their troubles.
18 The Lord is close(BZ) to the brokenhearted(CA)
    and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

19 The righteous person may have many troubles,(CB)
    but the Lord delivers him from them all;(CC)
20 he protects all his bones,
    not one of them will be broken.(CD)

21 Evil will slay the wicked;(CE)
    the foes of the righteous will be condemned.
22 The Lord will rescue(CF) his servants;
    no one who takes refuge(CG) in him will be condemned.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 33:7 Or sea as into a heap
  2. Psalm 34:1 This psalm is an acrostic poem, the verses of which begin with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet.
  3. Psalm 34:1 In Hebrew texts 34:1-22 is numbered 34:2-23.

22 Then the multitude rose up together against them; and the magistrates tore off their clothes (A)and commanded them to be beaten with rods. 23 And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely. 24 Having received such a charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.

The Philippian Jailer Saved

25 But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. 26 (B)Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately (C)all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed. 27 And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself. 28 But Paul called with a loud voice, saying, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here.”

29 Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. 30 And he brought them out and said, (D)“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

31 So they said, (E)“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes. And immediately he and all his family were baptized. 34 Now when he had brought them into his house, (F)he set food before them; and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household.

Paul Refuses to Depart Secretly

35 And when it was day, the magistrates sent the [a]officers, saying, “Let those men go.”

36 So the keeper of the prison reported these words to Paul, saying, “The magistrates have sent to let you go. Now therefore depart, and go in peace.”

37 But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us openly, uncondemned (G)Romans, and have thrown us into prison. And now do they put us out secretly? No indeed! Let them come themselves and get us out.”

38 And the officers told these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Romans. 39 Then they came and pleaded with them and brought them out, and (H)asked them to depart from the city. 40 So they went out of the prison (I)and entered the house of Lydia; and when they had seen the brethren, they encouraged them and departed.

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Footnotes

  1. Acts 16:35 lictors, lit. rod bearers

22 The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods.(A) 23 After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer(B) was commanded to guard them carefully. 24 When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.(C)

25 About midnight(D) Paul and Silas(E) were praying and singing hymns(F) to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken.(G) At once all the prison doors flew open,(H) and everyone’s chains came loose.(I) 27 The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped.(J) 28 But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!”

29 The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.(K) 30 He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”(L)

31 They replied, “Believe(M) in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved(N)—you and your household.”(O) 32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. 33 At that hour of the night(P) the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized.(Q) 34 The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he(R) was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole household.

35 When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: “Release those men.” 36 The jailer(S) told Paul, “The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace.”(T)

37 But Paul said to the officers: “They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens,(U) and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out.”

38 The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed.(V) 39 They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city.(W) 40 After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house,(X) where they met with the brothers and sisters(Y) and encouraged them. Then they left.

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