Psalm 45-49
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Psalm 45
Ode for a Royal Wedding
To the leader: according to Lilies. Of the Korahites. A Maskil. A love song.
1 My heart overflows with a goodly theme;
I address my verses to the king;
my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.(A)
2 You are the most handsome of men;
grace is poured upon your lips;
therefore God has blessed you forever.(B)
3 Gird your sword on your thigh, O mighty one,
in your glory and majesty.(C)
4 In your majesty ride on victoriously
for the cause of truth and to defend[a] the right;
let your right hand teach you dread deeds.(D)
5 Your arrows are sharp
in the heart of the king’s enemies;
the peoples fall under you.
6 Your throne, O God,[b] endures forever and ever.
Your royal scepter is a scepter of equity;(E)
7 you love righteousness and hate wickedness.
Therefore God, your God, has anointed you
with the oil of gladness beyond your companions;(F)
8 your robes are all fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia.
From ivory palaces stringed instruments make you glad;(G)
9 daughters of kings are among your ladies of honor;
at your right hand stands the queen in gold of Ophir.(H)
10 Hear, O daughter, consider and incline your ear;
forget your people and your father’s house,(I)
11 and the king will desire your beauty.
Since he is your lord, bow to him;(J)
12 Daughter Tyre will seek your favor with gifts,
the richest of the people(K) 13 with all kinds of wealth.
The princess is decked in her chamber with gold-woven robes;[c](L)
14 in many-colored robes she is led to the king;
behind her the virgins, her companions, follow.(M)
15 With joy and gladness they are led along
as they enter the palace of the king.
16 In the place of ancestors you, O king,[d] shall have sons;
you will make them princes in all the earth.(N)
17 I will cause your name to be celebrated in all generations;
therefore the peoples will praise you forever and ever.(O)
Psalm 46
God’s Defense of His City and People
To the leader. Of the Korahites. According to Alamoth. A Song.
1 God is our refuge and strength,
a very present[e] help in trouble.(P)
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,
though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea,(Q)
3 though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble with its tumult. Selah(R)
4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy habitation of the Most High.(S)
5 God is in the midst of the city;[f] it shall not be moved;
God will help it when the morning dawns.(T)
6 The nations are in an uproar; the kingdoms totter;
he utters his voice; the earth melts.(U)
7 The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge.[g] Selah(V)
8 Come, behold the works of the Lord;
see what desolations he has brought on the earth.(W)
9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
he breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
he burns the shields with fire.(X)
10 “Be still, and know that I am God!
I am exalted among the nations;
I am exalted in the earth.”(Y)
11 The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge.[h] Selah
Psalm 47
God’s Rule over the Nations
To the leader. Of the Korahites. A Psalm.
1 Clap your hands, all you peoples;
shout to God with loud songs of joy.(Z)
2 For the Lord, the Most High, is awesome,
a great king over all the earth.(AA)
3 He subdued peoples under us
and nations under our feet.(AB)
4 He chose our heritage for us,
the pride of Jacob whom he loves. Selah(AC)
5 God has gone up with a shout,
the Lord with the sound of a trumpet.(AD)
6 Sing praises to God, sing praises;
sing praises to our King, sing praises.(AE)
7 For God is the king of all the earth;
sing praises with a psalm.[i](AF)
8 God is king over the nations;
God sits on his holy throne.(AG)
9 The princes of the peoples gather
as the people of the God of Abraham.
For the shields of the earth belong to God;
he is highly exalted.(AH)
Psalm 48
The Glory and Strength of Zion
A Song. A Psalm of the Korahites.
1 Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised
in the city of our God.
His holy mountain,(AI) 2 beautiful in elevation,
is the joy of all the earth,
Mount Zion, in the far north,
the city of the great King.(AJ)
3 Within its citadels God
has shown himself a sure defense.(AK)
4 Then the kings assembled;
they came on together.(AL)
5 As soon as they saw it, they were astounded;
they were in panic; they took to flight;(AM)
6 trembling took hold of them there,
pains as of a woman in labor,
7 as when an east wind shatters
the ships of Tarshish.(AN)
8 As we have heard, so have we seen
in the city of the Lord of hosts,
in the city of our God,
which God establishes forever. Selah
9 We ponder your steadfast love, O God,
in the midst of your temple.
10 Your name, O God, like your praise,
reaches to the ends of the earth.
Your right hand is filled with victory.(AO)
11 Let Mount Zion be glad;
let the towns[j] of Judah rejoice
because of your judgments.(AP)
12 Walk about Zion; go all around it;
count its towers;
13 consider well its ramparts;
go through its citadels,
that you may tell the next generation(AQ)
14 that this is God,
our God forever and ever.
He will be our guide forever.(AR)
Psalm 49
The Folly of Trust in Riches
To the leader. Of the Korahites. A Psalm.
1 Hear this, all you peoples;
give ear, all inhabitants of the world,(AS)
2 both low and high,
rich and poor together.
3 My mouth shall speak wisdom;
the meditation of my heart shall be understanding.(AT)
4 I will incline my ear to a proverb;
I will solve my riddle to the music of the harp.(AU)
5 Why should I fear in times of trouble,
when the iniquity of my persecutors surrounds me,(AV)
6 those who trust in their wealth
and boast of the abundance of their riches?(AW)
7 Truly, no ransom avails for one’s life;[k]
there is no price one can give to God for it.(AX)
8 For the ransom of life is costly
and can never suffice,(AY)
9 that one should live on forever
and never see the Pit.(AZ)
10 When we look at the wise, they die;
fool and dolt perish together
and leave their wealth to others.(BA)
11 Their graves[l] are their homes forever,
their dwelling places to all generations,
though they named lands their own.(BB)
12 Mortals cannot abide in their pomp;
they are like the animals that perish.(BC)
13 Such is the fate of the foolhardy,
the end of those[m] who are pleased with their lot. Selah(BD)
14 Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol;
Death shall be their shepherd;
straight to the grave they descend,[n]
and their form shall waste away;
Sheol shall be their home.[o](BE)
15 But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol,
for he will receive me. Selah(BF)
16 Do not be afraid when some become rich,
when the wealth of their houses increases.(BG)
17 For when they die they will carry nothing away;
their wealth will not go down after them.(BH)
18 Though in their lifetime they count themselves happy
—for you are praised when you do well for yourself—(BI)
19 they[p] will go to the company of their ancestors,
who will never again see the light.(BJ)
20 Mortals cannot abide in their pomp;
they are like the animals that perish.(BK)
Footnotes
- 45.4 Cn: Heb and the meekness of
- 45.6 Or Your throne is a throne of God, it
- 45.13 Or people.
All glorious is the princess within, gold embroidery is her clothing - 45.16 Heb lacks O king
- 46.1 Or well proved
- 46.5 Heb of it
- 46.7 Or fortress
- 46.11 Or fortress
- 47.7 Heb Maskil
- 48.11 Heb daughters
- 49.7 Or no one can ransom a brother
- 49.11 Gk Syr Compare Tg: Heb their inward thought
- 49.13 Tg: Heb after them
- 49.14 Cn: Heb the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning
- 49.14 Meaning of Heb uncertain
- 49.19 Cn: Heb you
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.