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Psalm 105

The Lord Remembers His Covenant

Opening Praise

Give thanks to the Lord.
Proclaim[a] his name.
Make his deeds known among the peoples.
Sing to him, make music to him.
Meditate on all his wonders.
Take pride in his holy name.
Let the heart of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
Search for the Lord and his strength.
Seek his face always.
Remember the wonders which he has done,
his signs, and the judgments from his mouth,
you descendants of Abraham his servant,
you sons of Jacob, his chosen ones.
He is the Lord our God.
His judgments are in all the earth.

The Promise of the Covenant

He remembers his covenant forever,
the word he commanded for a thousand generations,
the covenant which he made with Abraham,
and his oath to Isaac.
10 Yes, he confirmed it to Jacob as a statute,
to Israel as an everlasting covenant.
11 He said, “To you I will give the land of Canaan,
the territory you will possess.”

The Lord Is Faithful in Canaan:
His Protection of the Patriarchs

12 While they were few in number,
just a little group and aliens in the land,
13 they moved around from nation to nation,
from one kingdom to another people.
14 He did not allow anyone to oppress them,
and he rebuked kings because of them:
15 “Do not touch my anointed ones,
and do not harm my prophets.”

The Lord Is Faithful in Egypt:
His Protection of Joseph

16 Then he summoned a famine on the land.
He destroyed their entire food supply.
17 He sent ahead of them a man sold as a slave, Joseph.
18 They hurt his feet with chains.
His throat was clamped in an iron collar,
19 until the time when his predictions came true.
The promise of the Lord tested him.
20 The king sent for him and released him.
The ruler of peoples set him free.
21 He made him master of his house
and ruler over all his possessions,
22 to bind his officials by his will,
to teach his elders wisdom.

The Lord Is Faithful in Egypt:
His Protection of the People

23 Then Israel came to Egypt.
Jacob lived as an alien in the land of Ham.[b]
24 Then the Lord made his people very fruitful.
He made them too numerous for their foes.
25 He turned the Egyptians’ hearts so they hated his people.
They dealt deceitfully with his servants.
26 He sent Moses his servant,
and Aaron, whom he had chosen.
27 They performed his signs among them,
his warning signs in the land of Ham.
28 He sent darkness, and it became extremely dark,
because Israel[c] did not rebel against his words.
29 He turned their waters into blood,
and he caused their fish to die.
30 Their land swarmed with frogs,
even in the rooms of their kings.
31 He spoke, and a swarm of flies came.
There were lice[d] throughout their borders.
32 He gave them hail instead of rain,
with blazing lightning throughout their land.
33 Then he struck down their vines and fig trees,
and he broke down the trees within their borders.
34 He spoke, and the locusts came,
and grasshoppers without number.
35 They ate every green plant in their land.
They ate the produce of their soil.
36 Then he struck down all the firstborn in their land,
the first fruit of all their virility.
37 Then he brought Israel out with silver and gold.
From among their tribes no one stumbled.
38 Egypt was glad when they went out,
because fear of Israel had fallen on them.

The Lord Is Faithful in the Wilderness

39 He spread out a cloud as a canopy
and fire to give light at night.
40 They asked, and he brought quail,
and he satisfied them with bread from heaven.
41 He opened the rock, and water gushed out.
It flowed in the desert like a river.

The Lord Is Faithful in the Land

42 Because he remembered his holy word to Abraham, his servant,
43 he brought out his people with rejoicing,
his chosen ones with a joyful shout.
44 He gave them the lands of the nations,
and they took possession of the work of other peoples
45 so that they could keep his statutes and observe his laws.

Praise the Lord.[e]

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 105:1 Or call on
  2. Psalm 105:23 The Egyptians were descendants of Noah’s son Ham (Genesis 10:6).
  3. Psalm 105:28 The subject of the verb is supplied for clarity.
  4. Psalm 105:31 The identity of the insects is uncertain. Lice was the traditional translation. Gnats, fleas, ticks, and mosquitoes are more recent suggestions. The requirement is that it be an insect that is on people and that is more than an annoyance.
  5. Psalm 105:45 Hebrew hallelu Yah

Psalm 96

Sing to the Lord a New Song

Call to Worship

Sing to the Lord a new song.
Sing to the Lord, all the earth.
Sing to the Lord. Praise his name.
Proclaim the good news of his salvation from day to day.
Tell about his glory among the nations,
about his marvelous deeds among all peoples.

Praise Him Alone

For great is the Lord and worthy of great praise.
He is to be feared above all gods.
For all the gods of the peoples are “nothings,”[a]
but the Lord made the heavens.
Splendor and majesty are before him.
Power and beauty are in his sanctuary.
Ascribe to the Lord, families of peoples,
Ascribe to the Lord glory and power.
Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name.
Bring a gift and come into his courtyards.
Bow down to the Lord in the splendor of his holiness.[b]
Look away from his face,[c] all the earth.

10 Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.”
The world is firmly established.
It will not be moved.
He will judge the peoples with fairness.

Let Nature Praise Him

11 Let the heavens rejoice.
Let the earth celebrate.
Let the sea roar,
and all that fills it.
12 Let the fields be overjoyed,
and everything that is in them.
Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy
13     before the Lord, for he comes,
    for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
and the peoples in his faithfulness.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 96:5 Or non-gods or mini-gods. The Hebrew word is a diminutive of either the word god or the word not.
  2. Psalm 96:9 Or in holy garments
  3. Psalm 96:9 Or tremble in his presence

The Psalm of Thanks[a]

On that day David first gave the directive to give thanks to the Lord through the ministry of Asaph and his associates:

Give thanks to the Lord.
    Call on his name.
    Make known his deeds among the peoples.
Sing to him.
    Make music to him.
    Tell about all his wonderful acts.[b]
10 Praise his holy name.
    The hearts of those who seek the Lord will rejoice.
11 Seek the Lord and his strength.
    Seek his presence continually.
12 Remember his wonderful acts, his signs,
        and the judgments from his mouth,
13 you descendants[c] of Israel, his servant,
    you sons of Jacob, his chosen ones.
14 He is the Lord our God.
    His judgments are in all the earth.
15 Remember his covenant forever,
    a word he commanded for a thousand generations,
16 his covenant which he made with Abraham,
    which was his sworn promise to Isaac.
17 He confirmed it to Jacob as a statute for Israel,
        an everlasting covenant.
18 He said, “To you I will give the land of Canaan
        as a portion for your inheritance,
19 even though your numbers are small,
    and you are insignificant,
    and you are living in it as aliens.”
20 They were wandering from nation to nation
    and from one kingdom to another people.
21 Yet he did not permit anyone to oppress them.
    He rebuked kings on their account:
22 “You must not touch my anointed ones.
    Against my prophets you must do no harm.”
23 Sing to the Lord, all the earth.
    Proclaim the good news of his salvation from day to day.
24 Declare his glory among the nations,
    his wonderful acts among all the peoples,
25 for great is the Lord and greatly to be praised.
    He is to be feared above all gods.
26 For all the gods of the peoples are not gods at all.[d]
    But the Lord made the heavens.
27 Honor and majesty are before him.
    Strength and joy are in his place.
28 Ascribe to the Lord, you families of the peoples.
    Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
29 Ascribe to the Lord the glory of his name.
    Bring an offering and come before him.
    Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness.
30 Tremble before him, all the earth.
    Surely the world stands firm.
    It shall never be overthrown.
31 The heavens will be glad.[e]
    The earth will rejoice.
    They will say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.”
32 The sea and everything that fills it will roar.
    The fields and everything in them will celebrate.
33 The trees of the forest will sing for joy before the Lord,
        for he is coming to judge the earth.
34 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
        for his mercy endures forever.
35 Say, “Save us, O God of our salvation.
    Gather us and save us from the nations,
        to give thanks to your holy name,
        to glorify you by praising you.”
36 Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel,
        from everlasting to everlasting.

Then all the people said “Amen” and praised the Lord.

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Chronicles 16:7 This psalm is very similar to parts of Psalms 105:1-15; 96:1-13; and 106:47-48 (in that order). The translation here is independent. The variants from the psalms are not footnoted.
  2. 1 Chronicles 16:9 Or marvelous deeds
  3. 1 Chronicles 16:13 Literally seed
  4. 1 Chronicles 16:26 The Hebrew word elilim means nothings or mini-gods. They are worthless nothings.
  5. 1 Chronicles 16:31 Or Let the heavens be glad. The following lines in verses 31-33 also may be either wishes or prayers.