Psalm 81-85

English Standard Version

Oh, That My People Would Listen to Me

To the choirmaster: according to ^(A)The Gittith.^[a] Of ^(B)Asaph.

81 ^(C)Sing aloud to God our strength;
    ^(D)shout for joy to the God of Jacob!
²Raise a song; sound ^(E)the tambourine,
    ^(F)the sweet lyre with ^(G)the harp.
³Blow the trumpet at ^(H)the new moon,
    at the full moon, on our feast day.

⁴For it is a statute for Israel,
    a rule^[b] of the God of Jacob.
⁵He made it ^(I)a decree in ^(J)Joseph
    when he ^(K)went out over^[c] the land of Egypt.
^(L)I hear a language ^(M)I had not known:
⁶“I ^(N)relieved your^[d] shoulder of ^(O)the burden;
    your hands were freed from the basket.
⁷In distress you ^(P)called, and I delivered you;
    I ^(Q)answered you in the secret place of thunder;
    I ^(R)tested you at the waters of Meribah. Selah
⁸^(S)Hear, O my people, while I admonish you!
    O Israel, if you would but listen to me!
⁹There shall be no ^(T)strange god among you;
    you shall not bow down to a ^(U)foreign god.
¹⁰^(V)I am the Lord your God,
    who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.
    ^(W)Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.

¹¹“But my people did not listen to my voice;
    Israel ^(X)would not submit to me.
¹²So I ^(Y)gave them over to their ^(Z)stubborn hearts,
    to follow their own ^(AA)counsels.
¹³^(AB)Oh, that my people would listen to me,
    that Israel would ^(AC)walk in my ways!
¹⁴I would soon subdue their enemies
    and ^(AD)turn my hand against their foes.
¹⁵Those who hate the Lord would ^(AE)cringe toward him,
    and their fate would last forever.
¹⁶But he would feed you^[e] with ^(AF)the finest of the wheat,
    and with ^(AG)honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”

Rescue the Weak and Needy

A Psalm of ^(AH)Asaph.

82 ^(AI)God ^(AJ)has taken his place in the divine council;
    in the midst of ^(AK)the gods he ^(AL)holds judgment:
²“How long will you judge unjustly
    and ^(AM)show partiality to ^(AN)the wicked? Selah
³^(AO)Give justice to ^(AP)the weak and the fatherless;
    ^(AQ)maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.
⁴^(AR)Rescue the weak and the needy;
    ^(AS)deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”

⁵^(AT)They have neither knowledge nor understanding,
^(AU)they walk about in darkness;
^(AV)all the foundations of the earth are ^(AW)shaken.

⁶^(AX)I said, “You are gods,
sons of the Most High, all of you;
⁷nevertheless, like men ^(AY)you shall die,
and fall like any prince.”^[f]

⁸^(AZ)Arise, O God, judge the earth;
for you shall ^(BA)inherit all the nations!

O God, Do Not Keep Silence

A Song. A Psalm of ^(BB)Asaph.

83 O God, do not keep silence;
    ^(BC)do not hold your peace or be still, O God!
²For behold, your enemies ^(BD)make an uproar;
    those who hate you have ^(BE)raised their heads.
³They lay ^(BF)crafty plans against your people;
    they consult together against your ^(BG)treasured ones.
⁴They say, “Come, ^(BH)let us wipe them out as a nation;
    let the name of Israel be remembered no more!”
⁵For they conspire with one accord;
    against you they make a covenant—
⁶the tents of ^(BI)Edom and ^(BJ)the Ishmaelites,
    ^(BK)Moab and ^(BL)the Hagrites,
⁷^(BM)Gebal and ^(BN)Ammon and ^(BO)Amalek,
    ^(BP)Philistia with the inhabitants of ^(BQ)Tyre;
⁸^(BR)Asshur also has joined them;
    they are the strong arm of ^(BS)the children of Lot. Selah

⁹Do to them as you did to ^(BT)Midian,
    as to ^(BU)Sisera and Jabin at ^(BV)the river Kishon,
¹⁰who were destroyed at ^(BW)En-dor,
    who became ^(BX)dung for the ground.
¹¹Make their nobles like ^(BY)Oreb and Zeeb,
    all their princes like ^(BZ)Zebah and Zalmunna,
¹²who said, ^(CA)“Let us take possession for ourselves
    of the pastures of God.”

¹³O my God, make them like ^(CB)whirling dust,^[g]
    like ^(CC)chaff before the wind.
¹⁴As ^(CD)fire consumes the forest,
    as the flame ^(CE)sets the mountains ablaze,
¹⁵so may you pursue them ^(CF)with your tempest
    and terrify them with your hurricane!
¹⁶^(CG)Fill their faces with shame,
    that they may seek your name, O Lord.
¹⁷Let them be ^(CH)put to shame and dismayed forever;
    let them perish in disgrace,
¹⁸that they may ^(CI)know that you alone,
    ^(CJ)whose name is the Lord,
    are ^(CK)the Most High over all the earth.

My Soul Longs for the Courts of the Lord

To the choirmaster: according to ^(CL)The Gittith.^[h] A Psalm of ^(CM)the Sons of Korah.

84 How ^(CN)lovely is your ^(CO)dwelling place,
    O Lord of hosts!
²My soul ^(CP)longs, yes, ^(CQ)faints
    for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and flesh sing for joy
    to ^(CR)the living God.

³Even the sparrow finds a home,
    and the swallow a nest for herself,
    where she may lay her young,
at your altars, O Lord of hosts,
    ^(CS)my King and my God.
⁴^(CT)Blessed are those who dwell in your house,
    ever ^(CU)singing your praise! Selah

⁵Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
    ^(CV)in whose heart are the highways to Zion.^[i]
⁶As they go through the Valley of Baca
    they make it a place of springs;
    ^(CW)the early rain also covers it with ^(CX)pools.
⁷They go ^(CY)from strength to strength;
    each one ^(CZ)appears before God in Zion.

⁸O ^(DA)Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer;
give ear, O God of Jacob! Selah
⁹^(DB)Behold our ^(DC)shield, O God;
look on the face of your anointed!

¹⁰For a day ^(DD)in your courts is better
    than a thousand elsewhere.
I would rather be ^(DE)a doorkeeper in the house of my God
    than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
¹¹For the Lord God is ^(DF)a sun and ^(DG)shield;
    the Lord bestows favor and honor.
^(DH)No good thing does he withhold
    from those who ^(DI)walk uprightly.
¹²O Lord of hosts,
    ^(DJ)blessed is the one who trusts in you!

Revive Us Again

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of ^(DK)the Sons of Korah.

85 Lord, you were ^(DL)favorable to your land;
    you ^(DM)restored the fortunes of Jacob.
²You ^(DN)forgave the iniquity of your people;
    you ^(DO)covered all their sin. Selah
³You withdrew all your wrath;
    you ^(DP)turned from your hot anger.

⁴^(DQ)Restore us again, O God of our salvation,
    and put away your indignation toward us!
⁵^(DR)Will you be angry with us forever?
    Will you prolong your anger to all generations?
⁶Will you not ^(DS)revive us again,
    that your people may ^(DT)rejoice in you?
⁷Show us your steadfast love, O Lord,
    and grant us your salvation.

⁸^(DU)Let me hear what God the Lord will speak,
    for he will ^(DV)speak peace to his people, to his ^(DW)saints;
    but let them not ^(DX)turn back to ^(DY)folly.
⁹Surely his ^(DZ)salvation is near to those who fear him,
    that ^(EA)glory may dwell in our land.

¹⁰^(EB)Steadfast love and faithfulness meet;
    ^(EC)righteousness and peace kiss each other.
¹¹Faithfulness springs up from the ground,
    and righteousness looks down from the sky.
¹²Yes, ^(ED)the Lord will give what is good,
    and our land ^(EE)will yield its increase.
¹³^(EF)Righteousness will go before him
    and make his footsteps a way.