Book Three

God Is My Strength and Portion Forever

A Psalm of (A)Asaph.

73 Truly God is good to (B)Israel,
    to those who are (C)pure in heart.
But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled,
    my steps had nearly slipped.
(D)For I was (E)envious of the arrogant
    when I saw the (F)prosperity of the wicked.

For they have no pangs until death;
    their bodies are fat and sleek.
They are not in trouble as others are;
    they are not (G)stricken like the rest of mankind.
Therefore pride is (H)their necklace;
    violence covers them as (I)a garment.
Their (J)eyes swell out through fatness;
    their hearts overflow with follies.
They scoff and (K)speak with malice;
    loftily they threaten oppression.
They set their mouths against the heavens,
    and their tongue struts through the earth.
10 Therefore his people turn back to them,
    and find (L)no fault in them.[a]
11 And they say, (M)“How can God know?
    Is there knowledge in the Most High?”
12 Behold, these are the wicked;
    always at ease, they (N)increase in riches.
13 All in vain have I (O)kept my heart clean
    and (P)washed my hands in innocence.
14 For all the day long I have been (Q)stricken
    and (R)rebuked (S)every morning.
15 If I had said, “I will speak thus,”
    I would have betrayed (T)the generation of your children.

16 But when I thought how to understand this,
    it seemed to me (U)a wearisome task,
17 until I went into (V)the sanctuary of God;
    then I discerned their (W)end.

18 Truly you set them in (X)slippery places;
    you make them fall to ruin.
19 How they are destroyed (Y)in a moment,
    swept away utterly by (Z)terrors!
20 Like (AA)a dream when one awakes,
    O Lord, when (AB)you rouse yourself, you despise them as phantoms.
21 When my soul was embittered,
    when I was pricked in heart,
22 I was (AC)brutish and ignorant;
    I was like (AD)a beast toward you.

23 Nevertheless, I am continually with you;
    you (AE)hold my right hand.
24 You (AF)guide me with your counsel,
    and afterward you will (AG)receive me to glory.
25 (AH)Whom have I in heaven but you?
    And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.
26 (AI)My flesh and my heart may fail,
    but God is (AJ)the strength[b] of my heart and my (AK)portion (AL)forever.

27 For behold, those who are (AM)far from you shall perish;
    you put an end to everyone who is (AN)unfaithful to you.
28 But for me it is good to (AO)be near God;
    I have made the Lord God my (AP)refuge,
    that I may (AQ)tell of all your works.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 73:10 Probable reading; Hebrew the waters of a full cup are drained by them
  2. Psalm 73:26 Hebrew rock

詩篇卷三

 神必善待內心清潔的人

亞薩的詩。

73  神實在善待以色列,

善待那些內心清潔的人。(本節在《馬索拉文本》包括細字標題)

至於我,我的腳幾乎滑跌,

我(“我”原文作“我的腳步”)險些跌倒。

我看見惡人興隆,

我就嫉妒狂傲的人。

他們沒有痛苦,

他們的身體又健康又肥壯(本節原文作“他們到死都沒有痛苦,他們的身體肥壯”)。

他們沒有一般人所受的苦難,

也不像普通人一樣遭遇災害。

所以,驕傲像鍊子戴在他們的頸項上,

強暴好像衣裳穿在他們的身上。

他們的罪孽是出於麻木的心(按照《馬索拉文本》,“他們的罪孽是出於麻木的心”應作“他們的眼睛因體胖而凸出”;現參照《七十士譯本》翻譯),

他們心裡的惡念氾濫。

他們譏笑人,懷著惡意說欺壓人的話,他們說話自高。

他們用口褻瀆上天,

他們用舌頭毀謗全地。

10 因此他的人民歸回那裡去,

並且喝光了大量的水。

11 他們說:“ 神怎會曉得?

至高者有知識嗎?”

12 看這些惡人,

他們常享安逸,財富卻增加。

13 我謹守我心純潔實在徒然;

我洗手表明清白也是枉然。

14 因為我終日受傷害,

每天早晨受懲罰。

15 如果我心裡說:“我要說這樣的話”,

我就是對你這一代的眾兒女不忠了。

16 我思想要明白這事,

我就看為煩惱;

17 直到我進了 神的聖所,

才明白他們的結局。

18 你實在把他們安放在滑地,

使他們倒下、滅亡。

19 他們忽然間成了多麼荒涼,

被突然的驚恐完全消滅。

20 人睡醒了怎樣看夢,

主啊!你睡醒了,也要照樣輕看他們(“他們”原文作“他們的影像”)。

21 我心中酸苦,

我肺腑刺痛的時候,

22 我是愚昧無知的;

我在你面前就像畜類一般。

23 但是,我仍常與你同在;

你緊握著我的右手。

24 你要以你的訓言引領我,

以後還要接我到榮耀裡去。

25 除你以外,在天上,我還有誰呢?

除你以外,在地上,我也無所愛慕。

26 我的肉身和我的內心雖然漸漸衰弱,

 神卻永遠是我心裡的磐石,是我的業分。

27 看哪!遠離你的,必定滅亡;

凡是對你不貞的,你都要滅絕。

28 對我來說,親近 神是美好的,

我以主耶和華為我的避難所;

我要述說你的一切作為。