Psalm 50

God as Judge

A psalm of Asaph.(A)

Yahweh, the God of gods[a] speaks;
He summons the earth from east to west.[b](B)
From Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God appears in radiance.[c](C)
Our God is coming; He will not be silent!
Devouring fire precedes Him,
and a storm rages around Him.(D)
On high, He summons heaven and earth
in order to judge His people.(E)
“Gather My faithful ones to Me,
those who made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.”(F)
The heavens proclaim His righteousness,(G)
for God is the Judge.(H)Selah

“Listen, My people, and I will speak;
I will testify against you, Israel.
I am God, your God.(I)
I do not rebuke you for your sacrifices
or for your burnt offerings,
which are continually before Me.(J)
I will not accept a bull from your household
or male goats from your pens,(K)
10 for every animal of the forest is Mine,
the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know every bird of the mountains,[d]
and the creatures of the field are Mine.(L)
12 If I were hungry, I would not tell you,
for the world and everything in it is Mine.(M)
13 Do I eat the flesh of bulls
or drink the blood of goats?(N)
14 Sacrifice a thank offering to God,(O)
and pay your vows to the Most High.(P)
15 Call on Me in a day of trouble;
I will rescue you, and you will honor Me.”(Q)

16 But God says to the wicked:
“What right do you have to recite My statutes
and to take My covenant on your lips?(R)
17 You hate instruction
and turn your back on My words.[e](S)
18 When you see a thief,
you make friends with him,
and you associate with adulterers.(T)
19 You unleash your mouth for evil
and harness your tongue for deceit.(U)
20 You sit, maligning your brother,
slandering your mother’s son.(V)
21 You have done these things, and I kept silent;
you thought I was just like you.(W)
But I will rebuke you
and lay out the case before you.[f](X)

22 “Understand this, you who forget God,
or I will tear you apart,
and there will be no one to rescue you.(Y)
23 Whoever sacrifices a thank offering honors Me,
and whoever orders his conduct,
I will show him the salvation of God.”(Z)

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 50:1 Or The Mighty One, God, the Lord, or The God of gods, the Lord
  2. Psalm 50:1 Lit from the rising of the sun to its setting
  3. Psalm 50:2 Or God shines forth
  4. Psalm 50:11 LXX, Syr, Tg read heavens
  5. Psalm 50:17 Or and cast My words behind you
  6. Psalm 50:21 Lit out before your eyes

Psalm 50

A psalm of Asaph.

50 From the rising of the sun to where it sets,
    God, the Lord God, speaks,
        calling out to the earth.
From Zion, perfect in beauty,
    God shines brightly.
Our God is coming;
    he won’t keep quiet.
A devouring fire is before him;
    a storm rages all around him.
God calls out to the skies above
    and to the earth in order to judge his people:
“Bring my faithful to me,
    those who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”
The skies proclaim his righteousness
    because God himself is the judge. Selah

“Listen, my people, I will now speak;
    Israel, I will now testify against you.
    I am God—your God!
I’m not punishing you for your sacrifices
    or for your entirely burned offerings,
    which are always before me.
I won’t accept bulls from your house
    or goats from your corrals
10     because every forest animal already belongs to me,
    as do the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know every mountain bird;
    even the insects in the fields are mine.
12 Even if I were hungry, I wouldn’t tell you
    because the whole world and everything in it already belong to me.
13 Do I eat bulls’ meat?
    Do I drink goats’ blood?
14 Offer God a sacrifice of thanksgiving!
    Fulfill the promises you made to the Most High!
15 Cry out to me whenever you are in trouble;
    I will deliver you, then you will honor me.”

16 But to the wicked God says,
“Why do you talk about my laws?
    Why do you even mention my covenant?
17 You hate discipline, and
    you toss my words behind your back.
18 You make friends with thieves whenever you see one;
    you spend your time with adulterers.
19 You set your mouth free to do evil,
    then harness your tongue to tell lies.
20 You sit around, talking about your own siblings;
    you find fault with the children of your very own mother.
21 You’ve done these things and I’ve kept quiet.
    You thought I was just like you!
        But now I’m punishing you;
        I’m laying it all out, right in front of your face.
22 So consider this carefully, all you who forget God,
    or I’ll rip you to pieces with no one to deliver you:
23 The one who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving is the one who honors me.
    And it is to the one who charts the correct path that I will show divine salvation.”