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An Oracle Concerning Sacrifices

A psalm of Asaph.[a]

50 The Supreme God, God, Yahweh, has spoken
and summoned the earth,
from the rising of the sun
to its setting.
From Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God shines forth.
Our God comes and he is not silent.
Before him fire devours,
and around him it is very tempestuous.
He summons the heavens above
and the earth that he might judge his people:
“Gather to me my loyal ones,
those who have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”
And the heavens declare his righteousness,
because God himself is judge. Selah
“Hear, O my people, and I will speak,
O Israel, and I will testify against you.
I am God, your God.
It is not concerning a lack of your sacrifices that I rebuke you,
and your burnt offerings are before me continually.
I will not take from your house a bull
or from your stalls a he-goat,
10 because every animal of the forest is mine,
the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know every bird of the mountains,
and every moving creature in the field is mine.
12 If I were hungry I would not tell you,
because the world and its fullness are mine.
13 Do I eat the flesh of bulls
or drink the blood of goats?
14 Offer to God a thank offering
and pay your vows to the Most High.
15 And call me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you, and you will glorify me.”
16 But to the wicked God says,
“What right have you to recite my statutes
and mention my covenant with your mouth,[b]
17 while you yourself hate discipline,
and cast my words behind you?
18 When you see a thief, then you are pleased with him,
and your association is with adulterers.
19 You give your mouth free rein for evil,
and you harness your tongue to deceit.
20 You sit and speak against your brother;
you slander your mother’s son.
21 These things you have done, and I have been silent;
You imagined that I was just like you.
I will rebuke you and present an argument before your eyes.
22 Now consider this, you who forget God,
lest I tear you apart, and there will be none to deliver.
23 He who sacrifices a thank offering honors me,
and he who orders his way;
I will show him the salvation of God.”

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 50:1 The Hebrew Bible counts the superscription as the first verse of the psalm
  2. Psalm 50:16 Literally “take my covenant on your mouth”

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.”