Beginning

¹ Why do you stay angry to the end, O God?
Why does your anger smoke against the flock in your pasture?
² Remember your community that you purchased long ago,
the tribe that you redeemed to be your possession.
Remember Mount Zion where you dwell.
³ March toward the perpetual ruins.
March against all the evil done by the enemy in the sanctuary.

⁴ Your foes roared in the middle of your appointed place.
They set up their battle standards as signs.
⁵ They looked like men swinging axes in a thicket of trees.
⁶ Yes, they even chopped up all the carved paneling
    with their hatchets and hammers.
⁷ They delivered your sanctuary to the fire.
They defiled the dwelling place for your Name
    by throwing it to the ground.
⁸ They said in their hearts, “We will crush them completely!”
They burned all the appointed places of God in the land.

⁹ We do not see any signs to guide us.
There is no longer a prophet,
and none of us knows how long this will go on.
¹⁰ How long will the foe scoff, O God?
Will the enemy insult your name forever?
¹¹ Why do you hold back your hand, even your right hand?
Take it out of your pocket^[b] and finish them off!

¹² But you, O God, are my king from long ago,
the one who works salvation right here on earth.
¹³ It was you who shattered the sea by your power.
You broke the heads of the great sea monsters.
¹⁴ It was you who crushed the heads of Leviathan.^[c]
You gave him as food to the people who live in the desert.
¹⁵ It was you who opened up a spring and a seasonal stream.
You dried up the rivers that flow year-round.
¹⁶ The day belongs to you, and the night is also yours.
You set the moon and sun in place.
¹⁷ It was you who laid out all the boundaries of the earth.
Summer and winter—you shaped them.

¹⁸ Remember this—the enemy scoffs, Lord,
and a foolish people has insulted your name.
¹⁹ Do not surrender the life of your turtledove to a wild animal.
Do not forget the life of your afflicted ones forever.
²⁰ Pay attention to the covenant,
because dens of violence fill the dark places in the land.
²¹ Do not let the oppressed turn back in disgrace.
Let the poor and needy praise your name.
²² Rise up, O God, and prosecute your case.
Remember how the fools mocked you all day long.
²³ Do not forget the sound of your foes,
the uproar of those who rise against you, which goes up continually.

¹ We give thanks to you, O God, we give thanks.
Your wonderful deeds reveal that your name is near.

² Yes, I choose the appointed time.
I am the one who judges rightly.
³ The earth and all its inhabitants are shaking.
I am the one who holds its pillars firm. Interlude
⁴ I say to the boasters, “Do not boast,”
and to the wicked, “Do not raise a horn.^[e]
5 Do not raise your horns to the heights.
Do not speak insolently with an outstretched neck.”

⁶ Indeed, power to promote someone does not come
    from the east or from the west or from the wilderness.
⁷ No, it is God who makes the decision.
He brings down one. He raises up another.
⁸ Indeed, a cup is in the hand of the Lord.
The wine foams. It is fully mixed.
He pours this out.
Yes, they drain its dregs.
All the wicked of the earth drink.

⁹ As for me, I will proclaim this forever.
I will make music for the God of Jacob.
¹⁰ I will cut off all the horns of the wicked.
The horns of the righteous will be lifted up.

¹ God is known in Judah. In Israel his name is great.
² His shelter is in Salem. His dwelling place is in Zion.

³ There he broke the flaming arrows, Interlude
the shield and the sword, and the weapons for battle.
⁴ You shine brightly as the Mighty One from the mountains full of prey.
⁵ The strong-hearted are plundered.
They have fallen into their final sleep.
Not one of the strong men can lift his hands.
⁶ At your rebuke,^[f] O God of Jacob, both chariot and horses sleep.
⁷ You are to be feared, yes, you.
Who can stand before you at the time of your wrath?
⁸ From heaven you announced judgment.
The earth feared and was quiet
⁹ when you rose up to judge, O God, Interlude
and to save all the afflicted of the earth.

¹⁰ Even the wrath of mankind^[g] will bring you praise.
You wear what remains of your wrath like a belt.
¹¹ Make vows to the Lord your God and fulfill them.
Let all who are around him bring tribute to the one who is fearsome.
¹² He restrains the spirit of nobles.
He is fearsome against the kings of the earth.

¹ With my voice to God—
with my voice I cried out to God,
and he listened to me.
² In the day when I was distressed I sought the Lord.
At night my hand was stretched out,
and it never grew tired,
but my soul refused to be comforted.
³ God, I remembered and I groaned. Interlude
I pondered, and my spirit became weak.
⁴ You propped my eyelids open.
I was troubled but did not speak.
⁵ I thought about the days of long ago, the years long past.
⁶ During the night I remembered my music.
With my heart I pondered, and my spirit asked,
⁷ “Will the Lord reject forever?
Will he never again show favor?
⁸ Has his mercy vanished to the end?
Has what he said failed for all generations?
⁹ Has God forgotten to be gracious? Interlude
Has he really shut up his compassion in anger?”

¹⁰ Then I said, “This is what hurts me:
the change of the right hand of the Most High.”^[i]
11 I will remember the deeds of the Lord.^[j]
Yes, I will remember your wonderful work from long ago.
¹² I will meditate on all your work,
and I will ponder all your deeds.
¹³ O God, your way is carried out in holiness.
What god is as great as God?
¹⁴ You are the God who performs a wonderful deed.
You made known your power among the peoples.
¹⁵ With your arm you redeemed your people,
the descendants of Jacob and Joseph. Interlude
¹⁶ The waters saw you, O God.
The waters saw you and swirled.
Even the depths were turbulent.
¹⁷ The clouds poured down water.
The skies echoed with thunder.
Indeed, your arrows shot back and forth.
¹⁸ The sound of your thunder was heard in the tornado.
Lightning lit up the world.
The earth trembled and quaked.
¹⁹ Your route led through the sea.
Your trail went through the mighty waters,
but your footprints were not detected.
²⁰ You led your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron.