Beginning

God Is with Us

46 God is our safe place and our strength. He is always our help when we are in trouble. ² So we will not be afraid, even if the earth is shaken and the mountains fall into the center of the sea, ³ and even if its waters go wild with storm and the mountains shake with its action.

⁴ There is a river whose waters make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High lives. ⁵ God is in the center of her. She will not be moved. God will help her when the morning comes. ⁶ The people made noise. The nations fell. He raised His voice and the earth melted. ⁷ The Lord of All is with us. The God of Jacob is our strong place.

⁸ Come and see the works of the Lord. He has destroyed parts of the earth. ⁹ He stops wars to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two. He burns the war-wagons with fire. ¹⁰ Be quiet and know that I am God. I will be honored among the nations. I will be honored in the earth. ¹¹ The Lord of All is with us. The God of Jacob is our strong place.

God—the King of the Earth

47 Show your happiness, all peoples! Call out to God with the voice of joy! ² For the Lord Most High is to be feared. He is a great King over all the earth. ³ He sets people under us, and nations under our feet. ⁴ He chooses for us what is to be ours, the pride of Jacob, whom He loves.

⁵ God has gone up with a loud voice, the Lord with the sound of a horn. ⁶ Sing praises to God. Sing praises. Sing praises to our King. Sing praises. ⁷ For God is the King of all the earth. Sing praises with a well written song. ⁸ God rules over the nations. God sits on His holy throne. ⁹ The rulers of the people have gathered together as the people of the God of Abraham. For the powers of the earth belong to God. He is much honored.

It Is Foolish to Trust in Riches

48 The Lord is great and should be given much praise, in the city of our God, His holy mountain. ² Mount Zion in the far north is beautiful and high, the joy of the whole earth, the city of the great King. ³ God has made Himself known as a safe place in that city.

⁴ For, see, the kings gathered themselves and went up together. ⁵ They saw it, then they were surprised and afraid. And they ran away fast in fear. ⁶ They began shaking there. And they suffered pain like a woman giving birth. ⁷ You wreck the ships of Tarshish with the east wind. ⁸ As we have heard, so we have seen in the city of the Lord of All, in the city of our God. God will make her last forever.

⁹ O God, we have thought about Your loving-kindness within Your holy house. ¹⁰ Like Your name, O God, Your praise is heard to the ends of the earth. Your right hand is full of what is right and good. ¹¹ Let Mount Zion be glad! Let the people of Judah be full of joy because You are right in how You judge. ¹² Walk in Zion, and go around her. See how many towers she has. ¹³ Give thought to her walls. Go through her beautiful houses where kings live. And tell about it to the children-to-come. ¹⁴ This is God, our God forever and ever. He will show us the way until death.

A Fool Trusts in Riches

49 Hear this, all people. Listen, all who live in the world, ² both small and great, rich and poor together. ³ My mouth will speak wisdom. And the thoughts of my heart will be understanding. ⁴ I will turn my ear to a wise saying. With a harp, I will tell what is hard to understand.

⁵ Why should I be afraid in the days of trouble, when the sin of those who hate me is all around me? ⁶ They trust in their riches, and are proud of all they have. ⁷ No man can save his brother. No man can pay God enough to save him. ⁸ The cost is much for his soul to be saved. Man should stop trying ⁹ to live forever and not see the grave.

¹⁰ For he sees that even wise men die. The fool and those who cannot think well die alike. And they leave their riches to others. ¹¹ They think in their hearts that their houses will last forever, and that the places where they live will last for all their children to follow. They have used their own names to name their lands. ¹² But man with all his honor does not last. He is like the animals that die.

¹³ This is the way of the foolish, and of those after them who believe in their words. ¹⁴ Like sheep they are meant for the grave. Death will be their shepherd. And those who are right with God will rule over them in the morning. Their bodies will be eaten by the grave, so that they have no place to stay. ¹⁵ But God will free my soul from the power of the grave. For He will take me to Himself.

¹⁶ Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich and when his house grows in greatness. ¹⁷ For when he dies he will take nothing with him. His greatness will not go down with him. ¹⁸ Even if while he lives, he thinks good of himself, and even though men praise you when you do well for yourself, ¹⁹ he will go and join the family of his fathers. They will never see the light. ²⁰ Man with all his honor, yet without understanding, is like the animals that die.

God Decides Right from Wrong

50 The Powerful One, God, the Lord, has spoken. And He calls the earth from where the sun rises to where the sun goes down. ² God shines from Zion, perfect in beauty. ³ May our God come and not keep quiet. A fire burns before Him, and around Him is a powerful storm. ⁴ He calls the heavens above, and the earth, that He may judge His people: ⁵ “Gather My holy ones to Me, those who have made an agreement with Me by their gifts given on an altar.” ⁶ And the heavens will tell how right and good He is, for God Himself is judge.

⁷ “Listen, O My people, and I will speak. O Israel, I will speak against you. I am God, your God. ⁸ I do not speak sharp words to you for your gifts given on an altar. And your burnt gifts are always before Me. ⁹ I will not take a young bull out of your house, or male goats out of your fields. ¹⁰ For every animal among the trees is Mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. ¹¹ I know every bird of the mountains. And all things that move in the field are Mine. ¹² If I were hungry, I would not tell you. For the world is Mine, and all that is in it. ¹³ Should I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of male goats? ¹⁴ Give a gift of thanks on the altar to God. And pay your promises to the Most High. ¹⁵ Call on Me in the day of trouble. I will take you out of trouble, and you will honor Me.”

¹⁶ But to the sinful, God says: “What right do you have to tell of My Laws, and take My agreement in your mouth? ¹⁷ For you hate to be told what to do, and you throw My words behind you. ¹⁸ When you see a robber, you are pleased with him. And you join those who do sex sins. ¹⁹ You say bad things with your mouth, and you lie with your tongue. ²⁰ You sit and speak against your brother. You talk against your own mother’s son. ²¹ You have done these things, and I have kept quiet. You thought that I was just like you. But I will speak sharp words to you, and tell you who is guilty to your face.

²² “Now think about this, you who forget God, or I will tear you in pieces and there will be no one to save you. ²³ He who gives a gift of thanks honors Me. And to him who makes his way right, I will show him the saving power of God.”