Beginning
BOOK 4
God’s Eternity and Man’s Transitoriness.
A Prayer of [a]Moses, the man of God.
90 Lord, You have been our [b](A)dwelling place in all generations.
2 Before (B)the mountains were born
[c]Or You (C)gave birth to the earth and the world,
Even (D)from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.
3 You (E)turn man back into dust
And say, “Return, O children of men.”
4 For (F)a thousand years in Your sight
Are like (G)yesterday when it passes by,
[d]Or as a (H)watch in the night.
5 You (I)have [e]swept them away like a flood, they [f](J)fall asleep;
In the morning they are like (K)grass which [g]sprouts anew.
6 In the morning it (L)flourishes and [h]sprouts anew;
Toward evening it (M)fades and (N)withers away.
7 For we have been (O)consumed by Your anger
And by Your wrath we have been [i]dismayed.
8 You have (P)placed our iniquities before You,
Our (Q)secret sins in the light of Your presence.
9 For (R)all our days have declined in Your fury;
We have finished our years like a [j]sigh.
10 As for the days of our [k]life, [l]they contain seventy years,
Or if due to strength, (S)eighty years,
Yet their pride is but (T)labor and sorrow;
For soon it is gone and we (U)fly away.
11 Who [m]understands the (V)power of Your anger
And Your fury, according to the (W)fear [n]that is due You?
12 So (X)teach us to number our days,
That we may [o](Y)present to You a heart of wisdom.
13 Do (Z)return, O Lord; (AA)how long will it be?
And [p]be (AB)sorry for Your servants.
14 O (AC)satisfy us in the morning with Your lovingkindness,
That we may (AD)sing for joy and be glad all our days.
15 (AE)Make us glad [q]according to the days You have afflicted us,
And the (AF)years we have seen [r]evil.
16 Let Your (AG)work appear to Your servants
And Your (AH)majesty [s]to their children.
17 Let the (AI)favor of the Lord our God be upon us;
And [t](AJ)confirm for us the work of our hands;
Yes, [u]confirm the work of our hands.
Security of the One Who Trusts in the Lord.
91 He who dwells in the (AK)shelter of the Most High
Will abide in the (AL)shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say to the Lord, “My (AM)refuge and my (AN)fortress,
My God, in whom I (AO)trust!”
3 For it is He who delivers you from the (AP)snare of the trapper
And from the deadly (AQ)pestilence.
4 He will (AR)cover you with His pinions,
And (AS)under His wings you may seek refuge;
His (AT)faithfulness is a (AU)shield and bulwark.
5 You (AV)will not be afraid of the (AW)terror by night,
Or of the (AX)arrow that flies by day;
6 Of the (AY)pestilence that [v]stalks in darkness,
Or of the (AZ)destruction that lays waste at noon.
7 A thousand may fall at your side
And ten thousand at your right hand,
But (BA)it shall not approach you.
8 You will only look on with your eyes
And (BB)see the recompense of the wicked.
9 [w]For you have made the Lord, (BC)my refuge,
Even the Most High, (BD)your dwelling place.
10 (BE)No evil will befall you,
Nor will any plague come near your [x]tent.
11 For He will give (BF)His angels charge concerning you,
To guard you in all your ways.
12 They will (BG)bear you up in their hands,
That you do not strike your foot against a stone.
13 You will (BH)tread upon the lion and cobra,
The young lion and the [y]serpent you will trample down.
14 “(BI)Because he has loved Me, therefore I will deliver him;
I will (BJ)set him securely on high, because he has (BK)known My name.
15 “He will (BL)call upon Me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in [z]trouble;
I will rescue him and (BM)honor him.
16 “With [aa]a (BN)long life I will satisfy him
And [ab](BO)let him see My salvation.”
Praise for the Lord’s Goodness.
A Psalm, a Song for the Sabbath day.
92 It is (BP)good to give thanks to the Lord
And to (BQ)sing praises to Your name, O Most High;
2 To (BR)declare Your lovingkindness in the morning
And Your (BS)faithfulness [ac]by night,
3 [ad]With the (BT)ten-stringed lute and [ae]with the (BU)harp,
[af]With resounding music [ag]upon the (BV)lyre.
4 For You, O Lord, have made me glad by [ah]what You (BW)have done,
I will (BX)sing for joy at the (BY)works of Your hands.
5 How (BZ)great are Your works, O Lord!
Your [ai](CA)thoughts are very (CB)deep.
6 A (CC)senseless man has no knowledge,
Nor does a (CD)stupid man understand this:
7 That when the wicked (CE)sprouted up like grass
And all (CF)who did iniquity flourished,
It was only that they might be (CG)destroyed forevermore.
8 But You, O Lord, are (CH)on high forever.
9 For, behold, Your enemies, O Lord,
For, behold, (CI)Your enemies will perish;
All who do iniquity will be (CJ)scattered.
10 But You have exalted my (CK)horn like that of the wild ox;
I have [aj]been (CL)anointed with fresh oil.
11 And my eye has (CM)looked exultantly upon [ak]my foes,
My ears hear of the evildoers who rise up against me.
12 The (CN)righteous man will [al]flourish like the palm tree,
He will grow like a (CO)cedar in Lebanon.
13 (CP)Planted in the house of the Lord,
They will flourish (CQ)in the courts of our God.
14 They will still [am](CR)yield fruit in old age;
They shall be [an]full of sap and very green,
15 To [ao]declare that (CS)the Lord is upright;
He is my (CT)rock, and there is (CU)no unrighteousness in Him.
The Majesty of the Lord.
93 (CV)The Lord [ap]reigns, He is (CW)clothed with majesty;
The Lord has (CX)clothed and girded Himself with strength;
Indeed, the (CY)world is firmly established, it will not be moved.
2 Your (CZ)throne is established from of old;
You (DA)are from everlasting.
3 The (DB)floods have lifted up, O Lord,
The floods have lifted up their voice,
The floods lift up their pounding waves.
4 More than the sounds of many waters,
Than the mighty breakers of the sea,
The Lord (DC)on high is mighty.
5 Your (DD)testimonies are fully confirmed;
(DE)Holiness befits Your house,
O Lord, [aq]forevermore.
The Lord Implored to Avenge His People.
94 O Lord, God of [ar](DF)vengeance,
God of [as]vengeance, [at](DG)shine forth!
2 (DH)Rise up, O (DI)Judge of the earth,
Render recompense (DJ)to the proud.
3 How long shall the wicked, O Lord,
How long shall the (DK)wicked exult?
4 They pour forth words, they (DL)speak arrogantly;
All who do wickedness (DM)vaunt themselves.
5 They (DN)crush Your people, O Lord,
And (DO)afflict Your heritage.
6 They (DP)slay the widow and the [au]stranger
And murder the orphans.
7 (DQ)They have said, “[av]The Lord does not see,
Nor does the God of Jacob pay heed.”
8 Pay heed, you (DR)senseless among the people;
And when will you understand, (DS)stupid ones?
9 He who (DT)planted the ear, [aw]does He not hear?
He who formed the eye, [ax]does He not see?
10 He who [ay](DU)chastens the nations, will He not rebuke,
Even He who (DV)teaches man knowledge?
11 The Lord (DW)knows the thoughts of man,
[az]That they are a mere breath.
12 Blessed is the man whom (DX)You chasten, O [ba]Lord,
And (DY)whom You teach out of Your law;
13 That You may grant him (DZ)relief from the (EA)days of adversity,
Until (EB)a pit is dug for the wicked.
14 For (EC)the Lord will not abandon His people,
Nor will He (ED)forsake His inheritance.
15 For [bb](EE)judgment [bc]will again be righteous,
And all the upright in heart [bd]will follow it.
16 Who will (EF)stand up for me against evildoers?
Who will take his stand for me (EG)against those who do wickedness?
17 If (EH)the Lord had not been my help,
My soul would soon have dwelt in the abode of silence.
18 If I should say, “(EI)My foot has slipped,”
Your lovingkindness, O Lord, will hold me up.
19 When my anxious thoughts [be]multiply within me,
Your (EJ)consolations delight my soul.
20 Can a [bf](EK)throne of destruction be allied with You,
One (EL)which devises [bg]mischief by decree?
21 They (EM)band themselves together against the [bh]life of the righteous
And (EN)condemn [bi]the innocent to death.
22 But the Lord has been my (EO)stronghold,
And my God the (EP)rock of my refuge.
23 He has (EQ)brought back their wickedness upon them
And will [bj](ER)destroy them in their evil;
The Lord our God will [bk]destroy them.
Praise to the Lord, and Warning against Unbelief.
95 O come, let us (ES)sing for joy to the Lord,
Let us shout joyfully to (ET)the rock of our salvation.
2 Let us (EU)come before His presence (EV)with [bl]thanksgiving,
Let us shout joyfully to Him (EW)with [bm]psalms.
3 For the Lord is a (EX)great God
And a great King (EY)above all gods,
4 In whose hand are the (EZ)depths of the earth,
The peaks of the mountains are His also.
5 [bn]The sea is His, for it was He (FA)who made it,
And His hands formed the dry land.
6 Come, let us (FB)worship and bow down,
Let us (FC)kneel before the Lord our (FD)Maker.
7 For He is our God,
And (FE)we are the people of His [bo](FF)pasture and the sheep of His hand.
(FG)Today, [bp]if you would hear His voice,
8 Do not harden your hearts, as at [bq](FH)Meribah,
As in the day of [br](FI)Massah in the wilderness,
9 “When your fathers (FJ)tested Me,
They tried Me, though they had seen My work.
10 “For (FK)forty years I loathed that generation,
And said they are a people who err in their heart,
And they do not know My ways.
11 “Therefore I (FL)swore in My anger,
Truly they shall not enter into My (FM)rest.”
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.