Chronological
43 O God, defend me from the charges of these merciless, deceitful men. 2 For you are God, my only place of refuge. Why have you tossed me aside? Why must I mourn at the oppression of my enemies?
3 Oh, send out your light and your truth—let them lead me. Let them lead me to your Temple on your holy mountain, Zion. 4 There I will go to the altar of God, my exceeding joy, and praise him with my harp. O God—my God! 5 O my soul, why be so gloomy and discouraged? Trust in God! I shall again praise him for his wondrous help; he will make me smile again,[a] for he is my God!
44 1-2 O God, we have heard of the glorious miracles you did in the days of long ago. Our forefathers have told us how you drove the heathen nations from this land and gave it all to us, spreading Israel from one end of the country to the other. 3 They did not conquer by their own strength and skill, but by your mighty power and because you smiled upon them and favored them.
4 You are my King and my God. Decree victories for your people. 5 For it is only by your power and through your name that we tread down our enemies; 6 I do not trust my weapons. They could never save me. 7 Only you can give us the victory over those who hate us.
8 My constant boast is God. I can never thank you enough! 9 And yet for a time, O Lord, you have tossed us aside in dishonor and have not helped us in our battles. 10 You have actually fought against us and defeated us before our foes. Our enemies have invaded our land and pillaged the countryside. 11 You have treated us like sheep in a slaughter pen and scattered us among the nations. 12 You sold us for a pittance. You valued us at nothing at all. 13 The neighboring nations mock and laugh at us because of all the evil you have sent. 14 You have made the word Jew a byword of contempt and shame among the nations, disliked by all. 15-16 I am constantly despised, mocked, taunted, and cursed by my vengeful enemies.
17 And all this has happened, Lord, despite our loyalty to you. We have not violated your covenant. 18 Our hearts have not deserted you! We have not left your path by a single step. 19 If we had, we could understand your punishing us in the barren wilderness and sending us into darkness and death. 20 If we had turned away from worshiping our God and were worshiping idols, 21 would God not know it? Yes, he knows the secrets of every heart. 22 But that is not our case. For we are facing death threats constantly because of serving you! We are like sheep awaiting slaughter.
23 Waken! Rouse yourself! Don’t sleep, O Lord! Are we cast off forever? 24 Why do you look the other way? Why do you ignore our sorrows and oppression? 25 We lie face downward in the dust. 26 Rise up, O Lord, and come and help us. Save us by your constant love.
45 My heart is overflowing with a beautiful thought! I will write a lovely poem to the King, for I am as full of words as the speediest writer pouring out his story.
2 You are the fairest of all;
Your words are filled with grace;
God himself is blessing you forever.
3 Arm yourself, O mighty one,
So glorious, so majestic!
4 And in your majesty
Go on to victory,
Defending truth, humility, and justice.
Go forth to awe-inspiring deeds!
5 Your arrows are sharp
In your enemies’ hearts;
They fall before you.
6 Your throne, O God, endures forever.
Justice is your royal scepter.
7 You love what is good
And hate what is wrong.
Therefore God, your God,
Has given you more gladness
Than anyone else.
8 Your robes are perfumed with myrrh, aloes, and cassia. In your palaces of inlaid ivory, lovely music is being played for your enjoyment. 9 Kings’ daughters are among your concubines.[b] Standing beside you is the queen, wearing jewelry of finest gold from Ophir.
10-11 “I advise you, O daughter, not to fret about your parents in your homeland far away. Your royal husband delights in your beauty. Reverence him, for he is your lord. 12 The people of Tyre, the richest people of our day, will shower you with gifts and entreat your favors.”
13 The bride,[c] a princess, waits within her chamber, robed in beautiful clothing woven with gold. 14 Lovely[d] she is, led beside her maids of honor to the king! 15 What a joyful, glad procession as they enter in the palace gates! 16 “Your sons will some day be kings like their father. They shall sit on thrones around the world!
17 “I will cause your name to be honored in all generations; the nations of the earth will praise you forever.”
49 1-2 Listen, everyone! High and low, rich and poor, all around the world—listen to my words, 3 for they are wise and filled with insight.
4 I will tell in song accompanied by harps the answer to one of life’s most perplexing problems:
5 There is no need to fear when times of trouble come, even though surrounded by enemies! 6 They trust in their wealth and boast about how rich they are, 7 yet not one of them, though rich as kings, can ransom his own brother from the penalty of sin! For God’s forgiveness does not come that way.[a] 8-9 For a soul is far too precious to be ransomed by mere earthly wealth. There is not enough of it in all the earth to buy eternal life for just one soul, to keep it out of hell.[b]
10 Rich man! Proud man! Wise man! You must die like all the rest! You have no greater lease on life than foolish, stupid men. You must leave your wealth to others. 11 You name your estates after yourselves as though your lands could be forever yours and you could live on them eternally. 12 But man with all his pomp must die like any animal. 13 Such is the folly of these men, though after they die they will be quoted as having great wisdom.
14 Death is the shepherd of all mankind. And “in the morning” those who are evil will be the slaves of those who are good. For the power of their wealth is gone when they die;[c] they cannot take it with them.
15 But as for me, God will redeem my soul from the power of death, for he will receive me. 16 So do not be dismayed when evil men grow rich and build their lovely homes. 17 For when they die, they carry nothing with them! Their honors will not follow them. 18 Though a man calls himself happy all through his life—and the world loudly applauds success— 19 yet in the end he dies like everyone else and enters eternal darkness.
20 For man with all his pomp[d] must die like any animal.
84 How lovely is your Temple, O Lord of the armies of heaven.
2 I long, yes, faint with longing to be able to enter your courtyard and come near to the Living God. 3 Even the sparrows and swallows are welcome to come and nest among your altars and there have their young, O Lord of heaven’s armies, my King and my God! 4 How happy are those who can live in your Temple, singing your praises.
5 Happy are those who are strong in the Lord, who want above all else to follow your steps. 6 When they walk through the Valley of Weeping, it will become a place of springs where pools of blessing and refreshment collect after rains! 7 They will grow constantly in strength, and each of them is invited to meet with the Lord in Zion.
8 O Jehovah, God of the heavenly armies, hear my prayer! Listen, God of Israel. 9 O God, our Defender and our Shield, have mercy on the one you have anointed as your king.[a]
10 A single day spent in your Temple is better than a thousand anywhere else! I would rather be a doorman of the Temple of my God than live in palaces[b] of wickedness. 11 For Jehovah God is our Light and our Protector. He gives us grace and glory. No good thing will he withhold from those who walk along his paths.[c]
12 O Lord of the armies of heaven, blessed are those who trust in you.
85 Lord, you have poured out amazing blessings on this land! You have restored the fortunes of Israel,[d] 2 and forgiven the sins of your people—yes, covered over each one, 3 so that all your wrath, your blazing anger, is now ended.
4 Now bring us back to loving you,[e] O Lord, so that your anger will never need rise against us again. 5 (Or will you be always angry—on and on to distant generations?) 6 Oh, revive us! Then your people can rejoice in you again. 7 Pour out your love and kindness on us, Lord, and grant us your salvation.
8 I am listening carefully to all the Lord is saying—for he speaks peace to his people, his saints, if they will only stop their sinning. 9 Surely his salvation is near to those who reverence him; our land will be filled with his glory.
10 Mercy and truth have met together. Grim justice[f] and peace have kissed! 11 Truth rises from the earth, and righteousness smiles down from heaven.
12 Yes, the Lord pours down his blessings on the land, and it yields its bountiful crops. 13 Justice goes before him to make a pathway for his steps.[g]
87 1-2 High on his holy mountain stands Jerusalem,[a] the city of God, the city he loves more than any other!
3 O city of God, what wondrous tales are told of you! 4 Nowadays when I mention among my friends the names of Egypt and Babylonia, Philistia and Tyre, or even distant Ethiopia, someone boasts that he was born in one or another of those countries. 5 But someday the highest honor will be to be a native of Jerusalem! For the God above all gods will personally bless this city. 6 When he registers her citizens, he will place a check mark beside the names of those who were born here. 7 And in the festivals they’ll sing, “All my heart is in Jerusalem.”
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.