Old/New Testament
Psalm 72[a]
For[b] Solomon.
72 O God, grant the king the ability to make just decisions.[c]
Grant the king’s son[d] the ability to make fair decisions.[e]
2 Then he will judge[f] your people fairly,
and your oppressed ones[g] equitably.
3 The mountains will bring news of peace to the people,
and the hills will announce justice.[h]
4 He will defend[i] the oppressed among the people;
he will deliver[j] the children[k] of the poor
and crush the oppressor.
5 People will fear[l] you[m] as long as the sun and moon remain in the sky,
for generation after generation.[n]
6 He[o] will descend like rain on the mown grass,[p]
like showers that drench[q] the earth.[r]
7 During his days the godly will flourish;[s]
peace will prevail as long as the moon remains in the sky.[t]
8 May he rule[u] from sea to sea,[v]
and from the Euphrates River[w] to the ends of the earth.
9 Before him the coastlands[x] will bow down,
and his enemies will lick the dust.[y]
10 The kings of Tarshish[z] and the coastlands will offer gifts;
the kings of Sheba[aa] and Seba[ab] will bring tribute.
11 All kings will bow down to him;
all nations will serve him.
12 For he will rescue the needy[ac] when they cry out for help,
and the oppressed[ad] who have no defender.
13 He will take pity[ae] on the poor and needy;
the lives of the needy he will save.
14 From harm and violence he will defend them;[af]
he will value their lives.[ag]
15 May he live![ah] May they offer him gold from Sheba.[ai]
May they continually pray for him.
May they pronounce blessings on him all day long.[aj]
16 May there be[ak] an abundance[al] of grain in the earth;
on the tops[am] of the mountains may it[an] sway.[ao]
May its[ap] fruit trees[aq] flourish[ar] like the forests of Lebanon.[as]
May its crops[at] be as abundant[au] as the grass of the earth.[av]
17 May his fame endure.[aw]
May his dynasty last as long as the sun remains in the sky.[ax]
May they use his name when they formulate their blessings.[ay]
May all nations consider him to be favored by God.[az]
18 The Lord God, the God of Israel, deserves praise.[ba]
He alone accomplishes amazing things.[bb]
19 His glorious name deserves praise[bc] forevermore.
May his majestic splendor[bd] fill the whole earth.
We agree! We agree![be]
20 This collection of the prayers of David son of Jesse ends here.[bf]
Book 3 (Psalms 73-89)
Psalm 73[bg]
A psalm by Asaph.
73 Certainly God is good to Israel,[bh]
and to those whose motives are pure.[bi]
2 But as for me, my feet almost slipped;
my feet almost slid out from under me.[bj]
3 For I envied those who are proud,
as I observed[bk] the prosperity[bl] of the wicked.
4 For they suffer no pain;[bm]
their bodies[bn] are strong and well fed.[bo]
5 They are immune to the trouble common to men;
they do not suffer as other men do.[bp]
6 Arrogance is their necklace,[bq]
and violence covers them like clothing.[br]
7 Their prosperity causes them to do wrong;[bs]
their thoughts are sinful.[bt]
8 They mock[bu] and say evil things;[bv]
they proudly threaten violence.[bw]
9 They speak as if they rule in heaven,
and lay claim to the earth.[bx]
10 Therefore they have more than enough food to eat,
and even suck up the water of the sea.[by]
11 They say, “How does God know what we do?
Is the Most High aware of what goes on?”[bz]
12 Take a good look. This is what the wicked are like,[ca]
those who always have it so easy and get richer and richer.[cb]
13 I concluded,[cc] “Surely in vain I have kept my motives[cd] pure
and maintained a pure lifestyle.[ce]
14 I suffer all day long,
and am punished every morning.”
15 If I had publicized these thoughts,[cf]
I would have betrayed your people.[cg]
16 When I tried to make sense of this,
it was troubling to me.[ch]
17 Then I entered the precincts of God’s temple,[ci]
and understood the destiny of the wicked.[cj]
18 Surely[ck] you put them in slippery places;
you bring them down[cl] to ruin.
19 How desolate they become in a mere moment.
Terrifying judgments make their demise complete.[cm]
20 They are like a dream after one wakes up.[cn]
O Lord, when you awake[co] you will despise them.[cp]
21 Yes,[cq] my spirit was bitter,[cr]
and my insides felt sharp pain.[cs]
22 I was ignorant[ct] and lacked insight;[cu]
I was as senseless as an animal before you.[cv]
23 But I am continually with you;
you hold my right hand.
24 You guide[cw] me by your wise advice,
and then you will lead me to a position of honor.[cx]
25 Whom do I have in heaven but you?
On earth there is no one I desire but you.[cy]
26 My flesh and my heart may grow weak,[cz]
but God always[da] protects my heart and gives me stability.[db]
27 Yes,[dc] look! Those far from you[dd] die;
you destroy everyone who is unfaithful to you.[de]
28 But as for me, God’s presence is all I need.[df]
I have made the Sovereign Lord my shelter,
as[dg] I declare all the things you have done.
Israel’s Rejection Considered
9 [a] I am telling the truth in Christ (I am not lying!), for my conscience assures me[b] in the Holy Spirit— 2 I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart.[c] 3 For I could wish[d] that I myself were accursed—cut off from Christ—for the sake of my people,[e] my fellow countrymen,[f] 4 who are Israelites. To them belong[g] the adoption as sons,[h] the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the temple worship,[i] and the promises. 5 To them belong the patriarchs,[j] and from them,[k] by human descent,[l] came the Christ,[m] who is God over all, blessed forever![n] Amen.
6 It is not as though the word of God had failed. For not all those who are descended from Israel are truly Israel,[o] 7 nor are all the children Abraham’s true descendants; rather “through Isaac will your descendants be counted.”[p] 8 This means[q] it is not the children of the flesh[r] who are the children of God; rather, the children of promise are counted as descendants. 9 For this is what the promise declared:[s] “About a year from now[t] I will return and Sarah will have a son.”[u] 10 Not only that, but when Rebekah had conceived children by one man,[v] our ancestor Isaac— 11 even before they were born or had done anything good or bad (so that God’s purpose in election[w] would stand, not by works but by[x] his calling)[y]— 12 [z] it was said to her, “The older will serve the younger,”[aa] 13 just as it is written: “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”[ab]
14 What shall we say then? Is there injustice with God? Absolutely not! 15 For he says to Moses: “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”[ac]
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