Old/New Testament
The God of Sinai and of the Sanctuary.
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. A Song.
68 Let God arise, and His enemies be scattered;
Let those who hate Him flee before Him.
2
As smoke is driven away, so drive them away;
As wax melts before the fire,
So let the wicked and guilty perish before [the presence of] God.
3
But let the righteous be glad; let them be in good spirits before God,
Yes, let them rejoice with delight.
4
Sing to God, sing praises to His name;
Lift up a song for Him who rides through the desert—
His name is the Lord—be in good spirits before Him.
5
A father of the fatherless and a judge and protector of the widows,
Is God in His holy habitation.
6
God makes a home for the lonely;
He leads the prisoners into prosperity,
Only the stubborn and rebellious dwell in a parched land.
7
O God, when You went out before Your people,
When You marched through the wilderness, Selah.
8
The earth trembled;
The heavens also poured down rain at the presence of God;
Sinai itself trembled at the presence of God, the God of Israel.
9
You, O God, sent abroad plentiful rain;
You confirmed Your inheritance when it was parched and weary.
10
Your flock found a dwelling place in it;
O God, in Your goodness You provided for the poor.
11
The Lord gives the command [to take Canaan];
The women who proclaim the good news are a great host (army);
12
“The kings of the [enemies’] armies flee, they flee,
And the beautiful woman who remains at home divides the spoil [left behind].”
13
When you lie down [to rest] among the [a]sheepfolds,
You [Israel] are like the wings of a dove [of victory] overlaid with silver,
Its feathers glistening with gold [trophies taken from the enemy].
14
When the Almighty scattered [the Canaanite] kings in the land of Canaan,
It was snowing on [b]Zalmon.
15
A mountain of God is the mountain of Bashan;
A [high] mountain of many summits is Mount Bashan [rising east of the Jordan].
16
Why do you look with envy, mountains with many peaks,
At the mountain [of the city of Zion] which God has desired for His dwelling place?
Yes, the Lord will dwell there forever.
17
The chariots of God are [c]myriads, thousands upon thousands;
The Lord is among them as He was at Sinai, in holiness.
18
You have ascended on high, You have led away captive Your captives;
You have received gifts among men,
Even from the rebellious also, that the Lord God may dwell there.(A)
19
Blessed be the Lord, who bears our burden day by day,
The God who is our salvation! Selah.
20
God is to us a God of acts of salvation;
And to [d]God the Lord belong escapes from death [setting us free].
21
Surely God will shatter the head of His enemies,
The hairy scalp of one who goes on in his guilty ways.
22
The Lord said, “I will bring your enemies back from Bashan;
I will bring them back from the depths of the [Red] Sea,
23
That your foot may crush them in blood,
That the tongue of your dogs may have its share from your enemies.”
24
They have seen Your [solemn] [e]procession, O God,
The procession of my God, my King, into the sanctuary [in holiness].
25
The singers go in front, the players of instruments last;
Between them the maidens playing on tambourines.
26
Bless God in the congregations, [give thanks, gratefully praise Him],
The Lord, you who are from [Jacob] the fountain of Israel.
27
The youngest is there, Benjamin, ruling them,
The princes of Judah and their company [the southern tribes],
The princes of Zebulun and the princes of Naphtali [the northern tribes].
28
Your God has commanded your strength [your power in His service and your resistance to temptation];
Show Yourself strong, O God, who acted on our behalf.
29
Because of Your temple at Jerusalem
[Pagan] kings will bring gifts to You [out of respect].
30
Rebuke the beasts [living] among the reeds [in Egypt],
The herd of bulls (the leaders) with the calves of the peoples;
Trampling underfoot the pieces of silver;
He has scattered the peoples who delight in war.
31
Princes and envoys shall come from Egypt;
Ethiopia will quickly stretch out her hands [with the offerings of submission] to God.
32
Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth,
Sing praises to the Lord! Selah.
33
To Him who rides in the highest heavens, the ancient heavens,
Behold, He sends out His voice, a mighty and majestic voice.
34
Ascribe strength to God;
His majesty is over Israel
And His strength is in the skies.
35
O God, You are awesome and profoundly majestic from Your sanctuary;
The God of Israel gives strength and power to His people.
Blessed be God!
A Cry of Distress and Imprecation on Adversaries.
To the Chief Musician; set to [the tune of] “Lilies.” A Psalm of David.
69 Save me, O God,
For the waters have threatened my life [they have come up to my neck].
2
I have sunk in deep mire, where there is no foothold;
I have come into deep waters, where a flood overwhelms me.
3
I am weary with my crying; my throat is parched;
My eyes fail while I wait [with confident expectation] for my God.
4
Those who hate me without cause are more than the hairs of my head;
Those who would destroy me are powerful, being my enemies wrongfully;
I am forced to restore what I did not steal.(B)
5
O God, You know my folly;
My wrongs are not hidden from You.
6
Do not let those who wait [confidently] for You be [f]ashamed through me, O Lord [g]God of hosts;
Do not let those who seek You [as necessary for life itself] be dishonored through me, O God of Israel,
7
Because for Your sake I have borne reproach;
Confusion and dishonor have covered my face.
8
I have become estranged from my brothers
And an alien to my mother’s sons.(C)
9
For zeal for Your house has consumed me,
And the [mocking] insults of those who insult You have fallen on me.(D)
10
When I wept and humbled myself with fasting,
It became my reproach.
11
When I made sackcloth my clothing [as one in mourning],
I became a byword [a mere object of scorn] to them.
12
They who sit in the [city’s] gate talk about me and mock me,
And I am the song of the drunkards.
13
But as for me, my prayer is to You, O Lord, at an acceptable and opportune time;
O God, in the greatness of Your favor and in the abundance of Your lovingkindness,
Answer me with truth [that is, the faithfulness of Your salvation].
14
Rescue me from the mire and do not let me sink;
Let me be rescued from those who hate me and from the deep waters.
15
Do not let the floodwater overwhelm me,
Nor the deep waters swallow me up,
Nor the pit [of Sheol] shut its mouth over me.
16
Answer me, O Lord, for Your lovingkindness is sweet and good and comforting;
According to the greatness of Your compassion, turn to me.
17
Do not hide Your face from Your servant,
For I am in distress; answer me quickly.
18
Draw near to my soul and redeem it;
Ransom me because of my enemies [so that they do not delight in my distress].
19
You know my reproach and my shame and my dishonor [how I am insulted];
My adversaries are all before You [each one fully known].
20
Reproach and insults have broken my heart and I am so sick.
I looked for sympathy, but there was none,
And for comforters, but I found none.
21
They (self-righteous hypocrites) also gave me gall [poisonous and bitter] for my food,
And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.(E)
22
May their table [with all its abundance and luxury] become a snare [to them];
And when they are in peace [secure at their sacrificial feasts], may it become a trap.
23
May their eyes be dimmed so that they cannot see,
And make their loins shake continually [in terror and weakness].
24
Pour out Your indignation on them,
And let [the fierceness of] Your burning anger overtake them.
25
May their encampment be desolate;
May no one dwell in their tents.(F)
26
For they have persecuted him whom You have struck,
And they tell of the pain of those whom You have pierced and wounded.
27
Add [unforgiven] iniquity to their iniquity [in Your book],
And may they not come into Your [h]righteousness.
28
May they be blotted out of the book of life [and their lives come to an end]
And may they not be recorded with the righteous (those in right standing with God).(G)
29
But I am sorrowful and in pain;
May Your salvation, O God, set me [securely] on high.
30
I will praise the name of God with song
And magnify Him with thanksgiving.
31
And it will please the Lord better than an ox
Or a young bull with horns and hoofs.
32
The humble have seen it and are glad;
You who seek God [requiring Him as your greatest need], let your heart revive and live.(H)
33
For the Lord hears the needy
And does not despise His who are prisoners.
34
Let heaven and earth praise Him,
The seas and everything that moves in them.
35
For God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah,
That His servants may remain there and possess it.
36
The descendants of His servants will inherit it,
And those who love His name will dwell in it.
Escape from Bondage
8 Therefore there is now no condemnation [no guilty verdict, no punishment] for those who are in Christ Jesus [who believe in Him as personal Lord and Savior].(A) 2 For the law of the Spirit of life [which is] in Christ Jesus [the law of our new being] has set you free from the law of sin and of death. 3 For what the Law could not do [that is, overcome sin and remove its penalty, its power] being weakened by the flesh [man’s nature without the Holy Spirit], God did: He sent His own Son in the likeness of sinful man as an offering for sin. And He condemned sin in the flesh [subdued it and overcame it in the person of His own Son],(B) 4 so that the [righteous and just] requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us who do not live our lives in the ways of the flesh [guided by worldliness and our sinful nature], but [live our lives] in the ways of the Spirit [guided by His power]. 5 For those who are living according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh [which gratify the body], but those who are living according to the Spirit, [set their minds on] the things of the Spirit [His will and purpose]. 6 Now the mind of the flesh is death [both now and forever—because it pursues sin]; but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace [the spiritual well-being that comes from walking with God—both now and forever]; 7 the mind of the flesh [with its sinful pursuits] is actively hostile to God. It does not submit itself to God’s law, since it cannot, 8 and those who are in the flesh [living a life that caters to sinful appetites and impulses] cannot please God.
9 However, you are not [living] in the flesh [controlled by the sinful nature] but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God lives in you [directing and guiding you]. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him [and is not a child of God].(C) 10 If Christ lives in you, though your [natural] body is dead because of sin, your spirit is alive because of righteousness [which He provides]. 11 And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who lives in you.
12 So then, [a]brothers and sisters, we have an obligation, but not to our flesh [our human nature, our worldliness, our sinful capacity], to live according to the [impulses of the] flesh [our nature without the Holy Spirit]— 13 for if you are living according to the [impulses of the] flesh, you are going to die. But if [you are living] by the [power of the Holy] Spirit you are habitually putting to death the sinful deeds of the body, you will [really] live forever. 14 For all who are allowing themselves to be led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading again to fear [of God’s judgment], but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons [the Spirit producing sonship] by which we [joyfully] cry, “[b]Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit Himself testifies and confirms together with our spirit [assuring us] that we [believers] are children of God. 17 And if [we are His] children, [then we are His] heirs also: heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ [sharing His spiritual blessing and inheritance], if indeed we share in His suffering so that we may also share in His glory.(D)
18 For I consider [from the standpoint of faith] that the sufferings of the present life are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is about to be revealed to us and in us! 19 For [even the whole] creation [all nature] waits eagerly for the children of God to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected to frustration and futility, not willingly [because of some intentional fault on its part], but by the will of Him who subjected it, in hope(E) 21 that the creation itself will also be freed from its bondage to decay [and gain entrance] into the glorious freedom of the children of God.
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.