Psalms 73-77

Psalm 73

¹A Psalm. Of Asaph. Truly, God is good to Israel, even to such as are clean in heart.

²But as for me, my feet had almost gone from under me; I was near to slipping;

³Because of my envy of the men of pride, when I saw the well-being of the wrongdoers.

⁴For they have no pain; their bodies are fat and strong.

⁵They are not in trouble as others are; they have no part in the unhappy fate of men.

⁶For this reason pride is round them like a chain; they are clothed with violent behaviour as with a robe.

⁷Their eyes are bursting with fat; they have more than their heart's desire.

⁸Their thoughts are deep with evil designs; their talk from their seats of power is of cruel acts.

⁹Their mouth goes up to heaven; their tongues go walking through the earth.

¹⁰For this reason they are full of bread; and water is ever flowing for them.

¹¹And they say, How will the Lord see this? is there knowledge in the Most High?

¹²Truly, such are the sinners; they do well at all times, and their wealth is increased.

¹³As for me, I have made my heart clean to no purpose, washing my hands in righteousness;

¹⁴For I have been troubled all the day; every morning have I undergone punishment.

¹⁵If I would make clear what it is like, I would say, You are false to the generation of your children.

¹⁶When my thoughts were turned to see the reason of this, it was a weariness in my eyes;

¹⁷Till I went into God's holy place, and saw the end of the evil-doers.

¹⁸You put their feet where there was danger of slipping, so that they go down into destruction.

¹⁹How suddenly are they wasted! fears are the cause of their destruction.

²⁰As a dream when one is awake, they are ended; they are like an image gone out of mind when sleep is over.

²¹My heart was made bitter, and I was pained by the bite of grief:

²²As for me, I was foolish, and without knowledge; I was like a beast before you.

²³But still I am ever with you; you have taken me by my right hand.

²⁴Your wisdom will be my guide, and later you will put me in a place of honour.

²⁵Whom have I in heaven but you? and having you I have no desire for anything on earth.

²⁶My flesh and my heart are wasting away: but God is the Rock of my heart and my eternal heritage.

²⁷For those who are far away from you will come to destruction: you will put an end to all those who have not kept faith with you.

²⁸But it is good for me to come near to God: I have put my faith in the Lord God, so that I may make clear all his works.

Psalm 74

¹Maschil. Of Asaph. Of God, why have you put us away from you for ever? why is the fire of your wrath smoking against the sheep who are your care?

²Keep in mind your band of worshippers, for whom you gave payment in the days which are past, whom you took for yourself as the people of your heritage; even this mountain of Zion, which has been your resting-place.

³Go up and see the unending destruction; all the evil which your haters have done in the holy place;

⁴Sending out their voices like lions among your worshippers; they have put up their signs to be seen.

⁵They are cutting down, like a man whose blade is lifted up against the thick trees.

⁶Your doors are broken down with hammers and iron blades.

⁷They have put on fire your holy place; they have made the place of your name unclean, pulling it down to the earth.

⁸They have said in their hearts, Let us put an end to them all together; they have given over to the fire all God's places of worship in the land.

⁹We do not see our signs: there is no longer any prophet, or anyone among us to say how long.

¹⁰O God, how long will those who are against us say cruel things? will the hater go on looking down on your name for ever?

¹¹Why are you keeping back your hand, and covering your right hand in your robe?

¹²For from the past God is my King, working salvation in the earth.

¹³The sea was parted in two by your strength; the heads of the great sea-beasts were broken.

¹⁴The heads of the great snake were crushed by you; you gave them as food to the fishes of the sea.

¹⁵You made valleys for fountains and springs; you made the ever-flowing rivers dry.

¹⁶The day is yours and the night is yours: you made the light and the sun.

¹⁷By you all the limits of the earth were fixed; you have made summer and winter.

¹⁸Keep this in mind, O Lord, that your haters have said cruel things, and that your name has been looked down on by a people of evil behaviour.

¹⁹O give not the soul of your dove to the hawk; let not the life of the poor go out of your memory for ever.

²⁰Keep in mind your undertaking; for the dark places of the earth are full of pride and cruel acts.

²¹O let not the crushed be turned back in shame; let the low man and the poor give praise to your name.

²²Up! O God, be the judge of your cause; keep in mind the bitter things which the man of evil behaviour says against you every day.

²³Keep in mind the voice of your haters; the outcry of those who come against you goes up every day.

Psalm 75

¹To the chief music-maker; put to Al-tashheth. A Psalm. Of Asaph. A Song. To you, O God, we give praise, to you we give praise: and those who give honour to your name make clear your works of power.

²When the right time has come, I will be the judge in righteousness.

³When the earth and all its people become feeble, I am the support of its pillars. (Selah.)

⁴I say to the men of pride, Let your pride be gone: and to the sinners, Let not your horn be lifted up.

⁵Let not your horn be lifted up: let no more words of pride come from your outstretched necks.

⁶For honour does not come from the east, or from the west, or uplifting from the south;

⁷But God is the judge, putting down one, and lifting up another.

⁸For in the hand of the Lord is a cup, and the wine is red; it is well mixed, overflowing from his hand: he will make all the sinners of the earth take of it, even to the last drop.

⁹But I will ever be full of joy, making songs of praise to the God of Jacob.

¹⁰By him will all the horns of the sinners be cut off; but the horns of the upright will be lifted up.

Psalm 76

¹To the chief music-maker; put to Neginoth. A Psalm. Of Asaph. A Song. In Judah is the knowledge of God; his name is great in Israel,

²In Salem is his tent, his resting-place in Zion.

³There were the arrows of the bow broken, there he put an end to body-cover, sword, and fight. (Selah.)

⁴You are shining and full of glory, more than the eternal mountains.

⁵Gone is the wealth of the strong, their last sleep has overcome them; the men of war have become feeble.

⁶At the voice of your wrath, O God of Jacob, deep sleep has overcome carriage and horse.

⁷You, you are to be feared; who may keep his place before you in the time of your wrath?

⁸From heaven you gave your decision; the earth, in its fear, gave no sound,

⁹When God took his place as judge, for the salvation of the poor on the earth. (Selah.)

¹⁰The ... will give you praise; the rest of ...

¹¹Give to the Lord your God what is his by right; let all who are round him give offerings to him who is to be feared.

¹²He puts an end to the wrath of rulers; he is feared by the kings of the earth.

Psalm 77

¹To the chief music-maker. After Jeduthun. Of Asaph. A Psalm. I was crying to God with my voice; even to God with my voice, and he gave ear to me.

²In the day of my trouble, my heart was turned to the Lord: my hand was stretched out in the night without resting; my soul would not be comforted.

³I will keep God in memory, with sounds of grief; my thoughts are troubled, and my spirit is overcome. (Selah.)

⁴You keep my eyes from sleep; I am so troubled that no words come.

⁵My thoughts go back to the days of the past, to the years which are gone.

⁶The memory of my song comes back to me in the night; my thoughts are moving in my heart; my spirit is searching with care.

⁷Will the Lord put me away for ever? will he be kind no longer?

⁸Is his mercy quite gone for ever? has his word come to nothing?

⁹Has God put away the memory of his pity? are his mercies shut up by his wrath? (Selah.)

¹⁰And I said, It is a weight on my spirit; but I will keep in mind the years of the right hand of the Most High.

¹¹I will keep in mind the works of Jah: I will keep the memory of your wonders in the past.

¹²I will give thought to all your work, while my mind goes over your acts of power.

¹³Your way, O God, is holy: what god is so great as our God?

¹⁴You are the God who does works of power: you have made your strength clear to the nations.

¹⁵With your arm you have made your people free, the sons of Jacob and Joseph. (Selah.)

¹⁶The waters saw you, O God; the waters saw you, they were in fear: even the deep was troubled.

¹⁷The clouds sent out water; the skies gave out a sound; truly, your arrows went far and wide.

¹⁸The voice of your thunder went rolling on; the world was flaming with the light of the storm; the earth was shaking.

¹⁹Your way was in the sea, and your road in the great waters; there was no knowledge of your footsteps.

²⁰You were guiding your people like a flock, by the hand of Moses and Aaron.