PSALM 43
It is unknown who and when wrote this psalm, as well as for what reason it was written, but we are sure that it was a sad incident that affected not so much the writer himself (then we would find enough grounds for writing it both in the history of David and in his sufferings) as much as the Church of God as a whole. Therefore, if we suppose that it was written by David, we must attribute it entirely to the Spirit of prophecy, and come to the conclusion that the Spirit himself (whoever He used) had in view the Babylonian captivity, or the sufferings of the Jewish Church in the time of Antiochus, or, rather a difficult situation Christian Church in the first days of her creation (v. 23, referred to by the apostle in Romans 8:36) and, of course, all her days on earth, for it is determined that through many tribulations she will be able to enter the kingdom of heaven. And if we have one gospel psalm pointing out the privileges and consolations of Christians, why should we not have one pointing out their trials and hardening? This psalm was composed for a humbling day of fasting on the occasion of a national disaster, threat or burden. In it the Church receives edification
(I.) Give thanks and praise to God for the great works he had done for their fathers (v. 2-9).
(II.) Detail the present distress (v. 10-17).
(III) Solemnly declare one's own integrity and commitment to God, no matter what (vv. 18-23).
IV. Petition to the throne of grace for help and deliverance (vv. 23-27). In singing this psalm we should praise God for what He has previously done for His people, offer Him our own sorrows, and sympathize with the churches in despair; whatever happens, cling more closely to God and your duty, and then joyfully await the outcome of the event.
To the director of the choir for the sons of Korah. Teaching.
Verses 2-9
Some believe that most of the psalms entitled "teaching" - psalms of edification - are sad, for suffering edifies, and a sorrowful spirit opens the ears. Blessed is the man whom You admonish, O Lord, and instruct.
These verses call upon the trampled Church to remember the days of her exultation in God and over her enemies. There is a lot said here about what this
(1) aggravates the present distress. The yoke of slavery is always too heavy a burden for those who once wore a crown of victory, and the proofs of God's displeasure are especially heavy for those who have long been accustomed to have proofs of His favor.
(2) It is encouraging to hope that God will free them from captivity and turn to them in mercy. In a similar way he mixes prayers and pleasant expectations with a list of former mercies.
Note:
I. To the solemn remembrance of the great works which God had formerly done for them.
1. In general (v. 2): “Our fathers told us the work that thou didst in their days.”
(1.) The many acts of providence are here spoken of as one work—"They told us of the work which thou didst," for in all that God does there is a wonderful harmony and uniformity, and many wheels make but one wheel (Ezek. 10:13), and many works form one work.
(2) It is the duty of every generation to its descendants to record in a book all the wonderful works of God and to transmit the knowledge of them to the next generation. Those who went before us tell us what God did in their day, and we must tell those who come after us what He did in our day, and teach them to do the same to those who come after them. Then generation to generation will praise Your works (Ps. 145:4), and the father will proclaim Your truth to the children (Is. 38:19).
(3.) We must not only mention the works that God has done in our day, but also acquaint ourselves and our children with the things that He did in the days of old, long before we were born. Concerning this, Scripture presents us with a word of history that is as sure as the word of prophecy.
(4) Children should listen carefully to the stories of their parents about the wonderful works of God and keep them in memory, since all this is very useful for them.
(5.) A knowledge of the former mercies and power of God is a strong encouragement to faith, and a powerful petition in prayer for present troubles. Look how Gideon insisted on this: “...where are all His miracles that our fathers told us about?” (Judges 6:13).
2. In particular, their fathers told them,
(1.) How wonderfully God planted Israel at first in Canaan (v. 3, 4). He drove out the nations to make room for Israel. He turned them into dust with the sword of Israel and with his bow into stubble. Many of the absolute victories that the Israelites won over the Canaanites under Joshua could not be attributed to them or bring them glory.
They owed these victories not to their own merits, but to God's favor and His grace. For this we must thank “the light of Your countenance, for You were pleased with them. Not for your righteousness and not for the uprightness of your heart... Your God drives them out from before you (Deut. 9:5,6), but in order to fulfill the oath that He swore to your fathers (Deut. 7:8). The less praise we receive, the more comfort we receive, for we see that our success comes from the favor of God and the light of His countenance.
They attributed their victories not to their own power, but to the power of God, which stood up for them, without which all their attempts and efforts would have been fruitless. They took possession of this land not thanks to their sword and a great number of mighty warriors, and it was not their hand that saved them from the Canaanites who wanted to drive them away and shame them, but it was the right hand of God and His arm. The Lord fought for Israel, otherwise their fight would have been in vain. Thanks to Him, they acted bravely and won victories. It was God who planted Israel in this good land, just as a careful farmer plants a tree from which he later hopes to receive fruit (see Ps. 79:9). These words may also imply the planting of the Christian Church in this world through the preaching of the Gospel. Paganism in the person of the Canaanites was miraculously eradicated, not immediately, but gradually, not by human strategy or wisdom (for God chose the foolish and weak to do this), but by the wisdom and power of God. Christ by His Spirit marched victoriously and gained victories, and the remembrance of this is a great support and consolation to those who groan under the yoke of anti-Christian tyranny, for some (notably the highly educated Amiraldus) think that the last part of this psalm corresponds very well to the description of the state of the Church , under the rule of New Testament Babylon. He who by His power and mercy planted the Church for Himself in this world will undoubtedly support it with the same power and mercy, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.
(2.) How often did God give them success in battle against the enemies who tried to hinder the possession of this good land (v. 8): “Thou hast often delivered us from our enemies, put them to flight, and put to shame those who hate us. Thus, You testified to your success in speaking out against the nations opposing Israel.” Many times the persecutors of the Christian Church and those who hate her have been put to shame by the power of the truth (Acts 6:10). II. How well they used these memories both now and before, reflecting on the great things that God had previously done for their fathers.
1. They accepted God as their almighty Lord, swearing allegiance to Him and trusting in His protection (v. 5): “God my king!” The psalmist speaks the same words as in Psalm 73:12 on behalf of the Church: “God, my King from everlasting.” God, as King, gave laws for His Church, saw to it that it had peace and order, came to its defense, fought for it, and defended it. This is His kingdom in this world, it must obey Him and pay tribute. Or in these verses he says about himself: “Lord, You are my king! To whom should I go with my requests, if not to You? I ask Your favor not for myself, but for the Church.” Note that it is the duty of every man to perfect his personal standing before the throne of grace and to pray for the prosperity and welfare of God's people, as Moses did: "If I have found favor in Thy sight, lead Thy people" (Ex. 33:13).
2. They always called upon Him in prayer, asking for deliverance whenever they found themselves in a difficult situation: “Give salvation to Jacob.” Check
(1.) The vastness of their desire. They pray for deliverances: not just one, but many, so that God will deliver them as many times as necessary - deliverance from every danger.
(2) The strength of their faith in the power of God. They do not say “bring about deliverance,” but “give deliverance,” which means that He does it easily and immediately. “Speak and it will be done” - such was the faith of the centurion, who said: “... just speak the word, and my servant will be healed” (Matthew 8:8). It also means that God is effective: “Command as one in authority whose commands are carried out.” Where the word of the king is, there is power, all the more so when it comes to the word of the King of kings.
3. They trusted and rejoiced in Him. They did not believe that they owed their salvation to their own sword and bow (v. 4), nor did they expect that their sword and bow would save them in the future (v. 7): “For I trust not in my bow, nor in the preparations of war; as if they could be useful if God was not with me. No, with You we will gore our enemies with the horns (v. 6). We will fight in Your strength, relying only on it, and not on the number or courage of our armies. And with You on our side, we will not doubt the success of our attempts. In Your name (because of Your wisdom that guides us, Your power that strengthens us and works in us, and because of Your promise that promises us success) we will trample underfoot those who rise up against us.”
4. They made God their joy and praise (v. 9): “Let us boast in God; in Him we rejoice and will rejoice every day and forever.” When their enemies, such as Sennacherib and Rabshakeh, who insulted Hezekiah, boasted of their strength and skill, they had nothing to boast in return except their relation to God and their part in Him. And if He was for them, then they could look at the whole world with disdain. Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord and forever exclude all other praise. Let him who trusts in God boast in the Lord, for he knows in whom he trusts. Let us boast about God every day, for this theme will never be exhausted. Moreover, we will glorify Your name forever. If they have comfort in His name, then let them give it due glory.
Verses 10-17
In these verses the people of God complain to Him of the despised and suffering condition in which they now find themselves, under the power of their enemies and oppressors. Their situation is especially desperate because they are now defeated, while they were accustomed to always winning battles with their neighbors, and also because they are now overwhelmed by those who have previously been defeated and forced to pay tribute many times before. Because they boasted of their God with great confidence in His protection and blessing (as they had previously), their present desperate situation and dishonor became the more shameful. Let's look at what they were complaining about.
I. The want of the usual proofs of God's favor, and his abandonment of them (v. 10): But now thou hast cast us off; it seems that You have abandoned us and are indifferent to us. You do not worry about us and put us to shame because we boasted of the constancy and unlimitedness of Your favor. Our troops, as always, go to battle, but are forced to flee. We do not conquer new lands, but we lose what we have acquired, for You do not go out with us. Otherwise, no matter where our troops turned, they would have been successful. But everything happens the other way around.” Notice that when God's people are oppressed they believe that God has abandoned them and turned away from them, but this is a mistake. Has God really rejected His people? No way (Rom. 11:1).
II. Because their enemies had defeated them on the battlefield (v. 11): "Thou hast put us to flight from the enemy." In similar words Joshua complained when his troops were defeated in the assault on Ai (Joshua 7:8): “We are dejected and have lost the former fearlessness of the Israelites. We ran and fell before those who had fallen before us before. And then those who hated us plundered our camp and our country; they looted and considered everything they could lay their hands on as theirs. Attempts to throw off the yoke of Babylon were unsuccessful, and because of them we lost the conquered lands.”
III. Because they were put to the sword and taken into captivity (v. 12): “Thou hast given us up as sheep to be devoured. Enemies think no more about killing an Israelite than killing a sheep. Moreover, like a butcher, they trade with us, thereby giving themselves pleasure, like a hungry man who chooses his food. And we are forced to go obediently, offering almost no resistance, like a lamb going to the slaughter. Many of us are killed, and the remnant is scattered among the pagans, who, out of malice, constantly offend us, and we are in danger of following their iniquity.” The Israelites looked upon themselves as having been bought and sold, and presented it to God, saying, “Thou hast sold Thy people,” although they should have attributed all the troubles to their own sins. You are sold for your sins (Isa. 50:1). Nevertheless, they did the right thing by looking beyond the tools that caused them disaster and looking to God, because they knew that the most powerful enemies would not have power over them unless it was given to them from above. They realized that God had delivered them into the hands of the wicked in the same way that a sold man is delivered to a buyer. In Russian synodal translation In the Bible we read: “You sold Your people without profit and did not raise their price. You sold it not at auction, when the highest bidder buys, but in a hurry to the first person who asked for it. Everyone can have them if they wish.” Or we read in the English translation: “Thou hast not increased Thy wealth at their cost.” These words imply that they would bear their sufferings patiently if they were confident that it would promote the glory of God, and that they would in some degree serve His interests by their sufferings. In fact, it was the other way around: the dishonor of Israel became a dishonor to God, therefore, by selling them, He did not add glory to himself, but rather thereby lost it (see Isa. 52:5; Ezek. 36:20).
IV. The fact that they were treated with contempt and were covered with dishonor. In this they also recognized God's hand: “You have given us over to be reproached; You have brought upon us calamities that lead to reproach, and You have allowed the evil tongues of our enemies to laugh at us.” They complain
(1.) That they are laughed at and mocked, that they are looked upon as the most despised people under the sun. Their troubles turned into a reproach for them, and therefore they laughed at them.
(2.) Their neighbors, who offended them most, and from whom they could not be removed (v. 14).
(3.) That the heathen nations, who were not concerned with the welfare of Israel and the covenants of promise, made a parable of them, nodded their heads towards them, and rejoiced at their fall (v. 15).
(4.) To be constantly dishonored by enemies (v. 16): “My shame is before me all day long.” The Church in general and the psalmist in particular suffered constantly from ridicule and insults. Everyone shouts at the vanquished: “End with them!”
(5) That all this was very sad, and the events that took place shocked him: “Shame covers my face.” He was ashamed of sin, and even more of the dishonor it caused to God, and therefore the shame was holy.
(6) That this reflected on God himself. The insults of the enemies and avengers addressed to them were also directed against God (v. 17, see 2 Kings 19:3). Therefore, they had good reason to believe that God would intercede for them. Just as there is no insult more severe for a noble and sincere person than slander against him, so there is nothing sadder for a holy, gracious soul than blasphemy and dishonor of God.
Verses 18-27
In these verses, God's people, experiencing oppression and suffering, turn to God with the question: “Where else can they go?”
I. In calling, they speak of their own integrity, which only one infallible Judge can judge and for which only He will reward. They call on God to testify to two things:
1. That, though they suffered under these calamities, yet they remained close to Him, and true to their duty (v. 17): “All these things came upon us, yet, terrible as our situation was, we did not forget Thee, nor cast out our thoughts. about You and did not stop worshiping You. And although we cannot deny that we behaved recklessly, at the same time we did not violate Your covenant, did not abandon You and did not worship foreign gods. Although the idolaters have conquered us, not a single positive thought has arisen in our minds about their idols and idolaters. Although it seems that You left us and went away, we did not leave You.” The troubles that had haunted them for a long time were very cruel: “You crushed us in the land of dragons, among people who were cruel, cruel and ferocious, like dragons. You have covered us with the shadow of death, that is, we remain in deep depression and realize the nearness of death. We were plunged into darkness and buried alive; and it is You who crushed and covered us (v. 20). At the same time, not a single cruel thought about You arose in us, and we did not think about leaving Your service. Although You kill us, we continue to trust in You. Our heart did not retreat back. We have not secretly changed our affection for You, nor have our steps strayed from Your path in which You commanded us to walk, neither from religious worship nor from godly living (v. 19).” When the hearts retreat, the feet soon also deviate, for only the evil heart of unbelief inclines to move away from God. Note that we can better cope with present troubles, however painful they may be, if we hold fast to our integrity. While difficulties do not draw us away from our duty to God, we must not allow them to draw us away from the comforts of God, for He will not forsake us unless we forsake Him. To prove their integrity they call upon the testimony of the omniscience of God, which is as much a consolation to the upright in heart as it is a horror to the hypocrites (vv. 21, 22): “If we had forgotten the name of our God, thinking that He had forgotten us, or in despair we stretched out our hands to a foreign god, expecting help from him, then would not God have required this? Doesn’t He know more fully and clearly than we do what we diligently seek and what we care about most? Will He not judge us and hold us accountable for this?” A person’s heart sins when he forgets about God and reaches out to someone else’s god. This sin has always been secret (Ezek. 8:12). But sins of the heart and secrets are known to God, and they will have to be answered for, for God knows the secrets of the heart. Therefore, the Lord is the faithful Judge of words and actions.
2. They suffered because they were close to God and faithful to their duty (v. 23): "...for Your sake we are put to death every day, because we belong to You, bear Your name, call upon it, and refuse to worship foreign gods." In these verses the Spirit of prophecy refers to those who suffered and even died as a witness for Christ (Rom. 8:36). So many people were killed and suffered a long, painful death that their enemies killed them every day. Most often this was associated with the fact that when a person became a Christian, he considered himself a sheep doomed to the slaughter.
II. They make a petition, referring to the present disasters, so that God will send them deliverance in due time.
(1) Their request is very urgent: “Arise, awaken (v. 24)! Arise to our aid and deliver us (v. 27); raise up Your power and come to save us (Ps. 79:3).” Previously they complained that God had sold them (v. 13), but here they pray that God would redeem them, for the Lord never calls, they call only to Him. If He sells us, no one else can redeem us; the hand that wounds heals, and the hand that smites binds (Hosea 6:1). Previously they complained: “...You have rejected us” (v. 10), but now they pray: “... do not reject us forever, do not forsake us forever” (v. 24).
(2) They persuade very touchingly: “... why are you sleeping, Lord!” (v.24). God does not give Israel the opportunity to sleep or take a nap, but if He does not immediately bring deliverance to His people, they will begin to believe that He is sleeping. This is said in a figurative sense, as in Psalm 77:65: “The Lord awoke as if from sleep, like a giant...” But these words can also be applied to Christ (Matthew 8:24): He slept while the disciples fought with the storm, and they woke Him up, saying: “Lord! save us, we are perishing.” “Why are you hiding your face, is it really that we cannot see You and the light of Your face? Or: “...is it really so as not to see us and our sorrow? You have forgotten about our suffering and our oppression, for all this continues, and we do not see how we can be delivered.” AND
(3) their requests are very correct: they do not refer to their own merits and righteousness, although they have the testimony of their conscience about their own integrity, but express their request in the words of a poor sinner.
They speak of their plight, which makes them suitable subjects for divine compassion (v. 26): “For our soul is brought down to the dust through sorrow and fear. We have become like crawling, most despised creatures. Our womb clung to the earth. We cannot lift ourselves up. We can neither revive our dying spirit nor restore ourselves from this sad, humiliated situation. We lie prostrate, exposed to every offending enemy.”
They ask God for mercy: “Deliver us for the sake of Your mercy. We trust in Thy mercy, which is the glory of Thy name (Ex. 34:6), and in those undoubted mercies of David, which are passed on by covenant to all his spiritual posterity.”
Ps. 43 The psalmist prays to God to come to the aid of his people, defeated in battle. The speech in the psalm is conducted alternately on behalf of one person, then on behalf of the whole congregation. This circumstance indicates that its creator is the king of Israel. After remembering God's past intercession (vv. 2-9) and affirming the Israelites' faithfulness to their covenant with Him (vv. 18-23), the psalmist asks God to change the present sorrowful fate of the people (vv. 24-27). It is impossible to pinpoint the event that gave rise to the creation of the psalm; it is obvious that it was intended to be performed on various occasions.
43:2 concerning the work which thou didst in their days. Memories play a key role in many psalms (eg Ps. 76). Remembering the mercy of God shown in the past allows the soul to overcome the despair that has gripped it. In the psalm under consideration, deliverance by the will of God in the past is a reason for reflection on the present state of affairs. Indeed, why does the Lord not save us now as He did in the past?
43:3 By Thy hand... I planted them. This refers to the conquest of Canaan by the Jews and their settlement in the Promised Land, described in the book of Joshua.
43:4 but Thy right hand. The narratives of the conquest of Canaan clearly show that Israel gained possession of the promised land not through their own strength and military skill, but through the power of God, who was present among His people (Josh. 6; cf. Deut. 7).
43:5 To Jacob. Jacob is another, along with Israel, name of the chosen people.
43:7 It is not my sword that will save me. The fundamental difference between the Old Testament holy war and any other is that in it God Himself wins victory for His people.
43:10 You have rejected and disgraced us. Now things are not the same as in the past. The Lord, who was with the Israeli army in Jericho, now did not want to bless it with His presence, and the enemy easily won the victory. The defeat of the Israelites was a sign that God was not with them in battle.
43:13 Thou hast sold thy people without profit. More precisely - “not for the sake of profit,” i.e. not because the enemies of the people of Israel brought better offerings than the people of God (this is exactly how the pagan peoples thought of divine protection).
43:18 But we have not forgotten You. The psalmist is in turmoil: the Lord promised to save the Israelites from their enemies if they remained faithful to the covenant, but did not do this. He promised that other nations would be witnesses of Israel's glory (Deut. 28:10), but at the moment Israel is humiliated by them.
43:20 covered us with the shadow of death. Such retribution was provided for the enemies of the Lord (Nahum 1:8).
43:23 For Your sake they kill us. The Israelites have not forgotten God; in His name they die. The Apostle Paul quotes this verse in Rom. 8.36.
43:24 Arise, that you are sleeping, O Lord! The psalmist asks God to overshadow the Israeli army with His presence. The basis of this metaphor - a dream - is the idea that God does not punish in in this case His people (since there is no guilt behind the people), but as if he distanced himself from them, “fell asleep.”
43:27 For Thy mercy's sake. Those. for the sake of God's cherished merciful love. Calling on God to intercede for His people, the psalmist again recalls the covenant.
God, our ears were filled with hearing, and our fathers told us the work that you did in their days, in the days of old. Thy hand has consumed the tongues, and I have planted them, I have embittered people, and I have driven them out. You did not inherit the earth with your sword, nor did your arm save them, but Your right hand, and Your arm, and the illumination of Your face, as You were pleased in them. You yourself are my King and my God, commanding the salvation of Jacob. Because of You we will tear our enemies by their horns, and because of Your name we will despise those who rise up against us. For I do not trust in my bow, and my sword will not save me. For thou hast saved us from those who afflict us, and thou hast put to shame those who hate us. Let us boast in God all day long and confess Your name forever. Now you have rejected and put us to shame, and you will not go away, O God, in our power. You brought us back in the face of our enemies, and those who hated us plundered them for themselves. You gave us as food as sheep, and you scattered us among the nations. Thou hast given Thy people without price, and there is no multitude in our exclamations. Thou hast ordained that we should be reproached by our neighbors, imitation and desecration by those around us. You have made us a byword among the people, the head of the people. All day long my shame is before me, and the coldness of my face covers me from the voice of reproach and slander, from the face of the enemy and expelling. All this has come upon us, and we have not forgotten You, nor have we failed in Your covenant. And do not turn back our heart, and you have turned our paths away from Your path. As if You have humbled us in the place of bitterness, and covered the shadow of death. If we have forgotten the name of our God and if we have lifted up our hands to a foreign god. Will not God seek these? That is the secret news of the heart. For Your sake we are put to death all day long, counted as sheep of the slaughter. Arise and write off everything, Lord? Resurrect and do not completely deny. Do you turn away Your face? Do you forget our poverty and our sorrow? For our soul has humbled itself to the dust, and our womb has clung to the earth. Arise, Lord, help us and deliver us in Your name.
1 To the director of the choir. Teaching. Sons of Korah.
2 God, we have heard with our ears, our fathers told us the work that you did in their days, in the days of old:
3 By Thy hand Thou hast destroyed the nations, and planted them; defeated the tribes and drove them out;
4 For they did not acquire the land with their sword, nor did their arm save them, but Your right hand and Your arm and the light of Your countenance, for You favored them.
5 God, my King! You are the same; grant salvation to Jacob.
6 With You we will gore our enemies with the horns; in Your name we will trample underfoot those who rise up against us:
7 For I will not trust in my bow, neither will my sword save me;
8 But You will save us from our enemies, and put to shame those who hate us.
9 Let us boast in God every day, and let us glorify Your name forever.
10 But now You have rejected and put us to shame, and You do not go out with our armies;
11 We have fled from the enemy, and those who hate us are plundering us;
12 You gave us like sheep to be eaten and scattered us among the nations;
13 You sold Your people without profit and did not raise their price;
14 He gave us over to be reproached by our neighbors, to be mocked and mocked by those who live around us;
15 You have made us a byword among the nations, a head among foreigners.
16 Every day my shame is before me, and shame covers my face
18 All this came upon us, but we did not forget You and did not break Your covenant.
19 Our heart has not turned back, neither have our feet turned away from Your path,
20 When You crushed us in the land of dragons and covered us with the shadow of death.
21 If we had forgotten the name of our God and stretched out our hands to a strange god,
22 Would not God have required this? For He knows the secrets of the heart.
23 But for Your sake they kill us every day; we are counted as sheep doomed to the slaughter.
24 Arise, that you are sleeping, O Lord! wake up, don't give up forever.
25 Why do you hide your face, forgetting our sorrow and our oppression?
26 For our soul is humbled to the dust, our bowels cling to the earth.
27 Rise up to help us and deliver us for the sake of Your mercy.
1 To the director of the choir. On musical instrument Shoshan. Teaching. Sons of Korah. Song of love.
2 Good words have poured out from my heart; I say: my song is about the King; my tongue is a cursive cane.
3 You are more beautiful than the sons of men; grace poured out from Your mouth; Therefore God has blessed You forever.
4 Gird Your sword upon Your thigh, O Mighty One, with Your glory and Your beauty,
5 And in this adorning of Thy make haste, sit on the chariot for the sake of truth and meekness and righteousness, and Thy right hand will show Thee wondrous works.
6 Thy arrows are sharp, O Mighty One, and the nations will fall before Thee; they are in the heart of the enemies of the King.
7 Your throne, O God, endures forever; the scepter of righteousness is the scepter of your kingdom.
8 You have loved righteousness and hated iniquity; therefore, O God, Your God has anointed You with the oil of joy more than Your fellows.
9 All Your garments are like myrrh and scarlet and cassia; from the halls Ivory amuse you.
10 The daughters of kings are among those honored by You; the queen stood at Your right hand in Ophir gold.
11 Hear, daughter, and look, and bow down your ear and forget your people and your father's house.
12 And the King will desire your beauty; for He is your Lord, and you shall worship Him.
13 And the daughter of Tyre with gifts, and the richest of the people, will pray before thy face.
14 All the glory of the King's daughter is within; her clothes are embroidered with gold;
15 in speckled clothes she is led to the King; after her the maidens, her friends, are led to you,
16 are brought in with joy and rejoicing and enter the palace of the King.
17 Instead of Your fathers, Your sons will be; You will make them princes throughout the whole earth.
18 I will make Your name memorable to generation and generation; Therefore the nations will praise You forever and ever.
1 To the director of the choir. Sons of Korah. On musical instrument Alamof. Song.
2 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble,
3 Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth shakes and the mountains move into the heart of the seas.
4 Let their waters make noise, let their waters swell, let the mountains shake with their excitement.
5 The river streams make glad the city of God, the holy dwelling of the Most High.
6 God is in the midst of it; he will not hesitate: God will help him early in the morning.
7 The nations made a noise; The kingdoms moved: [the Most High] gave His voice, and the earth melted.
8 The Lord of hosts is with us, the God of Jacob is our protector.
9 Come and see the works of the Lord, what devastation he has made on the earth:
10 He stopped fighting to the ends of the earth, smashed the bow and broke the spear, and burned the chariots with fire.
11 Be still and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the nations, exalted in the earth.
12 The Lord of hosts is with us, the God of Jacob is our advocate.
2 Clap your hands, all nations, shout to God with a voice of joy;
3 For the Lord Most High is awesome, a great King over all the earth;
4 He brought nations and nations under our feet;
5 He chose for us our inheritance, the beauty of Jacob, whom he loved.
6 God rose up with shouting, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet.
7 Sing to our God, sing; sing to our King, sing,
8 For God is the King of all the earth; Sing everything wisely.
9 God reigned over the nations, God sat on His holy throne;
10 The princes of the nations gathered together to the people of the God of Abraham, for the shields of the earth are God’s; He is exalted above them.
1 Song. Psalm. Sons of Korah.
2 Great is the Lord and highly praised in the city of our God, in His holy mountain.
3 Beautiful height, the joy of the whole earth, Mount Zion; on north side her city of the great King.
4 God is known in his dwellings as an intercessor:
5 For behold, the kings came together and all passed by;
6 They saw and were amazed, they were embarrassed and fled;
7 Fear and pain seized them there, like women in childbirth;
8 With the east wind you destroyed the ships of Tarsh.
9 As we have heard, so we have seen in the city of the Lord of hosts, in the city of our God: God will establish it forever.
10 We have meditated, O God, on Your goodness in the midst of Your temple.
11 As is Your name, O God, so is Your praise to the ends of the earth; Your right hand is full of righteousness.
12 Let Mount Zion rejoice, [and] let the daughters of Judah rejoice because of Thy judgments, [Lord].
13 Go round about Zion, and compass it, and number its towers;
14 Turn your heart to its fortifications, consider its houses, so that you can tell it to the generation that is to come,
15 For this God is our God for ever and ever: He will be our guide unto death.
1 To the director of the choir. Sons of Korah. Psalm.
2 Hear this, all you nations; take heed to this, all you who live in the universe, -
3 both the common and the noble, the rich as well as the poor.
4 My mouth shall speak wisdom, and the meditations of my heart shall be knowledge.
5 I will incline my ear to a parable; on the harp I will reveal my riddle:
6 “Why should I fear in the days of trouble, when the iniquity of my ways surrounds me?”
7 Those who trust in their own strength and boast of the abundance of their riches!
8 A man will not redeem his brother in any way and will not give God a ransom for him:
9 The price of the redemption of their souls is dear, and it will never be
10 so that someone will live forever and not see the grave.
11 Everyone sees that the wise die, just as the ignorant and senseless perish and leave their wealth to others.
12 In their minds is that their houses are eternal, and that their dwellings from generation to generation, and their lands they call by their proper names.
13 But man will not remain in honor; he will become like animals that perish.
14 This way of theirs is their foolishness, although those who follow them approve of their opinion.
15 They will be thrown into the pit like sheep; death will rule over them, and in the morning the righteous will rule over them; their strength will be exhausted; the grave is their dwelling.
16 But God will deliver my soul from the power of the grave when He receives me.
17 Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich, when the glory of his house increases:
18 For when he dies he will take nothing; his glory will not follow him;
19 Although he pleases his soul while he lives, and they glorify you because you satisfy yourself,
20 But he will go to the family of his fathers, who will never see the light.
21 A man who is honorable and foolish is like animals that perish.
Psalm of Asaph.
1 God of Gods, the Lord spoke and calls the earth, from the rising of the sun to the west.
2 From Zion, which is the height of beauty, God appears,
3 Our God comes, and not in silence: before Him is a consuming fire, and around Him is a mighty storm.
4 He calls on heaven and earth from above to judge His people:
5 “Gather to Me My saints, who have entered into covenant with Me by sacrifice.”
6 And the heavens will proclaim His righteousness, for this judge is God.
7 “Hear, My people, I will speak; Israel! I will testify against you: I am God, your God.
8 It is not because of your sacrifices that I will reproach you; Your burnt offerings are always before Me;
9 I will not accept a bull out of your house, nor a goat out of your folds,
10 For all the beasts of the forest are Mine, and the cattle on a thousand mountains,
11 I know all the birds on the mountains and the animals in the fields before Me.
12 If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the universe and all that fills it are Mine.
13 Do I eat the flesh of oxen and drink the blood of goats?
14 Sacrifice praise to God and pay your vows to the Most High,
15 And call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will glorify Me.”
16 But God says to the sinner, “Because you preach My statutes and take My covenant in your mouth,
17 Do you yourself hate My instruction and throw My words away for yourself?
18 When you see a thief, you associate with him, and associate with adulterers;
19 You open your mouth to slander, and your tongue weaves deceit;
20 You sit and speak against your brother, you slander your mother’s son;
21 You did this, and I was silent; you thought that I was the same as you. I will expose you and bring [your sins] before your eyes.
22 Understand this, you who forget God, lest I take away, and there will be no deliverer.
23 Whoever sacrifices praise honors Me, and whoever watches his way, to him I will show the salvation of God.”
1 To the director of the choir. Psalm of David,
2 When Nathan the prophet came to him, after David had gone in to Bathsheba.
3 Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your great mercy, and according to the multitude of Your compassions blot out my iniquities.
4 Wash me often from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin,
5 For I acknowledge my iniquities, and my sin is always before me.
6 You, You alone, have I sinned and done evil in Your sight, so that You are righteous in Your judgment and pure in Your judgment.
7 Behold, I was conceived in iniquity, and my mother bore me in sin.
8 Behold, You have loved the truth in your heart and have shown me [Your] wisdom within me.
9 Sprinkle me with hyssop, and I will be clean; Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
10 Let me hear joy and gladness, and the bones broken by You will rejoice.
11 Turn away Your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquities.
12 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
13 Cast me not away from Thy presence, and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me.
14 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and strengthen me with the sovereign Spirit.
15 I will teach the wicked your ways, and the wicked will turn to you.
16 Deliver me from bloodshed, O God, God of my salvation, and my tongue will praise Your righteousness.
17 Lord! Open my mouth, and my mouth will declare Your praise:
18 For You do not desire sacrifice, I would give it; You do not favor burnt offerings.
19 The sacrifice to God is a broken spirit; You will not despise a contrite and humble heart, O God.
20 Do good, [Lord], according to Your good pleasure, Zion; build up the walls of Jerusalem:
21 Then the sacrifices of righteousness, the wave offerings, and the burnt offerings will be acceptable to You; Then they will place bullocks on Your altar.
1 To the director of the choir. David's teaching
2 After Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul and told him that David had come to the house of Ahimelech.
3 Why do you boast of wickedness, O mighty one? God's mercy is always with me;
4 Your tongue concocts destruction; like a sophisticated razor, you have it, insidious!
5 You love evil more than good, lies more than telling the truth;
6 You love all kinds of destructive speech, a deceitful tongue:
7 Therefore God will utterly crush you, destroy you, and uproot you from [your] habitation, and your root from the land of the living.
8 The righteous will see and fear, they will laugh at him [and say]:
9 “Here is a man who did not trust his strength in God, but hoped in the abundance of his wealth, and was strengthened in his wickedness.”
10 But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God, and I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever,
11 I will praise You forever for what You have done, and I will trust in Your name, for it is good in the sight of Your saints.
1 To the director of the choir. On a wind weapon. David's teaching.
2 The fool said in his heart, “There is no God.” They became corrupt and committed heinous crimes; there is no one who does good.
3 God looked down from heaven upon the sons of men, to see if there was one who understood, one who sought God.
4 All have turned aside and become equally indecent; there is no one who does good, not even one.
5 Will not the workers of iniquity, who eat up my people as they eat bread, and do not call on God, come to their senses?
6 There they will fear fear, where there is no fear, for God will scatter the bones of those who fight against you. You will put them to shame because God has rejected them.
7 Who will give salvation to Israel from Zion? When God brings back the captivity of His people, then Jacob will rejoice and Israel will rejoice.
1 To the director of the choir. On string instruments. David's teaching
2 When Ziph came and said to Saul, “Is David not hiding with us?”
3 God! Save me in Your name, and judge me in Your power.
4 God! hear my prayer, listen to the words of my mouth,
5 For strangers have risen up against me, and the mighty are seeking my life; they do not have God before them.
6 Behold, God is my helper; The Lord strengthens my soul.
7 He will repay the evil of my enemies; By Your truth I will destroy them.
8 I will earnestly sacrifice to You; I will glorify Your name, O Lord, for it is good,
9 For you have delivered me from all troubles, and my eye has looked upon my enemies.
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