Study Desk

For the choir director. A ^[a]Maskil of the sons of Korah.

O God, we have heard with our ears, Our ^(a)fathers have told us The ^(b)work that You did in their days, In the ^(c)days of old.

You with Your own hand ^(d)drove out the nations; Then You ^(e)planted them; You ^(f)afflicted the peoples, Then You ^(g)spread them abroad.

For by their own sword they ^(h)did not possess the land, And their own arm did not save them, But Your right hand and Your ⁽ⁱ⁾arm and the ^(j)light of Your presence, For You ^(k)favored them.

You are ^(l)my King, O God; ^(m)Command ^[b]victories for Jacob.

Through You we will ⁽ⁿ⁾push back our adversaries; Through Your name we will ^(o)trample down those who rise up against us.

For I will ^(p)not trust in my bow, Nor will my sword save me.

But You ^(q)have saved us from our adversaries, And You have ^(r)put to shame those who hate us.

In God we have ^(s)boasted all day long, And we will ^(t)give thanks to Your name forever. ^[c]Selah.

Yet You ^(u)have rejected us and brought us to ^(v)dishonor, And ^(w)do not go out with our armies.

You cause us to ^(x)turn back from the adversary; And those who hate us ^(y)have taken spoil for themselves.

You give us as ^(z)sheep ^[d]to be eaten And have ^(aa)scattered us among the nations.

You ^(ab)sell Your people ^[e]cheaply, And have not ^[f]profited by their sale.

You make us a ^(ac)reproach to our neighbors, A scoffing and a ^(ad)derision to those around us.

You make us ^(ae)a byword among the nations, A ^[g](af)laughingstock among the peoples.

All day long my dishonor is before me And ^[h]my ^(ag)humiliation has overwhelmed me,

Because of the voice of him who ^(ah)reproaches and reviles, Because of the presence of the ^(ai)enemy and the avenger.

All this has come upon us, but we have ^(aj)not forgotten You, And we have not ^(ak)dealt falsely with Your covenant.

Our heart has not ^(al)turned back, And our steps ^(am)have not deviated from Your way,

Yet You have ^(an)crushed us in a place of ^(ao)jackals And covered us with ^(ap)the shadow of death.

If we had ^(aq)forgotten the name of our God Or extended our ^[i]hands to ^(ar)a strange god,

Would not God ^(as)find this out? For He knows the secrets of the heart.

But ^(at)for Your sake we are killed all day long; We are considered as ^(au)sheep to be slaughtered.

^(av)Arouse Yourself, why ^(aw)do You sleep, O Lord? Awake, ^(ax)do not reject us forever.

Why do You ^(ay)hide Your face And ^(az)forget our affliction and our oppression?

For our ^(ba)soul has sunk down into the dust; Our body cleaves to the earth.

^(bb)Rise up, be our help, And ^(bc)redeem us for the sake of Your lovingkindness.