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God looked downe from heauen vpon the children of men, to see if there were any that did vnderstand, that did seeke God.

Come and see the workes of God: he is terrible in his doing toward the children of men.

O God, thou knowest my foolishnesse; and my sinnes are not hidde from thee. Let not them that waite on thee, O Lord God of hostes, be ashamed for my sake: let not those that seeke thee, be confounded for my sake, O God of Israel. Because for thy sake I haue borne reproch: shame hath couered my face. I am become a stranger vnto my brethren, and an aliant vnto my mothers children. For the zeale of thine house hath eaten mee vp; and the reproches of them that reproched thee, are fallen vpon me. When I wept, and chastened my soule with fasting, that was to my reproch. I made sackecloth also my garment: & I became a prouerbe to them. They that sit in the gate, speake against mee; and I was the song of the drunkards. But as for mee, my prayer is vnto thee, O Lord, in an acceptable time: O God, in the multitude of thy mercie heare me, in the trueth of thy saluation. Deliuer me out of the mire, and let me not sinke: let me bee deliuered from them that hate me, and out of the deepe waters. Let not the water flood ouerflow me, neither let the deepe swallow mee vp, and let not the pit shut her mouth vpon me. Heare me, O Lord, for thy louing kindnesse is good: turne vnto mee according to the multitude of thy tender mercies. And hide not thy face from thy seruant, for I am in trouble: heare me speedily. Draw nigh vnto my soule, and redeeme it: deliuer me because of mine enemies. Thou hast knowen my reproch and my shame and my dishonor: mine aduersaries are all before thee. Reproch hath broken my heart, and I am full of heauines: and I looked for some to take pitie, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none. They gaue mee also gall for my meat, and in my thirst they gaue mee vineger to drinke. Let their table become a snare before them: and that which should haue bene for their welfare, let it become a trap. Let their eyes be darkened that they see not; and make their loines continually to shake. Powre out thine indignation vpon them, and let thy wrathfull anger take hold of them. Let their habitation be desolate, and let none dwell in their tents. For they persecute him who thou hast smitten, and they talke to the griefe of those whom thou hast wounded. Adde iniquitie vnto their iniquitie: and let them not come into thy righteousnesse. Let them bee blotted out of the booke of the liuing, and not be written with the righteous. But I am poore, and sorowfull: let thy saluation (O God) set me vp on high. I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnifie him with thankesgiuing. This also shall please the Lord better then an oxe or bullocke that hath hornes and hoofes. The humble shall see this, and be glad: and your heart shall liue that seeke good. For the Lord heareth the poore, and despiseth not his prisoners. Let the heauen and earth praise him, the seas, and euery thing that moueth therein. For God will saue Sion, and will build the cities of Iudah, that they may dwell there, and haue it in possession. The seede also of his seruants shall inherit it: and they that loue his name shall dwell therein.

We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come, the praises of the Lord: and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done.

For he established a Testimony in Iacob, and appointed a Law in Israel, which he commaunded our fathers: that they should make them knowen to their children.

That the generation to come might know them, euen the children which should be borne: who should arise and declare them to their children:

The children of Ephraim being armed, and carying bowes, turned backe in the day of battell.

span data-lang="eng" data-trans="kja" data-ref="psa.78.1" class="versetxt"> [Maschil of Asaph.] Giue eare, O my people, to my Lawe: incline your eares to the wordes of my mouth. I will open my mouth in a parable: I wil vtter darke sayings of old: Which we haue heard, & knowen: and our fathers haue told vs. We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come, the praises of the Lord: and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done. For he established a Testimony in Iacob, and appointed a Law in Israel, which he commaunded our fathers: that they should make them knowen to their children. That the generation to come might know them, euen the children which should be borne: who should arise and declare them to their children: That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God: but keepe his Commandements, And might not bee as their fathers, a stubborne and rebellious generation, a generation that set not their heart aright: and whose spirit was not stedfast with God. The children of Ephraim being armed, and carying bowes, turned backe in the day of battell. They kept not the couenant of God: and refused to walke in his Law: And forgat his workes: and his wonders that he had shewed them. Marueilous things did he in the sight of their fathers: in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan. Hee diuided the Sea, and caused them to passe through: and he made the waters to stand as an heape. In the day time also he led them with a cloud: and all the night with a light of fire. Hee claue the rockes in the wildernes: and gaue them drinke as out of the great depthes. Hee brought streames also out of the rocke, and caused waters to runne downe like riuers. And they sinned yet more against him: by prouoking the most High in the wildernes. And they tempted God in their heart: by asking meat for their lust. Yea, they spake against God: they said, Can God furnish a table in the wildernes? Behold, he smote the rocke, that the waters gushed out, & the streames ouerflowed; can he giue bread also? Can he prouide flesh for his people? Therefore the Lord heard this, and was wroth, so a fire was kindled against Iacob: and anger also came vp against Israel. Because they beleeued not in God: and trusted not in his saluation: Though he had commanded the cloudes from aboue: and opened the doores of heauen: And had rained downe Manna vpon them to eate, and had giuen them of the corne of heauen. Man did eate Angels food: hee sent them meat to the full. He caused an East wind to blow in the heauen: and by his power hee brought in the South wind. He rained flesh also vpon them as dust: and feathered soules like as the sand of the sea. And hee let it fall in the midst of their campe, round about their habitations. So they did eate, & were well filled: for he gaue them their owne desire. They were not estranged from their lust: but while their meate was yet in their mouthes, The wrath of God came vpon them, and slew the fattest of them: and smote downe the chosen men of Israel. For all this they sinned still: and beleeued not for his wondrous works. Therefore their dayes did he consume in vanitie, and their yeeres in trouble. When hee slew them, then they sought him: and they returned, and inquired early after God. And they remembred that God was their rocke: and the high God, their redeemer. Neuerthelesse they did flatter him with their mouth: and they lyed vnto him with their tongues. For their heart was not right with him: neither were they stedfast in his couenant. But hee being full of compassion, forgaue their iniquity, and destroyed them not; yea many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stirre vp all his wrath. For he remembred that they were but flesh; a wind that passeth away, and commeth not againe. How oft did they prouoke him in the wildernesse: and grieue him in the desert? Yea they turned backe and tempted God: and limited the holy one of Israel. They remembred not his hand: nor the day when hee deliuered them from the enemie: How he had wrought his signes in Egypt: and his wonders in the field of Zoan: And had turned their riuers into blood: and their flouds, that they could not drinke. Hee sent diuers sorts of flies among them, which deuoured them: and frogges which destroyed them. He gaue also their increase vnto the caterpiller: and their labour vnto the locust. He destroyed their vines with haile: and their Sycomore trees with frost. He gaue vp their cattel also to the haile: and their flockes to hot thunder-bolts. He cast vpon them the fiercenesse of his anger, wrath and indignation, and trouble: by sending euill angels among them. He made a way to his anger, hee spared not their soule from death: but gaue their life ouer to the pestilence. And smote all the first borne in Egypt: the chiefe of their strength in the tabernacles of Ham: But made his owne people to goe forth like sheepe: and guided them in the wildernesse like a flocke. And he led them on safely, so that they feared not: but the sea ouerwhelmed their enemies. And he brought them to the border of his sanctuarie: euen to this mountaine which his right hand had purchased. He cast out the heathen also before them, and diuided them an inheritance by line: and made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents. Yet they tempted and prouoked the most high God: and kept not his testimonies: But turned backe, and dealt vnfaithfully like their fathers: they were turned aside like a deceitfull bowe. For they prouoked him to anger with their high places: and moued him to ielousie with their grauen images. When God heard this, hee was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel: So that he forsooke the tabernacle of Shiloh: the tent which he placed among men, And deliuered his strength into captiuitie: and his glory into the enemies hand. He gaue his people ouer also vnto the sword: and was wroth with his inheritance. The fire consumed their young men: and their maidens were not giuen to mariage. Their priests fell by the sword: and their widowes made no lamentation. Then the Lord awaked as one out of sleepe: and like a mighty man that shouteth by reason of wine. And he smote his enemies in the hinder parts: he put them to a perpetuall reproch. Moreouer he refused the tabernacle of Ioseph: and chose not the tribe of Ephraim. But chose the tribe of Iudah: the mount Sion which he loued.

I haue said, Ye are gods: and all of you are children of the most High:

Assur also is ioyned with them: they haue holpen the children of Lot. Selah.

If his children forsake my lawe, and walke not in my iudgements;

Thou turnest man to destruction: and sayest, Returne yee children of men.

Let thy worke appeare vnto thy seruants: and thy glory vnto their children.

The children of thy seruants shal continue: and their seed shall be established before thee.

He made knowen his wayes vnto Moses: his actes vnto the children of Israel.

Like as a father pitieth his children: so the Lord pitieth them that feare him.

But the mercy of the Lord is from euerlasting to euerlasting vpon them that feare him: and his righteousnesse vnto childrens children:

O yee seede of Abraham his seruant: yee children of Iacob his chosen.

Oh that men would praise the Lord, for his goodnesse: and for his wonderfull workes to the children of men.

Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodnesse: and for his wonderfull workes to the children of men.