Study Desk

Praise the Lord , my soul.^(a) Lord my God, you are very great; you are clothed with splendor and majesty.^(b)

The Lord wraps^(c) himself in light^(d) as with a garment; he stretches^(e) out the heavens^(f) like a tent^(g)

and lays the beams^(h) of his upper chambers on their waters.⁽ⁱ⁾ He makes the clouds^(j) his chariot^(k) and rides on the wings of the wind.^(l)

He makes winds his messengers,^[a](m) flames of fire⁽ⁿ⁾ his servants.

He set the earth^(o) on its foundations;^(p) it can never be moved.

You covered it^(q) with the watery depths^(r) as with a garment; the waters stood^(s) above the mountains.

But at your rebuke^(t) the waters fled, at the sound of your thunder^(u) they took to flight;

they flowed over the mountains, they went down into the valleys, to the place you assigned^(v) for them.

You set a boundary^(w) they cannot cross; never again will they cover the earth.

He makes springs^(x) pour water into the ravines; it flows between the mountains.

They give water^(y) to all the beasts of the field; the wild donkeys^(z) quench their thirst.

The birds of the sky^(aa) nest by the waters; they sing among the branches.^(ab)

He waters the mountains^(ac) from his upper chambers;^(ad) the land is satisfied by the fruit of his work.^(ae)

He makes grass grow^(af) for the cattle, and plants for people to cultivate— bringing forth food^(ag) from the earth:

wine^(ah) that gladdens human hearts, oil^(ai) to make their faces shine, and bread that sustains^(aj) their hearts.

The trees of the Lord ^(ak) are well watered, the cedars of Lebanon^(al) that he planted.

There the birds^(am) make their nests; the stork has its home in the junipers.

The high mountains belong to the wild goats;^(an) the crags are a refuge for the hyrax.^(ao)

He made the moon to mark the seasons,^(ap) and the sun^(aq) knows when to go down.

You bring darkness,^(ar) it becomes night,^(as) and all the beasts of the forest^(at) prowl.

The lions roar for their prey^(au) and seek their food from God.^(av)

The sun rises, and they steal away; they return and lie down in their dens.^(aw)

Then people go out to their work,^(ax) to their labor until evening.^(ay)

How many are your works,^(az) Lord ! In wisdom you made^(ba) them all; the earth is full of your creatures.^(bb)

There is the sea,^(bc) vast and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number— living things both large and small.^(bd)

There the ships^(be) go to and fro, and Leviathan,^(bf) which you formed to frolic^(bg) there.^(bh)

All creatures look to you to give them their food^(bi) at the proper time.

When you give it to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are satisfied^(bj) with good things.

When you hide your face,^(bk) they are terrified; when you take away their breath, they die and return to the dust.^(bl)

When you send your Spirit,^(bm) they are created, and you renew the face of the ground.

May the glory of the Lord ^(bn) endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in his works^(bo)—

he who looks at the earth, and it trembles,^(bp) who touches the mountains,^(bq) and they smoke.^(br)

I will sing^(bs) to the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.

May my meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice^(bt) in the Lord .

But may sinners vanish^(bu) from the earth and the wicked be no more.^(bv) Praise the Lord , my soul. Praise the Lord .^[b](bw)

Give praise to the Lord ,^(b) proclaim his name;^(c) make known among the nations what he has done.

Sing to him,^(d) sing praise to him;^(e) tell of all his wonderful acts.^(f)

Glory in his holy name;^(g) let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.

Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face^(h) always.

Remember the wonders⁽ⁱ⁾ he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced,^(j)

you his servants, the descendants of Abraham,^(k) his chosen^(l) ones, the children of Jacob.

He is the Lord our God; his judgments are in all the earth.

He remembers his covenant^(m) forever, the promise he made, for a thousand generations,

the covenant he made with Abraham,⁽ⁿ⁾ the oath he swore to Isaac.

He confirmed it^(o) to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as an everlasting covenant:^(p)

"To you I will give the land of Canaan^(q) as the portion you will inherit."^(r)

When they were but few in number,^(s) few indeed, and strangers in it,^(t)

they wandered from nation to nation,^(u) from one kingdom to another.

He allowed no one to oppress^(v) them; for their sake he rebuked kings:^(w)

"Do not touch^(x) my anointed ones; do my prophets^(y) no harm."

He called down famine^(z) on the land and destroyed all their supplies of food;

and he sent a man before them— Joseph, sold as a slave.^(aa)

They bruised his feet with shackles,^(ab) his neck was put in irons,

till what he foretold^(ac) came to pass, till the word^(ad) of the Lord proved him true.

The king sent and released him, the ruler of peoples set him free.^(ae)

He made him master of his household, ruler over all he possessed,

to instruct his princes^(af) as he pleased and teach his elders wisdom.^(ag)

Then Israel entered Egypt;^(ah) Jacob resided^(ai) as a foreigner in the land of Ham.^(aj)

The Lord made his people very fruitful; he made them too numerous^(ak) for their foes,

whose hearts he turned^(al) to hate his people, to conspire^(am) against his servants.

He sent Moses^(an) his servant, and Aaron,^(ao) whom he had chosen.^(ap)

They performed^(aq) his signs^(ar) among them, his wonders^(as) in the land of Ham.

He sent darkness^(at) and made the land dark— for had they not rebelled against^(au) his words?

He turned their waters into blood,^(av) causing their fish to die.^(aw)

Their land teemed with frogs,^(ax) which went up into the bedrooms of their rulers.

He spoke,^(ay) and there came swarms of flies,^(az) and gnats^(ba) throughout their country.

He turned their rain into hail,^(bb) with lightning throughout their land;

he struck down their vines^(bc) and fig trees^(bd) and shattered the trees of their country.

He spoke,^(be) and the locusts came,^(bf) grasshoppers^(bg) without number;^(bh)

they ate up every green thing in their land, ate up the produce of their soil.

Then he struck down all the firstborn^(bi) in their land, the firstfruits of all their manhood.

He brought out Israel, laden with silver and gold,^(bj) and from among their tribes no one faltered.

Egypt was glad when they left, because dread of Israel^(bk) had fallen on them.

He spread out a cloud^(bl) as a covering, and a fire to give light at night.^(bm)

They asked,^(bn) and he brought them quail;^(bo) he fed them well with the bread of heaven.^(bp)

He opened the rock,^(bq) and water gushed out; it flowed like a river in the desert.

For he remembered his holy promise^(br) given to his servant Abraham.

He brought out his people with rejoicing,^(bs) his chosen ones with shouts of joy;

he gave them the lands of the nations,^(bt) and they fell heir to what others had toiled^(bu) for—

that they might keep his precepts and observe his laws.^(bv) Praise the Lord .^[a](bw)