Study Desk

By the ^(C1)rivers of Babylon, There we sat down and ^(C2)wept, When we remembered Zion.

Upon the ^(F1)(C1)willows in the midst of it We ^(C2)hung our ^(F2)harps.

For there our captors ^(F1)(C1)demanded of us ^(F2)songs, And ^(C2)our tormentors, jubilation, saying, "Sing for us one of the songs of Zion!"

How can we sing ^(C1)the LORD'S song In a foreign land?

If I ^(C1)forget you, Jerusalem, May my right hand ^(F1)forget its skill.

May my ^(C1)tongue cling to the roof of my mouth If I do not remember you, If I do not ^(F1)(C2)exalt Jerusalem Above my chief joy.

Remember, LORD, against the sons of ^(C1)Edom The day of Jerusalem, Those who said, "Lay it bare, lay it bare ^(C2)To its foundation!"

Daughter of Babylon, you ^(F1)(C1)devastated one, Blessed will be one who ^(C2)repays you With ^(F2)the retribution with which you have repaid us.

Blessed will be one who seizes and ^(C1)dashes your children Against the rock.

^(C1)I will give You thanks with all my heart; I will sing Your praises before the ^(C2)gods.

I will bow down ^(C1)toward Your holy temple And ^(C2)give thanks to Your name for Your mercy and Your ^(F1)truth; For You have ^(C3)made Your ^(F2)word great ^(F3)according to all Your name.

On the day I ^(C1)called, You answered me; You made me bold with ^(C2)strength in my soul.

^(C1)All the kings of the earth will give thanks to You, LORD, When they have heard the words of Your mouth.

And they will ^(C1)sing of the ways of the LORD, For ^(C2)great is the glory of the LORD.

For ^(C1)the LORD is exalted, Yet He ^(C2)looks after the lowly, But He knows the ^(C3)haughty from afar.

Though I ^(C1)walk in the midst of trouble, You will ^(F1)(C2)revive me; You will ^(C3)reach out with Your hand against the wrath of my enemies, And Your right hand will ^(C4)save me.

The LORD will ^(C1)accomplish what concerns me; Your ^(C2)faithfulness, LORD, is everlasting; ^(C3)Do not abandon the ^(C4)works of Your hands.

LORD, You have ^(C1)searched me and known me.

You ^(C1)know ^(F1)when I sit down and ^(F2)when I get up; You ^(C2)understand my thought from far away.

You ^(F1)(C1)scrutinize my ^(F2)path and my lying down, And are acquainted with all my ways.

^(F1)Even before there is a word on my tongue, Behold, LORD, You ^(C1)know it all.

You have ^(C1)encircled me behind and in front, And ^(C2)placed Your hand upon me.

Such ^(C1)knowledge is ^(C2)too wonderful for me; It is too high, I cannot comprehend it.

^(C1)Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence?

^(C1)If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in ^(F1)Sheol, behold, ^(C2)You are there.

If I take up the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea,

Even there Your hand will ^(C1)lead me, And Your right hand will take hold of me.

If I say, "Surely the ^(C1)darkness will ^(F1)overwhelm me, And the light around me will be night,"

Even ^(C1)darkness is not dark ^(F1)to You, And the night is as bright as the day. ^(C2)Darkness and light are alike to You.

For You ^(C1)created my innermost parts; You ^(C2)wove me in my mother's womb.

I will give thanks to You, because ^(F1)I am awesomely and wonderfully made; ^(C1)Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well.

My ^(F1)(C1)frame was not hidden from You When I was made in secret, And skillfully formed in the ^(C2)depths of the earth;

Your ^(C1)eyes have seen my formless substance; And in ^(C2)Your book were written All the ^(C3)days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was not one of them.

How precious also are Your ^(C1)thoughts for me, God! How vast is the sum of them!

Were I to count them, they would ^(C1)outnumber the sand. When ^(C2)I awake, I am still with You.

If only You would ^(C1)put the wicked to death, God; ^(C2)Leave me, ^(C3)you men of bloodshed.

For they ^(C1)speak ^(F1)against You wickedly, And Your enemies ^(F2)(C2)take Your name in vain.

Do I not ^(C1)hate those who hate You, LORD? And do I not ^(C2)loathe those who rise up against You?

I hate them with the utmost hatred; They have become my enemies.

^(C1)Search me, God, and know my heart; ^(C2)Put me to the test and know my anxious thoughts;

And see if there is any ^(F1)(C1)hurtful way in me, And ^(C2)lead me in the ^(C3)everlasting way.