Study Desk

A Psalm of Asaph.

O God, the ^(a)nations have ^[a]invaded ^(b)Your inheritance; They have defiled Your ^(c)holy temple; They have ^(d)laid Jerusalem in ruins.

They have given the ^(e)dead bodies of Your servants for food to the birds of the heavens, The flesh of Your godly ones to the beasts of the earth.

They have poured out their blood like water round about Jerusalem; And there was ^(f)no one to bury them.

We have become a ^(g)reproach to our neighbors, A scoffing and derision to those around us.

^(h)How long, O Lord ? Will You be angry forever? Will Your ⁽ⁱ⁾jealousy ^(j)burn like fire?

^(k)Pour out Your wrath upon the nations which ^(l)do not know You, And upon the kingdoms which ^(m)do not call upon Your name.

For they have ⁽ⁿ⁾devoured Jacob And ^(o)laid waste his ^[b]habitation.

^(p)Do not remember ^[c]the iniquities of our forefathers against us; Let Your compassion come quickly to ^(q)meet us, For we are ^(r)brought very low.

^(s)Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of ^(t)Your name; And deliver us and ^[d](u)forgive our sins ^(v)for Your name's sake.

^(w)Why should the nations say, "Where is their God?" Let there be known among the nations in our sight, ^(x)Vengeance for the blood of Your servants which has been shed.

Let ^(y)the groaning of the prisoner come before You; According to the greatness of Your ^[e]power preserve ^[f]those who are ^(z)doomed to die.

And return to our neighbors ^(aa)sevenfold ^(ab)into their bosom ^[g]The ^(ac)reproach with which they have reproached You, O Lord.

So we Your people and the ^(ad)sheep of Your ^[h]pasture Will ^(ae)give thanks to You forever; To all generations we will ^(af)tell of Your praise.

For the choir director; set to ^[a]El Shoshannim; ^[b]Eduth. A Psalm of Asaph.

Oh, give ear, ^(a)Shepherd of Israel, You who lead ^(b)Joseph like a flock; You who ^(c)are enthroned above the cherubim, shine forth!

Before ^(d)Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh, ^(e)stir up Your power And come to save us!

O God, ^(f)restore us And ^(g)cause Your face to shine upon us, ^[c]and we will be saved.

O ^(h) Lord God of hosts, ⁽ⁱ⁾How long will You ^[d]be angry with the prayer of Your people?

You have fed them with the ^(j)bread of tears, And You have made them to drink tears in ^[e]large measure.

You make us ^[f]an object of contention ^(k)to our neighbors, And our enemies laugh among themselves.

O God of hosts, restore us And cause Your face to shine upon us, ^[g]and we will be saved.

You removed a ^(l)vine from Egypt; You ^(m)drove out the ^[h]nations and ⁽ⁿ⁾planted it.

You ^(o)cleared the ground before it, And it ^(p)took deep root and filled the land.

The mountains were covered with its shadow, And ^[i]the cedars of God with its ^(q)boughs.

It was sending out its branches ^(r)to the sea And its shoots to the River.

Why have You ^(s)broken down its ^[j]hedges, So that all who pass that way pick its fruit?

A boar from the forest ^(t)eats it away And whatever moves in the field feeds on it.

O God of hosts, ^(u)turn again now, we beseech You; ^(v)Look down from heaven and see, and take care of this vine,

Even the ^[k](w)shoot which Your right hand has planted, And on the ^[l]son whom You have ^[m]strengthened for Yourself.

It is ^(x)burned with fire, it is cut down; They perish at the ^(y)rebuke of Your countenance.

Let ^(z)Your hand be upon the man of Your right hand, Upon the son of man whom You ^(aa)made strong for Yourself.

Then we shall not ^(ab)turn back from You; ^(ac)Revive us, and we will call upon Your name.

O Lord God of hosts, ^(ad)restore us; Cause Your face to shine upon us, ^[n]and we will be saved.

For the choir director; ^[a]on the Gittith. A Psalm of Asaph.

^(a)Sing for joy to God our ^(b)strength; Shout ^(c)joyfully to the ^(d)God of Jacob.

Raise a song, strike ^(e)the timbrel, The sweet sounding ^(f)lyre with the ^(g)harp.

Blow the trumpet at the ^(h)new moon, At the full moon, on our ⁽ⁱ⁾feast day.

For it is a statute for Israel, An ordinance of the God of Jacob.

He established it for a testimony in Joseph When he ^[b](j)went throughout the land of Egypt. I heard a ^(k)language that I did not know:

"I ^[c](l)relieved his shoulder of the burden, His hands were freed from the ^[d]basket.

"You ^(m)called in trouble and I rescued you; I ⁽ⁿ⁾answered you in the hiding place of thunder; I proved you at the ^(o)waters of Meribah. ^[e]Selah.

"^(p)Hear, O My people, and I will ^[f]admonish you; O Israel, if you ^(q)would listen to Me!

"Let there be no ^(r)strange god among you; Nor shall you worship any foreign god.

"^(s)I, the Lord , am your God, Who brought you up from the land of Egypt; ^(t)Open your mouth wide and I will ^(u)fill it.

"But My people ^(v)did not listen to My voice, And Israel did not ^[g]obey Me.

"So I ^(w)gave ^[h]them over to the stubbornness of their heart, To walk in their own devices.

"Oh that My people ^(x)would listen to Me, That Israel would ^(y)walk in My ways!

"I would quickly ^(z)subdue their enemies And ^(aa)turn My hand against their adversaries.

"^(ab)Those who hate the Lord would ^(ac)pretend obedience to Him, And their time of punishment would be forever.

"^[i]But I would feed you with the ^[j](ad)finest of the wheat, And with ^(ae)honey from the rock I would satisfy you."

A Psalm of Asaph.

God takes His ^(a)stand in ^[a]His own congregation; He ^(b)judges in the midst of the ^[b](c)rulers.

How long will you ^(d)judge unjustly And ^(e)show partiality to the wicked? ^[c]Selah.

^(f)Vindicate the weak and fatherless; Do justice to the afflicted and destitute.

^(g)Rescue the weak and needy; Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked.

They ^(h)do not know nor do they understand; They ⁽ⁱ⁾walk about in darkness; All the ^(j)foundations of the earth are shaken.

^[d]I ^(k)said, "You are gods, And all of you are ^(l)sons of the Most High.

"Nevertheless ^(m)you will die like men And fall like any ⁽ⁿ⁾one of the princes."

^(o)Arise, O God, ^(p)judge the earth! For it is You who ^(q)possesses all the nations.