Study Desk

Listen, my people, to my instruction; Incline your ears to the words of my mouth.

Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth.

I will open my mouth in a parable; I will tell riddles of old,

I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old:

Which we have heard and known, And our fathers have told us.

Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us.

We will not conceal them from their children, But we will tell the generation to come the praises of the LORD, And His power and His wondrous works that He has done.

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 Jacob, And appointed a law in Israel, Which He commanded our fathers That they were to teach them to their children,

For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children:

So that the generation to come would know, the children yet to be born, That they would arise and tell them to their children,

That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children:

So that they would put their confidence in God And not forget the works of God, But comply with His commandments,

That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments:

And not be like their fathers, A stubborn and rebellious generation, A generation that did not prepare its heart And whose spirit was not faithful to God.

And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation; a generation that set not their heart aright, and whose spirit was not stedfast with God.

The sons of Ephraim were archers equipped with bows, Yet they turned back on the day of battle.

The children of Ephraim, being armed, and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle.

They did not keep the covenant of God And refused to walk in His Law;

They kept not the covenant of God, and refused to walk in his law;

They forgot His deeds And His miracles that He had shown them.

And forgat his works, and his wonders that he had shewed them.

He performed wonders before their fathers In the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.

Marvellous things did he in the sight of their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.

He divided the sea and caused them to pass through, And He made the waters stand up like a heap.

He divided the sea, and caused them to pass through; and he made the waters to stand as an heap.

Then He led them with the cloud by day And all the night with a light of fire.

In the daytime also he led them with a cloud, and all the night with a light of fire.

He split the rocks in the wilderness And gave them plenty to drink like the ocean depths.

He clave the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of the great depths.

He brought forth streams from the rock And made waters run down like rivers.

He brought streams also out of the rock, and caused waters to run down like rivers.

Yet they still continued to sin against Him, To rebel against the Most High in the desert.

And they sinned yet more against him by provoking the most High in the wilderness.

And in their heart they put God to the test By asking for food that suited their taste.

And they tempted God in their heart by asking meat for their lust.

Then they spoke against God; They said, "Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?

Yea, they spake against God; they said, Can God furnish a table in the wilderness?

"Behold, He struck the rock so that waters gushed out, And streams were overflowing; Can He also provide bread? Will He prepare meat for His people?"

Behold, he smote the rock, that the waters gushed out, and the streams overflowed; can he give bread also? can he provide flesh for his people?

Therefore the LORD heard and was full of wrath; And a fire was kindled against Jacob, And anger also mounted against Israel,

Therefore the Lord heard this, and was wroth: so a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also came up against Israel;

Because they did not believe in God And did not trust in His salvation.

Because they believed not in God, and trusted not in his salvation:

Yet He commanded the clouds above And opened the doors of heaven;

Though he had commanded the clouds from above, and opened the doors of heaven,

He rained down manna upon them to eat, And gave them food from heaven.

And had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them of the corn of heaven.

Man ate the bread of angels; He sent them food in abundance.

Man did eat angels' food: he sent them meat to the full.

He made the east wind blow in the sky And by His power He directed the south wind.

He caused an east wind to blow in the heaven: and by his power he brought in the south wind.

When He rained meat upon them like the dust, Even winged fowl like the sand of the seas,

He rained flesh also upon them as dust, and feathered fowls like as the sand of the sea:

He let them fall in the midst of their camp, All around their dwellings.

And he let it fall in the midst of their camp, round about their habitations.

So they ate and were well filled, And He satisfied their longing.

So they did eat, and were well filled: for he gave them their own desire;

Yet before they had abandoned their longing, While their food was in their mouths,

They were not estranged from their lust. But while their meat was yet in their mouths,

The anger of God rose against them And killed some of their strongest ones, And subdued the choice men of Israel.

The wrath of God came upon them, and slew the fattest of them, and smote down the chosen men of Israel.

In spite of all this they still sinned And did not believe in His wonderful works.

For all this they sinned still, and believed not for his wondrous works.

So He brought their days to an end in futility, And their years to an end in sudden terror.

Therefore their days did he consume in vanity, and their years in trouble.

When He killed them, then they sought Him, And they returned and searched diligently for God;

When he slew them, then they sought him: and they returned and enquired early after God.

And they remembered that God was their rock, And the Most High God their Redeemer.

And they remembered that God was their rock, and the high God their redeemer.

But they flattered Him with their mouth And lied to Him with their tongue.

Nevertheless they did flatter him with their mouth, and they lied unto him with their tongues.

For their heart was not steadfast toward Him, Nor were they faithful with His covenant.

For their heart was not right with him, neither were they stedfast in his covenant.

But He, being compassionate, forgave their wrongdoing and did not destroy them; And often He restrained His anger And did not stir up all His wrath.

But he, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and destroyed them not: yea, many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his wrath.

So He remembered that they were only flesh, A wind that passes and does not return.

For he remembered that they were but flesh; a wind that passeth away, and cometh not again.

How often they rebelled against Him in the wilderness And grieved Him in the desert!

How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness, and grieve him in the desert!

Again and again they tempted God, And pained the Holy One of Israel.

Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.

They did not remember His power, The day when He redeemed them from the enemy,

They remembered not his hand, nor the day when he delivered them from the enemy.

When He performed His signs in Egypt And His marvels in the field of Zoan,

How he had wrought his signs in Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Zoan.

And turned their rivers to blood, And their streams, so that they could not drink.

And had turned their rivers into blood; and their floods, that they could not drink.

He sent swarms of flies among them that devoured them, And frogs that destroyed them.

He sent divers sorts of flies among them, which devoured them; and frogs, which destroyed them.

He also gave their crops to the grasshopper And the product of their labor to the locust.

He gave also their increase unto the caterpiller, and their labour unto the locust.

He destroyed their vines with hailstones And their sycamore trees with frost.

He destroyed their vines with hail, and their sycomore trees with frost.

He also turned their cattle over to the hailstones, And their herds to bolts of lightning.

He gave up their cattle also to the hail, and their flocks to hot thunderbolts.

He sent His burning anger upon them, Fury and indignation and trouble, A band of destroying angels.

He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and trouble, by sending evil angels among them.

He leveled a path for His anger; He did not spare their souls from death, But turned their lives over to the plague,

He made a way to his anger; he spared not their soul from death, but gave their life over to the pestilence;

And struck all the firstborn in Egypt, The first and best of their vigor in the tents of Ham.

And smote all the firstborn in Egypt; the chief of their strength in the tabernacles of Ham:

But He led His own people out like sheep, And guided them in the wilderness like a flock;

But made his own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.

He led them safely, so that they did not fear; But the sea engulfed their enemies.

And he led them on safely, so that they feared not: but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.

So He brought them to His holy land, To this hill country which His right hand had gained.

And he brought them to the border of his sanctuary, even to this mountain, which his right hand had purchased.

He also drove out the nations from them And apportioned them as an inheritance by measurement, And had the tribes of Israel dwell in their tents.

He cast out the heathen also before them, and divided them an inheritance by line, and made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents.

Yet they tempted and rebelled against the Most High God And did not keep His testimonies,

Yet they tempted and provoked the most high God, and kept not his testimonies:

But turned back and acted treacherously like their fathers; They turned aside like a treacherous bow.

But turned back, and dealt unfaithfully like their fathers: they were turned aside like a deceitful bow.

For they provoked Him with their high places And moved Him to jealousy with their carved images.

For they provoked him to anger with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their graven images.

When God heard them, He was filled with wrath And He utterly rejected Israel;

When God heard this, he was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel:

So that He abandoned the dwelling place at Shiloh, The tent which He had pitched among people,

So that he forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent which he placed among men;

And He gave up His strength to captivity And His glory into the hand of the enemy.

And delivered his strength into captivity, and his glory into the enemy's hand.

He also turned His people over to the sword, And was filled with wrath at His inheritance.

He gave his people over also unto the sword; and was wroth with his inheritance.

Fire devoured His young men, And His virgins had no wedding songs.

The fire consumed their young men; and their maidens were not given to marriage.

His priests fell by the sword, And His widows could not weep.

Their priests fell by the sword; and their widows made no lamentation.

Then the Lord awoke as if from sleep, Like a warrior overcome by wine.

Then the Lord awaked as one out of sleep, and like a mighty man that shouteth by reason of wine.

He drove His adversaries backward; He put on them an everlasting disgrace.

And he smote his enemies in the hinder parts: he put them to a perpetual reproach.

He also rejected the tent of Joseph, And did not choose the tribe of Ephraim,

Moreover he refused the tabernacle of Joseph, and chose not the tribe of Ephraim:

But chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion, which He loved.

But chose the tribe of Judah, the mount Zion which he loved.

And He built His sanctuary like the heights, Like the earth which He has established forever.

And he built his sanctuary like high palaces, like the earth which he hath established for ever.

He also chose His servant David And took him from the sheepfolds;

He chose David also his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds:

From the care of the ewes with nursing lambs He brought him To shepherd Jacob His people, And Israel His inheritance.

From following the ewes great with young he brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance.

So he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart, And guided them with his skillful hands.

So he fed them according to the integrity of his heart; and guided them by the skilfulness of his hands.