Psalm 136-138

New American Standard Bible

Thanks for the Lord’s Goodness to Israel.

136 ^(A)Give thanks to the Lord, for ^(B)He is good,
For ^(C)His ^[a]faithfulness is everlasting.
²Give thanks to the ^(D)God of gods,
For His faithfulness is everlasting.
³Give thanks to the ^(E)Lord of lords,
For His faithfulness is everlasting.
⁴To Him who ^(F)alone does great ^[b]wonders,
For His faithfulness is everlasting;
⁵To Him who ^(G)made the heavens ^[c]^(H)with skill,
For His faithfulness is everlasting;
⁶To Him who ^(I)spread out the earth above the waters,
For His faithfulness is everlasting;
⁷To Him who ^(J)made the great lights,
For His faithfulness is everlasting:
⁸The ^(K)sun to rule ^[d]by day,
For His faithfulness is everlasting,
⁹The ^(L)moon and stars to rule ^[e]by night,
For His faithfulness is everlasting.

¹⁰To Him who ^(M)struck ^[f]the Egyptians, that is, their firstborn,
For His faithfulness is everlasting,
¹¹And ^(N)brought Israel out from their midst,
For His faithfulness is everlasting,
¹²With a ^(O)strong hand and an ^(P)outstretched arm,
For His faithfulness is everlasting.
¹³To Him who ^(Q)divided the ^[g]Red Sea in parts,
For His faithfulness is everlasting,
¹⁴And ^(R)allowed Israel to pass through the midst of it,
For His faithfulness is everlasting;
¹⁵But ^(S)He ^[h]overthrew Pharaoh and his army in the ^[i]Red Sea,
For His faithfulness is everlasting.
¹⁶To Him who ^(T)led His people through the wilderness,
For His faithfulness is everlasting;
¹⁷To Him who ^(U)struck great kings,
For His faithfulness is everlasting,
¹⁸And ^(V)brought death to ^[j]mighty kings,
For His faithfulness is everlasting:
¹⁹^(W)Sihon, king of the Amorites,
For His faithfulness is everlasting,
²⁰And ^(X)Og, king of Bashan,
For His faithfulness is everlasting,
²¹And ^(Y)gave their land as an inheritance,
For His faithfulness is everlasting,
²²An inheritance to His ^(Z)servant Israel,
For His faithfulness is everlasting.

²³Who ^(AA)remembered us in our lowliness,
For His faithfulness is everlasting,
²⁴And has ^(AB)rescued us from our enemies,
For His faithfulness is everlasting;
²⁵Who ^(AC)gives food to all flesh,
For His faithfulness is everlasting.
²⁶Give thanks to the ^(AD)God of heaven,
For His faithfulness is everlasting.

An Experience of the Captivity.

137 By the ^(AE)rivers of Babylon,
There we sat down and ^(AF)wept,
When we remembered Zion.
²Upon the ^[k]^(AG)willows in the midst of it
We ^(AH)hung our ^[l]harps.
³For there our captors ^[m]^(AI)demanded of us ^[n]songs,
And ^(AJ)our tormentors, jubilation, saying,
“Sing for us one of the songs of Zion!”

⁴How can we sing ^(AK)the Lord’s song
In a foreign land?
⁵If I ^(AL)forget you, Jerusalem,
May my right hand ^[o]forget its skill.
⁶May my ^(AM)tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
If I do not remember you,
If I do not ^[p]^(AN)exalt Jerusalem
Above my chief joy.

⁷Remember, Lord, against the sons of ^(AO)Edom
The day of Jerusalem,
Those who said, “Lay it bare, lay it bare
^(AP)To its foundation!”
⁸Daughter of Babylon, you ^[q]^(AQ)devastated one,
Blessed will be one who ^(AR)repays you
With ^[r]the retribution with which you have repaid us.
⁹Blessed will be one who seizes and ^(AS)dashes your children
Against the rock.

Thanksgiving for the Lord’s Favor.

A Psalm of David.

138 ^(AT)I will give You thanks with all my heart;
I will sing Your praises before the ^(AU)gods.
²I will bow down ^(AV)toward Your holy temple
And ^(AW)give thanks to Your name for Your mercy and Your ^[s]truth;
For You have ^(AX)made Your ^[t]word great ^[u]according to all Your name.
³On the day I ^(AY)called, You answered me;
You made me bold with ^(AZ)strength in my soul.

⁴^(BA)All the kings of the earth will give thanks to You, Lord,
When they have heard the words of Your mouth.
⁵And they will ^(BB)sing of the ways of the Lord,
For ^(BC)great is the glory of the Lord.
⁶For ^(BD)the Lord is exalted,
Yet He ^(BE)looks after the lowly,
But He knows the ^(BF)haughty from afar.

⁷Though I ^(BG)walk in the midst of trouble, You will ^[v]^(BH)revive me;
You will ^(BI)reach out with Your hand against the wrath of my enemies,
And Your right hand will ^(BJ)save me.
⁸The Lord will ^(BK)accomplish what concerns me;
Your ^(BL)faithfulness, Lord, is everlasting;
^(BM)Do not abandon the ^(BN)works of Your hands.