Psalm 31-33
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Psalm 31
A Plea for Protection
For the choir director. A Davidic psalm.
1 Lord, I seek refuge in You;
let me never be disgraced.(A)
Save me by Your righteousness.
2 Listen closely to me; rescue me quickly.
Be a rock of refuge for me,
a mountain fortress to save me.(B)
3 For You are my rock and my fortress;(C)
You lead and guide me
because of Your name.(D)
4 You will free me from the net
that is secretly set for me,
for You are my refuge.(E)
5 Into Your hand I entrust my spirit;(F)
You redeem[a] me, Lord, God of truth.(G)
6 I[b] hate those who are devoted to worthless idols,
but I trust in the Lord.(H)
7 I will rejoice and be glad in Your faithful love
because You have seen my affliction.
You have known the troubles of my life(I)
8 and have not handed me over to the enemy.(J)
You have set my feet in a spacious place.(K)
9 Be gracious to me, Lord,
because I am in distress;(L)
my eyes are worn out from angry sorrow—
my whole being[c] as well.(M)
10 Indeed, my life is consumed with grief
and my years with groaning;(N)
my strength has failed
because of my sinfulness,[d]
and my bones waste away.(O)
11 I am ridiculed by all my adversaries
and even by my neighbors.
I am dreaded by my acquaintances;
those who see me in the street run from me.(P)
12 I am forgotten: gone from memory
like a dead person—like broken pottery.(Q)
13 I have heard the gossip of many;
terror is on every side.(R)
When they conspired against me,
they plotted to take my life.(S)
14 But I trust in You, Lord;
I say, “You are my God.”(T)
15 The course of my life is in Your power;(U)
deliver me from the power of my enemies
and from my persecutors.(V)
16 Show Your favor to Your servant;
save me by Your faithful love.(W)
17 Lord, do not let me be disgraced when I call on You.(X)
Let the wicked be disgraced;
let them be silent[e][f] in Sheol.(Y)
18 Let lying lips be quieted;(Z)
they speak arrogantly against the righteous
with pride and contempt.(AA)
19 How great is Your goodness
that You have stored up for those who fear You
and accomplished in the sight of everyone
for those who take refuge in You.(AB)
20 You hide them in the protection of Your presence;
You conceal them in a shelter[g]
from the schemes of men,
from quarrelsome tongues.(AC)
21 May the Lord be praised,
for He has wonderfully shown His faithful love to me
in a city under siege.[h](AD)
22 In my alarm I had said,
“I am cut off from Your sight.”(AE)
But You heard the sound of my pleading
when I cried to You for help.(AF)
23 Love the Lord, all His faithful ones.(AG)
The Lord protects the loyal,
but fully repays the arrogant.(AH)
24 Be strong[i] and courageous,
all you who put your hope in the Lord.(AI)
Psalm 32
The Joy of Forgiveness
Davidic. A Maskil.
1 How joyful is the one
whose transgression is forgiven,
whose sin is covered!(AJ)
2 How joyful is the man
the Lord does not charge with sin(AK)
and in whose spirit is no deceit!(AL)
3 When I kept silent, my bones became brittle
from my groaning all day long.(AM)
4 For day and night Your hand was heavy on me;(AN)
my strength was drained[j]
as in the summer’s heat.(AO)
5 Then I acknowledged my sin to You
and did not conceal my iniquity.
I said,
“I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,”
and You took away the guilt of my sin.(AP)
6 Therefore let everyone who is faithful pray to You
at a time that You may be found.[k](AQ)
When great floodwaters come,
they will not reach him.(AR)
7 You are my hiding place;(AS)
You protect me from trouble.(AT)
You surround me with joyful shouts of deliverance.
8 I will instruct you and show you the way to go;(AU)
with My eye on you, I will give counsel.(AV)
9 Do not be like a horse or mule,
without understanding,
that must be controlled with bit and bridle
or else it will not come near you.(AW)
10 Many pains come to the wicked,(AX)
but the one who trusts in the Lord
will have faithful love surrounding him.(AY)
11 Be glad in the Lord and rejoice,
you righteous ones;
shout for joy,
all you upright in heart.(AZ)
Psalm 33
Praise to the Creator
1 Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous ones;
praise from the upright is beautiful.(BA)
2 Praise the Lord with the lyre;
make music to Him with a ten-stringed harp.(BB)
3 Sing a new song to Him;(BC)
play skillfully on the strings, with a joyful shout.(BD)
4 For the word of the Lord is right,
and all His work is trustworthy.(BE)
5 He loves righteousness and justice;(BF)
the earth is full of the Lord’s unfailing love.(BG)
6 The heavens were made by the word of the Lord,(BH)
and all the stars, by the breath of His mouth.(BI)
7 He gathers the waters of the sea into a heap;[l]
He puts the depths into storehouses.(BJ)
8 Let the whole earth tremble before the Lord;
let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.(BK)
9 For He spoke, and it came into being;
He commanded, and it came into existence.(BL)
10 The Lord frustrates the counsel of the nations;
He thwarts the plans of the peoples.(BM)
11 The counsel of the Lord stands forever,
the plans of His heart from generation to generation.(BN)
12 Happy is the nation whose God is Yahweh—
the people He has chosen to be His own possession!(BO)
13 The Lord looks down from heaven;
He observes everyone.(BP)
14 He gazes on all the inhabitants of the earth
from His dwelling place.(BQ)
15 He alone shapes their hearts;
He considers all their works.(BR)
16 A king is not saved by a large army;
a warrior will not be delivered by great strength.(BS)
17 The horse is a false hope for safety;
it provides no escape by its great power.(BT)
18 Now the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him—
those who depend on His faithful love(BU)
19 to deliver them from death
and to keep them alive in famine.(BV)
20 We wait for Yahweh;(BW)
He is our help and shield.(BX)
21 For our hearts rejoice in Him(BY)
because we trust in His holy name.(BZ)
22 May Your faithful love rest on us, Yahweh,
for we put our hope in You.(CA)
Footnotes
- Psalm 31:5 Or You have redeemed, or You will redeem, or spirit. Redeem
- Psalm 31:6 One Hb ms, LXX, Syr, Vg, Jer read You
- Psalm 31:9 Lit my soul and my belly
- Psalm 31:10 LXX, Syr, Sym read affliction
- Psalm 31:17 LXX reads brought down
- Psalm 31:17 Or them perish, or them wail
- Psalm 31:20 Lit canopy
- Psalm 31:21 Or a fortified city
- Psalm 31:24 Lit Let your heart be strong
- Psalm 32:4 Hb obscure
- Psalm 32:6 Lit time of finding
- Psalm 33:7 LXX, Tg, Syr, Vg, Jer read sea as in a bottle
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