Psalm 43-45

Common English Bible

Psalm 43

43 Establish justice for me, God!
    Argue my case against ungodly people!
    Rescue me from the dishonest and unjust!
²Because you are my God, my protective fortress!
    Why have you rejected me?
    Why do I have to walk around,
        sad, oppressed by enemies?
³Send your light and truth—those will guide me!
    Let them bring me to your holy mountain,
        to your dwelling place.
⁴Let me come to God’s altar—
let me come to God, my joy, my delight—
    then I will give you thanks with the lyre,
    God, my God!

⁵Why, I ask myself, are you so depressed?
    Why are you so upset inside?
    Hope in God!
        Because I will again give him thanks,
        my saving presence and my God.

Psalm 44

For the music leader. A maskil^[a] of the Korahites.

44 We have heard it, God, with our own ears;
    our ancestors told us about it:
        about the deeds you did in their days,
        in days long past.
²You, by your own hand, removed all the nations,
        but you planted our ancestors.
    You crushed all the peoples,
        but you set our ancestors free.
³No, not by their own swords
    did they take possession of the land—
        their own arms didn’t save them.
    No, it was your strong hand, your arm,
    and the light of your face
        because you were pleased with them.
⁴It’s you, God! You who are my king,
    the one who orders salvation for Jacob.
⁵We’ve pushed our foes away by your help;
    we’ve trampled our enemies by your name.
⁶No, I won’t trust in my bow;
    my sword won’t save me
⁷    because it’s you who saved us from our foes,
    you who put those who hate us to shame.
⁸So we glory in God at all times
    and give thanks to your name forever. Selah

⁹But now you’ve rejected and humiliated us.
    You no longer accompany our armies.
¹⁰You make us retreat from the enemy;
    our adversaries plunder us.
¹¹You’ve handed us over like sheep for butchering;
    you’ve scattered us among the nations.
¹²You’ve sold your people for nothing,
    not even bothering to set a decent price.
¹³You’ve made us a joke to all our neighbors;
    we’re mocked and ridiculed by everyone around us.
¹⁴You’ve made us a bad joke to the nations,
    something to be laughed at by all peoples.
¹⁵All day long my disgrace confronts me,
    and shame covers my face
¹⁶    because of the voices of those
    who make fun of me and bad-mouth me,
        because of the enemy who is out for revenge.

¹⁷All this has come upon us,
    but we haven’t forgotten you
    or broken your covenant.
¹⁸Our hearts haven’t turned away,
    neither have our steps strayed from your way.
¹⁹But you’ve crushed us in the place where jackals^[b] live,
    covering us with deepest darkness.
²⁰If we had forgotten the name of our God
    or spread out our hands to some strange deity,
²¹wouldn’t God have discovered it?
    After all, God knows every secret of the heart.
²²No, God, it’s because of you that we are getting killed every day—
    it’s because of you that we are considered sheep ready for slaughter.

²³Wake up! Why are you sleeping, Lord?
    Get up! Don’t reject us forever!
²⁴Why are you hiding your face,
    forgetting our suffering and oppression?
²⁵Look: we’re going down to the dust;
    our stomachs are flat on the ground!
²⁶Stand up! Help us!
    Save us for the sake of your faithful love.

Psalm 45

For the music leader. According to “The Lilies.” Of the Korahites. A maskil.^[c] A love song.

45 A marvelous word has stirred my heart
as I mention my works to the king.
My tongue is the pen of a skillful scribe.

²You are the most handsome of men;
    grace has been poured out on your lips.
        No wonder God has blessed you forever!
³Strap on your sword, great warrior,
    with your glory and grandeur.
⁴Go and succeed in your grandeur!
    Ride out on behalf of truth, humility, and righteousness!
    Let your strong hand perform awesome deeds.^[d]
⁵Let the peoples fall beneath you.
    May your sharp arrows pierce the hearts of the king’s enemies.
⁶Your divine throne is eternal and everlasting.
    Your royal scepter is a scepter of justice.
⁷You love righteousness and hate wickedness.
    No wonder God, your God, has anointed you
    with the oil of joy more than all your companions!
⁸All your clothes have the pleasing scent of myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
    The music of stringed instruments coming from ivory palaces entertains you.
⁹The royal princess is standing in your precious jewels; ^[e]
    the queen stands at your right, dressed in the gold of Ophir.

¹⁰Listen, daughter; pay attention, and listen closely!
    Forget your people and your father’s house.
¹¹Let the king desire your beauty.
    Because he is your master, bow down to him now.
¹²The city of Tyre, the wealthiest of all,
    will seek your favor with gifts, ¹³with riches of every sort
    for the royal princess, dressed in pearls,^[f]
        her robe embroidered with gold.
¹⁴In robes of many colors, she is led to the king.
    Her attendants, the young women servants following her,
    are presented to you as well.
¹⁵As they enter the king’s palace,
    they are led in with celebration and joy.

¹⁶Your sons, great king, will succeed your fathers;^[g]
you will appoint them as princes throughout the land.
¹⁷I will perpetuate your name from one generation to the next
so the peoples will praise you forever and always.