Psalm 73-77

New American Standard Bible

BOOK 3

The End of the Wicked Contrasted with That of the Righteous.

A Psalm of Asaph.

73 God certainly is ^(A)good to Israel,
To those who are ^(B)pure in heart!
²But as for me, ^(C)my feet came close to stumbling,
My steps ^[a]had almost slipped.
³For I was ^(D)envious of the ^[b]arrogant
As I saw the ^(E)prosperity of the wicked.
⁴For there are no pains in their death,
And their belly is fat.
⁵They are ^(F)not ^[c]in trouble like other people,
Nor are they ^(G)tormented together with the rest of mankind.
⁶Therefore arrogance is ^(H)their necklace;
The ^(I)garment of violence covers them.
⁷Their eye ^[d]bulges from ^(J)fatness;
The imaginations of their heart overflow.
⁸They ^(K)mock and ^[e]wickedly speak of oppression;
They ^(L)speak from on high.
⁹They have ^(M)set their mouth ^[f]against the heavens,
And their tongue ^[g]parades through the earth.

¹⁰Therefore ^[h]his people return here,
And ^(N)abundant waters are drunk by them.
¹¹They say, “^(O)How does God know?
And is there knowledge ^[i]with the Most High?”
¹²Behold, ^(P)these are the wicked;
And always ^(Q)at ease, they have increased in wealth.
¹³Surely ^(R)in vain I have ^[j]kept my heart pure
And ^(S)washed my hands in innocence;
¹⁴For I have been stricken ^(T)all day long,
And ^[k]^(U)punished every morning.

¹⁵If I had said, “I will speak this way,”
Behold, I would have betrayed the ^(V)generation of Your children.
¹⁶When I ^(W)thought of understanding this,
It was ^[l]troublesome in my sight
¹⁷Until I entered the ^[m]^(X)sanctuary of God;
Then I perceived their ^(Y)end.
¹⁸You indeed put them on ^(Z)slippery ground;
You dropped them into ^[n]^(AA)ruin.
¹⁹How they are ^[o]^(AB)destroyed in a moment!
They are utterly swept away by ^(AC)sudden terrors!
²⁰Like a ^(AD)dream when one awakes,
Lord, when ^(AE)stirred, You will ^(AF)despise their image.

²¹When my ^(AG)heart was embittered
And I was ^(AH)pierced ^[p]within,
²²Then I was ^(AI)stupid and ignorant;
I was like an ^(AJ)animal ^[q]before You.
²³Nevertheless ^(AK)I am continually with You;
You have taken hold of my right hand.
²⁴You will ^(AL)guide me with Your plan,
And afterward ^(AM)receive me ^[r]to glory.

²⁵^(AN)Whom do I have in heaven but You?
And with You, I desire nothing on earth.
²⁶My ^(AO)flesh and my heart may fail,
But God is the ^[s]strength of my heart and my ^(AP)portion forever.
²⁷For, behold, ^(AQ)those who are far from You will ^(AR)perish;
You have destroyed all those who ^[t]^(AS)are unfaithful to You.
²⁸But as for me, ^(AT)the nearness of God is good for me;
I have made the Lord ^[u]God my ^(AU)refuge,
So that I may ^(AV)tell of all Your works.

An Appeal against the Devastation of the Land by the Enemy.

A ^[v]Maskil of Asaph.

74 God, why have You ^(AW)rejected us forever?
Why does Your anger ^(AX)smoke against the ^(AY)sheep of Your ^[w]pasture?
²Remember Your congregation, which You ^(AZ)purchased of old,
Which You have ^(BA)redeemed to be the ^(BB)tribe of Your inheritance;
And this Mount ^(BC)Zion, where You have dwelt.
³^[x]Step toward the ^[y]^(BD)irreparable ruins;
The enemy ^(BE)has damaged everything in the sanctuary.
⁴Your adversaries have ^(BF)roared in the midst of Your meeting place;
They have set up their ^(BG)own signs as ^(BH)signs.
⁵It ^[z]seems like one bringing up
His ^(BI)axe into a ^[aa]forest of trees.
⁶And now they break down ^[ab]all its ^(BJ)carved work
With axe and hammers.
⁷They have ^[ac]^(BK)burned Your sanctuary ^[ad]to the ground;
They have ^(BL)defiled the dwelling place of Your name.
⁸They ^(BM)said in their heart, “Let’s ^[ae]completely ^[af]subdue them.”
They have burned all the meeting places of God in the land.
⁹We do not see our ^(BN)signs;
There is ^(BO)no longer any prophet,
Nor is there anyone among us who knows ^(BP)how long.
¹⁰How long, God, will the enemy ^(BQ)taunt You?
Shall the enemy ^(BR)treat Your name disrespectfully forever?
¹¹Why ^(BS)do You withdraw Your hand, even Your right hand?
Extend it from Your chest and ^(BT)destroy them!

¹²Yet God is ^(BU)my King from long ago,
Who performs acts of salvation in the midst of the earth.
¹³^[ag]You ^(BV)divided the sea by Your strength;
^[ah]You ^(BW)broke the heads of the ^(BX)sea monsters ^[ai]in the waters.
¹⁴^[aj]You crushed the heads of ^[ak]^(BY)Leviathan;
You gave him as food for the ^[al]creatures ^(BZ)of the wilderness.
¹⁵^[am]You ^(CA)broke open springs and torrents;
^[an]You ^(CB)dried up ever-flowing streams.
¹⁶Yours is the day, Yours also is the night;
^[ao]You have ^(CC)prepared the ^[ap]light and the sun.
¹⁷^[aq]You have ^(CD)established all the boundaries of the earth;
^[ar]You have ^[as]created ^(CE)summer and winter.

¹⁸Remember this, ^[at]Lord, that the enemy has ^(CF)taunted You,
And a ^(CG)foolish people has treated Your name disrespectfully.
¹⁹Do not give the soul of Your ^(CH)turtledove to the wild animal;
^(CI)Do not forget the life of Your afflicted forever.
²⁰Consider the ^(CJ)covenant;
For the ^(CK)dark places of the land are full of the places of violence.
²¹May the ^(CL)oppressed person not return dishonored;
May the ^(CM)afflicted and the needy praise Your name.

²²Arise, God, and ^(CN)plead Your own cause;
Remember ^[au]how the ^(CO)foolish person taunts You all day long.
²³Do not forget the voice of Your ^(CP)adversaries,
The ^(CQ)uproar of those who rise against You, which ascends continually.

God Humbles the Proud, but Exalts the Righteous.

For the music director; set to ^[av]Al-tashheth. A Psalm of Asaph, a Song.

75 We ^(CR)give thanks to You, God, we give thanks,
For Your name is ^(CS)near;
People declare ^(CT)Your wondrous works.
²“When I select an ^(CU)appointed time,
It is I who ^(CV)judge fairly.
³The ^(CW)earth and all who inhabit it ^[aw]are unsteady;
It is I who have firmly set its ^(CX)pillars. Selah
⁴I said to the boastful, ‘Do not boast,’
And to the wicked, ‘^(CY)Do not lift up the horn;
⁵Do not lift up your horn on high,
^(CZ)Do not speak with insolent ^[ax]pride.’”

⁶For not from the east, nor from the west,
Nor from the ^[ay]^(DA)desert comes exaltation;
⁷But ^(DB)God is the Judge;
He ^(DC)puts down one and exalts another.
⁸For a ^(DD)cup is in the hand of the Lord, and the wine foams;
It is ^[az]^(DE)well mixed, and He pours out of this;
Certainly all the wicked of the earth must drain and ^(DF)drink its dregs.

⁹But as for me, I will ^(DG)declare it forever;
I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.
¹⁰And ^[ba]He will cut off all the ^(DH)horns of the wicked,
But ^(DI)the horns of the righteous will be lifted up.

The Victorious Power of the God of Jacob.

For the music director; on stringed instruments. A Psalm of Asaph, a Song.

76 God is ^(DJ)known in Judah;
His name is ^(DK)great in Israel.
²His ^[bb]^(DL)tabernacle is in ^(DM)Salem;
His ^(DN)dwelling place also is in Zion.
³There He ^(DO)broke the ^[bc]flaming arrows,
The shield, the sword, and the ^[bd]weapons of war. Selah

⁴You are resplendent,
^[be]More majestic than the mountains of prey.
⁵The ^(DP)stouthearted were plundered,
^[bf]They sank into sleep;
And none of the ^[bg]warriors could use his hands.
⁶At Your ^(DQ)rebuke, God of Jacob,
Both ^[bh]^(DR)rider and horse were cast into a dead sleep.
⁷You, You indeed are ^(DS)to be feared,
And ^(DT)who may stand in Your presence, ^[bi]once You are angry?

⁸You caused judgment to be heard from heaven;
The earth ^(DU)feared and was still
⁹When God ^(DV)arose to judgment,
To save all the humble of the earth. Selah
¹⁰For the ^[bj]^(DW)wrath of mankind shall praise You;
You will encircle Yourself with a remnant of wrath.

¹¹^(DX)Make vows to the Lord your God and ^(DY)fulfill them;
All who are around Him are to ^(DZ)bring gifts to Him who is to be feared.
¹²He will cut off the spirit of princes;
He is ^[bk]^(EA)feared by the kings of the earth.

Comfort in Trouble from Recalling God’s Mighty Deeds.

For the music director; ^[bl]according to Jeduthun. A Psalm of Asaph.

77 My voice rises to God, and I will ^(EB)cry aloud;
My voice rises to God, and He will listen to me.
²In the ^(EC)day of my trouble I sought the Lord;
^(ED)In the night my ^(EE)hand was stretched out and did not grow weary;
My soul ^(EF)refused to be comforted.
³When I remember God, then I am ^(EG)restless;
When I ^(EH)sigh, then ^(EI)my spirit feels weak. Selah
⁴You have held my eyelids open;
I am so troubled that I ^(EJ)cannot speak.
⁵I have considered the ^(EK)days of old,
The years of long ago.
⁶I will remember my ^(EL)song in the night;
I ^(EM)will meditate with my heart,
And my spirit ^[bm]ponders:

⁷Will the Lord ^(EN)reject forever?
And will He ^(EO)never be favorable again?
⁸Has His ^(EP)favor ceased forever?
Has His ^[bn]^(EQ)promise come to an end ^[bo]forever?
⁹Has God ^(ER)forgotten to be gracious,
Or has He in anger ^[bp]withdrawn His ^(ES)compassion? Selah
¹⁰Then I said, “^(ET)It is my ^[bq]grief,
That the ^(EU)right hand of the Most High has changed.”

¹¹I shall remember the ^(EV)deeds of ^[br]the Lord;
I will certainly ^(EW)remember Your wonders of old.
¹²I will ^(EX)meditate on all Your work,
And on Your deeds with thanksgiving.
¹³Your way, God, is ^(EY)holy;
^(EZ)What god is great like our God?
¹⁴You are the ^(FA)God who works wonders;
You have ^(FB)made known Your strength among the peoples.
¹⁵By Your ^[bs]power You have ^(FC)redeemed Your people,
The sons of Jacob and ^(FD)Joseph. Selah

¹⁶The ^(FE)waters saw You, God;
The waters saw You, they were in anguish;
The ocean depths also trembled.
¹⁷The ^(FF)clouds poured out water;
The skies ^[bt]^(FG)sounded out;
Your ^(FH)arrows ^[bu]flashed here and there.
¹⁸The ^(FI)sound of Your thunder was in the whirlwind;
The ^(FJ)lightning lit up the world;
The ^(FK)earth trembled and shook.
¹⁹Your ^(FL)way was in the sea
And Your paths in the mighty waters,
And Your footprints were not known.
²⁰You ^(FM)led Your people like a flock
By the hand of ^(FN)Moses and Aaron.