Psalm 82-84

New King James Version

A Plea for Justice

A Psalm of Asaph.

82 God ^(A)stands in the congregation of ^[a]the mighty;
He judges among ^(B)the ^[b]gods.
²How long will you judge unjustly,
And ^(C)show partiality to the wicked? Selah
³^[c]Defend the poor and fatherless;
Do justice to the afflicted and ^(D)needy.
⁴Deliver the poor and needy;
Free them from the hand of the wicked.

⁵They do not know, nor do they understand;
They walk about in darkness;
All the ^(E)foundations of the earth are ^[d]unstable.

⁶I said, ^(F)“You are ^[e]gods,
And all of you are children of the Most High.
⁷But you shall die like men,
And fall like one of the princes.”

⁸Arise, O God, judge the earth;
^(G)For You shall inherit all nations.

Prayer to Frustrate Conspiracy Against Israel

A Song. A Psalm of Asaph.

83 Do^(H) not keep silent, O God!
Do not hold Your peace,
And do not be still, O God!
²For behold, ^(I)Your enemies make a ^[f]tumult;
And those who hate You have ^[g]lifted up their head.
³They have taken crafty counsel against Your people,
And consulted together ^(J)against Your sheltered ones.
⁴They have said, “Come, and ^(K)let us cut them off from being a nation,
That the name of Israel may be remembered no more.”

⁵For they have consulted together with one ^[h]consent;
They ^[i]form a confederacy against You:
⁶^(L)The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites;
Moab and the Hagrites;
⁷Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek;
Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;
⁸Assyria also has joined with them;
They have helped the children of Lot. Selah

⁹Deal with them as with ^(M)Midian,
As with ^(N)Sisera,
As with Jabin at the Brook Kishon,
¹⁰Who perished at En Dor,
^(O)Who became as refuse on the earth.
¹¹Make their nobles like ^(P)Oreb and like Zeeb,
Yes, all their princes like ^(Q)Zebah and Zalmunna,
¹²Who said, “Let us take for ourselves
The pastures of God for a possession.”

¹³^(R)O my God, make them like the whirling dust,
^(S)Like the chaff before the wind!
¹⁴As the fire burns the woods,
And as the flame ^(T)sets the mountains on fire,
¹⁵So pursue them with Your tempest,
And frighten them with Your storm.
¹⁶Fill their faces with shame,
That they may seek Your name, O Lord.
¹⁷Let them be ^[j]confounded and dismayed forever;
Yes, let them be put to shame and perish,
¹⁸^(U)That they may know that You, whose ^(V)name alone is the Lord,
Are ^(W)the Most High over all the earth.

The Blessedness of Dwelling in the House of God

To the Chief Musician. ^(X)On^[k] an instrument of Gath. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.

84 How ^(Y)lovely ^[l]is Your tabernacle,
O Lord of hosts!
²^(Z)My soul longs, yes, even faints
For the courts of the Lord;
My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.

³Even the sparrow has found a home,
And the swallow a nest for herself,
Where she may lay her young—
Even Your altars, O Lord of hosts,
My King and my God.
⁴Blessed are those who dwell in Your ^(AA)house;
They will still be praising You. Selah

⁵Blessed is the man whose strength is in You,
Whose heart is set on pilgrimage.
⁶As they pass through the Valley ^(AB)of ^[m]Baca,
They make it a spring;
The rain also covers it with ^[n]pools.
⁷They go ^(AC)from strength to strength;
^[o]Each one ^(AD)appears before God in Zion.

⁸O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer;
Give ear, O God of Jacob! Selah
⁹^(AE)O God, behold our shield,
And look upon the face of Your ^[p]anointed.

¹⁰For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand.
I would rather ^[q]be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
¹¹For the Lord God is ^(AF)a sun and ^(AG)shield;
The Lord will give grace and glory;
^(AH)No good thing will He withhold
From those who walk uprightly.