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Psalm 64

Prayer for Protection from Enemies

To the leader. A Psalm of David.

Hear my voice, O God, in my complaint;
    preserve my life from the dread enemy.(A)
Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked,
    from the scheming of evildoers,(B)
who whet their tongues like swords,
    who aim bitter words like arrows,(C)
shooting from ambush at the blameless;
    they shoot suddenly and without fear.(D)
They hold fast to their evil purpose;
    they talk of laying snares secretly,
thinking, “Who can see us?[a](E)
    Who can search out our crimes?[b]
We have thought out a cunningly conceived plot.”
    For the human heart and mind are deep.(F)

But God will shoot his arrow at them;
    they will be wounded suddenly.
Because of their tongue he will bring them to ruin;[c]
    all who see them will shake with horror.(G)
Then everyone will fear;
    they will tell what God has brought about
    and ponder what he has done.(H)

10 Let the righteous rejoice in the Lord
    and take refuge in him.
Let all the upright in heart glory.(I)

Psalm 65

Thanksgiving for Earth’s Bounty

To the leader. A Psalm of David. A Song.

Praise is due to you,
    O God, in Zion,
and to you shall vows be performed,(J)
    O you who answer prayer!
To you all flesh shall come.(K)
When deeds of iniquity overwhelm us,
    you forgive our transgressions.(L)
Happy are those whom you choose and bring near
    to live in your courts.
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house,
    your holy temple.(M)

By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance,
    O God of our salvation;
you are the hope of all the ends of the earth
    and of the farthest seas.(N)
By your[d] strength you established the mountains;
    you are girded with might.(O)
You silence the roaring of the seas,
    the roaring of their waves,
    the tumult of the peoples.(P)
Those who live at earth’s farthest bounds are awed by your signs;
you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy.

You visit the earth and water it;
    you greatly enrich it;
the river of God is full of water;
    you provide the people with grain,
    for so you have prepared it.(Q)
10 You water its furrows abundantly,
    settling its ridges,
softening it with showers,
    and blessing its growth.
11 You crown the year with your bounty;
    your wagon tracks overflow with richness.
12 The pastures of the wilderness overflow;
    the hills gird themselves with joy;(R)
13 the meadows clothe themselves with flocks;
    the valleys deck themselves with grain;
    they shout and sing together for joy.(S)

Psalm 66

Praise for God’s Goodness to Israel

To the leader. A Song. A Psalm.

Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth;(T)
    sing the glory of his name;
    give to him glorious praise.(U)
Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!
    Because of your great power, your enemies cringe before you.(V)
All the earth worships you;
    they sing praises to you,
    sing praises to your name.” Selah(W)

Come and see what God has done:
    he is awesome in his deeds among mortals.(X)
He turned the sea into dry land;
    they passed through the river on foot.
There we rejoiced in him,(Y)
    who rules by his might forever,
whose eyes keep watch on the nations—
    let the rebellious not exalt themselves. Selah(Z)

Bless our God, O peoples;
    let the sound of his praise be heard,(AA)
who has kept us among the living
    and has not let our feet slip.(AB)
10 For you, O God, have tested us;
    you have tried us as silver is tried.(AC)
11 You brought us into the net;
    you laid burdens on our backs;(AD)
12 you let people ride over our heads;
    we went through fire and through water;
yet you have brought us out to a spacious place.[e](AE)

13 I will come into your house with burnt offerings;
    I will pay you my vows,(AF)
14 those that my lips uttered
    and my mouth promised when I was in trouble.(AG)
15 I will offer to you burnt offerings of fatted calves,
    with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams;
I will make an offering of bulls and goats. Selah(AH)

16 Come and hear, all you who fear God,
    and I will tell what he has done for me.(AI)
17 I cried aloud to him,
    and he was extolled with my tongue.
18 If I had cherished iniquity in my heart,
    the Lord would not have listened.(AJ)
19 But truly God has listened;
    he has heard the words of my prayer.(AK)

20 Blessed be God,
    who has not rejected my prayer
    or removed his steadfast love from me.(AL)

Footnotes

  1. 64.5 Syr Jerome: Heb them
  2. 64.6 Cn: Heb They search out crimes
  3. 64.8 Cn: Heb They will bring him to ruin, their tongue being against them
  4. 65.6 Gk Jerome: Heb his
  5. 66.12 Cn Compare Gk Syr Jerome Tg: Heb to a saturation

Psalm 64[a]

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

Hear me, my God, as I voice my complaint;(A)
    protect my life from the threat of the enemy.(B)

Hide me from the conspiracy(C) of the wicked,(D)
    from the plots of evildoers.
They sharpen their tongues like swords(E)
    and aim cruel words like deadly arrows.(F)
They shoot from ambush at the innocent;(G)
    they shoot suddenly, without fear.(H)

They encourage each other in evil plans,
    they talk about hiding their snares;(I)
    they say, “Who will see it[b]?”(J)
They plot injustice and say,
    “We have devised a perfect plan!”
    Surely the human mind and heart are cunning.

But God will shoot them with his arrows;
    they will suddenly be struck down.
He will turn their own tongues against them(K)
    and bring them to ruin;
    all who see them will shake their heads(L) in scorn.(M)
All people will fear;(N)
    they will proclaim the works of God
    and ponder what he has done.(O)

10 The righteous will rejoice in the Lord(P)
    and take refuge in him;(Q)
    all the upright in heart will glory in him!(R)

Psalm 65[c]

For the director of music. A psalm of David. A song.

Praise awaits[d] you, our God, in Zion;(S)
    to you our vows will be fulfilled.(T)
You who answer prayer,
    to you all people will come.(U)
When we were overwhelmed by sins,(V)
    you forgave[e] our transgressions.(W)
Blessed are those you choose(X)
    and bring near(Y) to live in your courts!
We are filled with the good things of your house,(Z)
    of your holy temple.

You answer us with awesome and righteous deeds,(AA)
    God our Savior,(AB)
the hope of all the ends of the earth(AC)
    and of the farthest seas,(AD)
who formed the mountains(AE) by your power,
    having armed yourself with strength,(AF)
who stilled the roaring of the seas,(AG)
    the roaring of their waves,
    and the turmoil of the nations.(AH)
The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders;
    where morning dawns, where evening fades,
    you call forth songs of joy.(AI)

You care for the land and water it;(AJ)
    you enrich it abundantly.(AK)
The streams of God are filled with water
    to provide the people with grain,(AL)
    for so you have ordained it.[f]
10 You drench its furrows and level its ridges;
    you soften it with showers(AM) and bless its crops.
11 You crown the year with your bounty,(AN)
    and your carts overflow with abundance.(AO)
12 The grasslands of the wilderness overflow;(AP)
    the hills are clothed with gladness.(AQ)
13 The meadows are covered with flocks(AR)
    and the valleys are mantled with grain;(AS)
    they shout for joy and sing.(AT)

Psalm 66

For the director of music. A song. A psalm.

Shout for joy to God, all the earth!(AU)
    Sing the glory of his name;(AV)
    make his praise glorious.(AW)
Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!(AX)
    So great is your power
    that your enemies cringe(AY) before you.
All the earth bows down(AZ) to you;
    they sing praise(BA) to you,
    they sing the praises of your name.”[g]

Come and see what God has done,
    his awesome deeds(BB) for mankind!
He turned the sea into dry land,(BC)
    they passed through(BD) the waters on foot—
    come, let us rejoice(BE) in him.
He rules forever(BF) by his power,
    his eyes watch(BG) the nations—
    let not the rebellious(BH) rise up against him.

Praise(BI) our God, all peoples,
    let the sound of his praise be heard;
he has preserved our lives(BJ)
    and kept our feet from slipping.(BK)
10 For you, God, tested(BL) us;
    you refined us like silver.(BM)
11 You brought us into prison(BN)
    and laid burdens(BO) on our backs.
12 You let people ride over our heads;(BP)
    we went through fire and water,
    but you brought us to a place of abundance.(BQ)

13 I will come to your temple with burnt offerings(BR)
    and fulfill my vows(BS) to you—
14 vows my lips promised and my mouth spoke
    when I was in trouble.
15 I will sacrifice fat animals to you
    and an offering of rams;
    I will offer bulls and goats.(BT)

16 Come and hear,(BU) all you who fear God;
    let me tell(BV) you what he has done for me.
17 I cried out to him with my mouth;
    his praise was on my tongue.
18 If I had cherished sin in my heart,
    the Lord would not have listened;(BW)
19 but God has surely listened
    and has heard(BX) my prayer.
20 Praise be to God,
    who has not rejected(BY) my prayer
    or withheld his love from me!

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 64:1 In Hebrew texts 64:1-10 is numbered 64:2-11.
  2. Psalm 64:5 Or us
  3. Psalm 65:1 In Hebrew texts 65:1-13 is numbered 65:2-14.
  4. Psalm 65:1 Or befits; the meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  5. Psalm 65:3 Or made atonement for
  6. Psalm 65:9 Or for that is how you prepare the land
  7. Psalm 66:4 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verses 7 and 15.