48 ⁽⁰⁾ A song. A psalm of the descendants of Korach:

^2 (1) Great is Adonai
and greatly to be praised,
in the city of our God,
his holy mountain,
^3 (2) beautiful in its elevation,
the joy of all the earth,
Mount Tziyon, in the far north,
the city of the great king.
^4 (3) In its citadels God
has been revealed as a strong defense.
^5 (4) For the kings met by agreement;
together they advanced.
^6 (5) They saw and were filled with consternation;
terrified, they took to flight.
^7 (6) Trembling took hold of them,
pains like those of a woman in labor,
^8 (7) as when the wind out of the east
wrecks the “Tarshish” ships.
^9 (8) We heard it, and now we see for ourselves
in the city of Adonai-Tzva’ot,
in the city of our God.
May God establish it forever. (Selah)

^10 (9) God, within your temple
we meditate on your grace.
^11 (10) God, your praise, like your name,
extends to the ends of the earth.
Your right hand is filled with righteousness.
^12 (11) Let Mount Tziyon rejoice,
let the daughters of Y’hudah be glad,
because of your judgment [on the enemy].

^13 (12) Walk through Tziyon, go all around it;
count how many towers it has.
^14 (13) Note its ramparts, pass through its citadels,
so that you can tell generations to come
^15 (14) that such is God, our God forever;
he will guide us eternally.

49 ⁽⁰⁾ For the leader. A psalm of the descendants of Korach:

^2 (1) Hear this, all you peoples!
Listen, everyone living on earth,
^3 (2) regardless of whether low or high,
regardless of whether rich or poor!
^4 (3) My mouth is about to speak wisdom;
my heart’s deepest thoughts will give understanding.
^5 (4) I will listen with care to [God’s] parable,
I will set my enigma to the music of the lyre.

^6 (5) Why should I fear when the days bring trouble,
when the evil of my pursuers surrounds me,
^7 (6) the evil of those who rely on their wealth
and boast how rich they are?
^8 (7) No one can ever redeem his brother
or give God a ransom for him ,
^9 (8) because the price for him is too high
(leave the idea completely alone!)
^10 (9) to have him live on eternally
and never see the pit.
^11 (10) For he can see that wise men will die,
likewise the fool and the brute will perish
and leave their wealth to others.
^12 (11) They think their homes will last forever,
their dwellings through all generations;
they give their own names to their estates.
^13 (12) But people, even rich ones, will live only briefly;
then, like animals, they will die.
^14 (13) This is the manner of life of the foolish
and those who come after, approving their words. (Selah)
^15 (14) Like sheep, they are destined for Sh’ol;
death will be their shepherd.
The upright will rule them in the morning;
and their forms will waste away in Sh’ol,
until they need no dwelling.
^16 (15) But God will redeem me from Sh’ol’s control,
because he will receive me. (Selah)

^17 (16) Don’t be afraid when someone gets rich,
when the wealth of his family grows.
^18 (17) For when he dies, he won’t take it with him;
his wealth will not go down after him.
^19 (18) True, while he lived, he thought himself happy —
people praise you when you do well for yourself —
^20 (19) but he will join his ancestors’ generations
and never again see light.
^21 (20) People, even rich ones, can fail to grasp
that, like animals, they will die.

50 ⁽⁰⁾ A psalm of Asaf:

⁽¹⁾ The Mighty One, God, Adonai, is speaking,
summoning the world from east to west.
² Out of Tziyon, the perfection of beauty,
God is shining forth.
³ Our God is coming and not staying silent.
With a fire devouring ahead of him
and a great storm raging around him,
⁴ he calls to the heavens above and to earth,
in order to judge his people.
⁵ “Gather to me my faithful,
those who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”

⁶ The heavens proclaim his righteousness,
for God himself is judge. (Selah)

⁷ “Listen, my people, I am speaking:
Isra’el, I am testifying against you,
I, God, your God.
⁸ I am not rebuking you for your sacrifices;
your burnt offerings are always before me.
⁹ I have no need for a bull from your farm
or for male goats from your pens;
¹⁰ for all forest creatures are mine already,
as are the animals on a thousand hills;
¹¹ I know all the birds in the mountains;
whatever moves in the fields is mine.
¹² If I were hungry, I would not tell you;
for the world is mine, and everything in it.
¹³ Do I eat the flesh of bulls
or drink the blood of goats?
¹⁴ Offer thanksgiving as your sacrifice to God,
pay your vows to the Most High,
¹⁵ and call on me when you are in trouble;
I will deliver you, and you will honor me.”

¹⁶ But to the wicked God says:
“What right do you have to proclaim my laws
or take my covenant on your lips,
¹⁷ when you so hate to receive instruction
and fling my words behind you?
¹⁸ When you see a thief, you join up with him,
you throw in your lot with adulterers,
¹⁹ you give your mouth free rein for evil
and harness your tongue to deceit;
²⁰ you sit and speak against your kinsman,
you slander your own mother’s son.
²¹ When you do such things, should I stay silent?
You may have thought I was just like you;
but I will rebuke and indict you to your face.
²² Consider this, you who forget God,
or I will tear you to pieces, with no one to save you.

²³ “Whoever offers thanksgiving
as his sacrifice honors me;
and to him who goes the right way
I will show the salvation of God.”