PSALM 72

The Reign of the Righteous King.

A Psalm of Solomon.

1 Give the king aYour judgments, O God,

And bYour righteousness to the king’s son.

2 1May 2he ajudge Your people with righteousness

And 3bYour afflicted with justice.

3 1Let the mountains bring 2apeace to the people,

And the hills, in righteousness.

4 1May he avindicate the 2afflicted of the people,

Save the children of the needy

And crush the oppressor.

5 1Let them fear You awhile the sun endures,

And 2as long as the moon, throughout all generations.

6 1May he come down alike rain upon the mown grass,

Like bshowers that water the earth.

7 In his days 1may the arighteous flourish,

And babundance of peace till the moon is no more.

8 May he also rule afrom sea to sea

And from the River to the ends of the earth.

9 1Let athe nomads of the desert bbow before him,

And his enemies click the dust.

10 1Let the kings of aTarshish and of the 2bislands bring presents;

The kings of cSheba and dSeba eoffer 3gifts.

11 1And let all akings bow down before him,

All bnations serve him.

12 For he will adeliver the needy when he cries for help,

The 1afflicted also, and him who has no helper.

13 He will have acompassion on the poor and needy,

And the 1lives of the needy he will save.

14 He will 1arescue their 2life from oppression and violence,

And their blood will be bprecious in his sight;

15 So may he live, and may the agold of Sheba be given to him;

And let 1them pray for him continually;

Let 1them bless him all day long.

16 May there be abundance of grain in the earth on top of the mountains;

Its fruit will wave like the cedars of aLebanon;

And may those from the city flourish like bvegetation of the earth.

17 May his aname endure forever;

May his name 1increase 2bas long as the sun shines;

And let men cbless themselves by him;

dLet all nations call him blessed.

18 aBlessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,

Who alone bworks wonders.

19 And blessed be His aglorious name forever;

And may the whole bearth be filled with His glory.

cAmen, and Amen.

20 The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.

PSALM 22

A Cry of Anguish and a Song of Praise.

For the choir director; upon †Aijeleth Hashshahar. A Psalm of David.

1 aMy God, my God, why have You forsaken me?

1bFar from my deliverance are the words of my 2cgroaning.

2 O my God, I acry by day, but You do not answer;

And by night, but 1I have no rest.

3 Yet aYou are holy,

O You who 1are enthroned upon bthe praises of Israel.

4 In You our fathers atrusted;

They trusted and You bdelivered them.

5 To You they cried out and were delivered;

aIn You they trusted and were not 1disappointed.

6 But I am a aworm and not a man,

A breproach of men and cdespised by the people.

7 All who see me 1asneer at me;

They 2separate with the lip, they bwag the head, saying,

8 “1Commit yourself to the Lord; alet Him deliver him;

Let Him rescue him, because He delights in him.”

9 Yet You are He who abrought me forth from the womb;

You made me trust when upon my mother’s breasts.

10 Upon You I was cast afrom 1birth;

You have been my God from my mother’s womb.

11 aBe not far from me, for 1trouble is near;

For there is bnone to help.

12 Many abulls have surrounded me;

Strong bulls of bBashan have encircled me.

13 They aopen wide their mouth at me,

As a ravening and a roaring blion.

14 I am apoured out like water,

And all my bbones are out of joint;

My cheart is like wax;

It is melted within 1me.

15 My astrength is dried up like a potsherd,

And bmy tongue cleaves to my jaws;

And You clay me 1in the dust of death.

16 For adogs have surrounded me;

1A band of evildoers has encompassed me;

2They bpierced my hands and my feet.

17 I can count all my bones.

aThey look, they stare at me;

18 They adivide my garments among them,

And for my clothing they cast lots.

19 But You, O Lord, abe not far off;

O You my help, bhasten to my assistance.

20 Deliver my 1soul from athe sword,

My bonly life from the 2power of the dog.

21 Save me from the alion’s mouth;

From the horns of the bwild oxen You canswer me.

22 I will atell of Your name to my brethren;

In the midst of the assembly I will praise You.

23 aYou who fear the Lord, praise Him;

All you 1descendants of Jacob, bglorify Him,

And cstand in awe of Him, all you 1descendants of Israel.

24 For He has anot despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted;

Nor has He bhidden His face from him;

But cwhen he cried to Him for help, He heard.

25 From You comes amy praise in the great assembly;

I shall bpay my vows before those who fear Him.

26 The 1afflicted will eat and abe satisfied;

Those who seek Him will bpraise the Lord.

Let your cheart live forever!

27 All the aends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord,

And all the bfamilies of the nations will worship before 1You.

28 For the akingdom is the Lord’s

And He brules over the nations.

29 All the 1aprosperous of the earth will eat and worship,

All those who bgo down to the dust will bow before Him,

Even he who 2ccannot keep his soul alive.

30 1aPosterity will serve Him;

It will be told of the Lord to bthe coming generation.

31 They will come and awill declare His righteousness

To a people bwho will be born, that He has performed it.

PSALM 23

The Lord, the Psalmist’s Shepherd.

A Psalm of David.

1 The Lord is my ashepherd,

I 1shall bnot want.

2 He makes me lie down in agreen pastures;

He bleads me beside 1cquiet waters.

3 He arestores my soul;

He bguides me in the 1cpaths of righteousness

For His name’s sake.

4 Even though I awalk through the 1valley of the shadow of death,

I bfear no 2evil, for cYou are with me;

Your drod and Your staff, they comfort me.

5 You aprepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;

You 1have banointed my head with oil;

My ccup overflows.

6 1Surely agoodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life,

And I will 2bdwell in the house of the Lord 3forever.