PSALMS

BOOK I

(Psalms 1–41)

Psalm 1

THE TWO WAYS

1 How happy is the one who does not

walk in the advice of the wicked

or stand in the pathway with sinners

or sit in the company of mockers!a

2 Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction,

and he meditates on it day and night.b

3 He is like a tree planted beside flowing streamsA

that bears its fruit in its season,c

and its leaf does not wither.d

Whatever he does prospers.e

4 The wicked are not like this;

instead, they are like chaff that the wind blows away.f

5 Therefore the wicked will not stand up in the judgment,g

nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

6 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,h

but the way of the wicked leads to ruin.i

Psalm 2

CORONATION OF THE SON

1 Whyj do the nations ragek

and the peoples plot in vain?l

2 The kings of the earth take their stand,m

and the rulers conspire together

against the Lord and his Anointed One:B,n

3 “Let’s tear off their chains

and throw their ropes off of us.”o

4 The one enthronedC in heaven laughs;

the Lord ridicules them.p

5 Then he speaks to them in his anger

and terrifies them in his wrath:q

6 “I have installed my king

on Zion, my holy mountain.”r

7 I will declare the Lord’s decree.

He said to me, “You are my Son;*

today I have become your Father.s

8 Ask of me,

and I will make the nations your inheritance

and the ends of the earth your possession.t

9 You will break them with an iron scepter;

you will shatter them like pottery.”u

10 So now, kings, be wise;

receive instruction, you judges of the earth.

11 Serve the Lord with reverential awe

and rejoice with trembling.v

12 Pay homage toE the Son or he will be angry

and you will perish in your rebellion,F,w

for his anger may ignite at any moment.x

All who take refuge in him are happy.y

Psalm 3

CONFIDENCE IN TROUBLED TIMES

A psalm of David when he fled from his son Absalom.z

1 Lord, how my foes increase!

There are many who attack me.aa

2 Many say about me,

“There is no help for him in God.”ab

Selah

3 But you, Lord, are a shield around me,ac

my glory,ad and the one who lifts up my head.ae

4 I cry aloud to the Lord,

and he answers me from his holy mountain.af

Selah

5 I lie down and sleep;

I wake again because the Lord sustains me.ag

6 I will not be afraid of thousands of people

who have taken their stand against me on every side.a

7 Rise up, Lord!b

Save me, my God!

You strike all my enemies on the cheek;c

you break the teeth of the wicked.d

8 Salvation belongs to the Lord;e

may your blessing be on your people.f

Selah

Psalm 4

A NIGHT PRAYER

For the choir director: with stringed instruments.g A psalm of David.

1 Answer me when I call,

God, who vindicates me.A,h

You freed me from affliction;i

be gracious to me and hear my prayer.

2 How long, exalted ones,B will my honor be insulted?j

How long will you love what is worthlessk

and pursue a lie?

Selah

3 Know that the Lord has set apart

the faithful for himself;

the Lord will hear when I call to him.

4 Be angryC and do not sin;l

reflect in your heart while on your bed and be silent.m

Selah

5 Offer sacrifices in righteousnessD,n

and trust in the Lord.o

6 Many are asking, “Who can show us anything good?”

Let the light of your face shine on us, Lord.p

7 You have put more joy in my heart

than they have when their grain and new wine abound.q

8 I will both lie down and sleep in peace,r

for you alone, Lord, make me live in safety.s

Psalm 5

THE REFUGE OF THE RIGHTEOUS

For the choir director: with the flutes. A psalm of David.

1 Listen to my words, Lord;

consider my sighing.t

2 Pay attention to the sound of my cry,u

my King and my God,v

for I pray to you.

3 In the morning,w Lord, you hear my voice;

in the morning I plead my case to youx and watch expectantly.

4 For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;

evil cannot dwell with you.y

5 The boastful cannot stand in your sight;z

you hate all evildoers.aa

6 You destroy those who tell lies;ab

the Lord abhors violent and treacherous people.ac

7 But I enter your house

by the abundance of your faithful love;ad

I bow down toward your holy temple

in reverential awe of you.ae

8 Lord, lead me in your righteousnessaf

because of my adversaries;

make your way straight before me.ag

9 For there is nothing reliable in what they say;ah

destruction is within them;

their throat is an open grave;

they flatter with their tongues.ai

10 Punish them, God;

let them fall by their own schemes.aj

Drive them outak because of their many crimes,

for they rebel against you.al

11 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;am

let them shout for joy forever.

May you shelter them,an

and may those who love your name boast about you.ao

12 For you, Lord, bless the righteous one;

you surround him with favor like a shield.ap

Psalm 6

A PRAYER FOR MERCY

For the choir director: with stringed instruments, according to Sheminith.a A psalm of David.

1 Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger;

do not discipline me in your wrath.b

2 Be gracious to me, Lord, for I am weak;A,c

heal me,d Lord, for my bones are shaking;e

3 my whole being is shaken with terror.f

And you, Lord—how long?g

4 Turn, Lord! Rescue me;

save me because of your faithful love.h

5 For there is no remembrance of you in death;

who can thank you in Sheol?i

6 I am weary from my groaning;j

with my tears I dampen my bed

and drench my couch every night.k

7 My eyes are swollen from grief;l

they grow old because of all my enemies.

8 Depart from me, all evildoers,

for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping.m

9 The Lord has heard my plea for help;n

the Lord accepts my prayer.o

10 All my enemies will be ashamed and shake with terror;

they will turn backp and suddenly be disgraced.q

Psalm 7

PRAYER FOR JUSTICE

A Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the Lord concerning the words of Cush, a Benjaminite.

1 Lord my God, I seek refuge in you;r

save me from all my pursuers and rescue me,s

2 or theyB will tear me like a lion,

ripping me apart with no one to rescue me.t

3 Lord my God, if I have done this,

if there is injustice on my hands,u

4 if I have done harm to one at peace with mev

or have plunderedC my adversary without cause,w

5 may an enemy pursue and overtake me;

may he trample me to the groundx

and leave my honor in the dust.y

Selah

6 Rise up, Lord, in your anger;

lift yourself up against the fury of my adversaries;z

awake for me;D,aa

you have ordained a judgment.ab

7 Let the assembly of peoples gather around you;ac

take your seat on high over it.ad

8 The Lord judges the peoples;ae

vindicate me, Lord,

according to my righteousness and my integrity.af

9 Let the evil of the wicked come to an end,ag

but establish the righteous.ah

The one who examines the thoughts and emotionsE

is a righteous God.ai

10 My shield is with God,aj

who saves the upright in heart.ak

11 God is a righteous judge

and a God who shows his wrath every day.al

12 If anyone does not repent,

he will sharpen his sword;am

he has strung his bow and made it ready.an

13 He has prepared his deadly weapons;

he tips his arrows with fire.ao

14 See, the wicked one is pregnant with evil,

conceives trouble, and gives birth to deceit.ap

15 He dug a pit and hollowed it out

but fell into the hole he had made.aq

16 His trouble comes back on his own head;

his own violence comes down on top of his head.ar

17 I will thank the Lord for his righteousness;

I will sing about the name of the Lord Most High.as

Psalm 8

GOD’S GLORY, HUMAN DIGNITY

For the choir director: on the Gittith.a A psalm of David.

1 Lord, our Lord,

how magnificent is your name throughout the earth!b

You have covered the heavens with your majesty.A,c

2 From the mouths of infants and nursing babies,d

you have established a strongholdB

on account of your adversaries

in order to silence the enemy and the avenger.

3 When I observe your heavens,

the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars,

which you set in place,e

4 what is a human being that you remember him,

a son of manC that you look after him?f

5 You made him little less than GodD,E

and crowned him with glory and honor.

6 You made him ruler over the works of your hands;

you put everything under his feet:g

7 all the sheep and oxen,

as well as the animals in the wild,

8 the birds of the sky,

and the fish of the sea

that pass through the currents of the seas.h

9 Lord, our Lord,

how magnificent is your name throughout the earth!

Psalm 9

CELEBRATION OF GOD’S JUSTICE

For the choir director: according to Muth-labben. A psalm of David.

1 I will thank the Lord with all my heart;

I will declare all your wondrous works.i

2 I will rejoice and boast about you;j

I will sing about your name, Most High.k

3 When my enemies retreat,

they stumble and perish before you.l

4 For you have upheld my just cause;m

you are seated on your throne as a righteous judge.n

5 You have rebuked the nations:o

You have destroyed the wicked;p

you have erased their name forever and ever.q

6 The enemy has come to eternal ruin;

you have uprooted the cities,

and the very memory of them has perished.r

7 But the Lord sits enthroned forever;s

he has established his throne for judgment.t

8 And he judges the world with righteousness;

he executes judgment on the nations with fairness.u

9 The Lord is a refuge for the persecuted,

a refuge in times of trouble.v

10 Those who know your name trust in you

because you have not abandoned

those who seek you, Lord.w

11 Sing to the Lord, who dwells in Zion;x

proclaim his deeds among the nations.y

12 For the one who seeks an accounting

for bloodshed remembers them;z

he does not forget the cry of the oppressed.aa

13 Be gracious to me, Lord;

consider my affliction at the hands of those who hate me.ab

Lift me up from the gates of death,ac

14 so that I may declare all your praises.

I will rejoice in your salvationad

within the gates of Daughter Zion.

15 The nations have fallen into the pit they made;

their foot is caught in the net they have concealed.ae

16 The Lord has made himself known;

he has executed justice,af

snaring the wicked

by the work of their hands.a

Higgaion. Selah

17 The wicked will return to …