Psalm 74–76

Psalm 74

PRAYER FOR ISRAEL

A Maskil of Asaph.^ad

¹Why have you rejected us forever, God?

Why does your anger burn

against the sheep of your pasture?^ae

²Remember your congregation,

which you purchased long ago

and redeemed as the tribe for your own possession.^af

Remember Mount Zion where you dwell.^ag

³Make your way^A to the perpetual ruins,

to all that the enemy has destroyed in the sanctuary.^a

⁴Your adversaries roared in the meeting place

where you met with us.^B

They set up their emblems as signs.^b

⁵It was like men in a thicket of trees,

wielding axes,^c

⁶then smashing all the carvings

with hatchets and picks.^d

⁷They set your sanctuary on fire;

they utterly^C desecrated

the dwelling place of your name.^e

⁸They said in their hearts,

“Let’s oppress them relentlessly.”

They burned every place throughout the land

where God met with us.^Df

⁹There are no signs for us to see.

There is no longer a prophet.

And none of us knows how long this will last.^g

¹⁰God, how long will the enemy mock?

Will the foe insult your name forever?^h

¹¹Why do you hold back your hand?

Stretch out^E your right hand and destroy them!ⁱ

¹²God my King is from ancient times,

performing saving acts on the earth.^j

¹³You divided the sea with your strength;

you smashed the heads of the sea monsters in the water;^k

¹⁴you crushed the heads of Leviathan;

you fed him to the creatures of the desert.^l

¹⁵You opened up springs and streams;^m

you dried up ever-flowing rivers.ⁿ

¹⁶The day is yours, also the night;

you established the moon and the sun.^o

¹⁷You set all the boundaries of the earth;

you made summer and winter.^p

¹⁸Remember this: the enemy has mocked the Lord,

and a foolish people has insulted your name.^q

¹⁹Do not give to beasts the life of your dove;^F

do not forget the lives of your poor people forever.^r

²⁰Consider the covenant,^s

for the dark places of the land are full of violence.^t

²¹Do not let the oppressed turn away in shame;

let the poor and needy praise your name.^u

²²Rise up, God, champion your cause!^v

Remember the insults

that fools bring against you all day long.^w

²³Do not forget the clamor of your adversaries,

the tumult of your opponents that goes up constantly.^x

Psalm 75

GOD JUDGES THE WICKED

For the choir director: “Do Not Destroy.” A psalm of Asaph.^y A song.

¹We give thanks to you, God;

we give thanks to you, for your name is near.^*

People tell about your wondrous works.^z

²“When I choose a time,

I will judge fairly.^aa

³When the earth and all its inhabitants shake,

I am the one who steadies its pillars.^ab

Selah

⁴I say to the boastful, ‘Do not boast,’

and to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up your horn.^ac

⁵Do not lift up your horn against heaven^A

or speak arrogantly.’ ”^ad

⁶Exaltation does not come

from the east, the west, or the desert,

⁷for God is the Judge:

He brings down one and exalts another.^ae

⁸For there is a cup in the Lord’s hand,

full of wine blended with spices, and he pours from it.

All the wicked of the earth will drink,

draining it to the dregs.^af

⁹As for me, I will tell about him forever;

I will sing praise to the God of Jacob.^a

¹⁰“I will cut off all the horns of the wicked,^b

but the horns of the righteous will be lifted up.”^c

Psalm 76

GOD, THE POWERFUL JUDGE

For the choir director: with stringed instruments. A psalm of Asaph.^d A song.

¹God is known in Judah;

his name is great in Israel.^e

²His tent is in Salem,

his dwelling place in Zion.^f

³There he shatters the bow’s flaming arrows,

the shield, the sword, and the weapons of war.^g

Selah

⁴You are resplendent and majestic

coming down from the mountains of prey.^h

⁵The brave-hearted have been plundered;

they have slipped into their final sleep.

None of the warriors was able to lift a hand.ⁱ

⁶At your rebuke, God of Jacob,

both chariot and horse lay still.^j

⁷And you—you are to be feared.^A

When you are angry,

who can stand before you?^k

⁸From heaven you pronounced judgment.

The earth feared and grew quiet^l

⁹when God rose up to judge

and to save all the lowly of the earth.^m

Selah

¹⁰Even human wrath will praise you;

you will clothe yourself

with the wrath that remains.^Bn

¹¹Make and keep your vows

to the Lord your God;^o

let all who are around him bring tribute

to the awe-inspiring one.^Cp

¹²He humbles the spirit of leaders;

he is feared by the kings of the earth.^q