Why Should I Fear in Times of Trouble?

49 To the choirmaster. A Psalm of fthe Sons of Korah.

1  gHear this, all peoples!

Give ear, all inhabitants of the world,

2  hboth low and high,

rich and poor together!

3  My mouth shall speak iwisdom;

the meditation of my heart shall be understanding.

4  I will incline my ear to ja proverb;

I will solve my kriddle to the music of the lyre.

5  lWhy should I fear in mtimes of trouble,

when the iniquity of those who cheat me surrounds me,

6  those who ntrust in their wealth

and boast of the abundance of their riches?

7  Truly no man ocan ransom another,

or pgive to God qthe price of his life,

8  for rthe ransom of their life is costly

and can never suffice,

9  that he should live on forever

and snever see the pit.

10  For he sees tthat even the wise die;

uthe fool and the stupid alike must perish

and vleave their wealth to others.

11  Their wgraves are their homes forever,1

their dwelling places xto all generations,

though they ycalled lands by their own names.

12  Man in his pomp zwill not remain;

ahe is like the beasts that perish.

13  This is the path of those who have bfoolish confidence;

yet after them people approve of their boasts.2 Selah

14  Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol;

death shall be their shepherd,

and the upright cshall rule over them in the morning.

dTheir form shall be consumed ein Sheol, with no place to dwell.

15  But God will fransom my soul from the power of Sheol,

for he will greceive me. Selah

16  Be not afraid when a man becomes rich,

when the glory of his house increases.

17  hFor when he dies he will icarry nothing away;

his glory will not go down after him.

18  For though, while he lives, he counts himself jblessed

—and though you get praise when you do well for yourself—

19  his soul will kgo to the generation of his fathers,

who will never again lsee light.

20  mMan in his pomp yet without understanding is like the beasts that perish.

God Himself Is Judge

50 A Psalm of nAsaph.

1  oThe Mighty One, God the Lord,

speaks and summons the earth

pfrom the rising of the sun to its setting.

2  Out of Zion, qthe perfection of beauty,

rGod shines forth.

3  Our God comes; he sdoes not keep silence;1

before him is a devouring tfire,

around him a mighty tempest.

4  uHe calls to the heavens above

and to the earth, that he may judge his people:

5  “Gather to me my faithful ones,

who made va covenant with me by sacrifice!”

6  wThe heavens declare his righteousness,

for xGod himself is judge! Selah

7  y“Hear, O my people, and I will speak;

O Israel, I will testify against you.

zI am God, your God.

8  Not for your sacrifices ado I rebuke you;

your burnt offerings are continually before me.

9  I will not accept a bull from your house

or goats from your folds.

10  For every beast of the forest is mine,

the cattle on a thousand hills.

11  bI know all the birds of the hills,

and all that moves in the field is mine.

12  “If I were hungry, I would not tell you,

cfor the world and its fullness are mine.

13  Do I eat the flesh of bulls

or drink the blood of goats?

14  dOffer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving,2

and eperform your vows to the Most High,

15  and fcall upon me in the day of trouble;

I will gdeliver you, and you shall hglorify me.”

16  But to the wicked God says:

“What right have you to recite my statutes

or take my covenant on your lips?

17  iFor you hate discipline,

jand you cast my words behind you.

18  If you see a thief, kyou are pleased with him,

land you keep company with adulterers.

19  “You give your mouth free rein for evil,

mand your tongue frames deceit.

20  You sit and speak against your brother;

you slander your own mother’s son.

21  These things you have done, and I nhave been silent;

you thought that I3 was one like yourself.

But now I orebuke you and play the charge before you.

22  “Mark this, then, you who qforget God,

lest I tear you apart, and there be rnone to deliver!

23  The one who soffers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me;

to one who torders his way rightly

I will show the usalvation of God!”

Create in Me a Clean Heart, O God

51 To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, when vNathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.

1  wHave mercy on me,1 O God,

according to your steadfast love;

according to your xabundant mercy

yblot out my transgressions.

2  zWash me thoroughly from my iniquity,

and acleanse me from my sin!

3  bFor I know my transgressions,

and my sin is ever before me.

4  cAgainst you, you only, have I sinned

and done what is evil din your sight,

eso that you may be justified in your words

and blameless in your judgment.

5  Behold, fI was brought forth in iniquity,

and in sin did my mother conceive me.

6  Behold, you delight in truth in gthe inward being,

and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.

7  Purge me hwith hyssop, and I shall be clean;

zwash me, and I shall be iwhiter than snow.

8  Let me hear joy and gladness;

jlet the bones kthat you have broken rejoice.

9  lHide your face from my sins,

and yblot out all my iniquities.

10  mCreate in me a nclean heart, O God,

and orenew a right2 spirit within me.

11  pCast me not away from your presence,

and take not qyour Holy Spirit from me.

12  Restore to me the joy of your salvation,

and uphold me with a willing spirit.

13  Then I will teach transgressors your ways,

and sinners will rreturn to you.

14  Deliver me from sbloodguiltiness, O God,

O tGod of my salvation,

and umy tongue will sing aloud of your vrighteousness.

15  O Lord, open my lips,

and my mouth will declare your praise.

16  wFor you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;

you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.

17  The sacrifices of God are xa broken spirit;

a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

18  yDo good to Zion in your good pleasure;

zbuild up the walls of Jerusalem;

19  then will you delight in aright sacrifices,

in burnt offerings and bwhole burnt offerings;

then bulls will be offered on your altar.