Psalm 143–145

My Soul Thirsts for You

143A Psalm of David.

¹Hear my prayer, O Lord;

^cgive ear to my pleas for mercy!

In your ^dfaithfulness answer me, in your ^drighteousness!

^2eEnter not into judgment with your servant,

for no one living is righteous ^fbefore you.

³For the enemy has pursued my soul;

^ghe has crushed my life to the ground;

^hhe has made me sit in darkness like those long dead.

⁴Therefore my spirit ⁱfaints within me;

my heart within me is appalled.

^5jI remember the days of old;

^kI meditate on all that you have done;

I ponder the work of your hands.

^6lI stretch out my hands to you;

^mmy soul thirsts for you like ⁿa parched land. Selah

^7oAnswer me quickly, O Lord!

^pMy spirit fails!

^qHide not your face from me,

^rlest I be like those who go down to the pit.

^8sLet me hear in the morning of your steadfast love,

for in you I ^ttrust.

^uMake me know the way I should go,

^vfor to you I lift up my soul.

^9wDeliver me from my enemies, O Lord!

I have fled to you for refuge.¹

^10xTeach me to do your will,

for you are my God!

^yLet your good Spirit ^zlead me

on ^alevel ground!

^11bFor your name’s sake, O Lord, ^cpreserve my life!

In your righteousness ^dbring my soul out of trouble!

¹²And in your steadfast love you will ^ecut off my enemies,

and you will destroy all the adversaries of my soul,

for I am your ^fservant.

My Rock and My Fortress

144Of David.

¹Blessed be the Lord, my ^grock,

^hwho trains my hands for war,

and my fingers for battle;

²he is my ⁱsteadfast love and my ^jfortress,

my ^kstronghold and my deliverer,

my ^lshield and he in whom I take refuge,

who ^msubdues peoples¹ under me.

³O Lord, ⁿwhat is man that you ^oregard him,

or the son of man that you think of him?

^4pMan is like a breath;

his days are like ^qa passing ^rshadow.

^5sBow your heavens, O Lord, and come down!

^tTouch the mountains so that they smoke!

^6uFlash forth the lightning and scatter them;

^usend out your arrows and rout them!

^7vStretch out your hand from on high;

^wrescue me and deliver me from the many waters,

from the hand ^xof foreigners,

⁸whose mouths speak ^ylies

and whose right hand is ^za right hand of falsehood.

⁹I will sing ^aa new song to you, O God;

upon ^aa ten-stringed harp I will play to you,

¹⁰who gives victory to kings,

who ^brescues David his servant from the cruel sword.

¹¹Rescue me and deliver me

from the hand ^xof foreigners,

whose mouths speak ^ylies

and whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.

¹²May our sons in their youth

be like ^cplants full grown,

our daughters like ^dcorner pillars

cut for the structure of a palace;

^13emay our granaries be full,

^fproviding all kinds of produce;

may our sheep bring forth thousands

and ten thousands in our fields;

¹⁴may our cattle be heavy with young,

suffering no mishap or failure in bearing;²

may there be no ^gcry of distress in our streets!

^15hBlessed are the people to whom such blessings fall!

ⁱBlessed are the people whose God is the Lord!

Great Is the Lord

145¹ A Song of Praise. Of David.

^1jI will extol you, my God and ^kKing,

and bless your name forever and ever.

²Every day I will bless you

^land praise your name forever and ever.

^3mGreat is the Lord, and greatly to be praised,

and his ⁿgreatness is unsearchable.

^4oOne generation shall commend your works to another,

and shall declare your mighty acts.

⁵On ^pthe glorious splendor of your majesty,

and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.

⁶They shall speak of ^qthe might of your awesome deeds,

and I will declare your greatness.

⁷They shall pour forth the fame of your ^rabundant goodness

and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.

⁸The Lord is ^sgracious and merciful,

slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

⁹The Lord is ^tgood to all,

and his mercy is over all that he has made.

^10uAll your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,

and all your ^vsaints shall bless you!

¹¹They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom

and tell of your power,

¹²to ^wmake known to the children of man your^{2 x}mighty deeds,

and ^ythe glorious splendor of your kingdom.

^13zYour kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,

and your dominion endures throughout all generations.

[The Lord is faithful in all his words

and kind in all his works.³]

¹⁴The Lord ^aupholds all who are falling

and ^braises up all who are bowed down.

¹⁵The eyes of all ^clook to you,

and you give them their food in due season.

¹⁶You ^dopen your hand;

you ^esatisfy the desire of every living thing.

¹⁷The Lord is ^frighteous in all his ways

and ^gkind in all his works.

¹⁸The Lord is ^hnear to all who call on him,

to all who call on him ⁱin truth.

¹⁹He ^jfulfills the desire of those who fear him;

he also ^khears their cry and saves them.

²⁰The Lord ^lpreserves all who love him,

but all the wicked he will destroy.

²¹My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,

and ^mlet all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever.