Psalm 50–52

God Himself Is Judge

50A Psalm of ⁿAsaph.

^1oThe Mighty One, God the Lord,

speaks and summons the earth

^pfrom the rising of the sun to its setting.

²Out of Zion, ^qthe perfection of beauty,

^rGod shines forth.

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

before him is a devouring ^tfire,

around him a mighty tempest.

^4uHe 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!”

^6wThe heavens declare his righteousness,

for ^xGod himself is judge! Selah

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

O Israel, I will testify against you.

^zI am God, your God.

⁸Not for your sacrifices ^ado I rebuke you;

your burnt offerings are continually before me.

⁹I will not accept a bull from your house

or goats from your folds.

¹⁰For every beast of the forest is mine,

the cattle on a thousand hills.

^11bI 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.

¹³Do I eat the flesh of bulls

or drink the blood of goats?

^14dOffer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving,²

and ^eperform your vows to the Most High,

¹⁵and ^fcall upon me in the day of trouble;

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

¹⁶But to the wicked God says:

“What right have you to recite my statutes

or take my covenant on your lips?

¹⁷ⁱFor you hate discipline,

^jand you cast my words behind you.

¹⁸If 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.

²⁰You sit and speak against your brother;

you slander your own mother’s son.

²¹These 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!

²³The 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

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

^1wHave mercy on me,¹ O God,

according to your steadfast love;

according to your ^xabundant mercy

^yblot out my transgressions.

^2zWash me thoroughly from my iniquity,

and ^acleanse me from my sin!

^3bFor I know my transgressions,

and my sin is ever before me.

^4cAgainst 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.

⁵Behold, ^fI was brought forth in iniquity,

and in sin did my mother conceive me.

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

and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.

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

^zwash me, and I shall be ⁱwhiter than snow.

⁸Let me hear joy and gladness;

^jlet the bones ^kthat you have broken rejoice.

^9lHide your face from my sins,

and ^yblot out all my iniquities.

^10mCreate in me a ⁿclean heart, O God,

and ^orenew a right² spirit within me.

^11pCast me not away from your presence,

and take not ^qyour Holy Spirit from me.

¹²Restore to me the joy of your salvation,

and uphold me with a willing spirit.

¹³Then I will teach transgressors your ways,

and sinners will ^rreturn to you.

¹⁴Deliver me from ^sbloodguiltiness, O God,

O ^tGod of my salvation,

and ^umy tongue will sing aloud of your ^vrighteousness.

¹⁵O Lord, open my lips,

and my mouth will declare your praise.

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

you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.

¹⁷The sacrifices of God are ^xa broken spirit;

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

^18yDo good to Zion in your good pleasure;

^zbuild up the walls of Jerusalem;

¹⁹then will you delight in ^aright sacrifices,

in burnt offerings and ^bwhole burnt offerings;

then bulls will be offered on your altar.

The Steadfast Love of God Endures

52To the choirmaster. A Maskil¹ of David, when ^cDoeg, the Edomite, came and told Saul, “David has come to the house of Ahimelech.”

¹Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man?

The steadfast love of God endures all the day.

²Your ^dtongue plots destruction,

like ^ea sharp razor, you ^fworker of deceit.

³You love evil more than good,

and ^glying more than speaking what is right. Selah

⁴You love all words that devour,

O deceitful tongue.

⁵But God will break you down forever;

he will snatch and ^htear you from your tent;

he will uproot you from ⁱthe land of the living. Selah

⁶The righteous shall ^jsee and fear,

and shall ^klaugh at him, saying,

⁷“See the man who would not make

God his refuge,

but ^ltrusted in the abundance of his riches

and sought refuge in his own destruction!”²

⁸But I am like ^ma green olive tree

in the house of God.

I trust in the steadfast love of God

forever and ever.

⁹I will thank you forever,

because you have done it.

I will wait for your name, ⁿfor it is good,

in the presence of the ^ogodly.