Psalm 74–76

Psalm 74

A maskil^aby Asaph. 

¹Why, O God, have you rejected us forever? 

Why does your anger 

smolder against the sheep in your care? 

²Remember your congregation. 

Long ago you made it your own. 

You bought this tribe to be your possession. 

This tribe is Mount Zion, where you have made your home. 

³Turn your steps towardthese pathetic ruins. 

The enemy has destroyed everything in the holy temple. 

⁴Your opponents have roared inside your meeting place. 

They have set up their own emblems as symbols. 

⁵Starting from its entrance, they hacked away 

like a woodcutter in a forest. 

⁶They smashed all its carved paneling with axes and hatchets. 

⁷They burned your holy place to the ground. 

They dishonored the place where you live among us. 

⁸They said to themselves, “We will crush them.” 

They burned every meeting place of God in the land. 

⁹We no longer see miraculous signs. 

There are no prophets anymore. 

No one knows how long this will last. 

¹⁰How long, O God, will the enemy insult us? 

Will the enemy despise you forever? 

¹¹Why do you hold back your hand, especially your right hand? 

Take your hands out of your pockets. 

Destroy your enemies! 

¹²And yet, from long ago God has been my king, 

the one who has been victorious throughout the earth. 

¹³You stirred up the sea with your own strength. 

You smashed the heads of sea monsters in the water. 

¹⁴You crushed the heads of Leviathan 

and gave them to the creatures of the desert for food. 

¹⁵You opened the springs and brooks. 

You dried up the ever-flowing rivers. 

¹⁶The day and the night are yours. 

You set the moon and the sun in their places. 

¹⁷You determined all the boundaries of the earth. 

You created summer and winter. 

¹⁸Remember how the enemy insulted you, O Lord. 

Remember how an entire nation of godless fools despised your name. 

¹⁹Do not hand over the soul of your dove to wild animals. 

Do not forget the life of your oppressed people forever. 

²⁰Consider your promise^f

because every dark corner of the land is filled with violence. 

²¹Do not let oppressed people come back in disgrace. 

Let weak and needy people praise your name. 

²²Arise, O God! 

Fight for your own cause! 

Remember how godless fools insult you all day long. 

²³Do not forget the shouting of your opponents. 

Do not forget the uproar made by those who attack you. 

Psalm 75

For the choir director; al tashcheth; a psalm by Asaph; a song. 

¹We give thanks to you, O God; we give thanks. 

You are present, and your miracles confirm that. 

²When I choose the right time, 

I will judge fairly. 

³When the earth and everyone who lives on it begin to melt, 

I will make its foundations as solid as rock. 

Selah 

⁴I said to those who brag, “Don’t brag,” 

and to wicked people, 

“Don’t raise your weapons. 

⁵Don’t raise your weapons so proudly 

or speak so defiantly.” 

⁶The ⸤authority⸥ to reward someone does not ⸤come⸥ 

from the east, 

from the west, 

or ⸤even⸥ from the wilderness. 

⁷God alone is the judge. 

He punishes one person and rewards another. 

⁸A cup is in the Lord’s hand. 

(Its foaming wine is thoroughly mixed with spices.) 

He will empty it, 

⸤and⸥ all the wicked people on earth 

will have to drink every last drop. 

⁹But I will speak ⸤about your miracles⸥ forever. 

I will make music to praise the God of Jacob. 

¹⁰I will destroy all the weapons of wicked people, 

but the weapons of righteous people will be raised proudly. 

Psalm 76

For the choir director; on stringed instruments; a psalm by Asaph; a song. 

¹God is known in Judah. 

His name is great in Israel. 

²His tent is in Salem. 

His home is in Zion. 

³There he destroyed flaming arrows, 

shields, swords, and weapons of war. 

Selah 

⁴You are the radiant one. 

You are more majestic than the ancient mountains.^a

⁵Brave people were robbed. 

They died. 

None of the warriors were able to lift a hand. 

⁶At your stern warning, O God of Jacob, 

chariot riders and horses were put to sleep. 

⁷You alone must be feared! 

Who can stand in your presence when you become angry? 

⁸From heaven you announced a verdict. 

The earth was fearful and silent 

⁹when you rose to judge, O God, 

when you rose to save every oppressed person on earth. 

Selah 

¹⁰Even angry mortals will praise you. 

You will wear the remainder of ⸤their⸥ anger. 

¹¹Make vows to the Lord your God, and keep them. 

Let everyone around him bring gifts to the one who must be feared. 

¹²He cuts short the lives of influential people. 

He terrifies the kings of the earth.