Psalm 115–118

Psalm 115

¹Don’t give glory to us, O Lord. 

Don’t give glory to us. 

Instead, give glory to your name 

because of your mercy and faithfulness. 

²Why should other nations say, “Where is their God?” 

³Our God is in heaven. 

He does whatever he wants. 

⁴Their idols are made of silver and gold. 

They were made by human hands.^a

⁵They have mouths, but they cannot speak. 

They have eyes, but they cannot see. 

⁶They have ears, but they cannot hear. 

They have noses, but they cannot smell. 

⁷They have hands, but they cannot feel. 

They have feet, but they cannot walk. 

They cannot ⸤even⸥ make a sound with their throats. 

⁸Those who make idols end up like them. 

So does everyone who trusts them. 

⁹Israel, trust the Lord. 

He is your helper and your shield. 

¹⁰Descendants of Aaron, trust the Lord. 

He is your helper and your shield. 

¹¹If you fear the Lord, trust the Lord. 

He is your helper and your shield. 

¹²The Lord, who is ⸤always⸥ thinking about us, will bless us. 

He will bless the descendants of Israel. 

He will bless the descendants of Aaron. 

¹³He will bless those who fear the Lord, 

from the least important to the most important. 

¹⁴May the Lord continue to bless you and your children. 

¹⁵You will be blessed by the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. 

¹⁶The highest heaven belongs to the Lord, 

but he has given the earth to the descendants of Adam. 

¹⁷Those who are dead do not praise the Lord, 

nor do those who go into the silence ⸤of the grave⸥. 

¹⁸But we will thank the Lord now and forever. 

Hallelujah! 

Psalm 116

¹I love the Lord because he hears my voice, my pleas for mercy. 

²I will call on him as long as I live 

because he turns his ear toward me. 

³The ropes of death became tangled around me. 

The horrors of the grave took hold of me. 

I experienced pain and agony. 

⁴But I kept calling on the name of the Lord: 

“Please, Lord, rescue me!” 

⁵The Lord is merciful and righteous. 

Our God is compassionate. 

⁶The Lord protects defenseless people. 

When I was weak, he saved me. 

⁷Be at peace again, my soul, 

because the Lord has been good to you. 

⁸You saved me from death. 

You saved my eyes from tears ⸤and⸥ my feet from stumbling. 

⁹I will walk in the Lord’s presence in this world of the living. 

¹⁰I kept my faith even when I said, 

“I am suffering terribly.” 

¹¹I also said when I was panic-stricken, 

“Everyone is undependable.” 

¹²How can I repay the Lord 

for all the good that he has done for me? 

¹³I will take the cup of salvation 

and call on the name of the Lord. 

¹⁴I will keep my vows to the Lord 

in the presence of all his people. 

¹⁵Precious in the sight of the Lord 

is the death of his faithful ones. 

¹⁶O Lord, I am indeed your servant. 

I am your servant, 

the son of your female servant. 

You have freed me from my chains. 

¹⁷I will bring a song of thanksgiving to you as a sacrifice. 

I will call on the name of the Lord. 

¹⁸I will keep my vows to the Lord 

in the presence of all his people, 

¹⁹in the courtyards of the Lord’s house, 

in the middle of Jerusalem. 

Hallelujah! 

Psalm 117

¹Praise the Lord, all you nations! 

Praise him, all you people of the world! 

²His mercy toward us is powerful. 

The Lord’s faithfulness endures forever. 

Hallelujah! 

Psalm 118

¹Give thanks to the Lord because he is good, 

because his mercy endures forever. 

²Israel should say, 

“His mercy endures forever.” 

³The descendants of Aaron should say, 

“His mercy endures forever.” 

⁴Those who fear the Lord should say, 

“His mercy endures forever.” 

⁵During times of trouble I called on the Lord. 

The Lord answered me ⸤and⸥ set me free ⸤from all of them⸥. 

⁶The Lord is on my side. 

I am not afraid. 

What can mortals do to me? 

⁷The Lord is on my side as my helper. 

I will see ⸤the defeat of⸥ those who hate me. 

⁸It is better to depend on the Lord 

than to trust mortals. 

⁹It is better to depend on the Lord 

than to trust influential people. 

¹⁰All the nations surrounded me, 

⸤but armed⸥ with the name of the Lord, I defeated them. 

¹¹They surrounded me. Yes, they surrounded me, 

⸤but armed⸥ with the name of the Lord, I defeated them. 

¹²They swarmed around me like bees, 

but they were extinguished like burning thornbushes. 

⸤So armed⸥ with the name of the Lord, I defeated them. 

¹³They pushed hard to make me fall, 

but the Lord helped me. 

¹⁴The Lord is my strength and my song. 

He is my savior. 

¹⁵The sound of joyful singing and victory is heard 

in the tents of righteous people. 

The right hand of the Lord displays strength. 

¹⁶The right hand of the Lord is held high. 

The right hand of the Lord displays strength. 

¹⁷I will not die, 

but I will live and tell what the Lord has done. 

¹⁸The Lord disciplined me severely, 

but he did not allow me to be killed. 

¹⁹Open the gates of righteousness for me. 

I will go through them ⸤and⸥ give thanks to the Lord. 

²⁰This is the gate of the Lord 

through which righteous people will enter. 

²¹I give thanks to you, 

because you have answered me. 

You are my savior. 

²²The stone that the builders rejected 

has become the cornerstone. 

²³The Lord is responsible for this, 

and it is amazing for us to see. 

²⁴This is the day the Lord has made. 

Let’s rejoice and be glad today! 

²⁵We beg you, O Lord, save us! 

We beg you, O Lord, give us success! 

²⁶Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. 

We bless you from the Lord’s house. 

²⁷The Lord is God, and he has given us light. 

March in a festival procession 

with branches to the horns of the altar. 

²⁸You are my God, and I give thanks to you. 

My God, I honor you highly. 

²⁹Give thanks to the Lord because he is good, 

because his mercy endures forever.