Psalm 20–22

Psalm 20

Deliverance in Battle

For the choir director. A Davidic psalm.

¹May Yahweh answer you in a day of trouble; ^t

may the name of Jacob’s God protect you. ^u

²May He send you help from the sanctuary

and sustain you from Zion. ^v

³May He remember all your offerings

and accept your burnt offering. ^wSelah

⁴May He give you what your heart desires ^x

and fulfill your whole purpose. ^y

⁵Let us shout for joy at your victory ^z

and lift the banner in the name of our God. ^a

May Yahweh fulfill all your requests. ^b

⁶Now I know that the Lord gives victory to His anointed; ^c

He will answer him from His holy heaven

with mighty victories from ^dHis right hand. ^e

⁷Some take pride in chariots, and others in horses,

but we take pride in the name of Yahweh our God. ^f

⁸They collapse and fall,

but we rise and stand firm. ^g

⁹Lord, give victory to the king! ^h

May He ⁱanswer us on the day that we call.

Psalm 21

The King’s Victory

For the choir director. A Davidic psalm.

¹Lord, the king finds joy in Your strength.

How greatly he rejoices in Your victory! ^j

²You have given him his heart’s desire ^k

and have not denied the request of his lips. ^lSelah

³For You meet him with rich blessings;

You place a crown of pure gold on his head. ^m

⁴He asked You for life, and You gave it to him—

length of days forever and ever. ⁿ

⁵His glory is great through Your victory;

You confer majesty and splendor on him. ^o

⁶You give him blessings forever; ^p

You cheer him with joy in Your presence. ^q

⁷For the king relies on the Lord;

through the faithful love of the Most High

he is not shaken. ^r

⁸Your hand will capture all your enemies;

your right hand will seize those who hate you. ^s

⁹You will make them burn

like a fiery furnace when you appear;

the Lord will engulf them in His wrath,

and fire will devour them. ^t

¹⁰You will wipe their descendants from the earth

and their offspring from the human race. ^u

¹¹Though they intend to harm ^vyou

and devise a wicked plan, they will not prevail. ^w

¹²Instead, you will put them to flight

when you aim your bow ^xat their faces. ^y

¹³Be exalted, Lord, in Your strength;

we will sing and praise Your might. ^z

Psalm 22

From Suffering to Praise

For the choir director: according to “The Deer of the Dawn.” ^aA Davidic psalm.

¹My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? ^b

Why are You so far from my deliverance ^c

and from my words of groaning? ^de

²My God, I cry by day, but You do not answer,

by night, yet I have no rest. ^f

³But You are holy,

enthroned on the praises of Israel. ^g

⁴Our fathers trusted in You;

they trusted, and You rescued them. ^h

⁵They cried to You and were set free;

they trusted in You and were not disgraced. ⁱ

⁶But I am a worm and not a man, ^j

scorned by men and despised by people. ^k

⁷Everyone who sees me mocks me;

they sneer ^land shake their heads: ^m

⁸“He relies on ⁿthe Lord;

let Him rescue him;

let the Lord ^odeliver him,

since He takes pleasure in him.” ^p

⁹You took me from the womb,

making me secure while at my mother’s breast. ^q

¹⁰I was given over to You at birth; ^r

You have been my God from my mother’s womb. ^s

¹¹Do not be far from me, because distress is near

and there is no one to help. ^t

¹²Many bulls surround me;

strong ones of Bashan encircle me. ^u

¹³They open their mouths against me—

lions, mauling and roaring. ^v

¹⁴I am poured out like water, ^w

and all my bones are disjointed; ^x

my heart is like wax,

melting within me. ^y

¹⁵My strength is dried up like baked clay; ^z

my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. ^a

You put me into the dust of death. ^b

¹⁶For dogs have surrounded me; ^c

a gang of evildoers has closed in on me;

they pierced ^dmy hands and my feet. ^e

¹⁷I can count all my bones;

people ^flook and stare at me. ^g

¹⁸They divided my garments among themselves,

and they cast lots for my clothing. ^h

¹⁹But You, Lord, don’t be far away. ⁱ

My strength, come quickly to help me. ^j

²⁰Deliver my life from the sword, ^k

my only life ^lfrom the power of these dogs.

²¹Save me from the mouth of the lion! ^m

You have rescued ⁿme

from the horns of the wild oxen.

²²I will proclaim Your name to my brothers;

I will praise You in the congregation. ^o

²³You who fear Yahweh, praise Him! ^p

All you descendants of Jacob, honor Him!

All you descendants of Israel, revere Him! ^q

²⁴For He has not despised or detested

the torment of the afflicted. ^r

He did not hide His face from him ^s

but listened when he cried to Him for help. ^t

²⁵I will give praise ^uin the great congregation

because of You; ^v

I will fulfill my vows

before those who fear You. ^wx

²⁶The humble ^ywill eat and be satisfied; ^z

those who seek the Lord will praise Him.

May your hearts live forever! ^a

²⁷All the ends of the earth will remember

and turn to the Lord.

All the families of the nations

will bow down before You, ^b

²⁸for kingship belongs to the Lord;

He rules over the nations. ^c

²⁹All who prosper on earth will eat and bow down;

all those who go down to the dust

will kneel before Him—

even the one who cannot preserve his life. ^d

³⁰Their descendants will serve Him;

the next generation will be told about the Lord. ^e

³¹They will come and tell a people yet to be born

about His righteousness—

what He has done. ^f