Psalm 40–42

Psalm 40

Thanksgiving and a Cry for Help

For the choir director. A Davidic psalm.

¹I waited patiently for the Lord,

and He turned to me and heard my cry for help. ^y

²He brought me up from a desolate ^zpit,

out of the muddy clay, ^a

and set my feet on a rock,

making my steps secure. ^b

³He put a new song in my mouth,

a hymn of praise to our God. ^c

Many will see and fear

and put their trust in the Lord. ^d

⁴How happy is the man

who has put his trust in the Lord

and has not turned to the proud

or to those who run after lies! ^e

⁵Lord my God, You have done many things—

Your wonderful works and Your plans for us;

none can compare with You.

If I were to report and speak of them,

they are more than can be told. ^f

⁶You do not delight in sacrifice and offering;

You open my ears to listen. ^g

You do not ask for a whole burnt offering or a sin offering. ^h

⁷Then I said, “See, I have come;

it is written about me in the volume of the scroll. ⁱ

⁸I delight to do Your will, my God; ^j

Your instruction lives within me.” ^kl

⁹I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly;

see, I do not keep my mouth closed ^m—

as You know, Lord. ⁿ

¹⁰I did not hide Your righteousness in my heart;

I spoke about Your faithfulness and salvation;

I did not conceal Your constant love and truth

from the great assembly. ^o

¹¹Lord, do not withhold Your compassion from me;

Your constant love and truth will always guard me. ^p

¹²For troubles without number have surrounded me;

my sins have overtaken me; I am unable to see.

They are more than the hairs of my head,

and my courage leaves me. ^q

¹³Lord, be pleased to deliver me;

hurry to help me, Lord. ^r

¹⁴Let those who seek to take my life

be disgraced and confounded.

Let those who wish me harm

be driven back and humiliated. ^s

¹⁵Let those who say to me, “Aha, aha!”

be horrified because of their shame. ^t

¹⁶Let all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You;

let those who love Your salvation continually say,

“The Lord is great!” ^u

¹⁷I am afflicted and needy;

the Lord thinks of me.

You are my helper and my deliverer;

my God, do not delay. ^v

Psalm 41

Victory in Spite of Betrayal

For the choir director. A Davidic psalm.

¹Happy is one who cares for the poor;

the Lord will save him in a day of adversity. ^w

²The Lord will keep him and preserve him;

he will be blessed in the land. ^x

You will not give him over to the desire of his enemies. ^y

³The Lord will sustain him on his sickbed;

You will heal him on the bed where he lies. ^z

⁴I said, “Lord, be gracious to me;

heal me, for I have sinned against You.” ^a

⁵My enemies speak maliciously about me:

“When will he die and be forgotten?” ^b

⁶When one of them comes to visit, he speaks deceitfully;

he stores up evil in his heart;

he goes out and talks. ^c

⁷All who hate me whisper together about me;

they plan to harm me. ^d

⁸“Lethal poison has been poured into him,

and he won’t rise again from where he lies!” ^e

⁹Even my friend ^fin whom I trusted,

one who ate my bread,

has raised his heel against me. ^g

¹⁰But You, Lord, be gracious to me and raise me up;

then I will repay them. ^h

¹¹By this I know that You delight in me: ⁱ

my enemy does not shout in triumph over me. ^j

¹²You supported me because of my integrity ^k

and set me in Your presence forever. ^l

¹³May Yahweh, the God of Israel, be praised

from everlasting to everlasting.

Amen and amen. ^m

BOOK II

(Psalms 42–72)

Psalm 42

Longing for God

For the choir director. A Maskil of the sons of Korah.

¹As a deer longs for streams of water,

so I long for You, God. ⁿ

²I thirst for God, the living God.

When can I come and appear before God? ^o

³My tears have been my food day and night,

while all day long people say to me,

“Where is your God?” ^p

⁴I remember this as I pour out my heart: ^q

how I walked with many,

leading the festive procession to the house of God,

with joyful and thankful shouts. ^r

⁵Why am I so depressed?

Why this turmoil within me?

Put your hope in God, for I will still praise Him,

my Savior and my God. ^s

⁶I ^tam deeply depressed;

therefore I remember You from the land of Jordan

and the peaks of Hermon, from Mount Mizar. ^u

⁷Deep calls to deep in the roar of Your waterfalls;

all Your breakers and Your billows have swept over me. ^v

⁸The Lord will send His faithful love by day; ^w

His song will be with me in the night—

a prayer to the God of my life.

⁹I will say to God, my rock, ^x

“Why have You forgotten me?

Why must I go about in sorrow

because of the enemy’s oppression?” ^y

¹⁰My adversaries taunt me,

as if crushing my bones,

while all day long they say to me,

“Where is your God?” ^z

¹¹Why am I so depressed?

Why this turmoil within me?

Put your hope in God, for I will still praise Him,

my Savior and my God. ^a