Psalm 50–52

Psalm 50

God as Judge

A psalm of Asaph. ^f

¹Yahweh, the God of gods ^gspeaks;

He summons the earth from east to west. ^hi

²From Zion, the perfection of beauty,

God appears in radiance. ^jk

³Our God is coming; He will not be silent!

Devouring fire precedes Him,

and a storm rages around Him. ^l

⁴On high, He summons heaven and earth

in order to judge His people. ^m

⁵“Gather My faithful ones to Me,

those who made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.” ⁿ

⁶The heavens proclaim His righteousness, ^o

for God is the Judge. ^pSelah

⁷“Listen, My people, and I will speak;

I will testify against you, Israel.

I am God, your God. ^q

⁸I do not rebuke you for your sacrifices

or for your burnt offerings,

which are continually before Me. ^r

⁹I will not accept a bull from your household

or male goats from your pens, ^s

¹⁰for every animal of the forest is Mine,

the cattle on a thousand hills.

¹¹I know every bird of the mountains, ^t

and the creatures of the field are Mine. ^u

¹²If I were hungry, I would not tell you,

for the world and everything in it is Mine. ^v

¹³Do I eat the flesh of bulls

or drink the blood of goats? ^w

¹⁴Sacrifice a thank offering to God, ^x

and pay your vows to the Most High. ^y

¹⁵Call on Me in a day of trouble;

I will rescue you, and you will honor Me.” ^z

¹⁶But God says to the wicked:

“What right do you have to recite My statutes

and to take My covenant on your lips? ^a

¹⁷You hate instruction

and turn your back on My words. ^bc

¹⁸When you see a thief,

you make friends with him,

and you associate with adulterers. ^d

¹⁹You unleash your mouth for evil

and harness your tongue for deceit. ^e

²⁰You sit, maligning your brother,

slandering your mother’s son. ^f

²¹You have done these things, and I kept silent;

you thought I was just like you. ^g

But I will rebuke you

and lay out the case before you. ^hi

²²“Understand this, you who forget God,

or I will tear you apart,

and there will be no one to rescue you. ^j

²³Whoever sacrifices a thank offering honors Me,

and whoever orders his conduct,

I will show him the salvation of God.” ^k

Psalm 51

A Prayer for Restoration

For the choir director. A Davidic psalm, when Nathan the prophet came to him after he had gone to Bathsheba. ^l

¹Be gracious to me, God,

according to Your faithful love;

according to Your abundant compassion,

blot out my rebellion. ^m

²Wash away my guilt

and cleanse me from my sin. ⁿ

³For I am conscious of my rebellion,

and my sin is always before me. ^o

⁴Against You—You alone—I have sinned

and done this evil in Your sight. ^p

So You are right when You pass sentence;

You are blameless when You judge. ^q

⁵Indeed, I was guilty when I was born;

I was sinful when my mother conceived me. ^r

⁶Surely You desire integrity in the inner self,

and You teach me wisdom deep within. ^s

⁷Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean;

wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. ^t

⁸Let me hear joy and gladness;

let the bones You have crushed rejoice. ^u

⁹Turn Your face away ^vfrom my sins

and blot out all my guilt. ^w

¹⁰God, create a clean heart for me

and renew a steadfast ^xspirit within me. ^y

¹¹Do not banish me from Your presence

or take Your Holy Spirit from me. ^z

¹²Restore the joy of Your salvation to me,

and give me a willing spirit. ^ab

¹³Then I will teach the rebellious Your ways,

and sinners will return to You. ^c

¹⁴Save me from the guilt of bloodshed, God, ^d

the God of my salvation,

and my tongue will sing of Your righteousness. ^e

¹⁵Lord, open my lips,

and my mouth will declare Your praise. ^f

¹⁶You do not want a sacrifice, or I would give it;

You are not pleased with a burnt offering. ^g

¹⁷The sacrifice pleasing to God is ^ha broken spirit.

God, You will not despise a broken and humbled heart. ⁱ

¹⁸In Your good pleasure, cause Zion to prosper;

build ^jthe walls of Jerusalem. ^k

¹⁹Then You will delight in righteous sacrifices,

whole burnt offerings;

then bulls will be offered on Your altar. ^l

Psalm 52

God Judges the Proud

For the choir director. A Davidic Maskil. When Doeg the Edomite went and reported to Saul, telling him, “David went to Ahimelech’s house.” ^m

¹Why brag about evil, you hero! ⁿ

God’s faithful love is constant. ^o

²Like a sharpened razor,

your tongue devises destruction,

working treachery. ^p

³You love evil instead of good,

lying instead of speaking truthfully. ^qSelah

⁴You love any words that destroy,

you treacherous tongue! ^r

⁵This is why God will bring you down forever.

He will take you, ripping you out of your tent;

He will uproot you from the land of the living. ^sSelah

⁶The righteous will look on with awe

and will ridicule him: ^t

⁷“Here is the man

who would not make God his refuge,

but trusted in the abundance of his riches,

taking refuge in his destructive behavior.” ^uv

⁸But I am like a flourishing olive tree

in the house of God; ^w

I trust in God’s faithful love forever and ever. ^x

⁹I will praise You forever for what You have done.

In the presence of Your faithful people,

I will put my hope in Your name, for it is good. ^y