Psalm 68:1–70:5

Let God rise up and scatter his enemies;

let those who hate him run away from him.

²Blow them away as smoke

is driven away by the wind.

As wax melts before a fire,

let the wicked be destroyed before God.

³But those who do right should be glad

and should rejoice before God;

they should be happy and glad.

⁴Sing to God; sing praises to his name.

Prepare the way for him

who rides through the desert,

whose name is the Lord.

Rejoice before him.

⁵God is in his holy Temple.

He is a father to orphans,

and he defends the widows.

⁶God gives the lonely a home.

He leads prisoners out with joy,

but those who turn against God will live in a dry land.

⁷God, you led your people out

when you marched through the desert.

Selah

⁸The ground shook

and the sky poured down rain

before God, the God of Mount Sinai,

before God, the God of Israel.

⁹God, you sent much rain;

you refreshed your tired land.

¹⁰Your people settled there.

God, in your goodness

you took care of the poor.

¹¹The Lord gave the command,

and a great army told the news:

¹²“Kings and their armies run away.

In camp they divide the wealth taken in war.

¹³Those who stayed by the campfires

will share the riches taken in battle.”

¹⁴The Almighty scattered kings

like snow on Mount Zalmon.

¹⁵The mountains of Bashan are high;

the mountains of Bashan have many peaks.

¹⁶Why do you mountains with many peaks look with envy

on the mountain that God chose for his home?

The Lord will live there forever.

¹⁷God comes with millions of chariots;

the Lord comes from Mount Sinai to his holy place.

¹⁸When you went up to the heights,

you led a parade of captives.

You received gifts from the people,

even from those who turned against you.

And the Lord God will live there.

¹⁹Praise the Lord, God our Savior,

who helps us every day.

Selah

²⁰Our God is a God who saves us;

the Lord God saves us from death.

²¹God will crush his enemies’ heads,

the hairy skulls of those who continue to sin.

²²The Lord said, “I will bring the enemy back from Bashan;

I will bring them back from the depths of the sea.

²³Then you can stick your feet in their blood,

and your dogs can lick their share.”

²⁴God, people have seen your victory march;

God my King marched into the holy place.

²⁵The singers are in front and the instruments are behind.

In the middle are the girls with the tambourines.

²⁶Praise God in the meeting place;

praise the Lord in the gathering of Israel.

²⁷There is the smallest tribe, Benjamin, leading them.

And there are the leaders of Judah with their group.

There also are the leaders of Zebulun and of Naphtali.

²⁸God, order up your power;

show the mighty power you have used for us before.

²⁹Kings will bring their wealth to you,

to your Temple in Jerusalem.

³⁰Punish Egypt, the beast in the tall grass along the river.

Punish the leaders of nations, those bulls among the cows.

Defeated, they will bring you their silver.

Scatter those nations that love war.

³¹Messengers will come from Egypt;

the people of Cush will pray to God.

³²Kingdoms of the earth, sing to God;

sing praises to the Lord.

Selah

³³Sing to the one who rides through the skies, which are from long ago.

He speaks with a thundering voice.

³⁴Announce that God is powerful.

He rules over Israel,

and his power is in the skies.

³⁵God, you are wonderful in your Temple.

The God of Israel gives his people strength and power.

Praise God!

A Cry for Help

For the director of music. To the tune of “Lilies.” A psalm of David.

69God, save me,

because the water has risen to my neck.

²I’m sinking down into the mud,

and there is nothing to stand on.

I am in deep water,

and the flood covers me.

³I am tired from calling for help;

my throat is sore.

My eyes are tired from waiting

for God to help me.

⁴There are more people who hate me for no reason than hairs on my head;

powerful enemies want to destroy me for no reason.

They make me pay back

what I did not steal.

⁵God, you know what I have done wrong;

I cannot hide my guilt from you.

⁶Lord God All-Powerful,

do not let those who hope in you be ashamed because of me.

God of Israel,

do not let your worshipers be disgraced because of me.

⁷For you, I carry this shame,

and my face is covered with disgrace.

⁸I am like a stranger to my closest relatives

and a foreigner to my mother’s children.

⁹My strong love for your Temple completely controls me.

When people insult you, it hurts me.

¹⁰When I cry and fast,

they make fun of me.

¹¹When I wear clothes of sadness,

they joke about me.

¹²They make fun of me in public places,

and the drunkards make up songs about me.

¹³But I pray to you, Lord, for favor.

God, because of your great love, answer me.

You are truly able to save.

¹⁴Pull me from the mud,

and do not let me sink.

Save me from those who hate me

and from the deep water.

¹⁵Do not let the flood drown me

or the deep water swallow me

or the grave close its mouth over me.

¹⁶Lord, answer me because your love is so good.

Because of your great kindness, turn to me.

¹⁷Do not hide from me, your servant.

I am in trouble. Hurry to help me!

¹⁸Come near and save me;

rescue me from my enemies.

¹⁹You see my shame and disgrace.

You know all my enemies and what they have said.

²⁰Insults have broken my heart

and left me weak.

I looked for sympathy, but there was none;

I found no one to comfort me.

²¹They put poison in my food

and gave me vinegar to drink.

²²Let their own feasts cause their ruin;

let their feasts trap them and pay them back.

²³Let their eyes be closed so they cannot see

and their backs be forever weak from troubles.

²⁴Pour your anger out on them;

let your anger catch up with them.

²⁵May their place be empty;

leave no one to live in their tents.

²⁶They chase after those you have hurt,

and they talk about the pain of those you have wounded.

²⁷Charge them with crime after crime,

and do not let them have anything good.

²⁸Wipe their names from the book of life,

and do not list them with those who do what is right.

²⁹I am sad and hurting.

God, save me and protect me.

³⁰I will praise God in a song

and will honor him by giving thanks.

³¹That will please the Lord more than offering him cattle,

more than sacrificing a bull with horns and hoofs.

³²Poor people will see this and be glad.

Be encouraged, you who worship God.

³³The Lord listens to those in need

and does not look down on captives.

³⁴Heaven and earth should praise him,

the seas and everything in them.

³⁵God will save Jerusalem

and rebuild the cities of Judah.

Then people will live there and own the land.

³⁶The descendants of his servants will inherit that land,

and those who love him will live there.

A Cry for God to Help Quickly

For the director of music. A psalm of David. To help people remember.

70God, come quickly and save me.

Lord, hurry to help me.

²Let those who are trying to kill me

be ashamed and disgraced.

Let those who want to hurt me

run away in disgrace.

³Let those who make fun of me

stop because of their shame.

⁴But let all those who worship you

rejoice and be glad.

Let those who love your salvation

always say, “Praise the greatness of God.”

⁵I am poor and helpless;

God, hurry to me.

You help me and save me.

Lord, do not wait.