Psalm 20–22

Psalm 20

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

¹May the Lord answer you when you are in trouble.

May the God of Jacob keep you safe.

²May he send you help from the sacred tent.

May he give you aid from Zion.

³May he remember all of your sacrifices.

May he accept your burnt offerings. Selah

⁴May he give you what your heart longs for.

May he make all of your plans succeed.

⁵We will shout with joy when you win the battle.

We will lift up our flags in the name of our God.

May the Lord give you everything you ask for.

⁶Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed king.

He answers him from his holy heaven.

The power of God’s right hand saves the king.

⁷Some trust in chariots. Some trust in horses.

But we trust in the Lord our God.

⁸They are brought to their knees and fall down.

But we get up and stand firm.

⁹Lord, save the king!

Answer us when we call out to you!

Psalm 21

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

¹Lord, the king is filled with joy because you are strong.

How great is his joy because you help him win his battles!

²You have given him what his heart longed for.

You haven’t kept back from him what his lips asked for. Selah

³You welcomed him with rich blessings.

You placed a crown of pure gold on his head.

⁴He asked you for life, and you gave it to him.

You promised him days that would never end.

⁵His glory is great because you helped him win his battles.

You have honored him with glory and majesty.

⁶You have given him blessings that will last forever.

You have made him glad and joyful because you are with him.

⁷The king trusts in the Lord.

The faithful love of the Most High God

will keep the king secure.

⁸You, the king, will capture all of your enemies.

Your right hand will take hold of them.

⁹When you appear,

you will be like a flaming furnace to them.

The Lord will swallow them up in his anger.

His fire will burn them up.

¹⁰You will wipe their children from the face of the earth.

You will remove them from the human race.

¹¹Your enemies make evil plans against you.

They think up evil things to do. But they can’t succeed.

¹²You will make them turn their backs and run away

when you aim your arrows at them.

¹³Lord, may you be honored because you are strong.

We will sing and praise your might.

Psalm 22

For the director of music. A psalm of David to the tune of “The Doe of the Morning.”

¹My God, my God, why have you deserted me?

Why do you seem to be so far away when I need you to save me?

Why do you seem to be so far away that you can’t hear my groans?

²My God, I cry out in the daytime. But you don’t answer.

I cry out at night. I can’t keep quiet.

³But you rule from your throne as the Holy One.

You are the God Israel praises.

⁴Our people of long ago put their trust in you.

They trusted in you, and you saved them.

⁵They cried out to you and were saved.

They trusted in you, and you didn’t let them down.

⁶People treat me like a worm and not a man.

They hate me and look down on me.

⁷All those who see me laugh at me.

They shout at me and make fun of me.

They shake their heads at me.

⁸They say, “He trusts in the Lord.

Let the Lord help him.

If the Lord is pleased with him,

let him save him.”

⁹But you brought me out of my mother’s body.

You made me trust in you

even when I was at my mother’s breast.

¹⁰From the time I was born, you took good care of me.

Ever since I came out of my mother’s body, you have been my God.

¹¹Don’t be far away from me.

Trouble is near,

and there is no one to help me.

¹²Many enemies are all around me.

They are like strong bulls from the land of Bashan.

¹³They are like roaring lions that tear to pieces what they kill.

They open their mouths wide to attack me.

¹⁴My strength is like water that is poured out on the ground.

I feel as if my bones aren’t connected.

My heart has turned to wax.

It has melted away inside me.

¹⁵My strength is dried up like a piece of broken pottery.

My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth.

You bring me down to the edge of the grave.

¹⁶A group of sinful people has closed in on me.

They are all around me like a pack of dogs.

They have pierced my hands and my feet.

¹⁷I can see all of my bones right through my skin.

People stare at me. They laugh when I suffer.

¹⁸They divide up my clothes among them.

They cast lots for what I am wearing.

¹⁹Lord, don’t be so far away.

You give me strength. Come quickly to help me.

²⁰Save me from the sword.

Save the only life I have. Save me from the power of those dogs.

²¹Save me from the mouths of those lions.

Save me from the horns of those wild oxen.

²²I will announce your name to my brothers and sisters.

I will praise you among those who worship you.

²³You who have respect for the Lord, praise him!

All you people of Jacob, honor him!

All you people of Israel, worship him!

²⁴He has not forgotten the one who is hurting.

He has not turned away from his suffering.

He has not turned his face away from him.

He has listened to his cry for help.

²⁵Because of what you have done,

I will praise you in the whole community of those who worship you.

In front of those who respect you,

I will keep my promises.

²⁶Those who are poor will eat and be satisfied.

Those who look to the Lord will praise him.

May their hearts be filled with new hope!

²⁷People from one end of the earth to the other

will remember and turn to the Lord.

The people of all the nations

will bow down before him.

²⁸The Lord is King.

He rules over the nations.

²⁹All the rich people of the earth will worship God and take part in his feasts.

All those who go down to the edge of the grave will fall on their knees in front of him.

I’m talking about those who can hardly keep themselves alive.

³⁰Those who are not yet born will serve him.

Those who are born later will be told about the Lord.

³¹And they will tell people who have not yet been born

that he has done what is right.