Psalm 90–92

BOOK IV

Psalms 90–106

Psalm 90

A prayer of Moses, the man of God.

¹Lord, from the very beginning

you have been like a home to us.

²Before you created the world and the mountains were made,

from the beginning to the end you are God.

³You turn human beings back to dust.

You say to them, “Return to dust.”

⁴To you a thousand years

are like a day that has just gone by.

They are like a few hours of the night.

⁵You sweep people away, and they die.

They are like new grass that grows in the morning.

⁶In the morning it springs up new,

but by evening it’s all dried up.

⁷Your anger destroys us.

Your burning anger terrifies us.

⁸You have put our sins right in front of you.

You have placed our secret sins where you can see them clearly.

⁹You have been angry with us all of our days.

We groan as we come to the end of our lives.

¹⁰We live to be about 70.

Or we may live to be 80, if we stay healthy.

But all that time is filled with trouble and sorrow.

The years quickly pass, and we are gone.

¹¹Who knows how powerful your anger is?

It’s as great as the respect we should have for you.

¹²Teach us to realize how short our lives are.

Then our hearts will become wise.

¹³Lord, please stop punishing us!

How long will you keep it up?

Be kind to us.

¹⁴Satisfy us with your faithful love every morning.

Then we can sing with joy and be glad all of our days.

¹⁵Make us glad for as many days as you have made us suffer.

Give us joy for as many years as we’ve had trouble.

¹⁶Show us your mighty acts.

Let our children see your glorious power.

¹⁷May the Lord our God show us his favor.

Lord, make what we do succeed.

Please make what we do succeed.

Psalm 91

¹The person who rests in the shadow of the Most High God

will be kept safe by the Mighty One.

²I will say about the Lord,

“He is my place of safety.

He is like a fort to me.

He is my God. I trust in him.”

³He will certainly save you from hidden traps

and from deadly sickness.

⁴He will cover you with his wings.

Under the feathers of his wings you will find safety.

He is faithful. He will keep you safe like a shield or a tower.

⁵You won’t have to be afraid of the terrors that come during the night.

You won’t have to fear the arrows that come at you during the day.

⁶You won’t have to be afraid of the sickness that attacks in the darkness.

You won’t have to fear the plague that destroys at noon.

⁷A thousand may fall dead at your side.

Ten thousand may fall near your right hand.

But no harm will come to you.

⁸You will see with your own eyes

how God punishes sinful people.

⁹The Lord is the one who keeps you safe.

So let the Most High God be like a home to you.

¹⁰Then no harm will come to you.

No terrible plague will come near your tent.

¹¹The Lord will command his angels

to take good care of you.

¹²They will lift you up in their hands.

Then you won’t trip over a stone.

¹³You will walk all over lions and cobras.

You will crush mighty lions and poisonous snakes.

¹⁴The Lord says, “I will save the one who loves me.

I will keep him safe, because he trusts in me.

¹⁵He will call out to me, and I will answer him.

I will be with him in times of trouble.

I will save him and honor him.

¹⁶I will give him a long and full life.

I will save him.”

Psalm 92

A psalm. A song for the Sabbath day.

¹Lord, it is good to praise you.

Most High God, it is good to make music to honor you.

²It is good to sing every morning about your love.

It is good to sing every night about how faithful you are.

³I sing about it to the music of the lyre that has ten strings.

I sing about it to the music of the harp.

⁴Lord, you make me glad by what you have done.

I sing with joy about the works of your hands.

⁵Lord, how great are the things you do!

How wise your thoughts are!

⁶Here is something a man who isn’t wise doesn’t know.

Here is what a foolish person doesn’t understand.

⁷Those who are evil spring up like grass.

Those who do wrong succeed.

But they will be destroyed forever.

⁸But Lord, you are honored forever.

⁹Lord, your enemies will certainly die.

All those who do evil will be scattered.

¹⁰You have made me as strong as a wild ox.

You have poured the finest olive oil on me.

¹¹I’ve seen my evil enemies destroyed.

I’ve heard that they have lost the battle.

¹²Those who do what is right will grow like a palm tree.

They will grow strong like a cedar tree in Lebanon.

¹³Their roots will be firm in the house of the Lord.

They will grow strong and healthy in the courtyards of our God.

¹⁴When they get old, they will still bear fruit.

Like young trees they will stay fresh and strong.

¹⁵They will say to everyone, “The Lord is honest.

He is my Rock. There is no evil in him.”