Psalm 87

The Glories of the City of God

A Psalm of the Sons of Korah. A Song.

1 His foundation is in the holy mountains.

2 aThe Lord loves the gates of Zion

More than all the dwellings of Jacob.

3 bGlorious things are spoken of you,

O city of God!

Selah

4 “I will make mention of 1Rahab and Babylon to those who know Me;

Behold, O Philistia and Tyre, with Ethiopia:

‘This one was born there.’ ”

5 And of Zion it will be said,

“This one and that one were born in her;

And the Most High Himself shall establish her.”

6 The Lord will record,

When He cregisters the peoples:

“This one was born there.”

Selah

7 Both the singers and the players on instruments say,

“All my springs are in you.”

Psalm 88

A Prayer for Help in Despondency

A Song. A Psalm of the Sons of Korah. To the Chief Musician. Set to “Mahalath Leannoth.” a 1Contemplation of AHeman the Ezrahite.

1 O Lord, bGod of my salvation,

I have cried out day and night before You.

2 Let my prayer come before You;

2Incline Your ear to my cry.

3 For my soul is full of troubles,

And my life cdraws near to the grave.

4 I am counted with those who dgo 3down to the pit;

eI am like a man who has no strength,

5 4Adrift among the dead,

Like the slain who lie in the grave,

Whom You remember no more,

And who are cut off from Your hand.

6 You have laid me in the lowest pit,

In darkness, in the depths.

7 Your wrath lies heavy upon me,

And You have afflicted me with all fYour waves.

Selah

8 gYou have 5put away my acquaintances far from me;

You have made me an abomination to them;

hI am shut up, and I cannot get out;

9 My eye wastes away because of affliction.

iLord, I have called daily upon You;

I have stretched out my hands to You.

10 Will You work wonders for the dead?

Shall 6the dead arise and praise You?

Selah

11 Shall Your lovingkindness be declared in the grave?

Or Your faithfulness in the place of destruction?

12 Shall Your wonders be known in the dark?

And Your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?

13 But to You I have cried out, O Lord,

And in the morning my prayer comes before You.

14 Lord, why do You cast off my soul?

Why do You hide Your face from me?

15 I have been afflicted and ready to die from my youth;

I suffer Your terrors;

I am distraught.

16 Your fierce wrath has gone over me;

Your terrors have 7cut me off.

17 They came around me all day long like water;

They engulfed me altogether.

18 jLoved one and friend You have put far from me,

And my acquaintances into darkness.

Psalm 89

Remembering the Covenant with David, and Sorrow for Lost Blessings

A 1Contemplation of aEthan the Ezrahite.

1 I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever;

With my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations.

2 For I have said, “Mercy shall be built up forever;

bYour faithfulness You shall establish in the very heavens.”

3 “I chave made a covenant with My chosen,

I have dsworn to My servant David:

4 ‘Your seed I will establish forever,

And build up your throne eto all generations.’ ”

Selah

5 And fthe heavens will praise Your wonders, O Lord;

Your faithfulness also in the assembly of the saints.

6 gFor who in the heavens can be compared to the Lord?

Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to the Lord?

7 hGod is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints,

And to be held in reverence by all those around Him.

8 O Lord God of hosts,

Who is mighty like You, O Lord?

Your faithfulness also surrounds You.

9 iYou rule the raging of the sea;

When its waves rise, You still them.

10 jYou have broken 2Rahab in pieces, as one who is slain;

You have scattered Your enemies with Your mighty arm.

11 kThe heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours;

The world and all its fullness, You have founded them.

12 The north and the south, You have created them;

lTabor and mHermon rejoice in Your name.

13 You have a mighty arm;

Strong is Your hand, and high is Your right hand.

14 Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne;

Mercy and truth go before Your face.

15 Blessed are the people who know the njoyful sound!

They walk, O Lord, in the light of Your countenance.

16 In Your name they rejoice all day long,

And in Your righteousness they are exalted.

17 For You are the glory of their strength,

And in Your favor our 3horn is oexalted.

18 For our shield belongs to the Lord,

And our king to the Holy One of Israel.

19 Then You spoke in a vision to Your 4holy one,

And said: “I have given help to one who is mighty;

I have exalted one pchosen from the people.

20 qI have found My servant David;

With My holy oil I have anointed him,

21 rWith whom My hand shall be established;

Also My arm shall strengthen him.

22 The enemy shall not 5outwit him,

Nor the son of wickedness afflict him.

23 I will beat down his foes before his face,

And plague those who hate him.

24 “But My faithfulness and My mercy shall be with him,

And in My name his horn shall be exalted.

25 Also I will sset his hand over the sea,

And his right hand over the rivers.

26 He shall cry to Me, ‘You are tmy Father,

My God, and uthe rock of my salvation.’

27 Also I will make him vMy firstborn,

wThe highest of the kings of the earth.

28 xMy mercy I will keep for him forever,

And My covenant shall stand firm with him.

29 His seed also I will make to endure forever,

yAnd his throne zas the days of heaven.

30 “If ahis sons bforsake My law

And do not walk in My judgments,

31 If they 6break My statutes

And do not keep My commandments,

32 Then I will punish their transgression with the rod,

And their iniquity with stripes.

33 cNevertheless My lovingkindness I will not 7utterly take from him,

Nor 8allow My faithfulness to fail.

34 My covenant I will not break,

Nor dalter the word that has gone out of My lips.

35 Once I have sworn eby My holiness;

I will not lie to David:

36 fHis seed shall endure forever,

And his throne gas the sun before Me;

37 It shall be established forever like the moon,

Even like the faithful witness in the sky.”

Selah

38 But You have hcast off and iabhorred, 9

You have been furious with Your 1anointed.

39 You have renounced the covenant of Your servant;

jYou have 2profaned his crown by casting it to the ground.

40 You have broken down all his hedges;

You have brought his 3strongholds to ruin.

41 All who pass by the way kplunder him;

He is a reproach to his neighbors.

42 You have exalted the right hand of his adversaries;

You have made all his enemies rejoice.

43 You have also turned back the edge of his sword,

And have not sustained him in the battle.

44 You have made his 4glory cease,

And cast his throne down to the ground.

45 The days of his youth You have shortened;

You have covered him with shame.

Selah

46 How long, Lord?

Will You hide Yourself forever?

Will Your wrath burn like fire?

47 Remember how short my time lis;

For what mfutility have You created all the children of men?

48 What man can live and not 5see ndeath?

Can he deliver his life from the power of 6the grave?

Selah

49 Lord, where are Your former lovingkindnesses,

Which You oswore to David pin Your truth?

50 Remember, Lord, the reproach of Your servants

qHow I bear in my bosom the reproach of all the many peoples,

51 rWith which Your enemies have reproached, O Lord,

With which they have reproached the footsteps of Your 7anointed.

52 sBlessed be the Lord forevermore!

Amen and Amen.