Psalm 75

To the director.* To the tune “Don’t Destroy.” One of Asaph’s songs of praise.

¹We praise you, God! We praise you. You* are near and people tell about the amazing things you do. ²God says, “I choose the time for judgment. I will judge fairly. ³The earth and everything on it may be shaking and ready to fall, but I make it steady.” SELAH* ^4–5“Some people are very proud. They think they are powerful and important. But I tell those people, ‘Don’t brag!’ ‘Don’t be so proud!’” ⁶There is no power on earth that can make a person important.* ⁷God is the judge. And God decides who will be important. God lifts up one person and makes him important, God brings down another person and makes him not important. ⁸{God is ready to punish evil people.} The Lord has a cup in his hand. That cup is filled with poisoned wine. He will pour this wine (punishment), and wicked people will drink it to the last drop. ⁹I will always tell people about these things. I will sing praise to the God of Israel. ¹⁰I will take power away from wicked people, and I will give power to good people.

director Or, “performer.” You Literally, “Your name.” SELAH This word is for the musicians. It probably means the singers should pause here or the music should be louder here. There … important Literally, “Not from the east or the west and not from the desert mountains.”

Psalm 76

To the director.* With instruments. One of Asaph’s songs of praise.

¹People in Judah know God. People in Israel respect God’s name. ²God’s temple is in Salem.* God’s house is on Mount Zion. ³In that place, God shattered the bows and arrows, shields, swords, and other weapons of war. SELAH* ⁴God, you are glorious coming back from the hills where you defeated your enemies. ⁵Those soldiers thought they were strong. But now they lie dead in the fields. Their bodies are stripped of all they owned. None of those strong soldiers could defend themselves. ⁶The God of Jacob yelled at those soldiers, and that army with chariots and horses fell dead. ⁷God, you are awesome! No person can stand against you when you are angry. ^8–9The Lord stood as judge and announced his decision. God saved the humble people of the land. From heaven he gave the decision. The whole earth was silent and afraid. ¹⁰God, people respect you when you punish evil people. You show your anger, and the survivors* become stronger. ¹¹People, you made promises to the Lord your God. Now, give him what you promised. People in every place fear and respect God. And they will bring gifts to him. ¹²God defeats great leaders. All the kings on earth fear him.

director Or, “performer.” Salem Another name for Jerusalem. This name means, “Peace.” survivors People who escaped some disaster. Here this means the Jewish people who survived the destruction of Judah and Israel by its enemy armies.

Psalm 77

To the director.* To Jeduthun. One of Asaph’s songs.

¹I lift my voice to God and cry {for help}. I lift my voice to you God, listen to me! ²My Master, I come to you when I have trouble. I reached out for you all night long. My soul refused to be comforted. ³I think about God, and I try to tell him how I feel. But I can’t. ⁴You would not let me sleep. I tried to say something, but I was too upset. ⁵I kept thinking about the past. I kept thinking about things that happened long ago. ⁶At night, I try to think about my songs. I talk with myself and try to understand. ⁷I wonder, “Has our Master left us forever? Will he ever want us again? ⁸Is God’s love gone forever? Will he ever speak to us again? ⁹Has God forgotten what mercy is? Has his compassion changed to anger?” SELAH* ¹⁰Then I thought, “The thing that really bothers me is this: ‘Has God Most-High lost his power?’” ¹¹I remember what the Lord did. God, I remember the amazing things that you did long ago. ¹²I thought about what you have done. I thought about those things. ¹³God, your ways are holy. God, no one is great like you are. ¹⁴You are the God that did amazing things. You showed people your great power. ¹⁵With your power you saved your people. You saved the descendants* of Jacob and Joseph. SELAH* ¹⁶God, the water saw you, and became afraid. The deep water shook with fear. ¹⁷The thick clouds dropped their water. People heard loud thunder in the high clouds. Then your arrows of lightning flashed through the clouds. ¹⁸There were loud claps of thunder. Lightning lit up the world. The earth shook and trembled. ¹⁹God, you walked through the deep water, you crossed the deep sea, but you left no footprints. ²⁰You used Moses and Aaron to lead your people like sheep.

director Or, “performer.” SELAH This word is for the musicians. It probably means the singers should pause here or the music should be louder here. descendants A person’s children and their future families.