Let the Redeemed of the Lord Say So

107:1 Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever! ²Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he has redeemed from trouble^[1]³and gathered in from the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south.

⁴Some wandered in desert wastes, finding no way to a city to dwell in; ⁵hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them. ⁶Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. ⁷He led them by a straight way till they reached a city to dwell in. ⁸Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of men! ⁹For he satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things.

¹⁰Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, prisoners in affliction and in irons, ¹¹for they had rebelled against the words of God, and spurned the counsel of the Most High. ¹²So he bowed their hearts down with hard labor; they fell down, with none to help. ¹³Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. ¹⁴He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and burst their bonds apart. ¹⁵Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of men! ¹⁶For he shatters the doors of bronze and cuts in two the bars of iron.

¹⁷Some were fools through their sinful ways, and because of their iniquities suffered affliction; ¹⁸they loathed any kind of food, and they drew near to the gates of death. ¹⁹Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. ²⁰He sent out his word and healed them, and delivered them from their destruction. ²¹Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of men! ²²And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving, and tell of his deeds in songs of joy!

²³Some went down to the sea in ships, doing business on the great waters; ²⁴they saw the deeds of the Lord, his wondrous works in the deep. ²⁵For he commanded and raised the stormy wind, which lifted up the waves of the sea. ²⁶They mounted up to heaven; they went down to the depths; their courage melted away in their evil plight; ²⁷they reeled and staggered like drunken men and were at their wits’ end.^[2]²⁸Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. ²⁹He made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed. ³⁰Then they were glad that the waters[3] were quiet, and he brought them to their desired haven. ³¹Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of men! ³²Let them extol him in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.

³³He turns rivers into a desert, springs of water into thirsty ground, ³⁴a fruitful land into a salty waste, because of the evil of its inhabitants. ³⁵He turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water. ³⁶And there he lets the hungry dwell, and they establish a city to live in; ³⁷they sow fields and plant vineyards and get a fruitful yield. ³⁸By his blessing they multiply greatly, and he does not let their livestock diminish.

³⁹When they are diminished and brought low through oppression, evil, and sorrow, ⁴⁰he pours contempt on princes and makes them wander in trackless wastes; ⁴¹but he raises up the needy out of affliction and makes their families like flocks. ⁴²The upright see it and are glad, and all wickedness shuts its mouth.

⁴³Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things; let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord.

[1] Or from the hand of the foe [2] Hebrew and all their wisdom was swallowed up [3] Hebrew they

Psalm 108

With God We Shall Do Valiantly

A Song. A Psalm of David.

108:1 My heart is steadfast, O God! I will sing and make melody with all my being!^[4]²Awake, O harp and lyre! I will awake the dawn! ³I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations. ⁴For your steadfast love is great above the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.

⁵Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth! ⁶That your beloved ones may be delivered, give salvation by your right hand and answer me!

⁷God has promised in his holiness:[5] “With exultation I will divide up Shechem and portion out the Valley of Succoth. ⁸Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine; Ephraim is my helmet, Judah my scepter. ⁹Moab is my washbasin; upon Edom I cast my shoe; over Philistia I shout in triumph.”

¹⁰Who will bring me to the fortified city? Who will lead me to Edom? ¹¹Have you not rejected us, O God? You do not go out, O God, with our armies. ¹²Oh grant us help against the foe, for vain is the salvation of man! ¹³With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our foes.

[4] Hebrew with my glory [5] Or sanctuary

Psalm 109

Help Me, O Lord My God

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

109:1 Be not silent, O God of my praise! ²For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me, speaking against me with lying tongues. ³They encircle me with words of hate, and attack me without cause. ⁴In return for my love they accuse me, but I give myself to prayer.^[6]⁵So they reward me evil for good, and hatred for my love.

⁶Appoint a wicked man against him; let an accuser stand at his right hand. ⁷When he is tried, let him come forth guilty; let his prayer be counted as sin! ⁸May his days be few; may another take his office! ⁹May his children be fatherless and his wife a widow! ¹⁰May his children wander about and beg, seeking food far from the ruins they inhabit! ¹¹May the creditor seize all that he has; may strangers plunder the fruits of his toil! ¹²Let there be none to extend kindness to him, nor any to pity his fatherless children! ¹³May his posterity be cut off; may his name be blotted out in the second generation! ¹⁴May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord, and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out! ¹⁵Let them be before the Lord continually, that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth!

¹⁶For he did not remember to show kindness, but pursued the poor and needy and the brokenhearted, to put them to death. ¹⁷He loved to curse; let curses come[7] upon him! He did not delight in blessing; may it be far[8] from him! ¹⁸He clothed himself with cursing as his coat; may it soak[9] into his body like water, like oil into his bones! ¹⁹May it be like a garment that he wraps around him, like a belt that he puts on every day! ²⁰May this be the reward of my accusers from the Lord, of those who speak evil against my life!

²¹But you, O God my Lord, deal on my behalf for your name’s sake; because your steadfast love is good, deliver me! ²²For I am poor and needy, and my heart is stricken within me. ²³I am gone like a shadow at evening; I am shaken off like a locust. ²⁴My knees are weak through fasting; my body has become gaunt, with no fat. ²⁵I am an object of scorn to my accusers; when they see me, they wag their heads.

²⁶Help me, O Lord my God! Save me according to your steadfast love! ²⁷Let them know that this is your hand; you, O Lord, have done it! ²⁸Let them curse, but you will bless! They arise and are put to shame, but your servant will be glad! ²⁹May my accusers be clothed with dishonor; may they be wrapped in their own shame as in a cloak!

³⁰With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord; I will praise him in the midst of the throng. ³¹For he stands at the right hand of the needy, to save him from those who condemn his soul to death.

[6] Hebrew but I am prayer [7] Revocalization; Masoretic Text curses have come [8] Revocalization; Masoretic Text it is far [9] Revocalization; Masoretic Text it has soaked