Psalm 135

135:15–20pp—Ps 115:4–11

1 Praise the Lord.a

Praise the name of the Lord;

praise him, you servantsv of the Lord,

2 you who minister in the housew of the Lord,

in the courtsx of the house of our God.

3 Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;y

sing praise to his name,z for that is pleasant.a

4 For the Lord has chosen Jacobb to be his own,

Israel to be his treasured possession.c

5 I know that the Lord is great,d

that our Lord is greater than all gods.e

6 The Lord does whatever pleases him,f

in the heavens and on the earth,g

in the seas and all their depths.

7 He makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth;

he sends lightning with the rainh

and brings out the windi from his storehouses.j

8 He struck down the firstbornk of Egypt,

the firstborn of people and animals.

9 He sent his signsl and wonders into your midst, Egypt,

against Pharaoh and all his servants.m

10 He struck down manyn nations

and killed mighty kings—

11 Sihono king of the Amorites,p

Og king of Bashan,q

and all the kings of Canaanr—

12 and he gave their land as an inheritance,s

an inheritance to his people Israel.

13 Your name, Lord, endures forever,t

your renown,u Lord, through all generations.

14 For the Lord will vindicate his peoplev

and have compassion on his servants.w

15 The idols of the nationsx are silver and gold,

made by human hands.y

16 They have mouths, but cannot speak,z

eyes, but cannot see.

17 They have ears, but cannot hear,

nor is there breatha in their mouths.

18 Those who make them will be like them,

and so will all who trust in them.

19 All you Israelites, praise the Lord;b

house of Aaron, praise the Lord;

20 house of Levi, praise the Lord;

you who fear him, praise the Lord.

21 Praise be to the Lord from Zion,c

to him who dwells in Jerusalem.d

Praise the Lord.

Psalm 136

1 Give thankse to the Lord, for he is good.f

His love endures forever.g

2 Give thanksh to the God of gods.i

His love endures forever.

3 Give thanksj to the Lord of lords:k

His love endures forever.

4 to him who alone does great wonders,l

His love endures forever.

5 who by his understandingm made the heavens,n

His love endures forever.

6 who spread out the eartho upon the waters,p

His love endures forever.

7 who made the great lightsq—

His love endures forever.

8 the sun to governr the day,

His love endures forever.

9 the moon and stars to govern the night;

His love endures forever.

10 to him who struck down the firstborns of Egypt

His love endures forever.

11 and brought Israel outt from among them

His love endures forever.

12 with a mighty handu and outstretched arm;v

His love endures forever.

13 to him who divided the Red Seaa w asunder

His love endures forever.

14 and brought Israel throughx the midst of it,

His love endures forever.

15 but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea;y

His love endures forever.

16 to him who led his people through the wilderness;z

His love endures forever.

17 to him who struck down great kings,a

His love endures forever.

18 and killed mighty kingsb—

His love endures forever.

19 Sihon king of the Amoritesc

His love endures forever.

20 and Og king of Bashand—

His love endures forever.

21 and gave their lande as an inheritance,f

His love endures forever.

22 an inheritanceg to his servant Israel.h

His love endures forever.

23 He remembered usi in our low estate

His love endures forever.

24 and freed usj from our enemies.k

His love endures forever.

25 He gives foodl to every creature.

His love endures forever.

26 Give thanksm to the God of heaven.n

His love endures forever.o

Psalm 137

1 By the rivers of Babylonp we sat and weptq

when we remembered Zion.r

2 There on the poplarss

we hung our harps,t

3 for there our captorsu asked us for songs,

our tormentors demandedv songs of joy;

they said, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”w

4 How can we sing the songs of the Lordx

while in a foreign land?

5 If I forget you,y Jerusalem,

may my right hand forget its skill.

6 May my tongue cling to the roofz of my mouth

if I do not remembera you,

if I do not consider Jerusalemb

my highest joy.

7 Remember, Lord, what the Edomitesc did

on the day Jerusalem fell.d

“Tear it down,” they cried,

“tear it down to its foundations!”e

8 Daughter Babylon, doomed to destruction,f

happy is the one who repays you

according to what you have done to us.

9 Happy is the one who seizes your infants

and dashes themg against the rocks.

Psalm 138

Of David.

1 I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart;

before the “gods”h I will singi your praise.

2 I will bow down toward your holy templej

and will praise your namek

for your unfailing love and your faithfulness,l

for you have so exalted your solemn decree

that it surpasses your fame.m

3 When I called,n you answered me;o

you greatly emboldenedp me.

4 May all the kings of the earthq praise you, Lord,

when they hear what you have decreed.

5 May they singr of the ways of the Lord,

for the glory of the Lords is great.

6 Though the Lord is exalted, he looks kindly on the lowly;t

though lofty, he sees themu from afar.

7 Though I walkv in the midst of trouble,

you preserve my life.w

You stretch out your handx against the anger of my foes;y

with your right handz you save me.a

8 The Lord will vindicateb me;

your love, Lord, endures foreverc—

do not abandond the works of your hands.e

Psalm 139

For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.

1 You have searched me,f Lord,

and you knowg me.

2 You know when I sit and when I rise;h

you perceive my thoughtsi from afar.

3 You discern my going outj and my lying down;

you are familiar with all my ways.k

4 Before a word is on my tongue

you, Lord, know it completely.l

5 You hem me inm behind and before,

and you lay your hand upon me.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,n

too loftyo for me to attain.

7 Where can I go from your Spirit?

Where can I fleep from your presence?

8 If I go up to the heavens,q you are there;

if I make my bedr in the depths, you are there.

9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,

if I settle on the far side of the sea,

10 even there your hand will guide me,s

your right handt will hold me fast.

11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me

and the light become night around me,”

12 even the darkness will not be darku to you;

the night will shine like the day,

for darkness is as light to you.

13 For you created my inmost being;v

you knit me togetherw in my mother’s womb.x

14 I praise youy because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

your works are wonderful,z

I know that full well.

15 My frame was not hidden from you

when I was madea in the secret place,

when I was woven togetherb in the depths of the earth.c

16 Your eyes saw my unformed body;

all the days ordainedd for me were written in your book

before one of them came to be.

17 How precious to me are your thoughts,a e God!f

How vast is the sum of them!

18 Were I to count them,g

they would outnumber the grains of sandh—

when I awake,i I am still with you.

19 If only you, God, would slay the wicked!j

Away from me,k you who are bloodthirsty!l

20 They speak of you with evil intent;

your adversariesm misuse your name.n

21 Do I not hate thoseo who hate you, Lord,

and abhorp those who are in rebellion against you?

22 I have nothing but hatred for them;

I count them my enemies.q

23 Search me,r God, and know my heart;s

test me and know my anxious thoughts.

24 See if there is any offensive wayt in me,

and lead meu in the way everlasting.

Psalm 140a

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

1 Rescue me,v Lord, from evildoers;

protect me from the violent,w

2 who devise evil plansx in their hearts

and stir up wary every day.

3 They make their tongues as sharp asz a serpent’s;

the poison of vipersa is on their lips.b

4 Keep me safe,b Lord, from the hands of the wicked;c

protect me from the violent,

who devise ways to trip my feet.

5 The arrogant have hidden a snared for me;

they have spread out the cords of their nete

and have set trapsf for me along my path.

6 I say to the Lord, “You are my God.”g

Hear, Lord, my cry for mercy.h

7 Sovereign Lord,i my strong deliverer,

you shield my head in the day of battle.

8 Do not grant the wickedj their desires, Lord;

do not let their plans succeed.

9 Those who surround me proudly rear their heads;

may the mischief of their lips engulf them.k

10 May burning coals fall on them;

may they be thrown into the fire,l

into miry pits, never to rise.

11 May slanderers not be established in the land;

may disaster hunt down the violent.m

12 I know that the Lord secures justice for the poorn

and upholds the causeo of the needy.p

13 Surely the righteous will praise your name,q

and the upright will liver in your presence.s

Psalm 141

A psalm of David.

1 I call to you, Lord, come quicklyt to me;

hear meu when I call to you.

2 May my prayer be set before you like incense;v

may the lifting up of my handsw be like the evening sacrifice.x

3 Set a guard over my mouth,y Lord;

keep watch over the door of my lips.z

4 Do not let my hearta be drawn to what is evil

so that I take part in wicked deedsb

along with those who are evildoers;

do not let me eat their delicacies.c

5 Let a righteous man strike me—that is a kindness;

let him rebuke med—that is oil on my head.e

My head will not refuse it,

for my prayer will still be against the deeds of evildoers.

6 Their rulers will be thrown down from the cliffs,f

and the wicked will learn that my words were well spoken.

7 They will say, “As one plowsg and breaks up the earth,h

so our bones have been scattered at the mouthi of the grave.”

8 But my eyes are fixedj on you, Sovereign Lord;

in you I take refugek—do not give me over to death.

9 Keep me safel from the traps set by evildoers,m

from the snaresn they have laid for me.

10 Let the wicked fallo into their own nets,

while I pass by in safety.p

Psalm 142a

A maskilb of David. When he was in the cave.q A prayer.

1 I cry aloudr to the Lord;

I lift up my voice to the Lord for mercy.s

2 I pour out before him my complaint;t

before him I tell my trouble.u

3 When my spirit grows faintv within me,

it is you who watch over my way.

In the path where I walk

people have hidden a snare for me.

4 Look and see, there is no one at my right hand;

no one is concerned for me.

I have no refuge;w

no one caresx for my life.

5 I cry to you, Lord;

I say, “You are my refuge,y

my portionz in the land of the living.”a

6 Listen to my cry,b

for I am in desperate need;c

rescue med from those who pursue me,

for they are too stronge for me.

7 Set me free from my prison,f

that I may praise your name.g

Then the righteous will gather about me

because of your goodness to me.h

Psalm 143

A psalm of David.

1 Lord, hear my prayer,i

listen to my cry for mercy;j

in your faithfulnessk and righteousnessl

come to my relief.

2 Do not bring your servant into judgment,

for no one living is righteousm before you.

3 The enemy pursues me,

he crushes me to the ground;

he makes me dwell in the darknessn

like those long dead.o

4 So my spirit grows faint within me;

my heart within me is dismayed.p

5 I rememberq the days of long ago;

I meditater on all your works

and consider what your hands have done.

6 I spread out my handss to you;

I thirst for you like a parched land.a

7 Answer me quickly,t Lord;

my spirit fails.u

Do not hide your facev from me

or I will be like those who go down to the pit.

8 Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love,w

for I have put my trust in you.

Show me the wayx I should go,

for to you I entrust my life.y

9 Rescue mez from my enemies,a Lord,

for I hide myself in you.

10 Teach meb to do your will,

for you are my God;c

may your good Spirit

leadd me on level ground.e

11 For your name’s sake,f Lord, preserve my life;g

in your righteousness,h bring me out of trouble.

12 In your unfailing love, silence my enemies;i

destroy all my foes,j

for I am your servant.k