Psalm 61

Assurance of God’s Protection

To the leader: with stringed instruments. Of David.

1 Hear my cry, O God;

listen to my prayer.*

2 From the end of the earth I call to you,

when my heart is faint.

Lead me to the rock

that is higher than I,*

3 for you are my refuge,

a strong tower against the enemy.*

4 Let me abide in your tent forever,

find refuge under the shelter of your wings.   Selah*

5 For you, O God, have heard my vows;

you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name.*

6 Prolong the life of the king;

may his years endure to all generations!*

7 May he be enthroned forever before God;

appoint steadfast love and faithfulness to watch over him!*

8 So I will always sing praises to your name,

as I pay my vows day after day.*

Psalm 62

Song of Trust in God Alone

To the leader: according to Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.

1 For God alone my soul waits in silence;

from him comes my salvation.*

2 He alone is my rock and my salvation,

my fortress; I shall never be shaken.*

3 How long will you assail a person,

will you batter your victim, all of you,

as you would a leaning wall, a tottering fence?*

4 Their only plan is to bring down a person of prominence.

They take pleasure in falsehood;

they bless with their mouths,

but inwardly they curse.   Selah*

5 For God alone my soul waits in silence,

for my hope is from him.

6 He alone is my rock and my salvation,

my fortress; I shall not be shaken.*

7 On God rests my deliverance and my honor;

my mighty rock, my refuge is in God.*

8 Trust in him at all times, O people;

pour out your heart before him;

God is a refuge for us.   Selah*

9 Those of low estate are but a breath;

those of high estate are a delusion;

in the balances they go up;

they are together lighter than a breath.*

10 Put no confidence in extortion,

and set no vain hopes on robbery;

if riches increase, do not set your heart on them.*

11 Once God has spoken;

twice have I heard this:

that power belongs to God,*

12 and steadfast love belongs to you, O Lord.

For you repay to all

according to their work.*

Psalm 63

Comfort and Assurance in God’s Presence

A Psalm of David, when he was in the Wilderness of Judah.

1 O God, you are my God; I seek you;

my soul thirsts for you;

my flesh faints for you,

as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.*

2 So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,

beholding your power and glory.*

3 Because your steadfast love is better than life,

my lips will praise you.*

4 So I will bless you as long as I live;

I will lift up my hands and call on your name.*

5 My soul is satisfied as with a rich feast,w

and my mouth praises you with joyful lips*

6 when I think of you on my bed

and meditate on you in the watches of the night,*

7 for you have been my help,

and in the shadow of your wings I sing for joy.*

8 My soul clings to you;

your right hand upholds me.*

9 But those who seek to destroy my life

shall go down into the depths of the earth;*

10 they shall be given over to the power of the sword;

they shall be prey for jackals.

11 But the king shall rejoice in God;

all who swear by him shall exult,

for the mouths of liars will be stopped.*

Psalm 64

Prayer for Protection from Enemies

To the leader. A Psalm of David.

1 Hear my voice, O God, in my complaint;

preserve my life from the dread enemy.*

2 Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked,

from the scheming of evildoers,*

3 who whet their tongues like swords,

who aim bitter words like arrows,*

4 shooting from ambush at the blameless;

they shoot suddenly and without fear.*

5 They hold fast to their evil purpose;

they talk of laying snares secretly,

thinking, “Who can see us?x,*

6 Who can search out our crimes?y

We have thought out a cunningly conceived plot.”

For the human heart and mind are deep.*

7 But God will shoot his arrow at them;

they will be wounded suddenly.

8 Because of their tongue he will bring them to ruin;z

all who see them will shake with horror.*

9 Then everyone will fear;

they will tell what God has brought about

and ponder what he has done.*

10 Let the righteous rejoice in the Lord

and take refuge in him.

Let all the upright in heart glory.*

Psalm 65

Thanksgiving for Earth’s Bounty

To the leader. A Psalm of David. A Song.

1 Praise is due to you,

O God, in Zion,

and to you shall vows be performed,*

2 O you who answer prayer!

To you all flesh shall come.*

3 When deeds of iniquity overwhelm us,

you forgive our transgressions.*

4 Happy are those whom you choose and bring near

to live in your courts.

We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house,

your holy temple.*

5 By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance,

O God of our salvation;

you are the hope of all the ends of the earth

and of the farthest seas.*

6 By youra strength you established the mountains;

you are girded with might.*

7 You silence the roaring of the seas,

the roaring of their waves,

the tumult of the peoples.*

8 Those who live at earth’s farthest bounds are awed by your signs;

you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy.

9 You visit the earth and water it;

you greatly enrich it;

the river of God is full of water;

you provide the people with grain,

for so you have prepared it.*

10 You water its furrows abundantly,

settling its ridges,

softening it with showers,

and blessing its growth.

11 You crown the year with your bounty;

your wagon tracks overflow with richness.

12 The pastures of the wilderness overflow;

the hills gird themselves with joy;*

13 the meadows clothe themselves with flocks;

the valleys deck themselves with grain;

they shout and sing together for joy.*