By July 13, 2008 Read More →

Psalms 21-24

The Hebrew Bible

21For the leader. A psalm of David.

2O Lord, the king rejoices in Your strength;

how greatly he exults in Your victory!

3You have granted him the desire of his heart,

have not denied the request of his lips. Selah.

4You have proffered him blessings of good things,

have set upon his head a crown of fine gold.

5He asked You for life; You granted it;

a long life, everlasting.

6Great is his glory through Your victory;

You have endowed him with splendor and majesty.

7You have made him blessed forever,

gladdened him with the joy of Your presence.

8For the king trusts in the Lord;

Through the faithfulness of the Most High

he will not be shaken.

9Your hand is equal to all Your enemies;

Your right hand overpowers Your foes.

10You set them ablaze like a furnace

when You show Your presence.

The Lord in anger destroys them;

fire consumes them.

11You wipe their offspring from the earth,

their issue from among men.

12For they schemed against You;

they laid plans,

but could not succeed.

13For You make them turn back

by Your bows aimed at their face.

14Be exalted, O Lord, through Your strength;

we will sing and chant the praises of Your mighty deeds.

22For the leader; on ayyeleth ha-shahar. A psalm of David.

2My God, my God,

why have You abandoned me;

why so far from delivering me

and from my anguished roaring?

3My God,

I cry by day—You answer not;

by night, and have no respite.

4But You are the Holy One,

enthroned,

the Praise of Israel.

5In You our fathers trusted;

they trusted, and You rescued them.

6To You they cried out

and they escaped;

in You they trusted

and were not disappointed.

7But I am a worm, less than human;

scorned by men, despised by people.

8All who see me mock me;

they curl their lips,

they shake their heads.

9“Let him commit himself to the Lord;

let Him rescue him,

let Him save him,

for He is pleased with him.”

10You drew me from the womb,

made me secure at my mother’s breast.

11I became Your charge at birth;

from my mother’s womb You have been my God.

12Do not be far from me,

for trouble is near,

and there is none to help.

13Many bulls surround me,

mighty ones of Bashan encircle me.

14They open their mouths at me

like tearing, roaring lions.

15My life ebbs away-

all my bones are disjointed;

my heart is like wax,

melting within me;

16my vigor dries up like a shard;

my tongue cleaves to my palate;

You commit me to the dust of death.

17Dogs surround me;

a pack of evil ones closes in on me,

like lions [they maul] my hands and feet.

18I take the count of all my bones

while they look on and gloat.

19They divide my clothes among themselves,

casting lots for my garments.

20But You, O Lord, be not far off;

my strength, hasten to my aid.

21Save my life from the sword,

my precious life from the clutches of a dog.

22Deliver me from a lion’s mouth;

from the horns of wild oxen rescue me.

23Then will I proclaim Your fame to my brethren,

praise You in the congregation.

24You who fear the Lord, praise Him!

All you offspring of Jacob, honor Him!

Be in dread of Him, all you offspring of Israel!

25For He did not scorn, He did not spurn

the plea of the lowly;

He did not hide His face from him;

when he cried out to Him, He listened.

26 Because of You I offer praise in the great congregation;

I pay my vows in the presence of His worshipers.

27Let the lowly eat and be satisfied;

let all who seek the Lord praise Him.

Always be of good cheer!

28Let all the ends of the earth pay heed and turn to the Lord,

and the peoples of all nations prostrate themselves before You;

29for kingship is the Lord’s

and He rules the nations.

30All those in full vigor shall eat and prostrate themselves;

all those at death’s door, whose spirits flag,

shall bend the knee before Him.

31Offspring shall serve Him;

the Lord’s fame shall be proclaimed to the generation

32to come;

they shall tell of His beneficence

to people yet to be born,

for He has acted.

23A psalm of David.

The Lord is my shepherd;

I lack nothing.

2He makes me lie down in green pastures;

He leads me to water in places of repose;

3He renews my life;

He guides me in right paths

as befits His name.

4Though I walk through a valley of deepest darkness,

I fear no harm, for You are with me;

Your rod and Your staff—they comfort me.

5You spread a table for me in full view of my enemies;

You anoint my head with oil;

my drink is abundant.

6Only goodness and steadfast love shall pursue me

all the days of my life,

and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord

for many long years.

24Of David. A psalm.

The earth is the Lord’s and all that it holds,

the world and its inhabitants.

2For He founded it upon the ocean,

set it on the nether-streams.

3Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord?

Who may stand in His holy place?—

4He who has clean hands and a pure heart,

who has not taken a false oath by My life

or sworn deceitfully.

5He shall carry away a blessing from the Lord,

a just reward from God, his deliverer.

6Such is the circle of those who turn to Him,

Jacob, who seek Your presence. Selah.

7O gates, lift up your heads!

Up high, you everlasting doors,

so the King of glory may come in!

8Who is the King of glory?—

the Lord, mighty and valiant,

the Lord, valiant in battle.

9O gates, lift up your heads!

Lift them up, you everlasting doors,

so the King of glory may come in!

10Who is the King of glory?—

the Lord of hosts,

He is the King of glory! Selah.

Tanakh, The Holy Scriptures, (Philadelphia, Jerusalem- Jewish Publication Society) 1985.

Posted in: Biblical Poetry

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