Praise for God's Mighty Deeds

661 To the choirmaster. A Song. A Psalm. Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth; 2 sing the glory of his name; give to him glorious praise! 3 Say to God, "How terrible are thy deeds! So great is thy power that thy enemies cringe before thee. 4 All the earth worships thee; they sing praises to thee, sing praises to thy name." [Selah] 5 Come and see what God has done: he is terrible in his deeds among men. 6 He turned the sea into dry land; men passed through the river on foot. There did we rejoice in him, 7 who rules by his might for ever, whose eyes keep watch on the nations--let not the rebellious exalt themselves. [Selah]

8 Bless our God, O peoples, let the sound of his praise be heard, 9 who has kept us among the living, and has not let our feet slip. 10 For thou, O God, hast tested us; thou hast tried us as silver is tried. 11 Thou didst bring us into the net; thou didst lay affliction on our loins; 12 thou didst let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet thou hast brought us forth to a spacious place.

13 I will come into thy house with burnt offerings; I will pay thee my vows, 14 that which my lips uttered and my mouth promised when I was in trouble. 15 I will offer to thee burnt offerings of fatlings, with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams; I will make an offering of bulls and goats. [Selah] 16 Come and hear, all you who fear God, and I will tell what he has done for me. 17 I cried aloud to him, and he was extolled with my tongue. 18 If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. 19 But truly God has listened; he has given heed to the voice of my prayer. 20 Blessed be God, because he has not rejected my prayer or removed his steadfast love from me!

The Nations Exhorted to Praise God

671 To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments. A Psalm. A Song. May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, [Selah] 2 that thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving power among all nations. 3 Let the peoples praise thee, O God; let all the peoples praise thee! 4 Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for thou dost judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth. [Selah] 5 Let the peoples praise thee, O God; let all the peoples praise thee! 6 The earth has yielded its increase; God, our God, has blessed us. 7 God has blessed us; let all the ends of the earth fear him!

The God of Sinai and of the Sanctuary

681 To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. A Song. Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered; let those who hate him flee before him! 2 As smoke is driven away, so drive them away; as wax melts before fire, let the wicked perish before God! 3 But let the righteous be joyful; let them exult before God; let them be jubilant with joy! 4 Sing to God, sing praises to his name; lift up a song to him who rides upon the clouds; his name is the Lord, exult before him! 5 Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation. 6 God gives the desolate a home to dwell in; he leads out the prisoners to prosperity; but the rebellious dwell in a parched land.

7 O God, when thou didst go forth before thy people, when thou didst march through the wilderness, [Selah] 8 the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain, at the presence of God; yon Sinai quaked at the presence of God, the God of Israel. 9 Rain in abundance, O God, thou didst shed abroad; thou didst restore thy heritage as it languished; 10 thy flock found a dwelling in it; in thy goodness, O God, thou didst provide for the needy. 11 The Lord gives the command; great is the host of those who bore the tidings: 12 "The kings of the armies, they flee, they flee!" The women at home divide the spoil, 13 though they stay among the sheepfolds--the wings of a dove covered with silver, its pinions with green gold. 14 When the Almighty scattered kings there, snow fell on Zalmon.

15 O mighty mountain, mountain of Bashan; O many-peaked mountain, mountain of Bashan! 16 Why look you with envy, O many-peaked mountain, at the mount which God desired for his abode, yea, where the Lord will dwell for ever? 17 With mighty chariotry, twice ten thousand, thousands upon thousands, the Lord came from Sinai into the holy place. 18 Thou didst ascend the high mount, leading captives in thy train, and receiving gifts among men, even among the rebellious, that the Lord God may dwell there. 19 Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears us up; God is our salvation. [Selah] 20 Our God is a God of salvation; and to GOD, the Lord, belongs escape from death. 21 But God will shatter the heads of his enemies, the hairy crown of him who walks in his guilty ways.

22 The Lord said, "I will bring them back from Bashan, I will bring them back from the depths of the sea, 23 that you may bathe your feet in blood, that the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from the foe." 24 Thy solemn processions are seen, O God, the processions of my God, my King, into the sanctuary-- 25 the singers in front, the minstrels last, between them maidens playing timbrels: 26 "Bless God in the great congregation, the Lord, O you who are of Israel's fountain!" 27 There is Benjamin, the least of them, in the lead, the princes of Judah in their throng, the princes of Zeb'ulun, the princes of Naph'tali. 28 Summon thy might, O God; show thy strength, O God, thou who hast wrought for us. 29 Because of thy temple at Jerusalem kings bear gifts to thee. 30 Rebuke the beasts that dwell among the reeds, the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples. Trample under foot those who lust after tribute; scatter the peoples who delight in war. 31 Let bronze be brought from Egypt; let Ethiopia hasten to stretch out her hands to God.

32 Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth; sing praises to the Lord, [Selah] 33 to him who rides in the heavens, the ancient heavens; lo, he sends forth his voice, his mighty voice. 34 Ascribe power to God, whose majesty is over Israel, and his power is in the skies. 35 Terrible is God in his sanctuary, the God of Israel, he gives power and strength to his people. Blessed be God!

A Cry of Distress

691 To the choirmaster: according to Lilies. A Psalm of David. Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck. 2 I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me. 3 I am weary with my crying; my throat is parched. My eyes grow dim with waiting for my God. 4 More in number than the hairs of my head are those who hate me without cause; mighty are those who would destroy me, those who attack me with lies. What I did not steal must I now restore? 5 O God, thou knowest my folly; the wrongs I have done are not hidden from thee. 6 Let not those who hope in thee be put to shame through me, O Lord GOD of hosts; let not those who seek thee be brought to dishonor through me, O God of Israel. 7 For it is for thy sake that I have borne reproach, that shame has covered my face. 8 I have become a stranger to my brethren, an alien to my mother's sons. 9 For zeal for thy house has consumed me, and the insults of those who insult thee have fallen on me. 10 When I humbled my soul with fasting, it became my reproach. 11 When I made sackcloth my clothing, I became a byword to them. 12 I am the talk of those who sit in the gate, and the drunkards make songs about me.

13 But as for me, my prayer is to thee, O Lord. At an acceptable time, O God, in the abundance of thy steadfast love answer me. With thy faithful help 14 rescue me from sinking in the mire; let me be delivered from my enemies and from the deep waters. 15 Let not the flood sweep over me, or the deep swallow me up, or the pit close its mouth over me. 16 Answer me, O Lord, for thy steadfast love is good; according to thy abundant mercy, turn to me. 17 Hide not thy face from thy servant; for I am in distress, make haste to answer me. 18 Draw near to me, redeem me, set me free because of my enemies! 19 Thou knowest my reproach, and my shame and my dishonor; my foes are all known to thee. 20 Insults have broken my heart, so that I am in despair. I looked for pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none. 21 They gave me poison for food, and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.

22 Let their own table before them become a snare; let their sacrificial feasts be a trap. 23 Let their eyes be darkened, so that they cannot see; and make their loins tremble continually. 24 Pour out thy indignation upon them, and let thy burning anger overtake them. 25 May their camp be a desolation, let no one dwell in their tents. 26 For they persecute him whom thou hast smitten, and him whom thou hast wounded, they afflict still more. 27 Add to them punishment upon punishment; may they have no acquittal from thee. 28 Let them be blotted out of the book of the living; let them not be enrolled among the righteous. 29 But I am afflicted and in pain; let thy salvation, O God, set me on high!

30 I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving. 31 This will please the Lord more than an ox or a bull with horns and hoofs. 32 Let the oppressed see it and be glad; you who seek God, let your hearts revive. 33 For the Lord hears the needy, and does not despise his own that are in bonds. 34 Let heaven and earth praise him, the seas and everything that moves therein. 35 For God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah; and his servants shall dwell there and possess it; 36 the children of his servants shall inherit it, and those who love his name shall dwell in it.