JEWISH PSALMS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

From the Book of Pslam, helpful passages for spiritual guidance concerning:

1.  A JOURNEY

2.  HEALING

3.  LOVE

4.  PEACE

5.  REPENTANCE

6.  SPECIAL OCCASIONS

7.  TIMES OF DISTRESS

A JOURNEY

NEW JEWISH PUBLICATION SOCIETY OF AMERICA TANAKH (NJPS) TRANSLATION

Psalm 91:1-16

1 O you who dwell in the shelter of the Most High and abide in the protection of Shaddai— 2 I say of the LORD, my refuge and stronghold, my God in whom I trust, 3 that He will save you from the fowler’s trap, from the destructive plague. 4 He will cover you with His pinions; you will find refuge under His wings; His fidelity is an encircling shield. 5 You need not fear the terror by night, or the arrow that flies by day, 6 the plague that stalks in the darkness, or the scourge that ravages at noon. 7 A thousand may fall at your left side, ten thousand at your right, but it shall not reach you. 8 You will see it with your eyes, you will witness the punishment of the wicked. 9 Because you took the LORD—my refuge, the Most High—as your haven, 10 no harm will befall you, no disease touch your tent. 11 For He will order His angels to guard you wherever you go. 12 They will carry you in their hands lest you hurt your foot on a stone. 13 You will tread on cubs and vipers; you will trample lions and asps. 14 “Because he is devoted to Me I will deliver him; I will keep him safe, for he knows My name. 15 When he calls on Me, I will answer him; I will be with him in distress; I will rescue him and make him honored; 16 I will let him live to a ripe old age, and show him My salvation.”

HEALING

NEW JEWISH PUBLICATION SOCIETY OF AMERICA TANAKH (NJPS) TRANSLATION

Psalm 6:1-11

1 -For the leader; with instrumental music on the sheminith. A psalm of David. 2 O LORD, do not punish me in anger, do not chastise me in fury. 3 Have mercy on me, O LORD, for I languish; heal me, O LORD, for my bones shake with terror. 4 My whole being is stricken with terror, while You, LORD—O, how long! 5 O LORD, turn! Rescue me! Deliver me as befits Your faithfulness. 6 For there is no praise of You among the dead; in Sheol, who can acclaim You? 7 I am weary with groaning; every night I drench my bed, I melt my couch in tears. 8 My eyes are wasted by vexation, worn out because of all my foes. 9 Away from me, all you evildoers, for the LORD heeds the sound of my weeping. 10 The LORD heeds my plea, the LORD accepts my prayer. 11 All my enemies will be frustrated and stricken with terror; they will turn back in an instant, frustrated.

Psalm 16:1-11

1 A michtam of David. Protect me, O God, for I seek refuge in You. 2 I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord, my benefactor; there is none above You.” 3 As to the holy and mighty ones that are in the land, my whole desire concerning them is that 4 those who espouse another god may have many sorrows! I will have no part of their bloody libations; their names will not pass my lips. 5 The LORD is my allotted share and portion; You control my fate. 6 Delightful country has fallen to my lot; lovely indeed is my estate. 7 I bless the LORD who has guided me; my conscience admonishes me at night. 8 I am ever mindful of the LORD’s presence; He is at my right hand; I shall never be shaken. 9 So my heart rejoices, my whole being exults, and my body rests secure. 10 For You will not abandon me to Sheol, or let Your faithful one see the Pit. 11 You will teach me the path of life. In Your presence is perfect joy; delights are ever in Your right hand.

Psalm 41:1-14

1 For the leader. A psalm of David. 2 Happy is he who is thoughtful of the wretched; in bad times may the LORD keep him from harm. 3 May the LORD guard him and preserve him; and may he be thought happy in the land. Do not subject him to the will of his enemies. 4 The LORD will sustain him on his sickbed; You shall wholly transform his bed of suffering. 5 I said, “O LORD, have mercy on me, heal me, for I have sinned against You.” 6 My enemies speak evilly of me, “When will he die and his name perish?” 7 If one comes to visit, he speaks falsely; his mind stores up evil thoughts; once outside, he speaks them. 8 All my enemies whisper together against me, imagining the worst for me. 9 “Something baneful has settled in him; he’ll not rise from his bed again.” 10 My ally in whom I trusted, even he who shares my bread, has been utterly false to me. 11 But You, O LORD, have mercy on me; let me rise again and repay them. 12 Then shall I know that You are pleased with me: when my enemy cannot shout in triumph over me. 13 You will support me because of my integrity, and let me abide in Your presence forever. 14 Blessed is the LORD, God of Israel, from eternity to eternity. Amen and Amen.

Psalm 88:1-19

1 A song. A psalm of the Korahites. For the leader; on maḥalath leannoth. A maskil of Heman the Ezrahite. 2 O LORD, God of my deliverance, when I cry out in the night before You, 3 let my prayer reach You; incline Your ear to my cry. 4 For I am sated with misfortune; I am at the brink of Sheol. 5 I am numbered with those who go down to the Pit; I am a helpless man 6 abandoned among the dead, like bodies lying in the grave of whom You are mindful no more, and who are cut off from Your care. 7 You have put me at the bottom of the Pit, in the darkest places, in the depths. 8 Your fury lies heavy upon me; You afflict me with all Your breakers. Selah. 9 You make my companions shun me; You make me abhorrent to them; I am shut in and do not go out. 10 My eyes pine away from affliction; I call to You, O LORD, each day; I stretch out my hands to You. 11 Do You work wonders for the dead? Do the shades rise to praise You? Selah. 12 Is Your faithful care recounted in the grave, Your constancy in the place of perdition? 13 Are Your wonders made known in the netherworld, Your beneficent deeds in the land of oblivion? 14 As for me, I cry out to You, O LORD; each morning my prayer greets You. 15 Why, O LORD, do You reject me, do You hide Your face from me? 16 From my youth I have been afflicted and near death; I suffer Your terrors wherever I turn. 17 Your fury overwhelms me; Your terrors destroy me. 18 They swirl about me like water all day long; they encircle me on every side. 19 You have put friend and neighbor far from me and my companions out of my sight.

Psalm 90:1-17

1 A prayer of Moses, the man of God. O Lord, You have been our refuge in every generation. 2 Before the mountains came into being, before You brought forth the earth and the world, from eternity to eternity You are God. 3 You return man to dust; You decreed, “Return you mortals!” 4 For in Your sight a thousand years are like yesterday that has passed, like a watch of the night. 5 You engulf men in sleep; at daybreak they are like grass that renews itself; 6 at daybreak it flourishes anew; by dusk it withers and dries up. 7 So we are consumed by Your anger, terror-struck by Your fury. 8 You have set our iniquities before You, our hidden sins in the light of Your face. 9 All our days pass away in Your wrath; we spend our years like a sigh. 10 The span of our life is seventy years, or, given the strength, eighty years; but the best of them are trouble and sorrow. They pass by speedily, and we are in darkness. 11 Who can know Your furious anger? Your wrath matches the fear of You. 12 Teach us to count our days rightly, that we may obtain a wise heart. 13 Turn, O LORD! How long? Show mercy to Your servants. 14 Satisfy us at daybreak with Your steadfast love that we may sing for joy all our days. 15 Give us joy for as long as You have afflicted us, for the years we have suffered misfortune. 16 Let Your deeds be seen by Your servants, Your glory by their children. 17 May the favor of the Lord, our God, be upon us; let the work of our hands prosper, O prosper the work of our hands!

Psalm 103:1-22

1 Of David. Bless the LORD, O my soul, all my being, His holy name. 2 Bless the LORD, O my soul and do not forget all His bounties. 3 He forgives all your sins, heals all your diseases. 4 He redeems your life from the Pit, surrounds you with steadfast love and mercy. 5 He satisfies you with good things in the prime of life, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. 6 The LORD executes righteous acts and judgments for all who are wronged. 7 He made known His ways to Moses, His deeds to the children of Israel. 8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love. 9 He will not contend forever, or nurse His anger for all time. 10 He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor has He requited us according to our iniquities. 11 For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His steadfast love toward those who fear Him. 12 As east is far from west, so far has He removed our sins from us. 13 As a father has compassion for his children, so the LORD has compassion for those who fear Him. 14 For He knows how we are formed; He is mindful that we are dust. 15 Man, his days are like those of grass; he blooms like a flower of the field; 16 a wind passes by and it is no more, its own place no longer knows it. 17 But the LORD’s steadfast love is for all eternity toward those who fear Him, and His beneficence is for the children’s children 18 of those who keep His covenant and remember to observe His precepts. 19 The LORD has established His throne in heaven, and His sovereign rule is over all. 20 Bless the LORD, O His angels, mighty creatures who do His bidding, ever obedient to His bidding; 21 bless the LORD, all His hosts, His servants who do His will; 22 bless the LORD, all His works, through the length and breadth of His realm; bless the LORD, O my soul.

LOVE

NEW JEWISH PUBLICATION SOCIETY OF AMERICA TANAKH (NJPS) TRANSLATION

Psalm 32:1-11

1 Of David. A maskil. Happy is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered over. 2 Happy the man whom the LORD does not hold guilty, and in whose spirit there is no deceit. 3 As long as I said nothing, my limbs wasted away from my anguished roaring all day long. 4 For night and day Your hand lay heavy on me; my vigor waned as in the summer drought. Selah. 5 Then I acknowledged my sin to You; I did not cover up my guilt; I resolved, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” and You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah. 6 Therefore let every faithful man pray to You upon discovering his sin, that the rushing mighty waters not overtake him. 7 You are my shelter; You preserve me from distress; You surround me with the joyous shouts of deliverance. Selah. 8 Let me enlighten you and show you which way to go; let me offer counsel; my eye is on you. 9 Be not like a senseless horse or mule whose movement must be curbed by bit and bridle; far be it from you! 10 Many are the torments of the wicked, but he who trusts in the LORD shall be surrounded with favor. 11 Rejoice in the LORD and exult, O you righteous; shout for joy, all upright men!

Psalm 38:1-23

1 A psalm of David. Lehazkir. 2 O LORD, do not punish me in wrath; do not chastise me in fury. 3 For Your arrows have struck me; Your blows have fallen upon me. 4 There is no soundness in my flesh because of Your rage, no wholeness in my bones because of my sin. 5 For my iniquities have overwhelmed me; they are like a heavy burden, more than I can bear. 6 My wounds stink and fester because of my folly. 7 I am all bent and bowed; I walk about in gloom all day long. 8 For my sinews are full of fever; there is no soundness in my flesh. 9 I am all benumbed and crushed; I roar because of the turmoil in my mind. 10 O Lord, You are aware of all my entreaties; my groaning is not hidden from You. 11 My mind reels; my strength fails me; my eyes too have lost their luster. 12 My friends and companions stand back from my affliction; my kinsmen stand far off. 13 Those who seek my life lay traps; those who wish me harm speak malice; they utter deceit all the time. 14 But I am like a deaf man, unhearing, like a dumb man who cannot speak up; 15 I am like one who does not hear, who has no retort on his lips. 16 But I wait for You, O LORD; You will answer, O Lord, my God. 17 For I fear they will rejoice over me; when my foot gives way they will vaunt themselves against me. 18 For I am on the verge of collapse; my pain is always with me. 19 I acknowledge my iniquity; I am fearful over my sin; 20 for my mortal enemies are numerous; my treacherous foes are many. 21 Those who repay evil for good harass me for pursuing good. 22 Do not abandon me, O LORD; my God, be not far from me; 23 hasten to my aid, O Lord, my deliverance.

Psalm 70:1-6

1 For the leader. Of David. Lehazkir. 2 Hasten, O God, to save me; O LORD, to aid me! 3 Let those who seek my life be frustrated and disgraced; let those who wish me harm, fall back in shame. 4 Let those who say, “Aha! Aha!” turn back because of their frustration. 5 But let all who seek You be glad and rejoice in You; let those who are eager for Your deliverance always say, “Extolled be God!” 6 But I am poor and needy; O God, hasten to me! You are my help and my rescuer; O LORD, do not delay.

Psalm 71:1-24

1 I seek refuge in You, O LORD; may I never be disappointed. 2 As You are beneficent, save me and rescue me; incline Your ear to me and deliver me. 3 Be a sheltering rock for me to which I may always repair; decree my deliverance, for You are my rock and my fortress. 4 My God, rescue me from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of the unjust and the lawless. 5 For You are my hope, O Lord GOD, my trust from my youth. 6 While yet unborn, I depended on You; in the womb of my mother, You were my support; I sing Your praises always. 7 I have become an example for many, since You are my mighty refuge. 8 My mouth is full of praise to You, glorifying You all day long. 9 Do not cast me off in old age; when my strength fails, do not forsake me! 10 For my enemies talk against me; those who wait for me are of one mind, 11 saying, “God has forsaken him; chase him and catch him, for no one will save him!” 12 O God, be not far from me; my God, hasten to my aid! 13 Let my accusers perish in frustration; let those who seek my ruin be clothed in reproach and disgrace! 14 As for me, I will hope always, and add to the many praises of You. 15 My mouth tells of Your beneficence, of Your deliverance all day long, though I know not how to tell it. 16 I come with praise of Your mighty acts, O Lord GOD; I celebrate Your beneficence, Yours alone. 17 You have let me experience it, God, from my youth; until now I have proclaimed Your wondrous deeds, 18 and even in hoary old age do not forsake me, God, until I proclaim Your strength to the next generation, Your mighty acts, to all who are to come, 19 Your beneficence, high as the heavens, O God, You who have done great things; O God, who is Your peer! 20 You who have made me undergo many troubles and misfortunes will revive me again, and raise me up from the depths of the earth. 21 You will grant me much greatness, You will turn and comfort me. 22 Then I will acclaim You to the music of the lyre for Your faithfulness, O my God; I will sing a hymn to You with a harp, O Holy One of Israel. 23 My lips shall be jubilant, as I sing a hymn to You, my whole being, which You have redeemed. 24 All day long my tongue shall recite Your beneficent acts, how those who sought my ruin were frustrated and disgraced.

Psalm 121:1-8

1 A song for ascents. I turn my eyes to the mountains; from where will my help come? 2 My help comes from the LORD, maker of heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your foot give way; your guardian will not slumber; 4 See, the guardian of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps! 5 The LORD is your guardian, the LORD is your protection at your right hand. 6 By day the sun will not strike you, nor the moon by night. 7 The LORD will guard you from all harm; He will guard your life. 8 The LORD will guard your going and coming now and forever.

Psalm 124:1-8

1 A song of ascents. Of David. Were it not for the LORD, who was on our side, let Israel now declare, 2 were it not for the LORD, who was on our side when men assailed us, 3 they would have swallowed us alive in their burning rage against us; 4 the waters would have carried us off, the torrent would have swept over us; 5 over us would have swept the seething waters. 6 Blessed is the LORD, who did not let us be ripped apart by their teeth. 7 We are like a bird escaped from the fowler’s trap; the trap broke and we escaped. 8 Our help is the name of the LORD, maker of heaven and earth.

PEACE

NEW JEWISH PUBLICATION SOCIETY OF AMERICA TANAKH (NJPS) TRANSLATION

Psalm 46:1-12

1 For the leader. Of the Korahites; on alamoth. A song. 2 God is our refuge and stronghold, a help in trouble, very near. 3 Therefore we are not afraid though the earth reels, though mountains topple into the sea— 4 its waters rage and foam; in its swell mountains quake. Selah. 5 There is a river whose streams gladden God’s city, the holy dwelling-place of the Most High. 6 God is in its midst, it will not be toppled; by daybreak God will come to its aid. 7 Nations rage, kingdoms topple; at the sound of His thunder the earth dissolves. 8 The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our haven. Selah. 9 Come and see what the LORD has done, how He has wrought desolation on the earth. 10 He puts a stop to wars throughout the earth, breaking the bow, snapping the spear, consigning wagons to the flames. 11 “Desist! Realize that I am God! I dominate the nations; I dominate the earth.” 12 The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our haven. Selah.

REPENTANCE

NEW JEWISH PUBLICATION SOCIETY OF AMERICA TANAKH (NJPS) TRANSLATION

Psalm 51:1-16

1 For the leader. A psalm of David, 2 when Nathan the prophet came to him after he had come to Bathsheba. 3 Have mercy upon me, O God, as befits Your faithfulness; in keeping with Your abundant compassion, blot out my transgressions. 4 Wash me thoroughly of my iniquity, and purify me of my sin; 5 for I recognize my transgressions, and am ever conscious of my sin. 6 Against You alone have I sinned, and done what is evil in Your sight; so You are just in Your sentence, and right in Your judgment. 7 Indeed I was born with iniquity; with sin my mother conceived me. 8 Indeed You desire truth about that which is hidden; teach me wisdom about secret things. 9 Purge me with hyssop till I am pure; wash me till I am whiter than snow. 10 Let me hear tidings of joy and gladness; let the bones You have crushed exult. 11 Hide Your face from my sins; blot out all my iniquities. 12 Fashion a pure heart for me, O God; create in me a steadfast spirit. 13 Do not cast me out of Your presence, or take Your holy spirit away from me. 14 Let me again rejoice in Your help; let a vigorous spirit sustain me. 15 I will teach transgressors Your ways, that sinners may return to You. 16 Save me from bloodguilt, O God, God, my deliverer, that I may sing forth Your beneficence.

SPECIAL OCCASIONS

NEW JEWISH PUBLICATION SOCIETY OF AMERICA TANAKH (NJPS) TRANSLATION

Psalm 19:1-15

1 For the leader. A psalm of David. 2 The heavens declare the glory of God, the sky proclaims His handiwork. 3 Day to day makes utterance, night to night speaks out. 4 There is no utterance, there are no words, whose sound goes unheard. 5 Their voice carries throughout the earth, their words to the end of the world. He placed in them a tent for the sun, 6 who is like a groom coming forth from the chamber, like a hero, eager to run his course. 7 His rising-place is at one end of heaven, and his circuit reaches the other; nothing escapes his heat. 8 The teaching of the LORD is perfect, renewing life; the decrees of the LORD are enduring, making the simple wise; 9 The precepts of the LORD are just, rejoicing the heart; the instruction of the LORD is lucid, making the eyes light up. 10 The fear of the LORD is pure, abiding forever; the judgments of the LORD are true, righteous altogether, 11 more desirable than gold, than much fine gold; sweeter than honey, than drippings of the comb. 12 Your servant pays them heed; in obeying them there is much reward. 13 Who can be aware of errors? Clear me of unperceived guilt, 14 and from willful sins keep Your servant; let them not dominate me; then shall I be blameless and clear of grave offense. 15 May the words of my mouth and the prayer of my heart be acceptable to You, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.

Psalm 102:1-29

1 A prayer of the lowly man when he is faint and pours forth his plea before the LORD. 2 O LORD, hear my prayer; let my cry come before You. 3 Do not hide Your face from me in my time of trouble; turn Your ear to me; when I cry, answer me speedily. 4 For my days have vanished like smoke and my bones are charred like a hearth. 5 My body is stricken and withered like grass; too wasted to eat my food; 6 on account of my vehement groaning my bones show through my skin. 7 I am like a great owl in the wilderness, an owl among the ruins. 8 I lie awake; I am like a lone bird upon a roof. 9 All day long my enemies revile me; my deriders use my name to curse. 10 For I have eaten ashes like bread and mixed my drink with tears, 11 because of Your wrath and Your fury; for You have cast me far away. 12 My days are like a lengthening shadow; I wither like grass. 13 But You, O LORD, are enthroned forever; Your fame endures throughout the ages. 14 You will surely arise and take pity on Zion, for it is time to be gracious to her; the appointed time has come. 15 Your servants take delight in its stones, and cherish its dust. 16 The nations will fear the name of the LORD, all the kings of the earth, Your glory. 17 For the LORD has built Zion; He has appeared in all His glory. 18 He has turned to the prayer of the destitute and has not spurned their prayer. 19 May this be written down for a coming generation, that people yet to be created may praise the LORD. 20 For He looks down from His holy height; the LORD beholds the earth from heaven 21 to hear the groans of the prisoner, to release those condemned to death; 22 that the fame of the LORD may be recounted in Zion, His praises in Jerusalem, 23 when the nations gather together, the kingdoms, to serve the LORD. 24 He drained my strength in mid-course, He shortened my days. 25 I say, “O my God, do not take me away in the midst of my days, You whose years go on for generations on end. 26 Of old You established the earth; the heavens are the work of Your hands. 27 They shall perish, but You shall endure; they shall all wear out like a garment; You change them like clothing and they pass away. 28 But You are the same, and Your years never end. 29 May the children of Your servants dwell securely and their offspring endure in Your presence.”

Psalm 130:1-8

1 A song of ascents. Out of the depths I call You, O LORD. 2 O Lord, listen to my cry; let Your ears be attentive to my plea for mercy. 3 If You keep account of sins, O LORD, Lord, who will survive? 4 Yours is the power to forgive so that You may be held in awe. 5 I look to the LORD; I look to Him; I await His word. 6 I am more eager for the Lord than watchmen for the morning, watchmen for the morning. 7 O Israel, wait for the LORD; for with the LORD is steadfast love and great power to redeem. 8 It is He who will redeem Israel from all their iniquities.

Psalm 142:1-8

1 A maskil of David, while he was in the cave. A prayer. 2 I cry aloud to the LORD; I appeal to the LORD loudly for mercy. 3 I pour out my complaint before Him; I lay my trouble before Him 4 when my spirit fails within me. You know my course; they have laid a trap in the path I walk. 5 Look at my right and see— I have no friend; there is nowhere I can flee, no one cares about me. 6 So I cry to You, O LORD; I say, “You are my refuge, all I have in the land of the living.” 7 Listen to my cry, for I have been brought very low; save me from my pursuers, for they are too strong for me. 8 Free me from prison, that I may praise Your name. The righteous shall glory in me for Your gracious dealings with me.

TIMES OF DISTRESS

NEW JEWISH PUBLICATION SOCIETY OF AMERICA TANAKH (NJPS) TRANSLATION

Psalm 20:1-10

1 For the leader. A psalm of David. 2 May the LORD answer you in time of trouble, the name of Jacob’s God keep you safe. 3 May He send you help from the sanctuary, and sustain you from Zion. 4 May He receive the tokens of all your meal offerings, and approve your burnt offerings. Selah. 5 May He grant you your desire, and fulfill your every plan. 6 May we shout for joy in your victory, arrayed by standards in the name of our God. May the LORD fulfill your every wish. 7 Now I know that the LORD will give victory to His anointed, will answer him from His heavenly sanctuary with the mighty victories of His right arm. 8 They call on chariots, they call on horses, but we call on the name of the LORD our God. 9 They collapse and lie fallen, but we rally and gather strength. 10 O LORD, grant victory! May the King answer us when we call.

Psalm 22:1-32

1 For the leader; on ayyeleth ha-shaḥar. A psalm of David. 2 My God, my God, why have You abandoned me; why so far from delivering me and from my anguished roaring? 3 My God, I cry by day—You answer not; by night, and have no respite. 4 But You are the Holy One, enthroned, the Praise of Israel. 5 In You our fathers trusted; they trusted, and You rescued them. 6 To You they cried out and they escaped; in You they trusted and were not disappointed. 7 But I am a worm, less than human; scorned by men, despised by people. 8 All 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.” 10 You drew me from the womb, made me secure at my mother’s breast. 11 I became Your charge at birth; from my mother’s womb You have been my God. 12 Do not be far from me, for trouble is near, and there is none to help. 13 Many bulls surround me, mighty ones of Bashan encircle me. 14 They open their mouths at me like tearing, roaring lions. 15 My life ebbs away: all my bones are disjointed; my heart is like wax, melting within me; 16 my vigor dries up like a shard; my tongue cleaves to my palate; You commit me to the dust of death. 17 Dogs surround me; a pack of evil ones closes in on me, like lions they maul my hands and feet. 18 I take the count of all my bones while they look on and gloat. 19 They divide my clothes among themselves, casting lots for my garments. 20 But You, O LORD, be not far off; my strength, hasten to my aid. 21 Save my life from the sword, my precious life from the clutches of a dog. 22 Deliver me from a lion’s mouth; from the horns of wild oxen rescue me. 23 Then will I proclaim Your fame to my brethren, praise You in the congregation. 24 You who fear the LORD, praise Him! All you offspring of Jacob, honor Him! Be in dread of Him, all you offspring of Israel! 25 For 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. 27 Let the lowly eat and be satisfied; let all who seek the LORD praise Him. Always be of good cheer! 28 Let all the ends of the earth pay heed and turn to the LORD, and the peoples of all nations prostrate themselves before You; 29 for kingship is the LORD’s and He rules the nations. 30 All those in full vigor shall eat and prostrate themselves; all those at death’s door, whose spirits flag, shall bend the knee before Him. 31 Offspring shall serve Him; the Lord’s fame shall be proclaimed to the generation 32 to come; they shall tell of His beneficence to people yet to be born, for He has acted.

Psalm 69:1-37

1 For the leader. On shoshannim. Of David. 2 Deliver me, O God, for the waters have reached my neck; 3 I am sinking into the slimy deep and find no foothold; I have come into the watery depths; the flood sweeps me away. 4 I am weary with calling; my throat is dry; my eyes fail while I wait for God. 5 More numerous than the hairs of my head are those who hate me without reason; many are those who would destroy me, my treacherous enemies. Must I restore what I have not stolen? 6 God, You know my folly; my guilty deeds are not hidden from You. 7 Let those who look to You, O Lord, God of hosts, not be disappointed on my account; let those who seek You, O God of Israel, not be shamed because of me. 8 It is for Your sake that I have been reviled, that shame covers my face; 9 I am a stranger to my brothers, an alien to my kin. 10 My zeal for Your house has been my undoing; the reproaches of those who revile You have fallen upon me. 11 When I wept and fasted, I was reviled for it. 12 I made sackcloth my garment; I became a byword among them. 13 Those who sit in the gate talk about me; I am the taunt of drunkards. 14 As for me, may my prayer come to You, O LORD, at a favorable moment; O God, in Your abundant faithfulness, answer me with Your sure deliverance. 15 Rescue me from the mire; let me not sink; let me be rescued from my enemies, and from the watery depths. 16 Let the floodwaters not sweep me away; let the deep not swallow me; let the mouth of the Pit not close over me. 17 Answer me, O LORD, according to Your great steadfastness; in accordance with Your abundant mercy turn to me; 18 do not hide Your face from Your servant, for I am in distress; answer me quickly. 19 Come near to me and redeem me; free me from my enemies. 20 You know my reproach, my shame, my disgrace; You are aware of all my foes. 21 Reproach breaks my heart, I am in despair; I hope for consolation, but there is none, for comforters, but find none. 22 They give me gall for food, vinegar to quench my thirst. 23 May their table be a trap for them, a snare for their allies. 24 May their eyes grow dim so that they cannot see; may their loins collapse continually. 25 Pour out Your wrath on them; may Your blazing anger overtake them; 26 may their encampments be desolate; may their tents stand empty. 27 For they persecute those You have struck; they talk about the pain of those You have felled. 28 Add that to their guilt; let them have no share of Your beneficence; 29 may they be erased from the book of life, and not be inscribed with the righteous. 30 But I am lowly and in pain; Your help, O God, keeps me safe. 31 I will extol God’s name with song, and exalt Him with praise. 32 That will please the LORD more than oxen, than bulls with horns and hooves. 33 The lowly will see and rejoice; you who are mindful of God, take heart! 34 For the LORD listens to the needy, and does not spurn His captives. 35 Heaven and earth shall extol Him, the seas, and all that moves in them. 36 For God will deliver Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah; they shall live there and inherit it; 37 the offspring of His servants shall possess it; those who cherish His name shall dwell there.

Psalm 150:1-6

1 Hallelujah. Praise God in His sanctuary; praise Him in the sky, His stronghold. 2 Praise Him for His mighty acts; praise Him for His exceeding greatness. 3 Praise Him with blasts of the horn; praise Him with harp and lyre. 4 Praise Him with timbrel and dance; praise Him with lute and pipe. 5 Praise Him with resounding cymbals; praise Him with loud-clashing cymbals. 6 Let all that breathes praise the LORD. Hallelujah.