Bible in 90 Days

A Man in Trouble

109 I give praise to You, O God. Do not be quiet. ² For sinners and liars have opened their mouths against me. They have spoken against me with lying tongues. ³ They have gathered around me with words of hate. They fought against me for no reason. ⁴ I give them my love but they speak against me in return. But I am in prayer. ⁵ They pay me what is bad for what is good. They give me hate for my love.

⁶ Let a sinful man have power over him. Let one who speaks against him stand at his right hand. ⁷ When he is tried, let him be found guilty. And may his prayer become sin. ⁸ Let his days be few. Let another person take over his work. ⁹ Let his children be without a father. And let his wife be without a husband. ¹⁰ May his children go around begging. And may they look for food far from their destroyed homes. ¹¹ Let the one to whom he owes money take all that he has. May strangers take away all he has worked for. ¹² May no one show him kindness. Let no one pity his children who have no father. ¹³ Let his children be cut off. Do not let their family name be remembered by the people-to-come.

¹⁴ Let the sins of his fathers be remembered by the Lord, and do not let the sins of his mother be forgotten. ¹⁵ May these sins always be before the Lord. So He may not let them be remembered on the earth. ¹⁶ Because he did not remember to show loving-kindness. Instead he made it hard for the poor and those in need and those with a broken heart. He even put them to death. ¹⁷ He loved to curse others, so may it come to him. He did not like to have good come to others, so good was far from him. ¹⁸ He dressed himself with cursing as with a coat. They came into his body like water and into his bones like oil. ¹⁹ May they be like clothing that covers him and like a belt that he always wears. ²⁰ Let this be what the Lord pays to those who speak against me and wish bad things would happen to me.

²¹ But You, O God, the Lord, be kind to me because of Your name. Take me out of trouble because Your loving-kindness is good. ²² For I am in trouble and in need. And my heart is hurt within me. ²³ I am passing like an evening shadow. I am shaken off like a locust. ²⁴ My knees are weak from going without food. And my body has lost all its fat. ²⁵ Others laugh at me. They look at me and shake their heads.

²⁶ Help me, O Lord my God! Save me by Your loving-kindness. ²⁷ Let them know that this is Your hand and that You, O Lord, have done it. ²⁸ Let them hope that bad things will happen. But You make good things happen. Let them be ashamed when they rise up against me. But let Your servant be full of joy. ²⁹ Let those who speak against me be dressed with shame. Let them cover themselves with shame as with a coat. ³⁰ I will give thanks to the Lord in a loud voice. I will praise Him among many people. ³¹ For He stands at the right hand of the one in need to save him from those who judge his soul.

The King Rules

110 The Lord says to my Lord, “Sit at My right side, for those who hate You will be a place to rest Your feet.” ² The Lord will send out Your strength from Zion, saying, “Rule in front of those who hate You.” ³ Your people will be willing to help in the day of Your power. Your young men will be dressed in holy clothes. They will come to You like water on the grass in the early morning.

⁴ The Lord has sworn and will not change His mind: “You are a Religious Leader forever, in the same way as Melchizedek.” ⁵ The Lord is at Your right hand. He will crush kings in the day of His anger. ⁶ He will say who is guilty or not among the nations. He will fill them with dead bodies. He will crush the leaders of many lands. ⁷ He will drink from the river on the way. And so He will lift up His head.

The Lord Be Praised

111 Praise the Lord! I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart where those who are right with God gather together and in the meeting of the people. ² The works of the Lord are great. All who find joy in them try to understand them. ³ His work is great and powerful. And He is right and good forever. ⁴ He has made His great works to be remembered. The Lord shows loving-favor and pity. ⁵ He gives food to those who fear Him. He will remember His agreement forever. ⁶ He has shown His people the power of His works by giving them the land of other nations.

⁷ The works of His hands are faithful and right. All His Laws are true. ⁸ They stand strong forever and ever. They are done by what is true and right. ⁹ He has made a way for His people to be free. He has set up His agreement forever. His holy name is to be honored with fear. ¹⁰ The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. All who obey His Laws have good understanding. His praise lasts forever.

Good Comes to the Person Who Honors the Lord

112 Praise the Lord! How happy is the man who honors the Lord with fear and finds joy in His Law! ² His children will be powerful in the land. Each family who is right will be happy. ³ Riches and well-being are in his house. And his right-standing with God will last forever. ⁴ Light rises even in darkness for the one who is right. He is kind and has loving-pity and does what is right. ⁵ Good will come to the man who is ready to give much, and fair in what he does. ⁶ He will never be shaken. The man who is right and good will be remembered forever. ⁷ He will not be afraid of bad news. His heart is strong because he trusts in the Lord. ⁸ His heart will not be shaken. He will not be afraid and will watch those lose who fight against him. ⁹ He has given much to the poor. His right-standing with God lasts forever. His horn will be lifted high in honor.

¹⁰ The sinful man will see it and be troubled and angry. He will grind his teeth and waste away. The desire of the sinful will come to nothing.

The Lord Helps the Poor

113 Praise the Lord! Praise Him, O you who serve the Lord. Praise the name of the Lord. ² Let the name of the Lord be honored, now and forever. ³ The name of the Lord is to be praised from the time the sun rises to when it sets. ⁴ The Lord is high above all nations. His shining-greatness is above the heavens.

⁵ Who is like the Lord our God? He sits on His throne on high. ⁶ He looks down upon the heavens and the earth. ⁷ He raises the poor from the dust. He lifts those in need from the ashes. ⁸ He makes them sit with rulers, with the rulers of His people. ⁹ He gives a home to the woman who could not give birth and makes her the mother of children. Praise the Lord!

God Takes Israel from Egypt

114 Israel came out of Egypt. The house of Jacob came from a people who spoke a strange language. ² Then Judah became His holy place, and Israel became the place of His rule.

³ The sea looked and ran away. The Jordan turned back. ⁴ The mountains jumped like sheep, the hills like lambs. ⁵ Why did you try to get away, O sea? Why did you turn back, O Jordan? ⁶ O mountains, why did you jump like sheep? O hills, why did you jump like lambs?

⁷ Shake in fear before the Lord, O earth, before the God of Jacob. ⁸ He changed the rock into a pool of water. He made water flow out of hard rock.

One True God

115 Let honor be given to Your name and not to us, O Lord, not to us. Because You are loving and kind and faithful. ² Why should the nations say, “Where is their God now?” ³ But our God is in the heavens. He does whatever He wants to do. ⁴ Their gods are silver and gold, the work of human hands. ⁵ They have mouths but they cannot speak. They have eyes but they cannot see. ⁶ They have ears but they cannot hear. They have noses but they cannot smell. ⁷ They have hands but they cannot feel. They have feet but they cannot walk. They cannot make a sound come out of their mouths. ⁸ Those who make them and trust them will be like them.

⁹ O Israel, trust in the Lord. He is their help and safe-covering. ¹⁰ O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord. He is their help and safe-covering. ¹¹ You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord. He is their help and safe-covering. ¹² The Lord has remembered us and will make good come to us. He will make good come to the house of Israel. He will make good come to the house of Aaron. ¹³ He will make good come to those who fear the Lord, both the small and the great. ¹⁴ May the Lord make your numbers grow, both you and your children. ¹⁵ May you be given good things by the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

¹⁶ The heavens belong to the Lord. But He has given the earth to the children of men. ¹⁷ The dead do not praise the Lord. Neither do those who go down into the quiet place. ¹⁸ But we will give honor and thanks to the Lord, now and forever. Praise the Lord!

Praises to God for Being Saved from Death

116 I love the Lord, because He hears my voice and my prayers. ² I will call on Him as long as I live, because He has turned His ear to me. ³ The strings of death are all around me. And the fear of the grave came upon me. I suffered with trouble and sorrow. ⁴ Then I called on the name of the Lord: “O Lord, I beg You, save my life!”

⁵ The Lord is loving and right. Yes, our God is full of loving-kindness. ⁶ The Lord takes care of the child-like. I was brought down, and He saved me. ⁷ Return to your rest, O my soul. For the Lord has been good to you. ⁸ For You, O Lord, have saved my soul from death, my eyes from tears, and my feet from falling. ⁹ I will walk with the Lord in the land of the living. ¹⁰ I believed when I said, “I am very troubled.” ¹¹ I said in my fear, “All men are liars.”

¹² What should I give to the Lord for all the good things He has done for me? ¹³ I will show Him my thanks for saving me with a gift of wine and praise His name. ¹⁴ I will keep my promises to the Lord before all His people. ¹⁵ The death of His holy ones is of great worth in the eyes of the Lord. ¹⁶ For sure I am Your servant, O Lord. I am Your servant, the son of the woman who served You. You have set me free from my chains. ¹⁷ I will give a gift of thanks to You and call on the name of the Lord. ¹⁸ I will keep my promises to the Lord before all His people, ¹⁹ in the holy place of the Lord, and in the center of you, O Jerusalem. Praise the Lord!

A Psalm of Praise

117 Praise the Lord, all nations! Praise Him, all people! ² For His loving-kindness toward us is great. And the truth of the Lord lasts forever. Praise the Lord!

A Prayer of Thanks

118 Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His loving-kindness lasts forever. ² Let Israel say, “His loving-kindness lasts forever.” ³ Let the house of Aaron say, “His loving-kindness lasts forever.” ⁴ Let those who fear the Lord say, “His loving-kindness lasts forever.”

⁵ I cried to the Lord in my trouble, and He answered me and put me in a good place. ⁶ The Lord is with me. I will not be afraid of what man can do to me. ⁷ The Lord is with me. He is my Helper. I will watch those lose who fight against me. ⁸ It is better to trust in the Lord than to trust in man. ⁹ It is better to trust in the Lord than to trust in rulers.

¹⁰ All nations gathered around me. But I cut them off in the name of the Lord. ¹¹ They gathered around me. Yes, they were on every side. But I cut them off in the name of the Lord. ¹² They were all around me like bees and they died out fast like burning thorns. I will destroy them in the name of the Lord. ¹³ You pushed me back so that I was falling, but the Lord helped me. ¹⁴ The Lord is my strength and my song. He is the One Who saves me.

¹⁵ The joy of being saved is being heard in the tents of those who are right and good. The right hand of the Lord does powerful things. ¹⁶ The Lord’s right hand is lifted high. The right hand of the Lord does powerful things. ¹⁷ I will not die but live. And I will tell of what the Lord has done. ¹⁸ The Lord has punished me but He has not given me over to death.

¹⁹ Open to me the gates of what is right and good. I will go through them and give thanks to the Lord. ²⁰ This is the gate of the Lord. Those who are right with God will pass through it. ²¹ I will give thanks to You, for You have answered me. And You are the One Who saves me.

²² The stone that was put aside by the workmen has become the most important stone in the building. ²³ The Lord has done this. We think it is great! ²⁴ This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us be full of joy and be glad in it. ²⁵ O Lord, we beg You to save us! O Lord, we ask that You let everything go well for us! ²⁶ Great and honored is he who comes in the name of the Lord. We honor you from the house of the Lord. ²⁷ The Lord is God. He has given us light. Tie the gift with rope to the horns of the altar on this special day. ²⁸ You are my God and I will give You thanks. You are my God and I will praise You. ²⁹ Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His loving-kindness lasts forever.

The Law of the Lord

119 Happy are those whose way is without blame, who walk in the Law of the Lord. ² Happy are those who keep His Law and look for Him with all their heart. ³ They also do not sin, but walk in His ways. ⁴ You have set down Laws that we should always obey. ⁵ O, that my ways may be always in keeping with Your Law! ⁶ Then I will not be put to shame when I respect Your Word. ⁷ I will praise You with a heart that is right when I learn how right You judge. ⁸ I will obey Your Law. Do not leave me all alone.

⁹ How can a young man keep his way pure? By living by Your Word. ¹⁰ I have looked for You with all my heart. Do not let me turn from Your Law. ¹¹ Your Word have I hid in my heart, that I may not sin against You. ¹² Great and honored are You, O Lord. Teach me Your Law. ¹³ I have told with my lips of all the Laws of Your mouth. ¹⁴ I have found as much joy in following Your Law as one finds in much riches. ¹⁵ I will think about Your Law and have respect for Your ways. ¹⁶ I will be glad in Your Law. I will not forget Your Word.

¹⁷ Do good to Your servant so I may live and obey Your Word. ¹⁸ Open my eyes so that I may see great things from Your Law. ¹⁹ I am a stranger on the earth. Do not hide Your Word from me. ²⁰ My soul is crushed with a desire for Your Law at all times. ²¹ You speak sharp words to the proud, the hated ones, because they turn from Your Word. ²² Take away shame and bad feelings from me, for I have kept Your Law. ²³ Even if rulers sit together and speak against me, Your servant thinks about Your Law. ²⁴ Your Law is my joy and it tells me what to do.

²⁵ My soul is laid in the dust. Give me new life because of Your Word. ²⁶ I have told about my ways, and You have answered me. Teach me Your Law. ²⁷ Make me understand the way of Your Law so I will talk about Your great works. ²⁸ My soul cries because of sorrow. Give me strength because of Your Word. ²⁹ Take the false way from me. Show Your loving-favor by giving me Your Law. ³⁰ I have chosen the faithful way. I have set Your Law in front of me. ³¹ I hold on to Your Law, O Lord. Do not put me to shame. ³² I will run the way of Your Law, for You will give me a willing heart.

³³ O Lord, teach me the way of Your Law and I will obey it to the end. ³⁴ Give me understanding. Then I will listen to Your Word and obey it with all my heart. ³⁵ Make me walk in the path of Your Word, for I find joy in it. ³⁶ Turn my heart toward Your Law, so I will not earn money in a wrong way. ³⁷ Turn my eyes away from things that have no worth, and give me new life because of Your ways. ³⁸ Keep Your promise to Your servant, the promise You made to those who fear and worship You. ³⁹ Turn away the shame that I do not want to come to me, for Your Law is good. ⁴⁰ O, how I desire Your Law! Give me new life because of Your right and good way.

⁴¹ May Your loving-kindness also come to me, O Lord. May You save me as Your Word says. ⁴² Then I will have an answer for the one who puts me to shame, for I trust in Your Word. ⁴³ Do not take the word of truth out of my mouth, for I hope in Your Law. ⁴⁴ I will always obey Your Law, forever and ever. ⁴⁵ I will walk as a free man, for I look for Your Law. ⁴⁶ I will speak of Your Law in front of kings and will not be ashamed. ⁴⁷ I will be glad in Your Law, which I love. ⁴⁸ I will lift up my hands to Your Word, which I love, and I will think about Your Law.

⁴⁹ Remember Your Word to Your servant, for You have given me hope. ⁵⁰ Your Word has given me new life. This is my comfort in my suffering. ⁵¹ The proud always laugh at me, but I do not turn away from Your Law. ⁵² I have remembered Your Law from a long time ago, O Lord, and I am comforted. ⁵³ Burning anger comes upon me because of the sinful who turn away from Your Law. ⁵⁴ Your Laws are my songs in whatever house I stay. ⁵⁵ I remember Your name in the night, O Lord, and I have kept Your Law. ⁵⁶ It has become my way to obey Your Law.

⁵⁷ The Lord is my share. I have promised to obey Your Word. ⁵⁸ I begged for Your favor with all my heart. Show me Your love because of Your Word. ⁵⁹ I thought about my ways and turned my steps to Your Law. ⁶⁰ I hurried and did not wait to obey Your Law. ⁶¹ The ropes of the sinful are all around me, but I have not forgotten Your Law. ⁶² I will rise late in the night to give thanks to You because Your Law is right and good. ⁶³ I am a friend to all who fear You and of those who keep Your Law. ⁶⁴ The earth is full of Your loving-kindness, O Lord. Teach me Your Law.

⁶⁵ You have done good to Your servant, O Lord, because of Your Word. ⁶⁶ Teach me what I should know to be right and fair for I believe in Your Law. ⁶⁷ Before I suffered I went the wrong way, but now I obey Your Word. ⁶⁸ You are good and You do good. Teach me Your Law. ⁶⁹ The proud have put together a lie against me. I will keep Your Law with all my heart. ⁷⁰ Their heart is covered with fat, but I find joy in Your Law. ⁷¹ It is good for me that I was troubled, so that I might learn Your Law. ⁷² The Law of Your mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and silver pieces.

⁷³ Your hands made me and put me together. Give me understanding to learn Your Law. ⁷⁴ May those who fear You see me and be glad, for I have put my hope in Your Word. ⁷⁵ O Lord, I know that what You decide is right and good. You punish me because You are faithful. ⁷⁶ May Your loving-kindness comfort me because of Your promise to Your servant. ⁷⁷ Let Your loving-pity come to me so I may live. For Your Law is my joy. ⁷⁸ May the proud be ashamed, because they do wrong to me for no reason, but I will think about Your Law. ⁷⁹ May those who fear You and those who know Your Law turn to me. ⁸⁰ Let my heart be without blame in Your Law. Do not let me be put to shame.

⁸¹ My soul becomes weak with desire for Your saving power, but I have put my hope in Your Word. ⁸² My eyes become weak with desire for Your Word. I say, “When will You comfort me?” ⁸³ I have become like a wineskin in the smoke, but I do not forget Your Law. ⁸⁴ How long must Your servant wait? When will You punish those who make it hard for me? ⁸⁵ The proud have dug deep holes for me. They do not obey Your Law. ⁸⁶ All of Your Word is faithful. Help me! For they have made it hard for me with a lie. ⁸⁷ They almost destroyed me on the earth, but I did not turn away from Your Law. ⁸⁸ Give me life again by Your loving-kindness, and I will keep the Word of Your mouth.

⁸⁹ Forever, O Lord, Your Word will never change in heaven. ⁹⁰ You are faithful to all people for all time. You have made the earth, and it stands. ⁹¹ They stand today by Your Law, for all things serve You. ⁹² I would have been lost in my troubles if Your Law had not been my joy. ⁹³ I will never forget Your Word for by it You have given me new life. ⁹⁴ I am Yours. Save me, for I have looked to Your Law. ⁹⁵ The sinful wait to destroy me, but I will think about Your Word. ⁹⁶ I have seen that all things have an end, even if they are perfect, but Your Word is without end.

⁹⁷ O, how I love Your Law! It is what I think about all through the day. ⁹⁸ Your Word makes me wiser than those who hate me, for it is always with me. ⁹⁹ I have better understanding than all my teachers because I think about Your Law. ¹⁰⁰ I have a better understanding than those who are old because I obey Your Word. ¹⁰¹ I have kept my feet from every sinful way so that I may keep Your Word. ¹⁰² I have not turned away from Your Law, for You Yourself have taught me. ¹⁰³ How sweet is Your Word to my taste! It is sweeter than honey to my mouth! ¹⁰⁴ I get understanding from Your Law and so I hate every false way.

¹⁰⁵ Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. ¹⁰⁶ I have promised that I will keep Your Law. And I will add strength to this promise. ¹⁰⁷ I am in much suffering. O Lord, give me life again by Your Word. ¹⁰⁸ Take my willing gift of thanks, O Lord, and teach me Your Law. ¹⁰⁹ My life is always in my hand, yet I do not forget Your Law. ¹¹⁰ The sinful have set a trap for me, yet I have not turned from Your Law. ¹¹¹ I have been given Your Law forever. It is the joy of my heart. ¹¹² I have set my heart on obeying Your Law forever, even to the end.

¹¹³ I hate those who have two ways of thinking, but I love Your Law. ¹¹⁴ You are my hiding place and my battle-covering. I put my hope in Your Word. ¹¹⁵ Go away from me, you who do wrong, so I may keep the Word of my God. ¹¹⁶ Hold me up by Your Word and I will live. Do not let me be ashamed of my hope. ¹¹⁷ Hold me up so I will be safe, and I will always have respect for Your Law. ¹¹⁸ You turn away from all those who turn from Your Law. They fool themselves with their own lying. ¹¹⁹ You put away like waste all the sinful of the earth, so I love Your Law. ¹²⁰ My flesh shakes in fear of You, and I am afraid of how You may punish.

¹²¹ I have done what is fair and right. Do not leave me to those who would make it hard for me. ¹²² Promise that You will bring good to Your servant. Do not let the proud make it hard for me. ¹²³ My eyes become weak with desire for Your saving power and for Your Word that is right and good. ¹²⁴ Act in Your loving-kindness toward Your servant, and teach me Your Laws. ¹²⁵ I am Your servant. Give me understanding so I may know Your Law. ¹²⁶ It is time for You to work, Lord, for they have broken Your Law. ¹²⁷ I love Your Word more than gold, more than pure gold. ¹²⁸ And so I look upon all of Your Law as right. I hate every false way.

¹²⁹ Your Laws are wonderful, and so I obey them. ¹³⁰ The opening up of Your Word gives light. It gives understanding to the child-like. ¹³¹ I opened my mouth wide, breathing with desire for Your Law. ¹³² Turn to me and show me loving-favor, as You always do to those who love Your name. ¹³³ Set my steps in Your Word. Do not let sin rule over me. ¹³⁴ Set me free from the power of man, and I will obey Your Law. ¹³⁵ Make Your face shine upon Your servant and teach me Your Law. ¹³⁶ Tears flow from my eyes because of those who do not keep Your Law.

¹³⁷ You are right and good, O Lord, and Your Law is right. ¹³⁸ The Law You have made is right and good and very faithful. ¹³⁹ I feel weak because those who hate me have forgotten Your Word. ¹⁴⁰ Your Word is very pure and Your servant loves it. ¹⁴¹ I am not important and I am hated but I do not forget Your Law. ¹⁴² You are right forever, and Your Law is truth. ¹⁴³ Trouble and suffering have come upon me, yet Your Word is my joy. ¹⁴⁴ Your Law is right forever. Give me understanding and I will live.

¹⁴⁵ I cried with all my heart. Answer me, O Lord! I will keep Your Law. ¹⁴⁶ I cried to You. Save me, and I will keep Your Word. ¹⁴⁷ I rise before the morning comes and cry for help. I have put my hope in Your Word. ¹⁴⁸ My eyes wait for the night hours, so I may think about Your Word. ¹⁴⁹ Hear my voice because of Your loving-kindness. O Lord, give me new life again because of Your Law. ¹⁵⁰ Those who follow sinful ways come near. But they are far from Your Law. ¹⁵¹ You are near, O Lord. And all of Your Word is truth. ¹⁵² I learned from Your Law long ago that You made it to last forever.

¹⁵³ Look upon my suffering and take me from it. For I do not forget Your Law. ¹⁵⁴ Stand by me and set me free. Give me life again because of Your Word. ¹⁵⁵ Your saving help is far from the sinful, for they do not look to Your Law. ¹⁵⁶ Your loving-kindness is great, O Lord. Give me life again because of Your Law. ¹⁵⁷ There are many who hate me and make it hard for me. Yet I do not turn from Your Law. ¹⁵⁸ I look with hate on those who cannot be trusted, because they do not keep Your Word. ¹⁵⁹ Think about how I love Your Law. Give me life again, O Lord, because of Your loving-kindness. ¹⁶⁰ All of Your Word is truth, and every one of Your laws, which are always right, will last forever.

¹⁶¹ Rulers make it hard for me for no reason, but my heart honors Your Words with fear. ¹⁶² I am made happy by Your Word, like one who finds great riches. ¹⁶³ I hate what is false, but I love Your Law. ¹⁶⁴ I praise You seven times a day, because Your Law is right. ¹⁶⁵ Those who love Your Law have great peace, and nothing will cause them to be hurt in their spirit. ¹⁶⁶ I hope for Your saving power, O Lord, and I follow Your Word. ¹⁶⁷ I obey Your Law, for I love it very much. ¹⁶⁸ I obey Your Word and Laws, for You know all my ways.

¹⁶⁹ Let my cry come to You, O Lord. Give me understanding because of Your Word. ¹⁷⁰ Let my prayer come to You. Help me because of Your Word. ¹⁷¹ May praise come from my lips, for You teach me Your Law. ¹⁷² May my tongue sing about Your Word, for all of Your Word is right and good. ¹⁷³ May Your hand be ready to help me, for I have chosen Your Law. ¹⁷⁴ I have much desire for Your saving power, O Lord. Your Law is my joy. ¹⁷⁵ Let me live so I may praise You, and let Your Law help me. ¹⁷⁶ I have gone from the way like a lost sheep. Look for Your servant, for I do not forget Your Word.

A Prayer for Help

120 I cried to the Lord in my trouble, and He answered me. ² O Lord, save me from lying lips and a false tongue. ³ What will be given to you and what more will be done to you, you false tongue? ⁴ He will punish you with sharp arrows of the soldier, and with the hot fire of the broom tree.

⁵ It is bad for me, for I travel in Meshech and live among the tents of Kedar! ⁶ I have lived too long with those who hate peace. ⁷ I am for peace. But when I speak, they are for war.

The Lord—Our Helper

121 I will lift up my eyes to the mountains. Where will my help come from? ² My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth. ³ He will not let your feet go out from under you. He Who watches over you will not sleep. ⁴ Listen, He Who watches over Israel will not close his eyes or sleep.

⁵ The Lord watches over you. The Lord is your safe cover at your right hand. ⁶ The sun will not hurt you during the day and the moon will not hurt you during the night. ⁷ The Lord will keep you from all that is sinful. He will watch over your soul. ⁸ The Lord will watch over your coming and going, now and forever.

A Prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem

122 I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.” ² Our feet are standing inside your gates, O Jerusalem. ³ Jerusalem is built as a city where people come together. ⁴ That is where the different families go, the families of the Lord. There they give thanks to the name of the Lord, by the Law that was given to Israel. ⁵ For thrones were set there for telling who is guilty or not, the thrones of the house of David.

⁶ Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. May all go well for those who love you. ⁷ May there be peace within your walls. May all go well within your houses. ⁸ I will now say, “May peace be within you,” for the good of my brothers and my friends. ⁹ Because of the house of the Lord our God, I will pray for your good.

A Prayer for the Lord’s Help

123 I lift up my eyes to You, O You Whose throne is in the heavens. ² See, the eyes of servants look to the hand of their owner. The eyes of a woman servant look to the hand of her owner. So our eyes look to the Lord our God, until He shows us loving-kindness.

³ Show loving-kindness to us, O Lord. Show loving-kindness to us. For we have had our fill of hate. ⁴ The proud have laughed at us too long. We have had more than enough of their hate.

God Watches Over His People

124 “If the Lord had not been on our side,” let Israel say, ² “If the Lord had not been on our side when men came against us, ³ they would have eaten us up alive. Because their anger burned against us. ⁴ The waters would have covered us. The river would have passed over our soul. ⁵ The angry waters would have passed over our soul.”

⁶ Honor and thanks be to the Lord! He has not let us be torn by their teeth. ⁷ We have become free like a bird out of a trap. The net is broken and now we are free. ⁸ Our help is in the name of the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.

God’s People Are Safe

125 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved but stands forever. ² The Lord is around His people like the mountains are around Jerusalem, now and forever. ³ For the sinful will not rule over the land of those who are right with God. So those who are right and good may not use their hands to do wrong.

⁴ O Lord, do good to those who are good, and to those who are right in their hearts. ⁵ But the Lord will let all those who turn aside to their sinful ways go with those who are sinners. Peace be upon Israel.

A Prayer for Help

126 It was like a dream when the Lord brought back to Zion those who had been held in another land. ² Then we laughed with our mouths, and we sang with our tongues. Then it was said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” ³ The Lord has done great things for us and we are glad.

⁴ Bring back our people, O Lord, like the rivers in the South. ⁵ Those who plant with tears will gather fruit with songs of joy. ⁶ He who goes out crying as he carries his bag of seed will return with songs of joy as he brings much grain with him.

God Is Good to His People

127 Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders work for nothing. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the men who watch over it stay awake for nothing. ² You rise up early, and go to bed late, and work hard for your food, all for nothing. For the Lord gives to His loved ones even while they sleep.

³ See, children are a gift from the Lord. The children born to us are our special reward. ⁴ The children of a young man are like arrows in the hand of a soldier. ⁵ Happy is the man who has many of them. They will not be put to shame when they speak in the gate with those who hate them.

The Joy of Obeying

128 Happy are all who honor the Lord with fear, and who walk in His ways. ² For you will eat the fruit of your hands. You will be happy and it will be well with you. ³ Your wife will be like a vine with much fruit within your house. Your children will be like olive plants around your table. ⁴ This is the good that will come to the man who honors the Lord with fear.

⁵ May the Lord do good things for you from Zion. And may you see good come to Jerusalem all the days of your life. ⁶ Yes, may you see your children’s children. Peace be upon Israel.

A Prayer against All Who Hate Zion

129 “They have made it hard for me many times since I was young,” let Israel now say. ² “They have made it hard for me many times since I was young. But they have not won over me. ³ Those who plow have plowed my back. And they have made their ditches long.” ⁴ The Lord is right and good. He has cut in two the ropes of the sinful.

⁵ May all who hate Zion be put to shame and turned away. ⁶ Let them be like grass on the roof, which dries up before it grows. ⁷ No one can pick it and fill his hand. No one can gather it and fill his arms. ⁸ And those who pass by do not say, “May the Lord be good to you. We pray that good will come to you in the name of the Lord.”

A Prayer for Help

130 O Lord, I have cried to You out of the deep places. ² Lord, hear my voice! Let Your ears hear the voice of my prayers. ³ If you, Lord, should write down our sins, O Lord, who could stand? ⁴ But You are the One Who forgives, so You are honored with fear.

⁵ I wait for the Lord. My soul waits and I hope in His Word. ⁶ My soul waits for the Lord more than one who watches for the morning; yes, more than one who watches for the morning. ⁷ O Israel, hope in the Lord! For there is loving-kindness with the Lord. With Him we are saved for sure. ⁸ And He will save Israel from all their sins.

Child-Like Trust in the Lord

131 O Lord, my heart is not proud. My eyes are not filled with pride. And I do not trouble myself with important things or in things too great for me. ² For sure I have made my soul quiet like a child who no longer nurses while he is with his mother. My soul within me is like a child who no longer nurses. ³ O Israel, hope in the Lord, now and forever.

A Prayer for the House of God

132 O Lord, remember David and all of his suffering. ² Remember how he swore to the Lord, and how he made a promise to the Powerful One of Jacob: ³ “For sure I will not go into my house or lie on my bed, ⁴ or let sleep come and close my eyes, ⁵ until I find a place for the Lord, a house of worship for the Powerful One of Jacob.”

⁶ See, we heard about it in Ephrathah. We found it in the field of Jaar. ⁷ Let us go into the House of God. Let us worship at His feet. ⁸ Rise up, O Lord. Go to the place where You can rest, You and the special box of the Way of Worship which is Your strength. ⁹ Let Your religious leaders be dressed with what is right and good. And let those who belong to You sing for joy.

¹⁰ Because of David Your servant, do not turn away from Your chosen one. ¹¹ The Lord has made a sure promise to David that He will never break: “I will set upon your throne your own children. ¹² If your sons will keep My Law and My Word which I will teach them, then their sons will sit upon your throne forever.”

¹³ For the Lord has chosen Zion. He has wanted it for a place to live: ¹⁴ “This is the place where I can rest forever. Here I will live, for I have wanted it. ¹⁵ I will give her many good things. I will give her poor people much bread. ¹⁶ I will dress her religious leaders with saving power. And those in her that belong to Me will sing for joy. ¹⁷ There I will make the horn of David grow and will make a lamp ready for My chosen one. ¹⁸ I will dress those who hate him with shame. But the crown on him will shine.”

A Song of Praise

133 See, how good and how pleasing it is for brothers to live together as one! ² It is like oil of great worth poured on the head, flowing down through the hair on the face, even the face of Aaron, and flowing down to his coat. ³ It is like the morning water of Hermon coming down upon the hills of Zion. For there the Lord has given the gift of life that lasts forever.

A Call to Praise

134 See, give honor and thanks to the Lord, all who work for the Lord, who stand during the night in the house of the Lord. ² Lift up your hands to the holy place and give thanks to the Lord. ³ May the Lord bring good to you from Zion. He is the One Who made heaven and earth.