Psalms - Background Reading (only these sessions have background reading)
Session 4: Subject: Lament - Psalms 10, 38, 39, 41, 44, 74, 80, 83, 137-139 (NLT)
Psalm 10
1 O Lord,
why do you stand so far away?
Why do you
hide when I am in trouble?
2 The wicked arrogantly
hunt down the poor.
Let them be caught
in the evil they plan for others.
3 For they brag
about their evil desires;
they praise
the greedy and curse the Lord.
4 The
wicked are too proud to seek God.
They
seem to think that God is dead.
5 Yet they succeed
in everything they do.
They do not see
your punishment awaiting them.
They
sneer at all their enemies.
6 They think, “Nothing
bad will ever happen to us!
We will be
free of trouble forever!”
7 Their
mouths are full of cursing, lies, and threats.
Trouble
and evil are on the tips of their tongues.
8 They
lurk in ambush in the villages,
waiting
to murder innocent people.
They are
always searching for helpless victims.
9 Like lions
crouched in hiding,
they wait to pounce
on the helpless.
Like hunters they capture the helpless
and
drag them away in nets.
10 Their helpless victims
are crushed;
they fall beneath the
strength of the wicked.
11 The wicked think, “God
isn’t watching us!
He has closed his
eyes and won’t even see what we do!”
12 Arise,
O Lord!
Punish
the wicked, O God!
Do not ignore the
helpless!
13 Why do the wicked get away with
despising God?
They think, “God will
never call us to account.”
14 But you see the
trouble and grief they cause.
You take
note of it and punish them.
The helpless put their trust in
you.
You defend the orphans.
15 Break
the arms of these wicked, evil people!
Go
after them until the last one is destroyed.
16 The Lord is
king forever and ever!
The godless
nations will vanish from the land.
17 Lord,
you know the hopes of the helpless.
Surely
you will hear their cries and comfort them.
18 You
will bring justice to the orphans and the oppressed,
so
mere people can no longer terrify them.
Psalm 38
A psalm of David, asking God to remember him.
1 O Lord,
don’t rebuke me in your anger
or
discipline me in your rage!
2 Your arrows have
struck deep,
and your blows are crushing
me.
3 Because of your anger, my whole body is
sick;
my health is broken because of my
sins.
4 My guilt overwhelms me—
it
is a burden too heavy to bear.
5 My wounds fester
and stink
because of my foolish
sins.
6 I am bent over and racked with pain.
All
day long I walk around filled with grief.
7 A raging
fever burns within me,
and my health is
broken.
8 I am exhausted and completely
crushed.
My groans come from an
anguished heart.
9 You
know what I long for, Lord;
you hear my
every sigh.
10 My heart beats wildly, my strength
fails,
and I am going blind.
11 My
loved ones and friends stay away, fearing my disease.
Even
my own family stands at a distance.
12 Meanwhile, my
enemies lay traps to kill me.
Those who
wish me harm make plans to ruin me.
All
day long they plan their treachery.
13 But
I am deaf to all their threats.
I am
silent before them as one who cannot speak.
14 I
choose to hear nothing,
and I make no
reply.
15 For I am waiting for you, O Lord.
You
must answer for me, O Lord my God.
16 I prayed,
“Don’t let my enemies gloat over me
or
rejoice at my downfall.”
17 I
am on the verge of collapse,
facing
constant pain.
18 But I confess my sins;
I
am deeply sorry for what I have done.
19 I have many
aggressive enemies;
they hate me without
reason.
20 They repay me evil for good
and
oppose me for pursuing good.
21 Do not abandon me,
O Lord.
Do
not stand at a distance, my God.
22 Come quickly to
help me,
O Lord my savior.
Psalm 39
For Jeduthun, the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 I
said to myself, “I will watch what I do
and
not sin in what I say.
I will hold my tongue
when
the ungodly are around me.”
2 But as I stood there
in silence—
not even speaking of good
things—
the turmoil within me grew
worse.
3 The more I thought about it,
the
hotter I got,
igniting a fire of
words:
4 “Lord,
remind me how brief my time on earth will be.
Remind
me that my days are numbered—
how
fleeting my life is.
5 You have made my life no
longer than the width of my hand.
My
entire lifetime is just a moment to you;
at
best, each of us is but a breath.” Interlude
6 We
are merely moving shadows,
and all our
busy rushing ends in nothing.
We heap up wealth,
not
knowing who will spend it.
7 And so, Lord, where do
I put my hope?
My only hope is in
you.
8 Rescue me from my rebellion.
Do
not let fools mock me.
9 I am silent before you; I
won’t say a word,
for my punishment is
from you.
10 But please stop striking me!
I
am exhausted by the blows from your hand.
11 When
you discipline us for our sins,
you
consume like a moth what is precious to us.
Each
of us is but a breath. Interlude
12 Hear
my prayer, O Lord!
Listen
to my cries for help!
Don’t ignore my
tears.
For I am your guest—
a
traveler passing through,
as my
ancestors were before me.
13 Leave me alone so I can
smile again
before I am gone and exist
no more.
Psalm 41
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 Oh,
the joys of those who are kind to the poor!
The Lord rescues
them when they are in trouble.
2 The Lord protects
them
and keeps them alive.
He gives
them prosperity in the land
and rescues
them from their enemies.
3 The Lord nurses
them when they are sick
and restores
them to health.
4 “O Lord,”
I prayed, “have mercy on me.
Heal me,
for I have sinned against you.”
5 But my enemies
say nothing but evil about me.
“How
soon will he die and be forgotten?” they ask.
6 They
visit me as if they were my friends,
but
all the while they gather gossip,
and
when they leave, they spread it everywhere.
7 All
who hate me whisper about me,
imagining
the worst.
8 “He has some fatal disease,” they
say.
“He will never get out of that
bed!”
9 Even my best friend, the one I trusted
completely,
the one who shared my food,
has turned against me.
10 Lord,
have mercy on me.
Make me well again, so
I can pay them back!
11 I know you are pleased with
me,
for you have not let my enemies
triumph over me.
12 You have preserved my life
because I am innocent;
you have brought
me into your presence forever.
13 Praise
the Lord, the God
of Israel,
who lives from everlasting to
everlasting.
Amen and amen!
Psalm 44
For the choir director: A psalm of the descendants of Korah.
1 O
God, we have heard it with our own ears—
our
ancestors have told us
of all you did in their day,
in
days long ago:
2 You drove out the pagan nations by
your power
and gave all the land to our
ancestors.
You crushed their enemies
and
set our ancestors free.
3 They did not conquer the
land with their swords;
it was not their
own strong arm that gave them victory.
It was your right hand
and strong arm
and the blinding light
from your face that helped them,
for you
loved them.
4 You
are my King and my God.
You command
victories for Israel.
5 Only by your power can we
push back our enemies;
only in your name
can we trample our foes.
6 I do not trust in my
bow;
I do not count on my sword to save
me.
7 You are the one who gives us victory over our
enemies;
you disgrace those who hate
us.
8 O God, we give glory to you all day
long
and constantly praise your
name. Interlude
9 But
now you have tossed us aside in dishonor.
You
no longer lead our armies to battle.
10 You make us
retreat from our enemies
and allow those
who hate us to plunder our land.
11 You have
butchered us like sheep
and scattered us
among the nations.
12 You sold your precious people
for a pittance,
making nothing on the
sale.
13 You let our neighbors mock us.
We
are an object of scorn and derision to those around us.
14 You
have made us the butt of their jokes;
they
shake their heads at us in scorn.
15 We can’t
escape the constant humiliation;
shame
is written across our faces.
16 All we hear are the
taunts of our mockers.
All we see are
our vengeful enemies.
17 All
this has happened though we have not forgotten you.
We
have not violated your covenant.
18 Our hearts have
not deserted you.
We have not strayed
from your path.
19 Yet you have crushed us in the
jackal’s desert home.
You have covered
us with darkness and death.
20 If we had forgotten
the name of our God
or spread our hands
in prayer to foreign gods,
21 God would surely have
known it,
for he knows the secrets of
every heart.
22 But for your sake we are killed
every day;
we are being slaughtered like
sheep.
23 Wake
up, O Lord! Why do you sleep?
Get up! Do
not reject us forever.
24 Why do you look the other
way?
Why do you ignore our suffering and
oppression?
25 We collapse in the dust,
lying
face down in the dirt.
26 Rise up! Help
us!
Ransom us because of your unfailing
love.
Psalm 74
A psalm of Asaph.
1 O
God, why have you rejected us so long?
Why
is your anger so intense against the sheep of your own
pasture?
2 Remember that we are the people you chose
long ago,
the tribe you redeemed as your
own special possession!
And remember
Jerusalem, your home here on earth.
3 Walk
through the awful ruins of the city;
see
how the enemy has destroyed your sanctuary.
4 There
your enemies shouted their victorious battle cries;
there
they set up their battle standards.
5 They swung
their axes
like woodcutters in a
forest.
6 With axes and picks,
they
smashed the carved paneling.
7 They burned your
sanctuary to the ground.
They defiled
the place that bears your name.
8 Then they thought,
“Let’s destroy everything!”
So
they burned down all the places where God was worshiped.
9 We
no longer see your miraculous signs.
All
the prophets are gone,
and no one can
tell us when it will end.
10 How long, O God, will
you allow our enemies to insult you?
Will
you let them dishonor your name forever?
11 Why do
you hold back your strong right hand?
Unleash
your powerful fist and destroy them.
12 You,
O God, are my king from ages past,
bringing
salvation to the earth.
13 You split the sea by your
strength
and smashed the heads of the
sea monsters.
14 You crushed the heads of
Leviathan
and let the desert animals eat
him.
15 You caused the springs and streams to gush
forth,
and you dried up rivers that
never run dry.
16 Both day and night belong to
you;
you made the starlight and the
sun.
17 You set the boundaries of the earth,
and
you made both summer and winter.
18 See
how these enemies insult you, Lord.
A
foolish nation has dishonored your name.
19 Don’t
let these wild beasts destroy your turtledoves.
Don’t
forget your suffering people forever.
20 Remember
your covenant promises,
for the land is
full of darkness and violence!
21 Don’t let the
downtrodden be humiliated again.
Instead,
let the poor and needy praise your name.
22 Arise,
O God, and defend your cause.
Remember
how these fools insult you all day long.
23 Don’t
overlook what your enemies have said
or
their growing uproar.
Psalm 80
For the choir director: A psalm of Asaph, to be sung to the tune “Lilies of the Covenant.”
1 Please
listen, O Shepherd of Israel,
you who
lead Joseph’s descendants like a flock.
O God, enthroned above
the cherubim,
display your radiant
glory
2 to Ephraim,
Benjamin, and Manasseh.
Show us your mighty power.
Come
to rescue us!
3 Turn
us again to yourself, O God.
Make your
face shine down upon us.
Only then will
we be saved.
4 O Lord God
of Heaven’s Armies,
how long will you
be angry with our prayers?
5 You have fed us with
sorrow
and made us drink tears by the
bucketful.
6 You have made us the scorn of
neighboring nations.
Our enemies treat
us as a joke.
7 Turn
us again to yourself, O God of Heaven’s Armies.
Make
your face shine down upon us.
Only then
will we be saved.
8 You brought us from Egypt like a
grapevine;
you drove away the pagan
nations and transplanted us into your land.
9 You
cleared the ground for us,
and we took
root and filled the land.
10 Our shade covered the
mountains;
our branches covered the
mighty cedars.
11 We spread our branches west to the
Mediterranean Sea;
our shoots spread
east to the Euphrates River.
12 But now, why have
you broken down our walls
so that all
who pass by may steal our fruit?
13 The wild boar
from the forest devours it,
and the wild
animals feed on it.
14 Come
back, we beg you, O God of Heaven’s Armies.
Look
down from heaven and see our plight.
Take care of this
grapevine
15 that you
yourself have planted,
this son you have
raised for yourself.
16 For we are chopped up and
burned by our enemies.
May they perish
at the sight of your frown.
17 Strengthen the man
you love,
the son of your
choice.
18 Then we will never abandon you
again.
Revive us so we can call on your
name once more.
19 Turn
us again to yourself, O Lord God
of Heaven’s Armies.
Make your face
shine down upon us.
Only then will we be
saved.
Psalm 83
A song. A psalm of Asaph.
1 O
God, do not be silent!
Do not be
deaf.
Do not be quiet, O God.
2 Don’t
you hear the uproar of your enemies?
Don’t
you see that your arrogant enemies are rising up?
3 They
devise crafty schemes against your people;
they
conspire against your precious ones.
4 “Come,”
they say, “let us wipe out Israel as a nation.
We
will destroy the very memory of its existence.”
5 Yes,
this was their unanimous decision.
They
signed a treaty as allies against you—
6 these
Edomites and Ishmaelites;
Moabites and
Hagrites;
7 Gebalites, Ammonites, and
Amalekites;
and people from Philistia
and Tyre.
8 Assyria has joined them, too,
and
is allied with the descendants of Lot. Interlude
9 Do
to them as you did to the Midianites
and
as you did to Sisera and Jabin at the Kishon River.
10 They
were destroyed at Endor,
and their
decaying corpses fertilized the soil.
11 Let their
mighty nobles die as Oreb and Zeeb did.
Let
all their princes die like Zebah and Zalmunna,
12 for
they said, “Let us seize for our own use
these
pasturelands of God!”
13 O my God, scatter them
like tumbleweed,
like chaff before the
wind!
14 As a fire burns a forest
and
as a flame sets mountains ablaze,
15 chase them with
your fierce storm;
terrify them with
your tempest.
16 Utterly disgrace them
until
they submit to your name, O Lord.
17 Let
them be ashamed and terrified forever.
Let
them die in disgrace.
18 Then they will learn that
you alone are called the Lord,
that
you alone are the Most High,
supreme
over all the earth.
Psalm 137
1 Beside
the rivers of Babylon, we sat and wept
as
we thought of Jerusalem.
2 We put away our
harps,
hanging them on the branches of
poplar trees.
3 For our captors demanded a song from
us.
Our tormentors insisted on a joyful
hymn:
“Sing us one of those songs of
Jerusalem!”
4 But how can we sing the songs of
the Lord
while
in a pagan land?
5 If
I forget you, O Jerusalem,
let my right
hand forget how to play the harp.
6 May my tongue
stick to the roof of my mouth
if I fail
to remember you,
if I don’t make
Jerusalem my greatest joy.
7 O Lord,
remember what the Edomites did
on the
day the armies of Babylon captured Jerusalem.
“Destroy it!”
they yelled.
“Level it to the
ground!”
8 O Babylon, you will be
destroyed.
Happy is the one who pays you
back
for what you have done to
us.
9 Happy is the one who takes your babies
and
smashes them against the rocks!
Psalm 138
A psalm of David.
1 I
give you thanks, O Lord,
with all my heart;
I will sing your
praises before the gods.
2 I bow before your holy
Temple as I worship.
I praise your name
for your unfailing love and faithfulness;
for your promises are
backed
by all the honor of your
name.
3 As soon as I pray, you answer me;
you
encourage me by giving me strength.
4 Every
king in all the earth will thank you, Lord,
for
all of them will hear your words.
5 Yes, they will
sing about the Lord’s
ways,
for the glory of the Lord is
very great.
6 Though the Lord is
great, he cares for the humble,
but he
keeps his distance from the proud.
7 Though
I am surrounded by troubles,
you will
protect me from the anger of my enemies.
You reach out your
hand,
and the power of your right hand
saves me.
8 The Lord will
work out his plans for my life—
for
your faithful love, O Lord,
endures forever.
Don’t abandon me, for
you made me.
Psalm 139
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 O Lord,
you have examined my heart
and know
everything about me.
2 You know when I sit down or
stand up.
You know my thoughts even when
I’m far away.
3 You see me when I travel
and
when I rest at home.
You know everything
I do.
4 You know what I am going to say
even
before I say it, Lord.
5 You
go before me and follow me.
You place
your hand of blessing on my head.
6 Such knowledge
is too wonderful for me,
too great for
me to understand!
7 I
can never escape from your Spirit!
I can
never get away from your presence!
8 If I go up to
heaven, you are there;
if I go down to
the grave, you are there.
9 If I ride the wings
of the morning,
if I dwell by the
farthest oceans,
10 even there your hand will guide
me,
and your strength will support
me.
11 I could ask the darkness to hide me
and
the light around me to become night—
12 but
even in darkness I cannot hide from you.
To you the night shines
as bright as day.
Darkness and light are
the same to you.
13 You
made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
and
knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 Thank you
for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your
workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
15 You
watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,
as
I was woven together in the dark of the womb.
16 You
saw me before I was born.
Every day of
my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid
out
before a single day had passed.
17 How
precious are your thoughts about me, O God.
They
cannot be numbered!
18 I can’t even count
them;
they outnumber the grains of
sand!
And when I wake up,
you are
still with me!
19 O
God, if only you would destroy the wicked!
Get
out of my life, you murderers!
20 They blaspheme
you;
your enemies misuse your
name.
21 O Lord,
shouldn’t I hate those who hate you?
Shouldn’t
I despise those who oppose you?
22 Yes, I hate them
with total hatred,
for your enemies are
my enemies.
23 Search
me, O God, and know my heart;
test me
and know my anxious thoughts.
24 Point out anything
in me that offends you,
and lead me
along the path of everlasting life.
END OF SESSION 4
Session 5: Subject: Repentance - Psalms 25, 130, 143 (NLT)
Psalm 25
A psalm of David.
1 O Lord,
I give my life to you.
2 I
trust in you, my God!
Do not let me be disgraced,
or
let my enemies rejoice in my defeat.
3 No one who
trusts in you will ever be disgraced,
but
disgrace comes to those who try to deceive others.
4 Show
me the right path, O Lord;
point
out the road for me to follow.
5 Lead me by your
truth and teach me,
for you are the God
who saves me.
All day long I put my hope
in you.
6 Remember, O Lord,
your compassion and unfailing love,
which
you have shown from long ages past.
7 Do not
remember the rebellious sins of my youth.
Remember
me in the light of your unfailing love,
for
you are merciful, O Lord.
8 The Lord is
good and does what is right;
he shows
the proper path to those who go astray.
9 He leads
the humble in doing right,
teaching them
his way.
10 The Lord leads
with unfailing love and faithfulness
all
who keep his covenant and obey his demands.
11 For
the honor of your name, O Lord,
forgive
my many, many sins.
12 Who are those who fear
the Lord?
He
will show them the path they should choose.
13 They
will live in prosperity,
and their
children will inherit the land.
14 The Lord is
a friend to those who fear him.
He
teaches them his covenant.
15 My eyes are always on
the Lord,
for
he rescues me from the traps of my enemies.
16 Turn
to me and have mercy,
for I am alone and
in deep distress.
17 My problems go from bad to
worse.
Oh, save me from them
all!
18 Feel my pain and see my trouble.
Forgive
all my sins.
19 See how many enemies I have
and
how viciously they hate me!
20 Protect me! Rescue my
life from them!
Do not let me be
disgraced, for in you I take refuge.
21 May
integrity and honesty protect me,
for I
put my hope in you.
22 O
God, ransom Israel
from all its
troubles.
Psalm 130
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 From
the depths of despair, O Lord,
I
call for your help.
2 Hear my cry, O Lord.
Pay
attention to my prayer.
3 Lord,
if you kept a record of our sins,
who, O
Lord, could ever survive?
4 But you offer
forgiveness,
that we might learn to fear
you.
5 I
am counting on the Lord;
yes,
I am counting on him.
I have put my hope
in his word.
6 I long for the Lord
more
than sentries long for the dawn,
yes,
more than sentries long for the dawn.
7 O
Israel, hope in the Lord;
for
with the Lord there
is unfailing love.
His redemption
overflows.
8 He himself will redeem Israel
from
every kind of sin.
Psalm 143
A psalm of David.
1 Hear
my prayer, O Lord;
listen
to my plea!
Answer me because you are
faithful and righteous.
2 Don’t put your servant
on trial,
for no one is innocent before
you.
3 My enemy has chased me.
He
has knocked me to the ground
and forces
me to live in darkness like those in the grave.
4 I
am losing all hope;
I am paralyzed with
fear.
5 I remember the days of old.
I
ponder all your great works
and think
about what you have done.
6 I lift my hands to you
in prayer.
I thirst for you as parched
land thirsts for rain. Interlude
7 Come
quickly, Lord, and
answer me,
for my depression
deepens.
Don’t turn away from me,
or
I will die.
8 Let me hear of your unfailing love
each morning,
for I am trusting
you.
Show me where to walk,
for I
give myself to you.
9 Rescue me from my
enemies, Lord;
I
run to you to hide me.
10 Teach me to do your
will,
for you are my God.
May your
gracious Spirit lead me forward
on a
firm footing.
11 For the glory of your name, O Lord,
preserve my life.
Because of your
faithfulness, bring me out of this distress.
12 In
your unfailing love, silence all my enemies
and
destroy all my foes,
for I am your
servant.
END OF SESSION 5
Session 6: Subject: Trust - Psalms 18, 21, 67, 76, 82, 96 (NLT)
For the choir director: A psalm of David, the servant of the Lord. He sang this song to the Lord on the day the Lord rescued him from all his enemies and from Saul. He sang:
1 I
love you, Lord;
you are my
strength.
2 The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and
my savior;
my God is my rock, in whom I
find protection.
He is my shield, the power that saves
me,
and my place of safety.
3 I
called on the Lord, who is worthy of praise,
and
he saved me from my enemies.
4 The
ropes of death entangled me;
floods of
destruction swept over me.
5 The grave wrapped its
ropes around me;
death laid a trap in my
path.
6 But in my distress I cried out to
the Lord;
yes, I prayed to my God
for help.
He heard me from his sanctuary;
my
cry to him reached his ears.
7 Then
the earth quaked and trembled.
The
foundations of the mountains shook;
they
quaked because of his anger.
8 Smoke poured from his
nostrils;
fierce flames leaped from his
mouth.
Glowing coals blazed forth from
him.
9 He opened the heavens and came down;
dark
storm clouds were beneath his feet.
10 Mounted on a mighty
angelic being, he flew,
soaring on
the wings of the wind.
11 He shrouded himself in
darkness,
veiling his approach with dark
rain clouds.
12 Thick clouds shielded the brightness around
him
and rained down hail and burning
coals.
13 The Lord thundered from heaven;
the
voice of the Most High resounded
amid
the hail and burning coals.
14 He shot his arrows and
scattered his enemies;
great bolts of
lightning flashed, and they were confused.
15 Then at your
command, O Lord,
at the blast of
your breath,
the bottom of the sea could be seen,
and
the foundations of the earth were laid bare.
16 He
reached down from heaven and rescued me;
he
drew me out of deep waters.
17 He rescued me from my
powerful enemies,
from those who hated
me and were too strong for me.
18 They attacked me at a
moment when I was in distress,
but
the Lord supported me.
19 He led me to a place of
safety;
he rescued me because he
delights in me.
20 The Lord rewarded me for doing
right;
he restored me because of my
innocence.
21 For I have kept the ways of the Lord;
I
have not turned from my God to follow evil.
22 I have
followed all his regulations;
I have
never abandoned his decrees.
23 I am blameless before
God;
I have kept myself from
sin.
24 The Lord rewarded me for doing
right.
He has seen my innocence.
25 To
the faithful you show yourself faithful;
to
those with integrity you show integrity.
26 To the pure you
show yourself pure,
but to the crooked
you show yourself shrewd.
27 You rescue the humble,
but
you humiliate the proud.
28 You light a lamp for
me.
The Lord, my God, lights up my
darkness.
29 In your strength I can crush an army;
with
my God I can scale any wall.
30 God’s
way is perfect.
All the Lord’s
promises prove true.
He is a shield for
all who look to him for protection.
31 For who is God
except the Lord?
Who but our God is
a solid rock?
32 God arms me with strength,
and
he makes my way perfect.
33 He makes me as surefooted as a
deer,
enabling me to stand on mountain
heights.
34 He trains my hands for battle;
he
strengthens my arm to draw a bronze bow.
35 You have given
me your shield of victory.
Your right
hand supports me;
your help has
made me great.
36 You have made a wide path for my
feet
to keep them from slipping.
37 I
chased my enemies and caught them;
I did
not stop until they were conquered.
38 I struck them down
so they could not get up;
they fell
beneath my feet.
39 You have armed me with strength for the
battle;
you have subdued my enemies
under my feet.
40 You placed my foot on their necks.
I
have destroyed all who hated me.
41 They called for help,
but no one came to their rescue.
They
even cried to the Lord, but he refused to answer.
42 I
ground them as fine as dust in the wind.
I
swept them into the gutter like dirt.
43 You gave me
victory over my accusers.
You appointed
me ruler over nations;
people I don’t
even know now serve me.
44 As soon as they hear of me, they
submit;
foreign nations cringe before
me.
45 They all lose their courage
and
come trembling from their strongholds.
46 The Lord lives!
Praise to my Rock!
May the God of my
salvation be exalted!
47 He is the God who pays back those
who harm me;
he subdues the nations
under me
48 and rescues me from my
enemies.
You hold me safe beyond the reach of my
enemies;
you save me from violent
opponents.
49 For this, O Lord, I will praise you
among the nations;
I will sing praises
to your name.
50 You give great victories to your
king;
you show unfailing love to your
anointed,
to David and all his
descendants forever.
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 How
the king rejoices in your strength, O Lord!
He
shouts with joy because you give him victory.
2 For you
have given him his heart’s desire;
you
have withheld nothing he requested. Interlude
3 You
welcomed him back with success and prosperity.
You
placed a crown of finest gold on his head.
4 He asked you
to preserve his life,
and you granted
his request.
The days of his life
stretch on forever.
5 Your victory brings him great
honor,
and you have clothed him with
splendor and majesty.
6 You have endowed him with eternal
blessings
and given him the joy of your
presence.
7 For the king trusts in the Lord.
The
unfailing love of the Most High will keep him from stumbling.
8 You
will capture all your enemies.
Your
strong right hand will seize all who hate you.
9 You will
throw them in a flaming furnace
when you
appear.
The Lord will consume them in his
anger;
fire will devour them.
10 You
will wipe their children from the face of the earth;
they
will never have descendants.
11 Although they plot against
you,
their evil schemes will never
succeed.
12 For they will turn and run
when
they see your arrows aimed at them.
13 Rise up, O Lord,
in all your power.
With music and
singing we celebrate your mighty acts.
For the choir director: A song. A psalm, to be accompanied by stringed instruments.
1 May
God be merciful and bless us.
May his
face smile with favor on us. Interlude
2 May
your ways be known throughout the earth,
your
saving power among people everywhere.
3 May the nations
praise you, O God.
Yes, may all the
nations praise you.
4 Let the whole world sing for
joy,
because you govern the nations with
justice
and guide the people of the
whole world. Interlude
5 May
the nations praise you, O God.
Yes, may
all the nations praise you.
6 Then the earth will yield its
harvests,
and God, our God, will richly
bless us.
7 Yes, God will bless us,
and
people all over the world will fear him.
For the choir director: A psalm of Asaph. A song to be accompanied by stringed instruments.
1 God
is honored in Judah;
his name is great
in Israel.
2 Jerusalem is where he lives;
Mount
Zion is his home.
3 There he has broken the fiery arrows of
the enemy,
the shields and swords and
weapons of war. Interlude
4 You
are glorious and more majestic
than the
everlasting mountains.
5 Our boldest enemies have been
plundered.
They lie before us in the
sleep of death.
No warrior could lift a
hand against us.
6 At the blast of your breath, O God of
Jacob,
their horses and chariots lay
still.
7 No
wonder you are greatly feared!
Who can
stand before you when your anger explodes?
8 From heaven
you sentenced your enemies;
the earth
trembled and stood silent before you.
9 You stand up to
judge those who do evil, O God,
and to
rescue the oppressed of the earth. Interlude
10 Human
defiance only enhances your glory,
for
you use it as a weapon.
11 Make
vows to the Lord your God, and keep them.
Let
everyone bring tribute to the Awesome One.
12 For he breaks
the pride of princes,
and the kings of
the earth fear him.
A psalm of Asaph.
1 God
presides over heaven’s court;
he
pronounces judgment on the heavenly beings:
2 “How long
will you hand down unjust decisions
by
favoring the wicked? Interlude
3 “Give
justice to the poor and the orphan;
uphold
the rights of the oppressed and the destitute.
4 Rescue the
poor and helpless;
deliver them from the
grasp of evil people.
5 But these oppressors know
nothing;
they are so ignorant!
They
wander about in darkness,
while the
whole world is shaken to the core.
6 I say, ‘You are
gods;
you are all children of the Most
High.
7 But you will die like mere mortals
and
fall like every other ruler.’”
8 Rise
up, O God, and judge the earth,
for all
the nations belong to you.
1 Sing
a new song to the Lord!
Let the
whole earth sing to the Lord!
2 Sing to the Lord;
praise his name.
Each day proclaim the
good news that he saves.
3 Publish his glorious deeds among
the nations.
Tell everyone about the
amazing things he does.
4 Great is the Lord! He is
most worthy of praise!
He is to be
feared above all gods.
5 The gods of other nations are mere
idols,
but the Lord made the
heavens!
6 Honor and majesty surround him;
strength
and beauty fill his sanctuary.
7 O
nations of the world, recognize the Lord;
recognize
that the Lord is glorious and strong.
8 Give to
the Lord the glory he deserves!
Bring
your offering and come into his courts.
9 Worship
the Lord in all his holy splendor.
Let
all the earth tremble before him.
10 Tell all the nations,
“The Lord reigns!”
The
world stands firm and cannot be shaken.
He
will judge all peoples fairly.
11 Let
the heavens be glad, and the earth rejoice!
Let
the sea and everything in it shout his praise!
12 Let the
fields and their crops burst out with joy!
Let
the trees of the forest sing for joy
13 before the Lord,
for he is coming!
He is coming to judge
the earth.
He will judge the world with justice,
and
the nations with his truth.
END OF SESSION 6
Session 7: Subject: Remembrance - Psalms 66, 68, 77, 79, 81, 135–136 (NLT)
Psalm 66
For the choir director: A song. A psalm.
1 Shout
joyful praises to God, all the earth!
2 Sing
about the glory of his name!
Tell the
world how glorious he is.
3 Say to God, “How awesome are
your deeds!
Your enemies cringe before
your mighty power.
4 Everything on earth will worship
you;
they will sing your
praises,
shouting your name in glorious
songs.” Interlude
5 Come
and see what our God has done,
what
awesome miracles he performs for people!
6 He made a dry
path through the Red Sea,
and his people
went across on foot.
There we rejoiced
in him.
7 For by his great power he rules forever.
He
watches every movement of the nations;
let
no rebel rise in defiance. Interlude
8 Let
the whole world bless our God
and loudly
sing his praises.
9 Our lives are in his hands,
and
he keeps our feet from stumbling.
10 You have tested us, O
God;
you have purified us like
silver.
11 You captured us in your net
and
laid the burden of slavery on our backs.
12 Then you put a
leader over us.
We went through fire and
flood,
but you brought us to a place of
great abundance.
13 Now
I come to your Temple with burnt offerings
to
fulfill the vows I made to you—
14 yes, the sacred vows
that I made
when I was in deep
trouble.
15 That is why I am sacrificing burnt offerings to
you—
the best of my rams as a pleasing
aroma,
and a sacrifice of bulls and male
goats. Interlude
16 Come
and listen, all you who fear God,
and I
will tell you what he did for me.
17 For I cried out to him
for help,
praising him as I spoke.
18 If
I had not confessed the sin in my heart,
the
Lord would not have listened.
19 But God did listen!
He
paid attention to my prayer.
20 Praise God, who did not
ignore my prayer
or withdraw his
unfailing love from me.
Psalm 68
For the choir director: A song. A psalm of David.
1 Rise
up, O God, and scatter your enemies.
Let
those who hate God run for their lives.
2 Blow them away
like smoke.
Melt them like wax in a
fire.
Let the wicked perish in the
presence of God.
3 But let the godly rejoice.
Let
them be glad in God’s presence.
Let
them be filled with joy.
4 Sing praises to God and to his
name!
Sing loud praises to him who rides
the clouds.
His name is the Lord—
rejoice
in his presence!
5 Father
to the fatherless, defender of widows—
this
is God, whose dwelling is holy.
6 God places the lonely in
families;
he sets the prisoners free and
gives them joy.
But he makes the rebellious live in a
sun-scorched land.
7 O
God, when you led your people out from Egypt,
when
you marched through the dry wasteland, Interlude
8 the
earth trembled, and the heavens poured down rain
before
you, the God of Sinai,
before God, the
God of Israel.
9 You sent abundant rain, O God,
to
refresh the weary land.
10 There your people finally
settled,
and with a bountiful harvest, O
God,
you provided for your needy people.
11 The
Lord gives the word,
and a great
army brings the good news.
12 Enemy kings and their
armies flee,
while the women of Israel
divide the plunder.
13 Even those who lived among the
sheepfolds found treasures—
doves with
wings of silver
and feathers of
gold.
14 The Almighty scattered the enemy kings
like
a blowing snowstorm on Mount Zalmon.
15 The
mountains of Bashan are majestic,
with
many peaks stretching high into the sky.
16 Why do you look
with envy, O rugged mountains,
at Mount
Zion, where God has chosen to live,
where
the Lord himself will live forever?
17 Surrounded
by unnumbered thousands of chariots,
the
Lord came from Mount Sinai into his sanctuary.
18 When you
ascended to the heights,
you led a crowd
of captives.
You received gifts from the people,
even
from those who rebelled against you.
Now
the Lord God will live among us there.
19 Praise
the Lord; praise God our savior!
For
each day he carries us in his arms. Interlude
20 Our
God is a God who saves!
The
Sovereign Lord rescues us from death.
21 But
God will smash the heads of his enemies,
crushing
the skulls of those who love their guilty ways.
22 The Lord
says, “I will bring my enemies down from Bashan;
I
will bring them up from the depths of the sea.
23 You, my
people, will wash your feet in their blood,
and
even your dogs will get their share!”
24 Your
procession has come into view, O God—
the
procession of my God and King as he goes into the
sanctuary.
25 Singers are in front, musicians
behind;
between them are young women
playing tambourines.
26 Praise God, all you people of
Israel;
praise the Lord, the source
of Israel’s life.
27 Look, the little tribe of Benjamin
leads the way.
Then comes a great throng
of rulers from Judah
and all the rulers
of Zebulun and Naphtali.
28 Summon
your might, O God.
Display your power, O
God, as you have in the past.
29 The kings of the earth are
bringing tribute
to your Temple in
Jerusalem.
30 Rebuke these enemy nations—
these
wild animals lurking in the reeds,
this
herd of bulls among the weaker calves.
Make them bring bars of
silver in humble tribute.
Scatter the
nations that delight in war.
31 Let Egypt come with gifts
of precious metals;
let Ethiopia bring
tribute to God.
32 Sing to God, you kingdoms of the
earth.
Sing praises to the
Lord. Interlude
33 Sing to the one who rides across
the ancient heavens,
his mighty voice
thundering from the sky.
34 Tell everyone about God’s
power.
His majesty shines down on
Israel;
his strength is mighty in the
heavens.
35 God is awesome in his sanctuary.
The
God of Israel gives power and strength to his people.
Praise be to God!
Psalm 77
For Jeduthun, the choir director: A psalm of Asaph.
1 I
cry out to God; yes, I shout.
Oh, that
God would listen to me!
2 When I was in deep trouble,
I
searched for the Lord.
All night long I prayed, with hands
lifted toward heaven,
but my soul was
not comforted.
3 I think of God, and I
moan,
overwhelmed with longing for his
help. Interlude
4 You
don’t let me sleep.
I am too
distressed even to pray!
5 I think of the good old
days,
long since ended,
6 when
my nights were filled with joyful songs.
I
search my soul and ponder the difference now.
7 Has the
Lord rejected me forever?
Will he never
again be kind to me?
8 Is his unfailing love gone
forever?
Have his promises permanently
failed?
9 Has God forgotten to be gracious?
Has
he slammed the door on his compassion? Interlude
10 And
I said, “This is my fate;
the Most
High has turned his hand against me.”
11 But then I
recall all you have done, O Lord;
I
remember your wonderful deeds of long ago.
12 They are
constantly in my thoughts.
I cannot stop
thinking about your mighty works.
13 O
God, your ways are holy.
Is there any
god as mighty as you?
14 You are the God of great
wonders!
You demonstrate your awesome
power among the nations.
15 By your strong arm, you
redeemed your people,
the descendants of
Jacob and Joseph. Interlude
16 When
the Red Sea saw you, O God,
its
waters looked and trembled!
The sea
quaked to its very depths.
17 The clouds poured down
rain;
the thunder rumbled in the
sky.
Your arrows of lightning
flashed.
18 Your thunder roared from the whirlwind;
the
lightning lit up the world!
The earth
trembled and shook.
19 Your road led through the
sea,
your pathway through the mighty
waters—
a pathway no one knew was
there!
20 You led your people along that road like a flock
of sheep,
with Moses and Aaron as their
shepherds.
Psalm 79
A psalm of Asaph.
1 O
God, pagan nations have conquered your land,
your
special possession.
They have defiled your holy Temple
and
made Jerusalem a heap of ruins.
2 They have left the bodies
of your servants
as food for the birds
of heaven.
The flesh of your godly ones
has
become food for the wild animals.
3 Blood has flowed like
water all around Jerusalem;
no one is
left to bury the dead.
4 We are mocked by our
neighbors,
an object of scorn and
derision to those around us.
5 O Lord,
how long will you be angry with us? Forever?
How
long will your jealousy burn like fire?
6 Pour out your
wrath on the nations that refuse to acknowledge you—
on
kingdoms that do not call upon your name.
7 For they have
devoured your people Israel,
making the
land a desolate wilderness.
8 Do not hold us guilty for the
sins of our ancestors!
Let your
compassion quickly meet our needs,
for
we are on the brink of despair.
9 Help
us, O God of our salvation!
Help us for
the glory of your name.
Save us and forgive our sins
for
the honor of your name.
10 Why should pagan nations be
allowed to scoff,
asking, “Where is
their God?”
Show us your vengeance against the
nations,
for they have spilled the blood
of your servants.
11 Listen to the moaning of the
prisoners.
Demonstrate your great power
by saving those condemned to die.
12 O
Lord, pay back our neighbors seven times
for
the scorn they have hurled at you.
13 Then we your people,
the sheep of your pasture,
will thank
you forever and ever,
praising your
greatness from generation to generation.
Psalm 81
For the choir director: A psalm of Asaph, to be accompanied by a stringed instrument.
1 Sing
praises to God, our strength.
Sing to
the God of Jacob.
2 Sing! Beat the tambourine.
Play
the sweet lyre and the harp.
3 Blow the ram’s horn at new
moon,
and again at full moon to call a
festival!
4 For this is required by the decrees of
Israel;
it is a regulation of the God of
Jacob.
5 He made it a law for Israel
when
he attacked Egypt to set us free.
I
heard an unknown voice say,
6 “Now I will take the load
from your shoulders;
I will free your
hands from their heavy tasks.
7 You cried to me in trouble,
and I saved you;
I answered out of the
thundercloud
and tested your faith when
there was no water at Meribah. Interlude
8 “Listen
to me, O my people, while I give you stern warnings.
O
Israel, if you would only listen to me!
9 You must never
have a foreign god;
you must not bow
down before a false god.
10 For it was I, the Lord your
God,
who rescued you from the land of
Egypt.
Open your mouth wide, and I will
fill it with good things.
11 “But
no, my people wouldn’t listen.
Israel
did not want me around.
12 So I let them follow their own
stubborn desires,
living according to
their own ideas.
13 Oh, that my people would listen to
me!
Oh, that Israel would follow me,
walking in my paths!
14 How quickly I would then subdue
their enemies!
How soon my hands would
be upon their foes!
15 Those who hate the Lord would
cringe before him;
they would be doomed
forever.
16 But I would feed you with the finest
wheat.
I would satisfy you with wild
honey from the rock.”
Psalm 135
1 Praise the Lord!
Praise
the name of the Lord!
Praise him,
you who serve the Lord,
2 you who serve in the house
of the Lord,
in the courts of the
house of our God.
3 Praise
the Lord, for the Lord is good;
celebrate
his lovely name with music.
4 For the Lord has
chosen Jacob for himself,
Israel for his
own special treasure.
5 I
know the greatness of the Lord—
that
our Lord is greater than any other god.
6 The Lord does
whatever pleases him
throughout all
heaven and earth,
and on the seas and in
their depths.
7 He causes the clouds to rise over the whole
earth.
He sends the lightning with the
rain
and releases the wind from his
storehouses.
8 He
destroyed the firstborn in each Egyptian home,
both
people and animals.
9 He performed miraculous signs and
wonders in Egypt
against Pharaoh and all
his people.
10 He struck down great nations
and
slaughtered mighty kings—
11 Sihon king of the
Amorites,
Og king of Bashan,
and
all the kings of Canaan.
12 He gave their land as an
inheritance,
a special possession to his
people Israel.
13 Your
name, O Lord, endures forever;
your
fame, O Lord, is known to every generation.
14 For
the Lord will give justice to his people
and
have compassion on his servants.
15 The
idols of the nations are merely things of silver and gold,
shaped
by human hands.
16 They have mouths but cannot
speak,
and eyes but cannot see.
17 They
have ears but cannot hear,
and mouths
but cannot breathe.
18 And those who make idols are just
like them,
as are all who trust in them.
19 O
Israel, praise the Lord!
O
priests—descendants of Aaron—praise the Lord!
20 O
Levites, praise the Lord!
All you
who fear the Lord, praise the Lord!
21 The Lord be
praised from Zion,
for he lives here in
Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 136
1 Give
thanks to the Lord, for he is good!
His faithful love
endures forever.
2 Give thanks to the God of gods.
His
faithful love endures forever.
3 Give thanks to the Lord of
lords.
His faithful love endures forever.
4 Give
thanks to him who alone does mighty miracles.
His faithful love
endures forever.
5 Give thanks to him who made the heavens
so skillfully.
His faithful love endures forever.
6 Give
thanks to him who placed the earth among the waters.
His
faithful love endures forever.
7 Give thanks to him who
made the heavenly lights—
His faithful love endures
forever.
8 the sun to rule the day,
His faithful love
endures forever.
9 and the moon and stars to rule the
night.
His faithful love endures forever.
10 Give
thanks to him who killed the firstborn of Egypt.
His faithful
love endures forever.
11 He brought Israel out of
Egypt.
His faithful love endures forever.
12 He acted
with a strong hand and powerful arm.
His faithful love endures
forever.
13 Give thanks to him who parted the Red Sea.
His
faithful love endures forever.
14 He led Israel safely
through,
His faithful love endures forever.
15 but he
hurled Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea.
His faithful love
endures forever.
16 Give thanks to him who led his people
through the wilderness.
His faithful love endures forever.
17 Give
thanks to him who struck down mighty kings.
His faithful love
endures forever.
18 He killed powerful kings—
His
faithful love endures forever.
19 Sihon king of the
Amorites,
His faithful love endures forever.
20 and Og
king of Bashan.
His faithful love endures forever.
21 God
gave the land of these kings as an inheritance—
His faithful
love endures forever.
22 a special possession to his
servant Israel.
His faithful love endures forever.
23 He
remembered us in our weakness.
His faithful love endures
forever.
24 He saved us from our enemies.
His faithful
love endures forever.
25 He gives food to every living
thing.
His faithful love endures forever.
26 Give
thanks to the God of heaven.
His faithful love endures forever.
END OF SESSION 7
Session 8: Subject: Thanksgiving - Psalms 30, 33, 92, 95, 98–99, 104, 117–118, 145 (NLT)
Psalm 30
A psalm of David. A song for the dedication of the Temple.
1 I
will exalt you, Lord,
for you rescued me.
You refused to let
my enemies triumph over me.
2 O Lord my
God, I cried to you for help,
and you
restored my health.
3 You brought me up from the
grave, O Lord.
You
kept me from falling into the pit of death.
4 Sing
to the Lord, all
you godly ones!
Praise his holy
name.
5 For his anger lasts only a moment,
but
his favor lasts a lifetime!
Weeping may last through the
night,
but joy comes with the morning.
6 When
I was prosperous, I said,
“Nothing can
stop me now!”
7 Your favor, O Lord,
made me as secure as a mountain.
Then
you turned away from me, and I was shattered.
8 I
cried out to you, O Lord.
I
begged the Lord for mercy, saying,
9 “What will
you gain if I die,
if I sink into the
grave?
Can my dust praise you?
Can
it tell of your faithfulness?
10 Hear me, Lord,
and have mercy on me.
Help me, O Lord.”
11 You
have turned my mourning into joyful dancing.
You
have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with
joy,
12 that I might sing praises to you and not be
silent.
O Lord my
God, I will give you thanks forever!
Psalm 33
1 Let
the godly sing for joy to the Lord;
it
is fitting for the pure to praise him.
2 Praise
the Lord with
melodies on the lyre;
make music for him
on the ten-stringed harp.
3 Sing a new song of
praise to him;
play skillfully on the
harp, and sing with joy.
4 For the word of
the Lord holds
true,
and we can trust everything he
does.
5 He loves whatever is just and good;
the
unfailing love of the Lord fills
the earth.
6 The Lord merely
spoke,
and the heavens were created.
He
breathed the word,
and all the stars
were born.
7 He assigned the sea its
boundaries
and locked the oceans in vast
reservoirs.
8 Let the whole world fear
the Lord,
and
let everyone stand in awe of him.
9 For when he
spoke, the world began!
It appeared at
his command.
10 The Lord frustrates
the plans of the nations
and thwarts all
their schemes.
11 But the Lord’s
plans stand firm forever;
his intentions
can never be shaken.
12 What
joy for the nation whose God is the Lord,
whose
people he has chosen as his inheritance.
13 The Lord looks
down from heaven
and sees the whole
human race.
14 From his throne he observes
all
who live on the earth.
15 He made their
hearts,
so he understands everything
they do.
16 The best-equipped army cannot save a
king,
nor is great strength enough to
save a warrior.
17 Don’t count on your warhorse to
give you victory—
for all its
strength, it cannot save you.
18 But
the Lord watches
over those who fear him,
those who rely
on his unfailing love.
19 He rescues them from
death
and keeps them alive in times of
famine.
20 We
put our hope in the Lord.
He
is our help and our shield.
21 In him our hearts
rejoice,
for we trust in his holy
name.
22 Let your unfailing love surround
us, Lord,
for
our hope is in you alone.
Psalm 92
A psalm. A song to be sung on the Sabbath Day.
1 It
is good to give thanks to the Lord,
to
sing praises to the Most High.
2 It is good to
proclaim your unfailing love in the morning,
your
faithfulness in the evening,
3 accompanied by a
ten-stringed instrument, a harp,
and the
melody of a lyre.
4 You
thrill me, Lord,
with all you have done for me!
I sing
for joy because of what you have done.
5 O Lord,
what great works you do!
And how deep
are your thoughts.
6 Only a simpleton would not
know,
and only a fool would not
understand this:
7 Though the wicked sprout like
weeds
and evildoers flourish,
they
will be destroyed forever.
8 But
you, O Lord, will
be exalted forever.
9 Your enemies, Lord,
will surely perish;
all evildoers will
be scattered.
10 But you have made me as strong as a
wild ox.
You have anointed me with the
finest oil.
11 My eyes have seen the downfall of my
enemies;
my ears have heard the defeat
of my wicked opponents.
12 But the godly will
flourish like palm trees
and grow strong
like the cedars of Lebanon.
13 For they are
transplanted to the Lord’s
own house.
They flourish in the courts
of our God.
14 Even in old age they will still
produce fruit;
they will remain vital
and green.
15 They will declare, “The Lord is
just!
He is my rock!
There
is no evil in him!”
Psalm 95
1 Come,
let us sing to the Lord!
Let
us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation.
2 Let
us come to him with thanksgiving.
Let us
sing psalms of praise to him.
3 For the Lord is
a great God,
a great King above all
gods.
4 He holds in his hands the depths of the
earth
and the mightiest mountains.
5 The
sea belongs to him, for he made it.
His
hands formed the dry land, too.
6 Come,
let us worship and bow down.
Let us
kneel before the Lord our
maker,
7 for he is our
God.
We are the people he watches over,
the
flock under his care.
If
only you would listen to his voice today!
8 The Lord says,
“Don’t harden your hearts as Israel did at Meribah,
as
they did at Massah in the wilderness.
9 For there
your ancestors tested and tried my patience,
even
though they saw everything I did.
10 For forty years
I was angry with them, and I said,
‘They are a people whose
hearts turn away from me.
They refuse to
do what I tell them.’
11 So in my anger I took an
oath:
‘They will never enter my place
of rest.’”
Psalm 98
A psalm.
1 Sing
a new song to the Lord,
for
he has done wonderful deeds.
His right hand has won a mighty
victory;
his holy arm has shown his
saving power!
2 The Lord has
announced his victory
and has revealed
his righteousness to every nation!
3 He has
remembered his promise to love and be faithful to Israel.
The
ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.
4 Shout
to the Lord, all
the earth;
break out in praise and sing
for joy!
5 Sing your praise to the Lord with
the harp,
with the harp and melodious
song,
6 with trumpets and the sound of the ram’s
horn.
Make a joyful symphony before
the Lord, the
King!
7 Let
the sea and everything in it shout his praise!
Let
the earth and all living things join in.
8 Let the
rivers clap their hands in glee!
Let the
hills sing out their songs of joy
9 before
the Lord,
for
he is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with
justice,
and the nations with fairness.
Psalm 99
1 The Lord is
king!
Let the nations tremble!
He
sits on his throne between the cherubim.
Let
the whole earth quake!
2 The Lord sits
in majesty in Jerusalem,
exalted above
all the nations.
3 Let them praise your great and
awesome name.
Your name is
holy!
4 Mighty King, lover of justice,
you
have established fairness.
You have acted with justice
and
righteousness throughout Israel.
5 Exalt
the Lord our
God!
Bow low before his feet, for he is
holy!
6 Moses
and Aaron were among his priests;
Samuel
also called on his name.
They cried to the Lord for
help,
and he answered them.
7 He
spoke to Israel from the pillar of cloud,
and
they followed the laws and decrees he gave them.
8 O Lord our
God, you answered them.
You were a
forgiving God to them,
but you punished
them when they went wrong.
9 Exalt
the Lord our
God,
and worship at his holy mountain in
Jerusalem,
for the Lord our
God is holy!
Psalm 104
1 Let all that I am praise the Lord.
O Lord my
God, how great you are!
You are robed
with honor and majesty.
2 You
are dressed in a robe of light.
You stretch out the starry
curtain of the heavens;
3 you
lay out the rafters of your home in the rain clouds.
You make
the clouds your chariot;
you ride upon
the wings of the wind.
4 The winds are your
messengers;
flames of fire are your
servants.
5 You
placed the world on its foundation
so it
would never be moved.
6 You clothed the earth with
floods of water,
water that covered even
the mountains.
7 At your command, the water
fled;
at the sound of your thunder, it
hurried away.
8 Mountains rose and valleys
sank
to the levels you decreed.
9 Then
you set a firm boundary for the seas,
so
they would never again cover the earth.
10 You
make springs pour water into the ravines,
so
streams gush down from the mountains.
11 They
provide water for all the animals,
and
the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 The birds
nest beside the streams
and sing among
the branches of the trees.
13 You send rain on the
mountains from your heavenly home,
and
you fill the earth with the fruit of your labor.
14 You
cause grass to grow for the livestock
and
plants for people to use.
You allow them to produce food from
the earth—
15 wine to make
them glad,
olive oil to soothe their skin,
and
bread to give them strength.
16 The trees of
the Lord are
well cared for—
the cedars of Lebanon
that he planted.
17 There the birds make their
nests,
and the storks make their homes
in the cypresses.
18 High in the mountains live the
wild goats,
and the rocks form a refuge
for the hyraxes.
19 You
made the moon to mark the seasons,
and
the sun knows when to set.
20 You send the darkness,
and it becomes night,
when all the
forest animals prowl about.
21 Then the young lions
roar for their prey,
stalking the food
provided by God.
22 At dawn they slink back
into
their dens to rest.
23 Then people go off to their
work,
where they labor until evening.
24 O Lord,
what a variety of things you have made!
In
wisdom you have made them all.
The earth
is full of your creatures.
25 Here is the ocean,
vast and wide,
teeming with life of
every kind,
both large and small.
26 See
the ships sailing along,
and
Leviathan, which you made to play in the sea.
27 They
all depend on you
to give them food as
they need it.
28 When you supply it, they gather
it.
You open your hand to feed
them,
and they are richly
satisfied.
29 But if you turn away from them, they
panic.
When you take away their
breath,
they die and turn again to
dust.
30 When you give them your breath, life
is created,
and you renew the face of
the earth.
31 May
the glory of the Lord continue
forever!
The Lord takes
pleasure in all he has made!
32 The earth trembles
at his glance;
the mountains smoke at
his touch.
33 I
will sing to the Lord as
long as I live.
I will praise my God to
my last breath!
34 May all my thoughts be pleasing
to him,
for I rejoice in
the Lord.
35 Let
all sinners vanish from the face of the earth;
let
the wicked disappear forever.
Let all that I am praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 117
1 Praise
the Lord, all you
nations.
Praise him, all you people of
the earth.
2 For his unfailing love for us is
powerful;
the Lord’s
faithfulness endures forever.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 118
1 Give
thanks to the Lord,
for he is good!
His faithful love
endures forever.
2 Let
all Israel repeat:
“His faithful love
endures forever.”
3 Let Aaron’s descendants, the
priests, repeat:
“His faithful love
endures forever.”
4 Let all who fear
the Lord repeat:
“His
faithful love endures forever.”
5 In
my distress I prayed to the Lord,
and
the Lord answered
me and set me free.
6 The Lord is
for me, so I will have no fear.
What can
mere people do to me?
7 Yes, the Lord is
for me; he will help me.
I will look in
triumph at those who hate me.
8 It is better to take
refuge in the Lord
than
to trust in people.
9 It is better to take refuge in
the Lord
than
to trust in princes.
10 Though
hostile nations surrounded me,
I
destroyed them all with the authority of the Lord.
11 Yes,
they surrounded and attacked me,
but I
destroyed them all with the authority of the Lord.
12 They
swarmed around me like bees;
they blazed
against me like a crackling fire.
But I
destroyed them all with the authority of the Lord.
13 My
enemies did their best to kill me,
but
the Lord rescued
me.
14 The Lord is
my strength and my song;
he has given me
victory.
15 Songs of joy and victory are sung in the
camp of the godly.
The strong right arm
of the Lord has
done glorious things!
16 The strong right arm of
the Lord is
raised in triumph.
The strong right arm
of the Lord has
done glorious things!
17 I will not die; instead, I
will live
to tell what the Lord has
done.
18 The Lord has
punished me severely,
but he did not let
me die.
19 Open
for me the gates where the righteous enter,
and
I will go in and thank the Lord.
20 These
gates lead to the presence of the Lord,
and
the godly enter there.
21 I thank you for answering
my prayer
and giving me victory!
22 The
stone that the builders rejected
has now
become the cornerstone.
23 This is the Lord’s
doing,
and it is wonderful to
see.
24 This is the day the Lord has
made.
We will rejoice and be glad in
it.
25 Please, Lord,
please save us.
Please, Lord,
please give us success.
26 Bless the one who comes
in the name of the Lord.
We
bless you from the house of the Lord.
27 The Lord is
God, shining upon us.
Take the sacrifice
and bind it with cords on the altar.
28 You are my
God, and I will praise you!
You are my
God, and I will exalt you!
29 Give
thanks to the Lord,
for he is good!
His faithful love
endures forever.
Psalm 145
A psalm of praise of David.
1 I
will exalt you, my God and King,
and
praise your name forever and ever.
2 I will praise
you every day;
yes, I will praise you
forever.
3 Great is the Lord!
He is most worthy of praise!
No one can
measure his greatness.
4 Let
each generation tell its children of your mighty acts;
let
them proclaim your power.
5 I will meditate on your
majestic, glorious splendor
and your
wonderful miracles.
6 Your awe-inspiring deeds will
be on every tongue;
I will proclaim your
greatness.
7 Everyone will share the story of your
wonderful goodness;
they will sing with
joy about your righteousness.
8 The Lord is
merciful and compassionate,
slow to get
angry and filled with unfailing love.
9 The Lord is
good to everyone.
He showers compassion
on all his creation.
10 All of your works will thank
you, Lord,
and
your faithful followers will praise you.
11 They
will speak of the glory of your kingdom;
they
will give examples of your power.
12 They will tell
about your mighty deeds
and about the
majesty and glory of your reign.
13 For your kingdom
is an everlasting kingdom.
You rule
throughout all generations.
The Lord always
keeps his promises;
he is gracious in
all he does.
14 The Lord helps
the fallen
and lifts those bent beneath
their loads.
15 The eyes of all look to you in
hope;
you give them their food as they
need it.
16 When you open your hand,
you
satisfy the hunger and thirst of every living thing.
17 The Lord is
righteous in everything he does;
he is
filled with kindness.
18 The Lord is
close to all who call on him,
yes, to
all who call on him in truth.
19 He grants the
desires of those who fear him;
he hears
their cries for help and rescues them.
20 The Lord protects
all those who love him,
but he destroys
the wicked.
21 I
will praise the Lord,
and
may everyone on earth bless his holy name
forever
and ever.
END OF SESSION 8
Session 9: Subject: Kingship - Psalms 20, 61, 63, 89 (NLT)
Psalm 20
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 In
times of trouble, may the Lord answer
your cry.
May the name of the God of
Jacob keep you safe from all harm.
2 May he send you
help from his sanctuary
and strengthen
you from Jerusalem.
3 May he remember all your
gifts
and look favorably on your burnt
offerings. Interlude
4 May
he grant your heart’s desires
and make
all your plans succeed.
5 May we shout for joy when
we hear of your victory
and raise a
victory banner in the name of our God.
May the Lord answer
all your prayers.
6 Now
I know that the Lord rescues
his anointed king.
He will answer him
from his holy heaven
and rescue him by
his great power.
7 Some nations boast of their
chariots and horses,
but we boast in the
name of the Lord our
God.
8 Those nations will fall down and
collapse,
but we will rise up and stand
firm.
9 Give
victory to our king, O Lord!
Answer
our cry for help.
Psalm 61
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be accompanied by stringed instruments.
1 O
God, listen to my cry!
Hear my
prayer!
2 From the ends of the earth,
I
cry to you for help
when my heart is
overwhelmed.
Lead me to the towering rock of safety,
3 for
you are my safe refuge,
a fortress where
my enemies cannot reach me.
4 Let me live forever in
your sanctuary,
safe beneath the shelter
of your wings! Interlude
5 For
you have heard my vows, O God.
You have
given me an inheritance reserved for those who fear your name.
6 Add
many years to the life of the king!
May
his years span the generations!
7 May he reign under
God’s protection forever.
May your
unfailing love and faithfulness watch over him.
8 Then
I will sing praises to your name forever
as
I fulfill my vows each day.
Psalm 63
A psalm of David, regarding a time when David was in the wilderness of Judah.
1 O
God, you are my God;
I earnestly search
for you.
My soul thirsts for you;
my
whole body longs for you
in this parched and weary
land
where there is no water.
2 I
have seen you in your sanctuary
and
gazed upon your power and glory.
3 Your unfailing
love is better than life itself;
how I
praise you!
4 I will praise you as long as I
live,
lifting up my hands to you in
prayer.
5 You satisfy me more than the richest
feast.
I will praise you with songs of
joy.
6 I
lie awake thinking of you,
meditating on
you through the night.
7 Because you are my
helper,
I sing for joy in the shadow of
your wings.
8 I cling to you;
your
strong right hand holds me securely.
9 But
those plotting to destroy me will come to ruin.
They
will go down into the depths of the earth.
10 They
will die by the sword
and become the
food of jackals.
11 But the king will rejoice in
God.
All who swear to tell the truth
will praise him,
while liars will be
silenced.
Psalm 89
A psalm of Ethan the Ezrahite.
1 I
will sing of the Lord’s
unfailing love forever!
Young and old
will hear of your faithfulness.
2 Your unfailing
love will last forever.
Your
faithfulness is as enduring as the heavens.
3 The Lord said,
“I have made a covenant with David, my chosen servant.
I
have sworn this oath to him:
4 ‘I will establish
your descendants as kings forever;
they
will sit on your throne from now until eternity.’” Interlude
5 All
heaven will praise your great wonders, Lord;
myriads
of angels will praise you for your faithfulness.
6 For
who in all of heaven can compare with the Lord?
What
mightiest angel is anything like the Lord?
7 The
highest angelic powers stand in awe of God.
He
is far more awesome than all who surround his throne.
8 O Lord God
of Heaven’s Armies!
Where is there
anyone as mighty as you, O Lord?
You
are entirely faithful.
9 You
rule the oceans.
You subdue their
storm-tossed waves.
10 You crushed the great sea
monster.
You scattered your enemies with
your mighty arm.
11 The heavens are yours, and the
earth is yours;
everything in the world
is yours—you created it all.
12 You created north
and south.
Mount Tabor and Mount Hermon
praise your name.
13 Powerful is your
arm!
Strong is your hand!
Your
right hand is lifted high in glorious strength.
14 Righteousness
and justice are the foundation of your throne.
Unfailing
love and truth walk before you as attendants.
15 Happy
are those who hear the joyful call to worship,
for
they will walk in the light of your presence, Lord.
16 They
rejoice all day long in your wonderful reputation.
They
exult in your righteousness.
17 You are their
glorious strength.
It pleases you to
make us strong.
18 Yes, our protection comes from
the Lord,
and
he, the Holy One of Israel, has given us our king.
19 Long
ago you spoke in a vision to your faithful people.
You said, “I
have raised up a warrior.
I have
selected him from the common people to be king.
20 I
have found my servant David.
I have
anointed him with my holy oil.
21 I will steady him
with my hand;
with my powerful arm I
will make him strong.
22 His enemies will not defeat
him,
nor will the wicked overpower
him.
23 I will beat down his adversaries before
him
and destroy those who hate
him.
24 My faithfulness and unfailing love will be
with him,
and by my authority he will
grow in power.
25 I will extend his rule over the
sea,
his dominion over the
rivers.
26 And he will call out to me, ‘You are my
Father,
my God, and the Rock of my
salvation.’
27 I will make him my firstborn
son,
the mightiest king on earth.
28 I
will love him and be kind to him forever;
my
covenant with him will never end.
29 I will preserve
an heir for him;
his throne will be as
endless as the days of heaven.
30 But if his
descendants forsake my instructions
and
fail to obey my regulations,
31 if they do not obey
my decrees
and fail to keep my
commands,
32 then I will punish their sin with the
rod,
and their disobedience with
beating.
33 But I will never stop loving him
nor
fail to keep my promise to him.
34 No, I will not
break my covenant;
I will not take back
a single word I said.
35 I have sworn an oath to
David,
and in my holiness I cannot
lie:
36 His dynasty will go on forever;
his
kingdom will endure as the sun.
37 It will be as
eternal as the moon,
my faithful witness
in the sky!” Interlude
38 But
now you have rejected him and cast him off.
You
are angry with your anointed king.
39 You have
renounced your covenant with him;
you
have thrown his crown in the dust.
40 You have
broken down the walls protecting him
and
ruined every fort defending him.
41 Everyone who
comes along has robbed him,
and he has
become a joke to his neighbors.
42 You have
strengthened his enemies
and made them
all rejoice.
43 You have made his sword
useless
and refused to help him in
battle.
44 You have ended his splendor
and
overturned his throne.
45 You have made him old
before his time
and publicly disgraced
him. Interlude
46 O Lord,
how long will this go on?
Will you hide
yourself forever?
How long will your
anger burn like fire?
47 Remember how short my life
is,
how empty and futile this human
existence!
48 No one can live forever; all will
die.
No one can escape the power of the
grave. Interlude
49 Lord,
where is your unfailing love?
You
promised it to David with a faithful pledge.
50 Consider,
Lord, how your servants are disgraced!
I
carry in my heart the insults of so many people.
51 Your
enemies have mocked me, O Lord;
they
mock your anointed king wherever he goes.
52 Praise
the Lord forever!
Amen
and amen!
END OF SESSION 9
Session 10: Subject: Wisdom - Psalms 34, 36, 50, 90, 94, 119, 128–134 (NLT)
Psalm 34
A psalm of David, regarding the time he pretended to be insane in front of Abimelech, who sent him away.
1 I
will praise the Lord at
all times.
I will constantly speak his
praises.
2 I will boast only in the Lord;
let
all who are helpless take heart.
3 Come, let us tell
of the Lord’s
greatness;
let us exalt his name
together.
4 I
prayed to the Lord,
and he answered me.
He freed me from all
my fears.
5 Those who look to him for help will be
radiant with joy;
no shadow of shame
will darken their faces.
6 In my desperation I
prayed, and the Lord listened;
he
saved me from all my troubles.
7 For the angel of
the Lord is a
guard;
he surrounds and defends all who
fear him.
8 Taste
and see that the Lord is
good.
Oh, the joys of those who take
refuge in him!
9 Fear the Lord,
you his godly people,
for those who fear
him will have all they need.
10 Even strong young
lions sometimes go hungry,
but those who
trust in the Lord will
lack no good thing.
11 Come,
my children, and listen to me,
and I
will teach you to fear the Lord.
12 Does
anyone want to live a life
that is long
and prosperous?
13 Then keep your tongue from
speaking evil
and your lips from telling
lies!
14 Turn away from evil and do good.
Search
for peace, and work to maintain it.
15 The
eyes of the Lord watch
over those who do right;
his ears are
open to their cries for help.
16 But the Lord turns
his face against those who do evil;
he
will erase their memory from the earth.
17 The Lord hears
his people when they call to him for help.
He
rescues them from all their troubles.
18 The Lord is
close to the brokenhearted;
he rescues
those whose spirits are crushed.
19 The
righteous person faces many troubles,
but
the Lord comes
to the rescue each time.
20 For the Lord protects
the bones of the righteous;
not one of
them is broken!
21 Calamity
will surely destroy the wicked,
and
those who hate the righteous will be punished.
22 But
the Lord will
redeem those who serve him.
No one who
takes refuge in him will be condemned.
Psalm 36
For the choir director: A psalm of David, the servant of the Lord.
1 Sin
whispers to the wicked, deep within their hearts.
They
have no fear of God at all.
2 In their blind
conceit,
they cannot see how wicked they
really are.
3 Everything they say is crooked and
deceitful.
They refuse to act wisely or
do good.
4 They lie awake at night, hatching sinful
plots.
Their actions are never
good.
They make no attempt to turn from
evil.
5 Your
unfailing love, O Lord,
is as vast as the heavens;
your
faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds.
6 Your
righteousness is like the mighty mountains,
your
justice like the ocean depths.
You care for people and animals
alike, O Lord.
7 How
precious is your unfailing love, O God!
All humanity finds
shelter
in the shadow of your
wings.
8 You feed them from the abundance of your
own house,
letting them drink from your
river of delights.
9 For you are the fountain of
life,
the light by which we see.
10 Pour
out your unfailing love on those who love you;
give
justice to those with honest hearts.
11 Don’t let
the proud trample me
or the wicked push
me around.
12 Look! Those who do evil have
fallen!
They are thrown down, never to
rise again.
Psalm 50
A psalm of Asaph.
1 The Lord,
the Mighty One, is God,
and he has
spoken;
he has summoned all humanity
from
where the sun rises to where it sets.
2 From Mount
Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God
shines in glorious radiance.
3 Our God
approaches,
and he is not silent.
Fire
devours everything in his way,
and a
great storm rages around him.
4 He calls on the
heavens above and earth below
to witness
the judgment of his people.
5 “Bring my faithful
people to me—
those who made a
covenant with me by giving sacrifices.”
6 Then let
the heavens proclaim his justice,
for
God himself will be the judge. Interlude
7 “O
my people, listen as I speak.
Here are
my charges against you, O Israel:
I am
God, your God!
8 I have no complaint about your
sacrifices
or the burnt offerings you
constantly offer.
9 But I do not need the bulls from
your barns
or the goats from your
pens.
10 For all the animals of the forest are
mine,
and I own the cattle on a thousand
hills.
11 I know every bird on the
mountains,
and all the animals of the
field are mine.
12 If I were hungry, I would not
tell you,
for all the world is mine and
everything in it.
13 Do I eat the meat of
bulls?
Do I drink the blood of
goats?
14 Make thankfulness your sacrifice to
God,
and keep the vows you made to the
Most High.
15 Then call on me when you are in
trouble,
and I will rescue you,
and
you will give me glory.”
16 But
God says to the wicked:
“Why bother reciting my
decrees
and pretending to obey my
covenant?
17 For you refuse my discipline
and
treat my words like trash.
18 When you see thieves,
you approve of them,
and you spend your
time with adulterers.
19 Your mouth is filled with
wickedness,
and your tongue is full of
lies.
20 You sit around and slander your
brother—
your own mother’s
son.
21 While you did all this, I remained
silent,
and you thought I didn’t
care.
But now I will rebuke you,
listing
all my charges against you.
22 Repent, all of you
who forget me,
or I will tear you
apart,
and no one will help you.
23 But
giving thanks is a sacrifice that truly honors me.
If
you keep to my path,
I will reveal to
you the salvation of God.”
Psalm 90
A prayer of Moses, the man of God.
1 Lord,
through all the generations
you have
been our home!
2 Before the mountains were
born,
before you gave birth to the earth
and the world,
from beginning to end,
you are God.
3 You
turn people back to dust, saying,
“Return
to dust, you mortals!”
4 For you, a thousand years
are as a passing day,
as brief as a few
night hours.
5 You sweep people away like dreams
that disappear.
They are like grass that
springs up in the morning.
6 In the morning it
blooms and flourishes,
but by evening it
is dry and withered.
7 We wither beneath your
anger;
we are overwhelmed by your
fury.
8 You spread out our sins before you—
our
secret sins—and you see them all.
9 We live our
lives beneath your wrath,
ending our
years with a groan.
10 Seventy
years are given to us!
Some even live to
eighty.
But even the best years are filled with pain and
trouble;
soon they disappear, and we fly
away.
11 Who can comprehend the power of your
anger?
Your wrath is as awesome as the
fear you deserve.
12 Teach us to realize the brevity
of life,
so that we may grow in wisdom.
13 O Lord,
come back to us!
How long will you
delay?
Take pity on your
servants!
14 Satisfy us each morning with your
unfailing love,
so we may sing for joy
to the end of our lives.
15 Give us gladness in
proportion to our former misery!
Replace
the evil years with good.
16 Let us, your servants,
see you work again;
let our children see
your glory.
17 And may the Lord our God show us his
approval
and make our efforts
successful.
Yes, make our efforts
successful!
Psalm 94
1 O Lord,
the God of vengeance,
O God of
vengeance, let your glorious justice shine forth!
2 Arise,
O Judge of the earth.
Give the proud
what they deserve.
3 How long, O Lord?
How
long will the wicked be allowed to gloat?
4 How long
will they speak with arrogance?
How long
will these evil people boast?
5 They crush your
people, Lord,
hurting
those you claim as your own.
6 They kill widows and
foreigners
and murder
orphans.
7 “The Lord isn’t
looking,” they say,
“and besides,
the God of Israel doesn’t care.”
8 Think
again, you fools!
When will you finally
catch on?
9 Is he deaf—the one who made your
ears?
Is he blind—the one who formed
your eyes?
10 He punishes the nations—won’t he
also punish you?
He knows
everything—doesn’t he also know what you are
doing?
11 The Lord knows
people’s thoughts;
he knows they are
worthless!
12 Joyful
are those you discipline, Lord,
those
you teach with your instructions.
13 You give them
relief from troubled times
until a pit
is dug to capture the wicked.
14 The Lord will
not reject his people;
he will not
abandon his special possession.
15 Judgment will
again be founded on justice,
and those
with virtuous hearts will pursue it.
16 Who
will protect me from the wicked?
Who
will stand up for me against evildoers?
17 Unless
the Lord had
helped me,
I would soon have settled in
the silence of the grave.
18 I cried out, “I am
slipping!”
but your unfailing love,
O Lord, supported
me.
19 When doubts filled my mind,
your
comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer.
20 Can
unjust leaders claim that God is on their side—
leaders
whose decrees permit injustice?
21 They gang up
against the righteous
and condemn the
innocent to death.
22 But the Lord is
my fortress;
my God is the mighty rock
where I hide.
23 God will turn the sins of evil
people back on them.
He will destroy
them for their sins.
The Lord our
God will destroy them.
Psalm 119
Aleph
1 Joyful
are people of integrity,
who follow the
instructions of the Lord.
2 Joyful
are those who obey his laws
and search
for him with all their hearts.
3 They do not
compromise with evil,
and they walk only
in his paths.
4 You have charged us
to
keep your commandments carefully.
5 Oh, that my
actions would consistently
reflect your
decrees!
6 Then I will not be ashamed
when
I compare my life with your commands.
7 As I learn
your righteous regulations,
I will thank
you by living as I should!
8 I will obey your
decrees.
Please don’t give up on me!
Beth
9 How
can a young person stay pure?
By obeying
your word.
10 I have tried hard to find
you—
don’t let me wander from your
commands.
11 I have hidden your word in my
heart,
that I might not sin against
you.
12 I praise you, O Lord;
teach
me your decrees.
13 I have recited aloud
all
the regulations you have given us.
14 I have
rejoiced in your laws
as much as in
riches.
15 I will study your commandments
and
reflect on your ways.
16 I will delight in your
decrees
and not forget your word.
Gimel
17 Be
good to your servant,
that I may live
and obey your word.
18 Open my eyes to see
the
wonderful truths in your instructions.
19 I am only
a foreigner in the land.
Don’t hide
your commands from me!
20 I am always
overwhelmed
with a desire for your
regulations.
21 You rebuke the arrogant;
those
who wander from your commands are cursed.
22 Don’t
let them scorn and insult me,
for I have
obeyed your laws.
23 Even princes sit and speak
against me,
but I will meditate on your
decrees.
24 Your laws please me;
they
give me wise advice.
Daleth
25 I
lie in the dust;
revive me by your
word.
26 I told you my plans, and you
answered.
Now teach me your
decrees.
27 Help me understand the meaning of your
commandments,
and I will meditate on
your wonderful deeds.
28 I weep with
sorrow;
encourage me by your
word.
29 Keep me from lying to myself;
give
me the privilege of knowing your instructions.
30 I
have chosen to be faithful;
I have
determined to live by your regulations.
31 I cling
to your laws.
Lord,
don’t let me be put to shame!
32 I will pursue
your commands,
for you expand my
understanding.
He
33 Teach
me your decrees, O Lord;
I
will keep them to the end.
34 Give me understanding
and I will obey your instructions;
I
will put them into practice with all my heart.
35 Make
me walk along the path of your commands,
for
that is where my happiness is found.
36 Give me an
eagerness for your laws
rather than a
love for money!
37 Turn my eyes from worthless
things,
and give me life through your
word.
38 Reassure me of your promise,
made
to those who fear you.
39 Help me abandon my
shameful ways;
for your regulations are
good.
40 I long to obey your commandments!
Renew
my life with your goodness.
Waw
41 Lord,
give me your unfailing love,
the
salvation that you promised me.
42 Then I can answer
those who taunt me,
for I trust in your
word.
43 Do not snatch your word of truth from
me,
for your regulations are my only
hope.
44 I will keep on obeying your
instructions
forever and ever.
45 I
will walk in freedom,
for I have devoted
myself to your commandments.
46 I will speak to
kings about your laws,
and I will not be
ashamed.
47 How I delight in your commands!
How
I love them!
48 I honor and love your
commands.
I meditate on your decrees.
Zayin
49 Remember
your promise to me;
it is my only
hope.
50 Your promise revives me;
it
comforts me in all my troubles.
51 The proud hold me
in utter contempt,
but I do not turn
away from your instructions.
52 I meditate on your
age-old regulations;
O Lord,
they comfort me.
53 I become furious with the
wicked,
because they reject your
instructions.
54 Your decrees have been the theme of
my songs
wherever I have lived.
55 I
reflect at night on who you are, O Lord;
therefore,
I obey your instructions.
56 This is how I spend my
life:
obeying your commandments.
Heth
57 Lord,
you are mine!
I promise to obey your
words!
58 With all my heart I want your
blessings.
Be merciful as you
promised.
59 I pondered the direction of my
life,
and I turned to follow your
laws.
60 I will hurry, without delay,
to
obey your commands.
61 Evil people try to drag me
into sin,
but I am firmly anchored to
your instructions.
62 I rise at midnight to thank
you
for your just regulations.
63 I
am a friend to anyone who fears you—
anyone
who obeys your commandments.
64 O Lord,
your unfailing love fills the earth;
teach
me your decrees.
Teth
65 You
have done many good things for me, Lord,
just
as you promised.
66 I believe in your
commands;
now teach me good judgment and
knowledge.
67 I used to wander off until you
disciplined me;
but now I closely follow
your word.
68 You are good and do only
good;
teach me your decrees.
69 Arrogant
people smear me with lies,
but in truth
I obey your commandments with all my heart.
70 Their
hearts are dull and stupid,
but I
delight in your instructions.
71 My suffering was
good for me,
for it taught me to pay
attention to your decrees.
72 Your instructions are
more valuable to me
than millions in
gold and silver.
Yodh
73 You
made me; you created me.
Now give me the
sense to follow your commands.
74 May all who fear
you find in me a cause for joy,
for I
have put my hope in your word.
75 I know, O Lord,
that your regulations are fair;
you
disciplined me because I needed it.
76 Now let your
unfailing love comfort me,
just as you
promised me, your servant.
77 Surround me with your
tender mercies so I may live,
for your
instructions are my delight.
78 Bring disgrace upon
the arrogant people who lied about me;
meanwhile,
I will concentrate on your commandments.
79 Let me
be united with all who fear you,
with
those who know your laws.
80 May I be blameless in
keeping your decrees;
then I will never
be ashamed.
Kaph
81 I
am worn out waiting for your rescue,
but
I have put my hope in your word.
82 My eyes are
straining to see your promises come true.
When
will you comfort me?
83 I am shriveled like a
wineskin in the smoke,
but I have not
forgotten to obey your decrees.
84 How long must I
wait?
When will you punish those who
persecute me?
85 These arrogant people who hate your
instructions
have dug deep pits to trap
me.
86 All your commands are
trustworthy.
Protect me from those who
hunt me down without cause.
87 They almost finished
me off,
but I refused to abandon your
commandments.
88 In your unfailing love, spare my
life;
then I can continue to obey your
laws.
Lamedh
89 Your
eternal word, O Lord,
stands
firm in heaven.
90 Your faithfulness extends to
every generation,
as enduring as the
earth you created.
91 Your regulations remain true
to this day,
for everything serves your
plans.
92 If your instructions hadn’t sustained me
with joy,
I would have died in my
misery.
93 I will never forget your
commandments,
for by them you give me
life.
94 I am yours; rescue me!
For
I have worked hard at obeying your commandments.
95 Though
the wicked hide along the way to kill me,
I
will quietly keep my mind on your laws.
96 Even
perfection has its limits,
but your
commands have no limit.
Mem
97 Oh,
how I love your instructions!
I think
about them all day long.
98 Your commands make me
wiser than my enemies,
for they are my
constant guide.
99 Yes, I have more insight than my
teachers,
for I am always thinking of
your laws.
100 I am even wiser than my
elders,
for I have kept your
commandments.
101 I have refused to walk on any evil
path,
so that I may remain obedient to
your word.
102 I haven’t turned away from your
regulations,
for you have taught me
well.
103 How sweet your words taste to me;
they
are sweeter than honey.
104 Your commandments give
me understanding;
no wonder I hate every
false way of life.
Nun
105 Your
word is a lamp to guide my feet
and a
light for my path.
106 I’ve promised it once, and
I’ll promise it again:
I will obey
your righteous regulations.
107 I have suffered
much, O Lord;
restore
my life again as you promised.
108 Lord,
accept my offering of praise,
and teach
me your regulations.
109 My life constantly hangs in
the balance,
but I will not stop obeying
your instructions.
110 The wicked have set their
traps for me,
but I will not turn from
your commandments.
111 Your laws are my
treasure;
they are my heart’s
delight.
112 I am determined to keep your
decrees
to the very end.
Samekh
113 I
hate those with divided loyalties,
but I
love your instructions.
114 You are my refuge and my
shield;
your word is my source of
hope.
115 Get out of my life, you evil-minded
people,
for I intend to obey the
commands of my God.
116 Lord,
sustain me as you promised, that I may live!
Do
not let my hope be crushed.
117 Sustain me, and I
will be rescued;
then I will meditate
continually on your decrees.
118 But you have
rejected all who stray from your decrees.
They
are only fooling themselves.
119 You skim off the
wicked of the earth like scum;
no wonder
I love to obey your laws!
120 I tremble in fear of
you;
I stand in awe of your regulations.
Ayin
121 Don’t
leave me to the mercy of my enemies,
for
I have done what is just and right.
122 Please
guarantee a blessing for me.
Don’t let
the arrogant oppress me!
123 My eyes strain to see
your rescue,
to see the truth of your
promise fulfilled.
124 I am your servant; deal with
me in unfailing love,
and teach me your
decrees.
125 Give discernment to me, your
servant;
then I will understand your
laws.
126 Lord,
it is time for you to act,
for these
evil people have violated your instructions.
127 Truly,
I love your commands
more than gold,
even the finest gold.
128 Each of your commandments
is right.
That is why I hate every false
way.
Pe
129 Your
laws are wonderful.
No wonder I obey
them!
130 The teaching of your word gives
light,
so even the simple can
understand.
131 I pant with expectation,
longing
for your commands.
132 Come and show me your
mercy,
as you do for all who love your
name.
133 Guide my steps by your word,
so
I will not be overcome by evil.
134 Ransom me from
the oppression of evil people;
then I
can obey your commandments.
135 Look upon me with
love;
teach me your decrees.
136 Rivers
of tears gush from my eyes
because
people disobey your instructions.
Tsadhe
137 O Lord,
you are righteous,
and your regulations
are fair.
138 Your laws are perfect
and
completely trustworthy.
139 I am overwhelmed with
indignation,
for my enemies have
disregarded your words.
140 Your promises have been
thoroughly tested;
that is why I love
them so much.
141 I am insignificant and
despised,
but I don’t forget your
commandments.
142 Your justice is eternal,
and
your instructions are perfectly true.
143 As
pressure and stress bear down on me,
I
find joy in your commands.
144 Your laws are always
right;
help me to understand them so I
may live.
Qoph
145 I
pray with all my heart; answer me, Lord!
I
will obey your decrees.
146 I cry out to you; rescue
me,
that I may obey your laws.
147 I
rise early, before the sun is up;
I cry
out for help and put my hope in your words.
148 I
stay awake through the night,
thinking
about your promise.
149 In your faithful love,
O Lord, hear my
cry;
let me be revived by following your
regulations.
150 Lawless people are coming to attack
me;
they live far from your
instructions.
151 But you are near, O Lord,
and
all your commands are true.
152 I have known from my
earliest days
that your laws will last
forever.
Resh
153 Look
upon my suffering and rescue me,
for I
have not forgotten your instructions.
154 Argue my
case; take my side!
Protect my life as
you promised.
155 The wicked are far from
rescue,
for they do not bother with your
decrees.
156 Lord,
how great is your mercy;
let me be
revived by following your regulations.
157 Many
persecute and trouble me,
yet I have not
swerved from your laws.
158 Seeing these traitors
makes me sick at heart,
because they
care nothing for your word.
159 See how I love your
commandments, Lord.
Give
back my life because of your unfailing love.
160 The
very essence of your words is truth;
all
your just regulations will stand forever.
Shin
161 Powerful
people harass me without cause,
but my
heart trembles only at your word.
162 I rejoice in
your word
like one who discovers a great
treasure.
163 I hate and abhor all
falsehood,
but I love your
instructions.
164 I will praise you seven times a
day
because all your regulations are
just.
165 Those who love your instructions have
great peace
and do not stumble.
166 I
long for your rescue, Lord,
so
I have obeyed your commands.
167 I have obeyed your
laws,
for I love them very
much.
168 Yes, I obey your commandments and
laws
because you know everything I do.
Taw
169 O Lord,
listen to my cry;
give me the discerning
mind you promised.
170 Listen to my
prayer;
rescue me as you
promised.
171 Let praise flow from my lips,
for
you have taught me your decrees.
172 Let my tongue
sing about your word,
for all your
commands are right.
173 Give me a helping
hand,
for I have chosen to follow your
commandments.
174 O Lord,
I have longed for your rescue,
and your
instructions are my delight.
175 Let me live so I
can praise you,
and may your regulations
help me.
176 I have wandered away like a lost
sheep;
come and find me,
for
I have not forgotten your commands.
Psalm 128
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 How
joyful are those who fear the Lord—
all
who follow his ways!
2 You will enjoy the fruit of
your labor.
How joyful and prosperous
you will be!
3 Your wife will be like a fruitful
grapevine,
flourishing within your
home.
Your children will be like vigorous young olive
trees
as they sit around your
table.
4 That is the Lord’s
blessing
for those who fear him.
5 May
the Lord continually
bless you from Zion.
May you see
Jerusalem prosper as long as you live.
6 May you
live to enjoy your grandchildren.
May
Israel have peace!
Psalm 129
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 From
my earliest youth my enemies have persecuted me.
Let
all Israel repeat this:
2 From my earliest youth my
enemies have persecuted me,
but they
have never defeated me.
3 My back is covered with
cuts,
as if a farmer had plowed long
furrows.
4 But the Lord is
good;
he has cut me free from the ropes
of the ungodly.
5 May
all who hate Jerusalem
be turned back in
shameful defeat.
6 May they be as useless as grass
on a rooftop,
turning yellow when only
half grown,
7 ignored by the harvester,
despised
by the binder.
8 And may those who pass
by
refuse to give them this
blessing:
“The Lord bless
you;
we bless you in the Lord’s
name.”
Psalm 130
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 From
the depths of despair, O Lord,
I
call for your help.
2 Hear my cry, O Lord.
Pay
attention to my prayer.
3 Lord,
if you kept a record of our sins,
who, O
Lord, could ever survive?
4 But you offer
forgiveness,
that we might learn to fear
you.
5 I
am counting on the Lord;
yes,
I am counting on him.
I have put my hope
in his word.
6 I long for the Lord
more
than sentries long for the dawn,
yes,
more than sentries long for the dawn.
7 O
Israel, hope in the Lord;
for
with the Lord there
is unfailing love.
His redemption
overflows.
8 He himself will redeem Israel
from
every kind of sin.
Psalm 131
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem. A psalm of David.
1 Lord,
my heart is not proud;
my eyes are not
haughty.
I don’t concern myself with matters too great
or
too awesome for me to grasp.
2 Instead, I have
calmed and quieted myself,
like a weaned
child who no longer cries for its mother’s milk.
Yes,
like a weaned child is my soul within me.
3 O
Israel, put your hope in the Lord—
now
and always.
Psalm 132
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 Lord,
remember David
and all that he
suffered.
2 He made a solemn promise to
the Lord.
He
vowed to the Mighty One of Israel,
3 “I will not
go home;
I will not let myself rest.
4 I
will not let my eyes sleep
nor close my
eyelids in slumber
5 until I find a place to build a
house for the Lord,
a
sanctuary for the Mighty One of Israel.”
6 We
heard that the Ark was in Ephrathah;
then
we found it in the distant countryside of Jaar.
7 Let
us go to the sanctuary of the Lord;
let
us worship at the footstool of his throne.
8 Arise,
O Lord, and enter
your resting place,
along with the Ark,
the symbol of your power.
9 May your priests be
clothed in godliness;
may your loyal
servants sing for joy.
10 For the sake of your
servant David,
do not reject the king
you have anointed.
11 The Lord swore
an oath to David
with a promise he will
never take back:
“I will place one of your descendants
on
your throne.
12 If your descendants obey the terms
of my covenant
and the laws that I teach
them,
then your royal line
will
continue forever and ever.”
13 For
the Lord has
chosen Jerusalem;
he has desired it for
his home.
14 “This is my resting place forever,”
he said.
“I will live here, for this
is the home I desired.
15 I will bless this city and
make it prosperous;
I will satisfy its
poor with food.
16 I will clothe its priests with
godliness;
its faithful servants will
sing for joy.
17 Here I will increase the power of
David;
my anointed one will be a light
for my people.
18 I will clothe his enemies with
shame,
but he will be a glorious king.”
Psalm 133
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem. A psalm of David.
1 How
wonderful and pleasant it is
when
brothers live together in harmony!
2 For harmony is
as precious as the anointing oil
that
was poured over Aaron’s head,
that ran
down his beard
and onto the border of
his robe.
3 Harmony is as refreshing as the dew from
Mount Hermon
that falls on the mountains
of Zion.
And there the Lord has
pronounced his blessing,
even life
everlasting.
Psalm 134
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 Oh,
praise the Lord,
all you servants of the Lord,
you
who serve at night in the house of the Lord.
2 Lift
your hands toward the sanctuary,
and
praise the Lord.
3 May
the Lord, who made
heaven and earth,
bless you from
Jerusalem.
END OF SESSION 10
Session 11: Subject: Justice - Psalms 12, 15, 17, 53, 54, 56, 58, 59, 64, 70, 140-144 (NLT)
Psalm 12
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be accompanied by an eight-stringed instrument.
1 Help,
O Lord, for the
godly are fast disappearing!
The
faithful have vanished from the earth!
2 Neighbors
lie to each other,
speaking with
flattering lips and deceitful hearts.
3 May
the Lord cut
off their flattering lips
and silence
their boastful tongues.
4 They say, “We will lie
to our hearts’ content.
Our lips are
our own—who can stop us?”
5 The Lord replies,
“I have seen violence done to the helpless,
and
I have heard the groans of the poor.
Now I will rise up to
rescue them,
as they have longed for me
to do.”
6 The Lord’s
promises are pure,
like silver refined
in a furnace,
purified seven times
over.
7 Therefore, Lord,
we know you will protect the oppressed,
preserving
them forever from this lying generation,
8 even
though the wicked strut about,
and evil
is praised throughout the land.
Psalm 15
A psalm of David.
1 Who
may worship in your sanctuary, Lord?
Who
may enter your presence on your holy hill?
2 Those
who lead blameless lives and do what is right,
speaking
the truth from sincere hearts.
3 Those who refuse to
gossip
or harm their neighbors
or
speak evil of their friends.
4 Those who despise
flagrant sinners,
and honor the faithful
followers of the Lord,
and
keep their promises even when it hurts.
5 Those who
lend money without charging interest,
and
who cannot be bribed to lie about the innocent.
Such people will
stand firm forever.
Psalm 17
A prayer of David.
1 O Lord,
hear my plea for justice.
Listen to my
cry for help.
Pay attention to my prayer,
for
it comes from honest lips.
2 Declare me
innocent,
for you see those who do
right.
3 You
have tested my thoughts and examined my heart in the night.
You
have scrutinized me and found nothing wrong.
I
am determined not to sin in what I say.
4 I have
followed your commands,
which keep me
from following cruel and evil people.
5 My steps
have stayed on your path;
I have not
wavered from following you.
6 I
am praying to you because I know you will answer, O God.
Bend
down and listen as I pray.
7 Show me your unfailing
love in wonderful ways.
By your mighty
power you rescue
those who seek refuge
from their enemies.
8 Guard me as you would guard
your own eyes.
Hide me in the shadow of
your wings.
9 Protect me from wicked people who
attack me,
from murderous enemies who
surround me.
10 They are without pity.
Listen
to their boasting!
11 They track me down and
surround me,
watching for the chance to
throw me to the ground.
12 They are like hungry
lions, eager to tear me apart—
like
young lions hiding in ambush.
13 Arise,
O Lord!
Stand
against them, and bring them to their knees!
Rescue
me from the wicked with your sword!
14 By the power
of your hand, O Lord,
destroy
those who look to this world for their reward.
But satisfy the
hunger of your treasured ones.
May their
children have plenty,
leaving an
inheritance for their descendants.
15 Because I am
righteous, I will see you.
When I awake,
I will see you face to face and be satisfied.
Psalm 53
For the choir director: A meditation; a psalm of David.
1 Only
fools say in their hearts,
“There is
no God.”
They are corrupt, and their actions are evil;
not
one of them does good!
2 God
looks down from heaven
on the entire
human race;
he looks to see if anyone is truly wise,
if
anyone seeks God.
3 But no, all have turned
away;
all have become corrupt.
No
one does good,
not a single one!
4 Will
those who do evil never learn?
They eat
up my people like bread
and wouldn’t
think of praying to God.
5 Terror will grip
them,
terror like they have never known
before.
God will scatter the bones of your enemies.
You
will put them to shame, for God has rejected them.
6 Who
will come from Mount Zion to rescue Israel?
When
God restores his people,
Jacob will
shout with joy, and Israel will rejoice.
Psalm 54
For the choir director: A psalm of David, regarding the time the Ziphites came and said to Saul, “We know where David is hiding.” To be accompanied by stringed instruments.
1 Come
with great power, O God, and rescue me!
Defend
me with your might.
2 Listen to my prayer, O
God.
Pay attention to my plea.
3 For
strangers are attacking me;
violent
people are trying to kill me.
They care
nothing for God. Interlude
4 But
God is my helper.
The Lord keeps me
alive!
5 May the evil plans of my enemies be turned
against them.
Do as you promised and put
an end to them.
6 I
will sacrifice a voluntary offering to you;
I
will praise your name, O Lord,
for
it is good.
7 For you have rescued me from my
troubles
and helped me to triumph over
my enemies.
Psalm 56
For the choir director: A psalm of David, regarding the time the Philistines seized him in Gath. To be sung to the tune “Dove on Distant Oaks.”
1 O
God, have mercy on me,
for people are
hounding me.
My foes attack me all day
long.
2 I am constantly hounded by those who slander
me,
and many are boldly attacking
me.
3 But when I am afraid,
I
will put my trust in you.
4 I praise God for what he
has promised.
I trust in God, so why
should I be afraid?
What can mere
mortals do to me?
5 They
are always twisting what I say;
they
spend their days plotting to harm me.
6 They come
together to spy on me—
watching my
every step, eager to kill me.
7 Don’t let them get
away with their wickedness;
in your
anger, O God, bring them down.
8 You
keep track of all my sorrows.
You have
collected all my tears in your bottle.
You
have recorded each one in your book.
9 My
enemies will retreat when I call to you for help.
This
I know: God is on my side!
10 I praise God for what
he has promised;
yes, I praise
the Lord for
what he has promised.
11 I trust in God, so why
should I be afraid?
What can mere
mortals do to me?
12 I
will fulfill my vows to you, O God,
and
will offer a sacrifice of thanks for your help.
13 For
you have rescued me from death;
you have
kept my feet from slipping.
So now I can walk in your presence,
O God,
in your life-giving light.
Psalm 58
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be sung to the tune “Do Not Destroy!”
1 Justice—do
you rulers know the meaning of the word?
Do
you judge the people fairly?
2 No! You plot
injustice in your hearts.
You spread
violence throughout the land.
3 These wicked people
are born sinners;
even from birth they
have lied and gone their own way.
4 They spit venom
like deadly snakes;
they are like cobras
that refuse to listen,
5 ignoring the tunes of the
snake charmers,
no matter how skillfully
they play.
6 Break
off their fangs, O God!
Smash the jaws
of these lions, O Lord!
7 May
they disappear like water into thirsty ground.
Make
their weapons useless in their hands.
8 May they be
like snails that dissolve into slime,
like
a stillborn child who will never see the sun.
9 God
will sweep them away, both young and old,
faster
than a pot heats over burning thorns.
10 The
godly will rejoice when they see injustice avenged.
They
will wash their feet in the blood of the wicked.
11 Then
at last everyone will say,
“There
truly is a reward for those who live for God;
surely
there is a God who judges justly here on earth.”
Psalm 59
For the choir director: A psalm of David, regarding the time Saul sent soldiers to watch David’s house in order to kill him. To be sung to the tune “Do Not Destroy!”
1 Rescue
me from my enemies, O God.
Protect me
from those who have come to destroy me.
2 Rescue me
from these criminals;
save me from these
murderers.
3 They have set an ambush for
me.
Fierce enemies are out there
waiting, Lord,
though
I have not sinned or offended them.
4 I have done
nothing wrong,
yet they prepare to
attack me.
Wake up! See what is
happening and help me!
5 O Lord God
of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,
wake
up and punish those hostile nations.
Show
no mercy to wicked traitors. Interlude
6 They
come out at night,
snarling like vicious
dogs
as they prowl the streets.
7 Listen
to the filth that comes from their mouths;
their
words cut like swords.
“After all, who
can hear us?” they sneer.
8 But Lord,
you laugh at them.
You scoff at all the
hostile nations.
9 You are my strength; I wait for
you to rescue me,
for you, O God, are my
fortress.
10 In his unfailing love, my God will
stand with me.
He will let me look down
in triumph on all my enemies.
11 Don’t
kill them, for my people soon forget such lessons;
stagger
them with your power, and bring them to their knees,
O
Lord our shield.
12 Because of the sinful things
they say,
because of the evil that is on
their lips,
let them be captured by their pride,
their
curses, and their lies.
13 Destroy them in your
anger!
Wipe them out completely!
Then
the whole world will know
that God
reigns in Israel. Interlude
14 My
enemies come out at night,
snarling like
vicious dogs
as they prowl the
streets.
15 They scavenge for food
but
go to sleep unsatisfied.
16 But
as for me, I will sing about your power.
Each
morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love.
For you
have been my refuge,
a place of safety
when I am in distress.
17 O my Strength, to you I
sing praises,
for you, O God, are my
refuge,
the God who shows me unfailing
love.
Psalm 64
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 O
God, listen to my complaint.
Protect my
life from my enemies’ threats.
2 Hide me from the
plots of this evil mob,
from this gang
of wrongdoers.
3 They sharpen their tongues like
swords
and aim their bitter words like
arrows.
4 They shoot from ambush at the
innocent,
attacking suddenly and
fearlessly.
5 They encourage each other to do
evil
and plan how to set their traps in
secret.
“Who will ever notice?” they
ask.
6 As they plot their crimes, they say,
“We
have devised the perfect plan!”
Yes,
the human heart and mind are cunning.
7 But
God himself will shoot them with his arrows,
suddenly
striking them down.
8 Their own tongues will ruin
them,
and all who see them will shake
their heads in scorn.
9 Then everyone will be
afraid;
they will proclaim the mighty
acts of God
and realize all the amazing
things he does.
10 The godly will rejoice in
the Lord
and
find shelter in him.
And those who do what is right
will
praise him.
Psalm 70
For the choir director: A psalm of David, asking God to remember him.
1 Please,
God, rescue me!
Come quickly, Lord,
and help me.
2 May those who try to kill me
be
humiliated and put to shame.
May those who take delight in my
trouble
be turned back in
disgrace.
3 Let them be horrified by their
shame,
for they said, “Aha! We’ve
got him now!”
4 But may all who search for
you
be filled with joy and gladness in
you.
May those who love your salvation
repeatedly
shout, “God is great!”
5 But as for me, I am
poor and needy;
please hurry to my aid,
O God.
You are my helper and my savior;
O Lord,
do not delay.
Psalm 140
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 O Lord,
rescue me from evil people.
Protect me
from those who are violent,
2 those who plot evil in
their hearts
and stir up trouble all day
long.
3 Their tongues sting like a snake;
the
venom of a viper drips from their lips. Interlude
4 O Lord,
keep me out of the hands of the wicked.
Protect
me from those who are violent,
for they
are plotting against me.
5 The proud have set a trap
to catch me;
they have stretched out a
net;
they have placed traps all along
the way. Interlude
6 I
said to the Lord,
“You are my God!”
Listen, O Lord,
to my cries for mercy!
7 O Sovereign Lord,
the strong one who rescued me,
you
protected me on the day of battle.
8 Lord,
do not let evil people have their way.
Do
not let their evil schemes succeed,
or
they will become proud. Interlude
9 Let
my enemies be destroyed
by the very evil
they have planned for me.
10 Let burning coals fall
down on their heads.
Let them be thrown
into the fire
or into watery pits from
which they can’t escape.
11 Don’t let liars
prosper here in our land.
Cause great
disasters to fall on the violent.
12 But
I know the Lord will
help those they persecute;
he will give
justice to the poor.
13 Surely righteous people are
praising your name;
the godly will live
in your presence.
Psalm 141
A psalm of David.
1 O Lord,
I am calling to you. Please hurry!
Listen
when I cry to you for help!
2 Accept my prayer as
incense offered to you,
and my upraised
hands as an evening offering.
3 Take
control of what I say, O Lord,
and
guard my lips.
4 Don’t let me drift toward
evil
or take part in acts of
wickedness.
Don’t let me share in the delicacies
of
those who do wrong.
5 Let
the godly strike me!
It will be a
kindness!
If they correct me, it is soothing medicine.
Don’t
let me refuse it.
But
I pray constantly
against the wicked and
their deeds.
6 When their leaders are thrown down
from a cliff,
the wicked will listen to
my words and find them true.
7 Like rocks brought up
by a plow,
the bones of the wicked will
lie scattered without burial.
8 I
look to you for help, O Sovereign Lord.
You
are my refuge; don’t let them kill me.
9 Keep me
from the traps they have set for me,
from
the snares of those who do wrong.
10 Let the wicked
fall into their own nets,
but let me
escape.
Psalm 142
A psalm of David, regarding his experience in the cave. A prayer.
1 I
cry out to the Lord;
I
plead for the Lord’s
mercy.
2 I pour out my complaints before him
and
tell him all my troubles.
3 When I am
overwhelmed,
you alone know the way I
should turn.
Wherever I go,
my
enemies have set traps for me.
4 I look for someone
to come and help me,
but no one gives me
a passing thought!
No one will help me;
no
one cares a bit what happens to me.
5 Then I pray to
you, O Lord.
I
say, “You are my place of refuge.
You
are all I really want in life.
6 Hear my
cry,
for I am very low.
Rescue me
from my persecutors,
for they are too
strong for me.
7 Bring me out of prison
so
I can thank you.
The godly will crowd around me,
for
you are good to me.”
Psalm 143
A psalm of David.
1 Hear
my prayer, O Lord;
listen
to my plea!
Answer me because you are
faithful and righteous.
2 Don’t put your servant
on trial,
for no one is innocent before
you.
3 My enemy has chased me.
He
has knocked me to the ground
and forces
me to live in darkness like those in the grave.
4 I
am losing all hope;
I am paralyzed with
fear.
5 I remember the days of old.
I
ponder all your great works
and think
about what you have done.
6 I lift my hands to you
in prayer.
I thirst for you as parched
land thirsts for rain. Interlude
7 Come
quickly, Lord, and
answer me,
for my depression
deepens.
Don’t turn away from me,
or
I will die.
8 Let me hear of your unfailing love
each morning,
for I am trusting
you.
Show me where to walk,
for I
give myself to you.
9 Rescue me from my
enemies, Lord;
I
run to you to hide me.
10 Teach me to do your
will,
for you are my God.
May your
gracious Spirit lead me forward
on a
firm footing.
11 For the glory of your name, O Lord,
preserve my life.
Because of your
faithfulness, bring me out of this distress.
12 In
your unfailing love, silence all my enemies
and
destroy all my foes,
for I am your
servant.
Psalm 144
A psalm of David.
1 Praise
the Lord, who is
my rock.
He trains my hands for
war
and gives my fingers skill for
battle.
2 He is my loving ally and my
fortress,
my tower of safety, my
rescuer.
He is my shield, and I take refuge in him.
He
makes the nations submit to me.
3 O Lord,
what are human beings that you should notice them,
mere
mortals that you should think about them?
4 For they
are like a breath of air;
their days are
like a passing shadow.
5 Open
the heavens, Lord,
and come down.
Touch the mountains so
they billow smoke.
6 Hurl your lightning bolts and
scatter your enemies!
Shoot your arrows
and confuse them!
7 Reach down from heaven and
rescue me;
rescue me from deep
waters,
from the power of my
enemies.
8 Their mouths are full of lies;
they
swear to tell the truth, but they lie instead.
9 I
will sing a new song to you, O God!
I
will sing your praises with a ten-stringed harp.
10 For
you grant victory to kings!
You rescued
your servant David from the fatal sword.
11 Save
me!
Rescue me from the power of my
enemies.
Their mouths are full of lies;
they
swear to tell the truth, but they lie instead.
12 May
our sons flourish in their youth
like
well-nurtured plants.
May our daughters be like graceful
pillars,
carved to beautify a
palace.
13 May our barns be filled
with
crops of every kind.
May the flocks in our fields multiply by
the thousands,
even tens of
thousands,
14 and may our
oxen be loaded down with produce.
May there be no enemy breaking
through our walls,
no going into
captivity,
no cries of alarm in our town
squares.
15 Yes, joyful are those who live like
this!
Joyful indeed are those whose God
is the Lord.
END OF SESSION 11
Session 12: Subject: Worship - Psalms 65, 87 (NLT)
Psalm 65
For the choir director: A song. A psalm of David.
1 What
mighty praise, O God,
belongs to you in
Zion.
We will fulfill our vows to you,
2 for
you answer our prayers.
All of us must
come to you.
3 Though we are overwhelmed by our
sins,
you forgive them all.
4 What
joy for those you choose to bring near,
those
who live in your holy courts.
What festivities await
us
inside your holy Temple.
5 You
faithfully answer our prayers with awesome deeds,
O
God our savior.
You are the hope of everyone on earth,
even
those who sail on distant seas.
6 You formed the
mountains by your power
and armed
yourself with mighty strength.
7 You quieted the
raging oceans
with their pounding
waves
and silenced the shouting of the
nations.
8 Those who live at the ends of the
earth
stand in awe of your wonders.
From
where the sun rises to where it sets,
you
inspire shouts of joy.
9 You
take care of the earth and water it,
making
it rich and fertile.
The river of God has plenty of
water;
it provides a bountiful harvest
of grain,
for you have ordered it
so.
10 You drench the plowed ground with
rain,
melting the clods and leveling the
ridges.
You soften the earth with showers
and
bless its abundant crops.
11 You crown the year with
a bountiful harvest;
even the hard
pathways overflow with abundance.
12 The grasslands
of the wilderness become a lush pasture,
and
the hillsides blossom with joy.
13 The meadows are
clothed with flocks of sheep,
and the
valleys are carpeted with grain.
They
all shout and sing for joy!
Psalm 87
A song. A psalm of the descendants of Korah.
1 On
the holy mountain
stands the city
founded by the Lord.
2 He
loves the city of Jerusalem
more than
any other city in Israel.
3 O city of God,
what
glorious things are said of you! Interlude
4 I
will count Egypt and Babylon among those who know me—
also
Philistia and Tyre, and even distant Ethiopia.
They
have all become citizens of Jerusalem!
5 Regarding
Jerusalem it will be said,
“Everyone
enjoys the rights of citizenship there.”
And
the Most High will personally bless this city.
6 When
the Lord registers
the nations, he will say,
“They have
all become citizens of Jerusalem.” Interlude
7 The
people will play flutes and sing,
“The
source of my life springs from Jerusalem!”
END OF SESSION 12
Session 13: Subject: Hope - Psalms 16, 60, 69, 75, 109 (NLT)
Psalm 16
A psalm of David.
1 Keep
me safe, O God,
for I have come to you
for refuge.
2 I
said to the Lord,
“You are my Master!
Every good thing I
have comes from you.”
3 The godly people in the
land
are my true heroes!
I
take pleasure in them!
4 Troubles multiply for those
who chase after other gods.
I will not
take part in their sacrifices of blood
or
even speak the names of their gods.
5 Lord,
you alone are my inheritance, my cup of blessing.
You
guard all that is mine.
6 The land you have given me
is a pleasant land.
What a wonderful
inheritance!
7 I
will bless the Lord who
guides me;
even at night my heart
instructs me.
8 I know the Lord is
always with me.
I will not be shaken,
for he is right beside me.
9 No
wonder my heart is glad, and I rejoice.
My
body rests in safety.
10 For you will not leave my
soul among the dead
or allow your holy
one to rot in the grave.
11 You will show me
the way of life,
granting me the joy of
your presence
and the pleasures of
living with you forever.
Psalm 60
For the choir director: A psalm of David useful for teaching, regarding the time David fought Aram-naharaim and Aram-zobah, and Joab returned and killed 12,000 Edomites in the Valley of Salt. To be sung to the tune “Lily of the Testimony.”
1 You
have rejected us, O God, and broken our defenses.
You
have been angry with us; now restore us to your favor.
2 You
have shaken our land and split it open.
Seal
the cracks, for the land trembles.
3 You have been
very hard on us,
making us drink wine
that sent us reeling.
4 But you have raised a banner
for those who fear you—
a rallying
point in the face of attack. Interlude
5 Now
rescue your beloved people.
Answer and
save us by your power.
6 God has promised this by
his holiness:
“I will divide up Shechem with joy.
I
will measure out the valley of Succoth.
7 Gilead is
mine,
and Manasseh, too.
Ephraim,
my helmet, will produce my warriors,
and
Judah, my scepter, will produce my kings.
8 But
Moab, my washbasin, will become my servant,
and
I will wipe my feet on Edom
and shout in
triumph over Philistia.”
9 Who
will bring me into the fortified city?
Who
will bring me victory over Edom?
10 Have you
rejected us, O God?
Will you no longer
march with our armies?
11 Oh, please help us against
our enemies,
for all human help is
useless.
12 With God’s help we will do mighty
things,
for he will trample down our
foes.
Psalm 69
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be sung to the tune “Lilies.”
1 Save
me, O God,
for the floodwaters are up to
my neck.
2 Deeper and deeper I sink into the
mire;
I can’t find a foothold.
I
am in deep water,
and the floods
overwhelm me.
3 I am exhausted from crying for
help;
my throat is parched.
My eyes
are swollen with weeping,
waiting for my
God to help me.
4 Those who hate me without
cause
outnumber the hairs on my
head.
Many enemies try to destroy me with lies,
demanding
that I give back what I didn’t steal.
5 O
God, you know how foolish I am;
my sins
cannot be hidden from you.
6 Don’t let those who
trust in you be ashamed because of me,
O
Sovereign Lord of
Heaven’s Armies.
Don’t let me cause them to be
humiliated,
O God of Israel.
7 For
I endure insults for your sake;
humiliation
is written all over my face.
8 Even my own brothers
pretend they don’t know me;
they treat
me like a stranger.
9 Passion
for your house has consumed me,
and the
insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.
10 When
I weep and fast,
they scoff at
me.
11 When I dress in burlap to show
sorrow,
they make fun of me.
12 I
am the favorite topic of town gossip,
and
all the drunks sing about me.
13 But
I keep praying to you, Lord,
hoping
this time you will show me favor.
In your unfailing love, O
God,
answer my prayer with your sure
salvation.
14 Rescue me from the mud;
don’t
let me sink any deeper!
Save me from those who hate me,
and
pull me from these deep waters.
15 Don’t let the
floods overwhelm me,
or the deep waters
swallow me,
or the pit of death devour
me.
16 Answer
my prayers, O Lord,
for
your unfailing love is wonderful.
Take care of me,
for
your mercy is so plentiful.
17 Don’t hide from
your servant;
answer me quickly, for I
am in deep trouble!
18 Come and redeem me;
free
me from my enemies.
19 You
know of my shame, scorn, and disgrace.
You
see all that my enemies are doing.
20 Their insults
have broken my heart,
and I am in
despair.
If only one person would show some pity;
if
only one would turn and comfort me.
21 But instead,
they give me poison for food;
they
offer me sour wine for my thirst.
22 Let
the bountiful table set before them become a snare
and
their prosperity become a trap.
23 Let their eyes go
blind so they cannot see,
and make their
bodies shake continually.
24 Pour out your fury on
them;
consume them with your burning
anger.
25 Let their homes become desolate
and
their tents be deserted.
26 To the one you have
punished, they add insult to injury;
they
add to the pain of those you have hurt.
27 Pile
their sins up high,
and don’t let them
go free.
28 Erase their names from the Book of
Life;
don’t let them be counted among
the righteous.
29 I
am suffering and in pain.
Rescue me, O
God, by your saving power.
30 Then
I will praise God’s name with singing,
and
I will honor him with thanksgiving.
31 For this will
please the Lord more
than sacrificing cattle,
more than
presenting a bull with its horns and hooves.
32 The
humble will see their God at work and be glad.
Let
all who seek God’s help be encouraged.
33 For
the Lord hears
the cries of the needy;
he does not
despise his imprisoned people.
34 Praise
him, O heaven and earth,
the seas and
all that move in them.
35 For God will save
Jerusalem
and rebuild the towns of
Judah.
His people will live there
and
settle in their own land.
36 The descendants of
those who obey him will inherit the land,
and
those who love him will live there in safety.
Psalm 75
For the choir director: A psalm of Asaph. A song to be sung to the tune “Do Not Destroy!”
1 We
thank you, O God!
We give thanks because
you are near.
People everywhere tell of
your wonderful deeds.
2 God
says, “At the time I have planned,
I
will bring justice against the wicked.
3 When the
earth quakes and its people live in turmoil,
I
am the one who keeps its foundations firm. Interlude
4 “I
warned the proud, ‘Stop your boasting!’
I
told the wicked, ‘Don’t raise your fists!
5 Don’t
raise your fists in defiance at the heavens
or
speak with such arrogance.’”
6 For no one on
earth—from east or west,
or even from
the wilderness—
should raise a defiant
fist.
7 It is God alone who judges;
he
decides who will rise and who will fall.
8 For
the Lord holds
a cup in his hand
that is full of
foaming wine mixed with spices.
He pours out the wine in
judgment,
and all the wicked must drink
it,
draining it to the dregs.
9 But
as for me, I will always proclaim what God has done;
I
will sing praises to the God of Jacob.
10 For God
says, “I will break the strength of the wicked,
but
I will increase the power of the godly.”
Psalm 109
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 O
God, whom I praise,
don’t stand silent
and aloof
2 while the wicked slander me
and
tell lies about me.
3 They surround me with hateful
words
and fight against me for no
reason.
4 I love them, but they try to destroy me
with accusations
even as I am praying
for them!
5 They repay evil for good,
and
hatred for my love.
6 They
say, “Get an evil person to turn against him.
Send
an accuser to bring him to trial.
7 When his case
comes up for judgment,
let him be
pronounced guilty.
Count his prayers as
sins.
8 Let his years be few;
let
someone else take his position.
9 May his children
become fatherless,
and his wife a
widow.
10 May his children wander as beggars
and
be driven from their ruined homes.
11 May
creditors seize his entire estate,
and
strangers take all he has earned.
12 Let no one be
kind to him;
let no one pity his
fatherless children.
13 May all his offspring
die.
May his family name be blotted out
in the next generation.
14 May the Lord never
forget the sins of his fathers;
may his
mother’s sins never be erased from the record.
15 May
the Lord always
remember these sins,
and may his name
disappear from human memory.
16 For he refused all
kindness to others;
he persecuted the
poor and needy,
and he hounded the
brokenhearted to death.
17 He loved to curse
others;
now you curse him.
He never
blessed others;
now don’t you bless
him.
18 Cursing is as natural to him as his
clothing,
or the water he drinks,
or
the rich food he eats.
19 Now may his curses return
and cling to him like clothing;
may they
be tied around him like a belt.”
20 May
those curses become the Lord’s
punishment
for my accusers who speak
evil of me.
21 But deal well with me, O
Sovereign Lord,
for
the sake of your own reputation!
Rescue me
because
you are so faithful and good.
22 For I am poor and
needy,
and my heart is full of
pain.
23 I am fading like a shadow at dusk;
I
am brushed off like a locust.
24 My knees are weak
from fasting,
and I am skin and
bones.
25 I am a joke to people everywhere;
when
they see me, they shake their heads in scorn.
26 Help
me, O Lord my
God!
Save me because of your unfailing
love.
27 Let them see that this is your
doing,
that you yourself have done
it, Lord.
28 Then
let them curse me if they like,
but you
will bless me!
When they attack me, they will be
disgraced!
But I, your servant, will go
right on rejoicing!
29 May my accusers be clothed
with disgrace;
may their humiliation
cover them like a cloak.
30 But I will give repeated
thanks to the Lord,
praising
him to everyone.
31 For he stands beside the
needy,
ready to save them from those who
condemn them.