Psalms Reading Grouped by Sessions with Audio
Session 1: Introduction to the Psalms – Encouragement
- Psalms 71:17-18 O God, you have taught me from my earliest childhood, and I constantly tell others about the wonderful things you do. Now that I am old and gray, do not abandon me, O God. Let me proclaim your power to this new generation, your mighty miracles to all who come after me.
Stop Here for Session 1
Session 2: Subject: Righteousness - Psalm 1, 3-5, 6-9 (NLT)
Psalm 1
1 Oh, the joys of those who do not
follow the
advice of the wicked,
or stand around
with sinners,
or join in with
mockers.
2 But they delight in the law of
the Lord,
meditating
on it day and night.
3 They are like trees planted
along the riverbank,
bearing fruit each
season.
Their leaves never wither,
and
they prosper in all they do.
4 But
not the wicked!
They are like worthless
chaff, scattered by the wind.
5 They will be
condemned at the time of judgment.
Sinners
will have no place among the godly.
6 For
the Lord watches
over the path of the godly,
but the path
of the wicked leads to destruction.
Psalm 3
A psalm of David, regarding the time David fled from his son Absalom.
1 O Lord,
I have so many enemies;
so many are
against me.
2 So many are saying,
“God
will never rescue him!” Interlude
3 But
you, O Lord, are a
shield around me;
you are my glory, the
one who holds my head high.
4 I cried out to
the Lord,
and
he answered me from his holy mountain. Interlude
5 I
lay down and slept,
yet I woke up in
safety,
for the Lord was
watching over me.
6 I am not afraid of ten thousand
enemies
who surround me on every side.
7 Arise,
O Lord!
Rescue
me, my God!
Slap all my enemies in the face!
Shatter
the teeth of the wicked!
8 Victory comes from you,
O Lord.
May
you bless your people. Interlude
Psalm 4
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be accompanied by stringed instruments.
1 Answer
me when I call to you,
O God who
declares me innocent.
Free me from my troubles.
Have
mercy on me and hear my prayer.
2 How
long will you people ruin my reputation?
How
long will you make groundless accusations?
How
long will you continue your lies? Interlude
3 You
can be sure of this:
The Lord set
apart the godly for himself.
The Lord will
answer when I call to him.
4 Don’t
sin by letting anger control you.
Think
about it overnight and remain silent. Interlude
5 Offer
sacrifices in the right spirit,
and
trust the Lord.
6 Many
people say, “Who will show us better times?”
Let
your face smile on us, Lord.
7 You
have given me greater joy
than those who
have abundant harvests of grain and new wine.
8 In
peace I will lie down and sleep,
for you
alone, O Lord,
will keep me safe.
Psalm 5
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be accompanied by the flute.
1 O Lord,
hear me as I pray;
pay attention to my
groaning.
2 Listen to my cry for help, my King and
my God,
for I pray to no one but
you.
3 Listen to my voice in the
morning, Lord.
Each
morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly.
4 O
God, you take no pleasure in wickedness;
you
cannot tolerate the sins of the wicked.
5 Therefore,
the proud may not stand in your presence,
for
you hate all who do evil.
6 You will destroy those
who tell lies.
The Lord detests
murderers and deceivers.
7 Because
of your unfailing love, I can enter your house;
I
will worship at your Temple with deepest awe.
8 Lead
me in the right path, O Lord,
or
my enemies will conquer me.
Make your way plain for me to
follow.
9 My
enemies cannot speak a truthful word.
Their
deepest desire is to destroy others.
Their talk is foul, like
the stench from an open grave.
Their
tongues are filled with flattery.
10 O God, declare
them guilty.
Let them be caught in their
own traps.
Drive them away because of their many sins,
for
they have rebelled against you.
11 But
let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
let
them sing joyful praises forever.
Spread your protection over
them,
that all who love your name may be
filled with joy.
12 For you bless the godly,
O Lord;
you
surround them with your shield of love.
Psalm 7
A psalm of David, which he sang to the Lord concerning Cush of the tribe of Benjamin.
1 I
come to you for protection, O Lord my
God.
Save me from my persecutors—rescue
me!
2 If you don’t, they will maul me like a
lion,
tearing me to pieces with no one
to rescue me.
3 O Lord my
God, if I have done wrong
or am guilty
of injustice,
4 if I have betrayed a friend
or
plundered my enemy without cause,
5 then let my
enemies capture me.
Let them trample me
into the ground
and drag my honor in the
dust. Interlude
6 Arise,
O Lord, in
anger!
Stand up against the fury of my
enemies!
Wake up, my God, and bring
justice!
7 Gather the nations before you.
Rule
over them from on high.
8 The Lord judges
the nations.
Declare me righteous, O Lord,
for
I am innocent, O Most High!
9 End the evil of those
who are wicked,
and defend the
righteous.
For you look deep within the mind and heart,
O
righteous God.
10 God
is my shield,
saving those whose hearts
are true and right.
11 God is an honest
judge.
He is angry with the wicked every
day.
12 If
a person does not repent,
God will
sharpen his sword;
he will bend and
string his bow.
13 He will prepare his deadly
weapons
and shoot his flaming arrows.
14 The
wicked conceive evil;
they are pregnant
with trouble
and give birth to
lies.
15 They dig a deep pit to trap
others,
then fall into it
themselves.
16 The trouble they make for others
backfires on them.
The violence they
plan falls on their own heads.
17 I
will thank the Lord because
he is just;
I will sing praise to the
name of the Lord Most
High.
Psalm 8
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be accompanied by a stringed instrument.
1 O Lord,
our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth!
Your
glory is higher than the heavens.
2 You have taught
children and infants
to tell of your
strength,
silencing your enemies
and
all who oppose you.
3 When
I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers—
the
moon and the stars you set in place—
4 what are
mere mortals that you should think about them,
human
beings that you should care for them?
5 Yet you made
them only a little lower than God
and
crowned them with glory and honor.
6 You gave
them charge of everything you made,
putting
all things under their authority—
7 the flocks and
the herds
and all the wild
animals,
8 the birds in the sky, the fish in the
sea,
and everything that swims the ocean
currents.
9 O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth!
Psalm 9
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be sung to the tune “Death of the Son.”
1 I
will praise you, Lord,
with all my heart;
I will tell of all
the marvelous things you have done.
2 I will be
filled with joy because of you.
I will
sing praises to your name, O Most High.
3 My
enemies retreated;
they staggered and
died when you appeared.
4 For you have judged in my
favor;
from your throne you have judged
with fairness.
5 You have rebuked the nations and
destroyed the wicked;
you have erased
their names forever.
6 The enemy is finished, in
endless ruins;
the cities you uprooted
are now forgotten.
7 But
the Lord reigns
forever,
executing judgment from his
throne.
8 He will judge the world with
justice
and rule the nations with
fairness.
9 The Lord is
a shelter for the oppressed,
a refuge in
times of trouble.
10 Those who know your name trust
in you,
for you, O Lord,
do not abandon those who search for you.
11 Sing
praises to the Lord who
reigns in Jerusalem.
Tell the world
about his unforgettable deeds.
12 For he who avenges
murder cares for the helpless.
He does
not ignore the cries of those who suffer.
13 Lord,
have mercy on me.
See how my enemies
torment me.
Snatch me back from the jaws
of death.
14 Save me so I can praise you publicly at
Jerusalem’s gates,
so I can rejoice
that you have rescued me.
15 The
nations have fallen into the pit they dug for others.
Their
own feet have been caught in the trap they set.
16 The Lord is
known for his justice.
The wicked are
trapped by their own deeds. Quiet Interlude
17 The
wicked will go down to the grave.
This
is the fate of all the nations who ignore God.
18 But
the needy will not be ignored forever;
the
hopes of the poor will not always be crushed.
19 Arise,
O Lord!
Do
not let mere mortals defy you!
Judge the
nations!
20 Make them tremble in fear,
O Lord.
Let
the nations know they are merely human. Interlude
Stop Here for Session 2
Session 3: Subject: Security - Psalms 23-29 (NLT)
Psalm 23
A psalm of David.
1 The Lord is
my shepherd;
I have all that I
need.
2 He
lets me rest in green meadows;
he leads
me beside peaceful streams.
3 He
renews my strength.
He guides me along right paths,
bringing
honor to his name.
4 Even
when I walk
through the darkest
valley,
I will not be afraid,
for
you are close beside me.
Your rod and your staff
protect
and comfort me.
5 You
prepare a feast for me
in the presence
of my enemies.
You honor me by anointing my head with
oil.
My cup overflows with
blessings.
6 Surely
your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me
all
the days of my life,
and I will live in the house of
the Lord
forever.
Psalm 24
A psalm of David.
1 The
earth is the Lord’s,
and everything in it.
The world and all
its people belong to him.
2 For he laid the earth’s
foundation on the seas
and built it on
the ocean depths.
3 Who
may climb the mountain of the Lord?
Who
may stand in his holy place?
4 Only those whose
hands and hearts are pure,
who do not
worship idols
and never tell
lies.
5 They will receive the Lord’s
blessing
and have a right relationship
with God their savior.
6 Such people may seek
you
and worship in your presence, O God
of Jacob. Interlude
7 Open
up, ancient gates!
Open up, ancient
doors,
and let the King of glory
enter.
8 Who is the King of glory?
The Lord,
strong and mighty;
the Lord,
invincible in battle.
9 Open up, ancient
gates!
Open up, ancient doors,
and
let the King of glory enter.
10 Who is the King of
glory?
The Lord of
Heaven’s Armies—
he is the King of
glory. Interlude
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 26
A psalm of David.
1 Declare
me innocent, O Lord,
for
I have acted with integrity;
I have
trusted in the Lord without
wavering.
2 Put me on trial, Lord,
and cross-examine me.
Test my motives
and my heart.
3 For I am always aware of your
unfailing love,
and I have lived
according to your truth.
4 I do not spend time with
liars
or go along with hypocrites.
5 I
hate the gatherings of those who do evil,
and
I refuse to join in with the wicked.
6 I wash my
hands to declare my innocence.
I come to
your altar, O Lord,
7 singing
a song of thanksgiving
and telling of
all your wonders.
8 I love your
sanctuary, Lord,
the
place where your glorious presence dwells.
9 Don’t
let me suffer the fate of sinners.
Don’t
condemn me along with murderers.
10 Their hands are
dirty with evil schemes,
and they
constantly take bribes.
11 But I am not like that; I
live with integrity.
So redeem me and
show me mercy.
12 Now I stand on solid
ground,
and I will publicly praise
the Lord.
Psalm 27
A psalm of David.
1 The Lord is
my light and my salvation—
so why
should I be afraid?
The Lord is
my fortress, protecting me from danger,
so
why should I tremble?
2 When evil people come to
devour me,
when my enemies and foes
attack me,
they will stumble and
fall.
3 Though a mighty army surrounds me,
my
heart will not be afraid.
Even if I am attacked,
I
will remain confident.
4 The
one thing I ask of the Lord—
the
thing I seek most—
is to live in the house of the Lord all
the days of my life,
delighting in
the Lord’s
perfections
and meditating in his
Temple.
5 For he will conceal me there when troubles
come;
he will hide me in his
sanctuary.
He will place me out of reach
on a high rock.
6 Then I will hold my head
high
above my enemies who surround
me.
At his sanctuary I will offer sacrifices with shouts of
joy,
singing and praising the Lord with
music.
7 Hear
me as I pray, O Lord.
Be
merciful and answer me!
8 My heart has heard you
say, “Come and talk with me.”
And my
heart responds, “Lord,
I am coming.”
9 Do not turn your back on
me.
Do not reject your servant in
anger.
You have always been my
helper.
Don’t leave me now; don’t abandon me,
O
God of my salvation!
10 Even if my father and mother
abandon me,
the Lord will
hold me close.
11 Teach
me how to live, O Lord.
Lead
me along the right path,
for my enemies
are waiting for me.
12 Do not let me fall into their
hands.
For they accuse me of things I’ve
never done;
with every breath they
threaten me with violence.
13 Yet I am confident I
will see the Lord’s
goodness
while I am here in the land of
the living.
14 Wait
patiently for the Lord.
Be
brave and courageous.
Yes, wait
patiently for the Lord.
Psalm 28
A psalm of David.
1 I
pray to you, O Lord,
my rock.
Do not turn a deaf ear to
me.
For if you are silent,
I might
as well give up and die.
2 Listen to my prayer for
mercy
as I cry out to you for
help,
as I lift my hands toward your
holy sanctuary.
3 Do
not drag me away with the wicked—
with
those who do evil—
those who speak friendly words to their
neighbors
while planning evil in their
hearts.
4 Give them the punishment they so richly
deserve!
Measure it out in proportion to
their wickedness.
Pay them back for all their evil
deeds!
Give them a taste of what they
have done to others.
5 They care nothing for what
the Lord has
done
or for what his hands have made.
So
he will tear them down,
and they will
never be rebuilt!
6 Praise
the Lord!
For
he has heard my cry for mercy.
7 The Lord is
my strength and shield.
I trust him with
all my heart.
He helps me, and my heart is filled with
joy.
I burst out in songs of
thanksgiving.
8 The Lord gives
his people strength.
He is a safe
fortress for his anointed king.
9 Save your
people!
Bless Israel, your special
possession.
Lead them like a shepherd,
and
carry them in your arms forever.
Psalm 29
A psalm of David.
1 Honor
the Lord, you
heavenly beings;
honor the Lord for
his glory and strength.
2 Honor the Lord for
the glory of his name.
Worship
the Lord in
the splendor of his holiness.
3 The
voice of the Lord echoes
above the sea.
The God of glory
thunders.
The Lord thunders
over the mighty sea.
4 The voice of the Lord is
powerful;
the voice of the Lord is
majestic.
5 The voice of the Lord splits
the mighty cedars;
the Lord shatters
the cedars of Lebanon.
6 He makes Lebanon’s
mountains skip like a calf;
he makes
Mount Hermon leap like a young wild ox.
7 The
voice of the Lord strikes
with
bolts of lightning.
8 The voice of the Lord makes
the barren wilderness quake;
the Lord shakes
the wilderness of Kadesh.
9 The voice of
the Lord twists
mighty oaks
and strips the forests
bare.
In his Temple everyone shouts, “Glory!”
10 The Lord rules
over the floodwaters.
The Lord reigns
as king forever.
11 The Lord gives
his people strength.
The Lord blesses
them with peace.
Stop Here for Session 3
Session 4: Subject: Lament- Psalms 6, 13, 22, 42-43, 88 (NLT)
Psalm 6
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be accompanied by an eight-stringed instrument.
1 O Lord,
don’t rebuke me in your anger
or
discipline me in your rage.
2 Have compassion on
me, Lord, for I am
weak.
Heal me, Lord,
for my bones are in agony.
3 I am sick at
heart.
How long, O Lord,
until you restore me?
4 Return,
O Lord, and rescue
me.
Save me because of your unfailing
love.
5 For the dead do not remember you.
Who
can praise you from the grave?
6 I
am worn out from sobbing.
All night I
flood my bed with weeping,
drenching it
with my tears.
7 My vision is blurred by
grief;
my eyes are worn out because of
all my enemies.
8 Go
away, all you who do evil,
for
the Lord has
heard my weeping.
9 The Lord has
heard my plea;
the Lord will
answer my prayer.
10 May all my enemies be disgraced
and terrified.
May they suddenly turn
back in shame.
Psalm 13
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 O Lord,
how long will you forget me? Forever?
How
long will you look the other way?
2 How long must I
struggle with anguish in my soul,
with
sorrow in my heart every day?
How long
will my enemy have the upper hand?
3 Turn
and answer me, O Lord my
God!
Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or
I will die.
4 Don’t let my enemies gloat, saying,
“We have defeated him!”
Don’t let
them rejoice at my downfall.
5 But
I trust in your unfailing love.
I will
rejoice because you have rescued me.
6 I will sing
to the Lord
because
he is good to me.
Psalm 22
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be sung to the tune “Doe of the Dawn.”
1 My
God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
Why
are you so far away when I groan for help?
2 Every
day I call to you, my God, but you do not answer.
Every
night I lift my voice, but I find no relief.
3 Yet
you are holy,
enthroned on the praises
of Israel.
4 Our ancestors trusted in you,
and
you rescued them.
5 They cried out to you and were
saved.
They trusted in you and were
never disgraced.
6 But
I am a worm and not a man.
I am scorned
and despised by all!
7 Everyone who sees me mocks
me.
They sneer and shake their heads,
saying,
8 “Is this the one who relies on
the Lord?
Then
let the Lord save
him!
If the Lord loves
him so much,
let the Lord rescue
him!”
9 Yet
you brought me safely from my mother’s womb
and
led me to trust you at my mother’s breast.
10 I
was thrust into your arms at my birth.
You
have been my God from the moment I was born.
11 Do
not stay so far from me,
for trouble is
near,
and no one else can help me.
12 My
enemies surround me like a herd of bulls;
fierce
bulls of Bashan have hemmed me in!
13 Like lions
they open their jaws against me,
roaring
and tearing into their prey.
14 My life is poured
out like water,
and all my bones are out
of joint.
My heart is like wax,
melting
within me.
15 My strength has dried up like sunbaked
clay.
My tongue sticks to the roof of my
mouth.
You have laid me in the dust and
left me for dead.
16 My enemies surround me like a
pack of dogs;
an evil gang closes in on
me.
They have pierced my hands and
feet.
17 I can count all my bones.
My
enemies stare at me and gloat.
18 They divide my
garments among themselves
and throw
dice for my clothing.
19 O Lord,
do not stay far away!
You are my
strength; come quickly to my aid!
20 Save me from
the sword;
spare my precious life from
these dogs.
21 Snatch me from the lion’s
jaws
and from the horns of these wild
oxen.
22 I
will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters.
I
will praise you among your assembled people.
23 Praise
the Lord, all you
who fear him!
Honor him, all you
descendants of Jacob!
Show him
reverence, all you descendants of Israel!
24 For he
has not ignored or belittled the suffering of the needy.
He
has not turned his back on them,
but has
listened to their cries for help.
25 I
will praise you in the great assembly.
I
will fulfill my vows in the presence of those who worship you.
26 The
poor will eat and be satisfied.
All who
seek the Lord will
praise him.
Their hearts will rejoice
with everlasting joy.
27 The whole earth will
acknowledge the Lord and
return to him.
All the families of the
nations will bow down before him.
28 For royal power
belongs to the Lord.
He
rules all the nations.
29 Let
the rich of the earth feast and worship.
Bow
before him, all who are mortal,
all
whose lives will end as dust.
30 Our children will
also serve him.
Future generations will
hear about the wonders of the Lord.
31 His righteous
acts will be told to those not yet born.
They
will hear about everything he has done.
Psalm 42
For the choir director: A psalm of the descendants of Korah.
1 As
the deer longs for streams of water,
so
I long for you, O God.
2 I thirst for God, the
living God.
When can I go and stand
before him?
3 Day and night I have only tears for
food,
while my enemies continually taunt
me, saying,
“Where is this God of
yours?”
4 My
heart is breaking
as I remember how it
used to be:
I walked among the crowds of worshipers,
leading
a great procession to the house of God,
singing for joy and
giving thanks
amid the sound of a great
celebration!
5 Why
am I discouraged?
Why is my heart so
sad?
I will put my hope in God!
I
will praise him again—
my Savior
and 6 my God!
Now
I am deeply discouraged,
but I will
remember you—
even from distant Mount Hermon, the source of
the Jordan,
from the land of Mount
Mizar.
7 I hear the tumult of the raging seas
as
your waves and surging tides sweep over me.
8 But
each day the Lord pours
his unfailing love upon me,
and through
each night I sing his songs,
praying to
God who gives me life.
9 “O
God my rock,” I cry,
“Why have you
forgotten me?
Why must I wander around in grief,
oppressed
by my enemies?”
10 Their taunts break my
bones.
They scoff, “Where is this God
of yours?”
11 Why
am I discouraged?
Why is my heart so
sad?
I will put my hope in God!
I
will praise him again—
my Savior and
my God!
Psalm 43
1 Declare
me innocent, O God!
Defend me against
these ungodly people.
Rescue me from
these unjust liars.
2 For you are God, my only safe
haven.
Why have you tossed me aside?
Why
must I wander around in grief,
oppressed
by my enemies?
3 Send out your light and your
truth;
let them guide me.
Let them
lead me to your holy mountain,
to the
place where you live.
4 There I will go to the altar
of God,
to God—the source of all my
joy.
I will praise you with my harp,
O
God, my God!
5 Why
am I discouraged?
Why is my heart so
sad?
I will put my hope in God!
I
will praise him again—
my Savior and
my God!
Psalm 88
For the choir director: A psalm of the descendants of Korah. A song to be sung to the tune “The Suffering of Affliction.” A psalm of Heman the Ezrahite.
1 O Lord,
God of my salvation,
I cry out to you by
day.
I come to you at night.
2 Now
hear my prayer;
listen to my cry.
3 For
my life is full of troubles,
and
death draws near.
4 I am as good as
dead,
like a strong man with no strength
left.
5 They have left me among the dead,
and
I lie like a corpse in a grave.
I am forgotten,
cut
off from your care.
6 You have thrown me into the
lowest pit,
into the darkest
depths.
7 Your anger weighs me down;
with
wave after wave you have engulfed me. Interlude
8 You
have driven my friends away
by making me
repulsive to them.
I am in a trap with no way of
escape.
9 My eyes are
blinded by my tears.
Each day I beg for your help, O Lord;
I
lift my hands to you for mercy.
10 Are your
wonderful deeds of any use to the dead?
Do
the dead rise up and praise you? Interlude
11 Can
those in the grave declare your unfailing love?
Can
they proclaim your faithfulness in the place of destruction?
12 Can
the darkness speak of your wonderful deeds?
Can
anyone in the land of forgetfulness talk about your
righteousness?
13 O Lord,
I cry out to you.
I will keep on
pleading day by day.
14 O Lord,
why do you reject me?
Why do you turn
your face from me?
15 I
have been sick and close to death since my youth.
I
stand helpless and desperate before your terrors.
16 Your
fierce anger has overwhelmed me.
Your
terrors have paralyzed me.
17 They swirl around me
like floodwaters all day long.
They have
engulfed me completely.
18 You have taken away my
companions and loved ones.
Darkness is
my closest friend.
Stop Here for Session 4
Session 5: Subject: Repentance - Psalms 51, 32, 26, 31 (NLT)
Psalm 51
For the choir director: A psalm of David, regarding the time Nathan the prophet came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba.
1 Have
mercy on me, O God,
because of your
unfailing love.
Because of your great compassion,
blot
out the stain of my sins.
2 Wash me clean from my
guilt.
Purify me from my sin.
3 For
I recognize my rebellion;
it haunts me
day and night.
4 Against you, and you alone, have I
sinned;
I have done what is evil in your
sight.
You will be proved right in what you say,
and
your judgment against me is just.
5 For I was born a
sinner—
yes, from the moment my mother
conceived me.
6 But you desire honesty from the
womb,
teaching me wisdom even there.
7 Purify
me from my sins, and I will be clean;
wash
me, and I will be whiter than snow.
8 Oh, give me
back my joy again;
you have broken
me—
now let me rejoice.
9 Don’t
keep looking at my sins.
Remove the
stain of my guilt.
10 Create in me a clean heart, O
God.
Renew a loyal spirit within
me.
11 Do not banish me from your presence,
and
don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore
to me the joy of your salvation,
and
make me willing to obey you.
13 Then I will teach
your ways to rebels,
and they will
return to you.
14 Forgive me for shedding blood, O
God who saves;
then I will joyfully sing
of your forgiveness.
15 Unseal my lips, O
Lord,
that my mouth may praise you.
16 You
do not desire a sacrifice, or I would offer one.
You
do not want a burnt offering.
17 The sacrifice you
desire is a broken spirit.
You will not
reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.
18 Look
with favor on Zion and help her;
rebuild
the walls of Jerusalem.
19 Then you will be pleased
with sacrifices offered in the right spirit—
with
burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings.
Then
bulls will again be sacrificed on your altar.
Psalm 32
A psalm of David.
1 Oh,
what joy for those
whose disobedience is
forgiven,
whose sin is put out of
sight!
2 Yes, what joy for those
whose
record the Lord has
cleared of guilt,
whose lives are lived
in complete honesty!
3 When I refused to confess my
sin,
my body wasted away,
and
I groaned all day long.
4 Day and night your hand of
discipline was heavy on me.
My strength
evaporated like water in the summer heat. Interlude
5 Finally,
I confessed all my sins to you
and
stopped trying to hide my guilt.
I said to myself, “I will
confess my rebellion to the Lord.”
And
you forgave me! All my guilt is gone. Interlude
6 Therefore,
let all the godly pray to you while there is still time,
that
they may not drown in the floodwaters of judgment.
7 For
you are my hiding place;
you protect me
from trouble.
You surround me with songs
of victory. Interlude
8 The Lord says,
“I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.
I
will advise you and watch over you.
9 Do not be like
a senseless horse or mule
that needs a
bit and bridle to keep it under control.”
10 Many
sorrows come to the wicked,
but
unfailing love surrounds those who trust the Lord.
11 So
rejoice in the Lord and
be glad, all you who obey him!
Shout for
joy, all you whose hearts are pure!
Psalm 26
A psalm of David.
1 Declare
me innocent, O Lord,
for
I have acted with integrity;
I have
trusted in the Lord without
wavering.
2 Put me on trial, Lord,
and cross-examine me.
Test my motives
and my heart.
3 For I am always aware of your
unfailing love,
and I have lived
according to your truth.
4 I do not spend time with
liars
or go along with hypocrites.
5 I
hate the gatherings of those who do evil,
and
I refuse to join in with the wicked.
6 I wash my
hands to declare my innocence.
I come to
your altar, O Lord,
7 singing
a song of thanksgiving
and telling of
all your wonders.
8 I love your
sanctuary, Lord,
the
place where your glorious presence dwells.
9 Don’t
let me suffer the fate of sinners.
Don’t
condemn me along with murderers.
10 Their hands are
dirty with evil schemes,
and they
constantly take bribes.
11 But I am not like that; I
live with integrity.
So redeem me and
show me mercy.
12 Now I stand on solid
ground,
and I will publicly praise
the Lord.
Psalm 31
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 O Lord,
I have come to you for protection;
don’t
let me be disgraced.
Save me, for you do
what is right.
2 Turn your ear to listen to
me;
rescue me quickly.
Be my rock
of protection,
a fortress where I will
be safe.
3 You are my rock and my fortress.
For
the honor of your name, lead me out of this danger.
4 Pull
me from the trap my enemies set for me,
for
I find protection in you alone.
5 I entrust my
spirit into your hand.
Rescue me, Lord,
for you are a faithful God.
6 I
hate those who worship worthless idols.
I
trust in the Lord.
7 I
will be glad and rejoice in your unfailing love,
for
you have seen my troubles,
and you care
about the anguish of my soul.
8 You have not handed
me over to my enemies
but have set me in
a safe place.
9 Have
mercy on me, Lord,
for I am in distress.
Tears blur my
eyes.
My body and soul are withering
away.
10 I am dying from grief;
my
years are shortened by sadness.
Sin has drained my
strength;
I am wasting away from
within.
11 I am scorned by all my enemies
and
despised by my neighbors—
even my
friends are afraid to come near me.
When they see me on the
street,
they run the other way.
12 I
am ignored as if I were dead,
as if I
were a broken pot.
13 I have heard the many rumors
about me,
and I am surrounded by
terror.
My enemies conspire against me,
plotting
to take my life.
14 But
I am trusting you, O Lord,
saying,
“You are my God!”
15 My future is in your
hands.
Rescue me from those who hunt me
down relentlessly.
16 Let your favor shine on your
servant.
In your unfailing love, rescue
me.
17 Don’t let me be disgraced, O Lord,
for
I call out to you for help.
Let the wicked be disgraced;
let
them lie silent in the grave.
18 Silence their lying
lips—
those proud and arrogant lips
that accuse the godly.
19 How
great is the goodness
you have stored up
for those who fear you.
You lavish it on those who come to you
for protection,
blessing them before the
watching world.
20 You hide them in the shelter of
your presence,
safe from those who
conspire against them.
You shelter them in your
presence,
far from accusing tongues.
21 Praise
the Lord,
for
he has shown me the wonders of his unfailing love.
He
kept me safe when my city was under attack.
22 In
panic I cried out,
“I am cut off from
the Lord!”
But
you heard my cry for mercy
and answered
my call for help.
23 Love
the Lord, all you
godly ones!
For the Lord protects
those who are loyal to him,
but he
harshly punishes the arrogant.
24 So be strong and
courageous,
all you who put your hope in
the Lord!
Stop Here for Session 5
Session 6: Subject: Trust - Psalms 2, 46, 47, 93, 97 (NLT)
1 Why are the nations so angry?
Why do they
waste their time with futile plans?
2 The kings of
the earth prepare for battle;
the rulers
plot together
against the Lord
and
against his anointed one.
3 “Let us break their
chains,” they cry,
“and free
ourselves from slavery to God.”
4 But
the one who rules in heaven laughs.
The
Lord scoffs at them.
5 Then in anger he rebukes
them,
terrifying them with his fierce
fury.
6 For the Lord declares, “I have placed my
chosen king on the throne
in
Jerusalem, on my holy mountain.”
7 The
king proclaims the Lord’s
decree:
“The Lord said
to me, ‘You are my son.
Today I have
become your Father.
8 Only ask, and I will give you
the nations as your inheritance,
the
whole earth as your possession.
9 You will
break them with an iron rod
and
smash them like clay pots.’”
10 Now
then, you kings, act wisely!
Be warned,
you rulers of the earth!
11 Serve the Lord with
reverent fear,
and rejoice with
trembling.
12 Submit to God’s royal son, or
he will become angry,
and you will be
destroyed in the midst of all your activities—
for his anger
flares up in an instant.
But what joy
for all who take refuge in him!
Psalm 46
For the choir director: A song of the descendants of Korah, to be sung by soprano voices.
1 God
is our refuge and strength,
always ready
to help in times of trouble.
2 So we will not fear
when earthquakes come
and the mountains
crumble into the sea.
3 Let the oceans roar and
foam.
Let the mountains tremble as the
waters surge! Interlude
4 A
river brings joy to the city of our God,
the
sacred home of the Most High.
5 God dwells in that
city; it cannot be destroyed.
From the
very break of day, God will protect it.
6 The
nations are in chaos,
and their kingdoms
crumble!
God’s voice thunders,
and
the earth melts!
7 The Lord of
Heaven’s Armies is here among us;
the
God of Israel is our fortress. Interlude
8 Come,
see the glorious works of the Lord:
See
how he brings destruction upon the world.
9 He
causes wars to end throughout the earth.
He
breaks the bow and snaps the spear;
he
burns the shields with fire.
10 “Be
still, and know that I am God!
I will be
honored by every nation.
I will be
honored throughout the world.”
11 The Lord of
Heaven’s Armies is here among us;
the
God of Israel is our fortress. Interlude
Psalm 47
For the choir director: A psalm of the descendants of Korah.
1 Come,
everyone! Clap your hands!
Shout to God
with joyful praise!
2 For the Lord Most
High is awesome.
He is the great King of
all the earth.
3 He subdues the nations before
us,
putting our enemies beneath our
feet.
4 He chose the Promised Land as our
inheritance,
the proud possession of
Jacob’s descendants, whom he loves. Interlude
5 God
has ascended with a mighty shout.
The Lord has
ascended with trumpets blaring.
6 Sing praises to
God, sing praises;
sing praises to our
King, sing praises!
7 For God is the King over all
the earth.
Praise him with a
psalm.
8 God reigns above the nations,
sitting
on his holy throne.
9 The rulers of the world have
gathered together
with the people of the
God of Abraham.
For all the kings of the earth belong to
God.
He is highly honored everywhere.
Psalm 93
1 The Lord is
king! He is robed in majesty.
Indeed,
the Lord is
robed in majesty and armed with strength.
The world stands
firm
and cannot be shaken.
2 Your
throne, O Lord,
has stood from time immemorial.
You
yourself are from the everlasting past.
3 The floods
have risen up, O Lord.
The
floods have roared like thunder;
the
floods have lifted their pounding waves.
4 But
mightier than the violent raging of the seas,
mightier
than the breakers on the shore—
the Lord above
is mightier than these!
5 Your royal laws cannot be
changed.
Your reign, O Lord,
is holy forever and ever.
Psalm 97
1 The Lord is
king!
Let the earth rejoice!
Let
the farthest coastlands be glad.
2 Dark clouds
surround him.
Righteousness and justice
are the foundation of his throne.
3 Fire spreads
ahead of him
and burns up all his
foes.
4 His lightning flashes out across the
world.
The earth sees and
trembles.
5 The mountains melt like wax before
the Lord,
before
the Lord of all the earth.
6 The heavens proclaim
his righteousness;
every nation sees his
glory.
7 Those who worship idols are
disgraced—
all who brag about their
worthless gods—
for every god must bow
to him.
8 Jerusalem has heard and
rejoiced,
and all the towns of Judah are
glad
because of your justice,
O Lord!
9 For
you, O Lord, are
supreme over all the earth;
you are
exalted far above all gods.
10 You
who love the Lord,
hate evil!
He protects the lives of his
godly people
and rescues them from the
power of the wicked.
11 Light shines on the
godly,
and joy on those whose hearts are
right.
12 May all who are godly rejoice in
the Lord
and
praise his holy name!
Stop Here for Session 6
Session 7: Subject: Remembrance - Psalms 78, 105, 106 (NLT)
Psalm 78
A psalm of Asaph.
1 O
my people, listen to my instructions.
Open
your ears to what I am saying,
2 for
I will speak to you in a parable.
I will teach you hidden
lessons from our past—
3 stories
we have heard and known,
stories our
ancestors handed down to us.
4 We will not hide
these truths from our children;
we will
tell the next generation
about the glorious deeds of
the Lord,
about
his power and his mighty wonders.
5 For he issued
his laws to Jacob;
he gave his
instructions to Israel.
He commanded our ancestors
to
teach them to their children,
6 so the next
generation might know them—
even the
children not yet born—
and they in
turn will teach their own children.
7 So each
generation should set its hope anew on God,
not
forgetting his glorious miracles
and
obeying his commands.
8 Then they will not be like
their ancestors—
stubborn, rebellious,
and unfaithful,
refusing to give their
hearts to God.
9 The
warriors of Ephraim, though armed with bows,
turned
their backs and fled on the day of battle.
10 They
did not keep God’s covenant
and
refused to live by his instructions.
11 They forgot
what he had done—
the great wonders he
had shown them,
12 the miracles he did for their
ancestors
on the plain of Zoan in the
land of Egypt.
13 For he divided the sea and led
them through,
making the water stand up
like walls!
14 In the daytime he led them by a
cloud,
and all night by a pillar of
fire.
15 He split open the rocks in the
wilderness
to give them water, as from a
gushing spring.
16 He made streams pour from the
rock,
making the waters flow down like a
river!
17 Yet
they kept on sinning against him,
rebelling
against the Most High in the desert.
18 They
stubbornly tested God in their hearts,
demanding
the foods they craved.
19 They even spoke against
God himself, saying,
“God can’t give
us food in the wilderness.
20 Yes, he can strike a
rock so water gushes out,
but he can’t
give his people bread and meat.”
21 When
the Lord heard
them, he was furious.
The fire of his
wrath burned against Jacob.
Yes, his
anger rose against Israel,
22 for they did not
believe God
or trust him to care for
them.
23 But he commanded the skies to open;
he
opened the doors of heaven.
24 He rained down manna
for them to eat;
he gave them bread from
heaven.
25 They ate the food of angels!
God
gave them all they could hold.
26 He released the
east wind in the heavens
and guided the
south wind by his mighty power.
27 He rained down
meat as thick as dust—
birds as
plentiful as the sand on the seashore!
28 He caused
the birds to fall within their camp
and
all around their tents.
29 The people ate their
fill.
He gave them what they
craved.
30 But before they satisfied their
craving,
while the meat was yet in their
mouths,
31 the anger of God rose against
them,
and he killed their strongest
men.
He struck down the finest of
Israel’s young men.
32 But
in spite of this, the people kept sinning.
Despite
his wonders, they refused to trust him.
33 So he
ended their lives in failure,
their
years in terror.
34 When God began killing
them,
they finally sought him.
They
repented and took God seriously.
35 Then they
remembered that God was their rock,
that
God Most High was their redeemer.
36 But all
they gave him was lip service;
they lied
to him with their tongues.
37 Their hearts were not
loyal to him.
They did not keep his
covenant.
38 Yet he was merciful and forgave their
sins
and did not destroy them all.
Many
times he held back his anger
and did not
unleash his fury!
39 For he remembered that they
were merely mortal,
gone like a breath
of wind that never returns.
40 Oh,
how often they rebelled against him in the wilderness
and
grieved his heart in that dry wasteland.
41 Again
and again they tested God’s patience
and
provoked the Holy One of Israel.
42 They did not
remember his power
and how he rescued
them from their enemies.
43 They did not remember
his miraculous signs in Egypt,
his
wonders on the plain of Zoan.
44 For he turned their
rivers into blood,
so no one could drink
from the streams.
45 He sent vast swarms of flies to
consume them
and hordes of frogs to ruin
them.
46 He gave their crops to
caterpillars;
their harvest was consumed
by locusts.
47 He destroyed their grapevines with
hail
and shattered their sycamore-figs
with sleet.
48 He abandoned their cattle to the
hail,
their livestock to bolts of
lightning.
49 He loosed on them his fierce
anger—
all his fury, rage, and
hostility.
He dispatched against them
a
band of destroying angels.
50 He turned his anger
against them;
he did not spare the
Egyptians’ lives
but ravaged them with
the plague.
51 He killed the oldest son in each
Egyptian family,
the flower of youth
throughout the land of Egypt.
52 But he led his own
people like a flock of sheep,
guiding
them safely through the wilderness.
53 He kept them
safe so they were not afraid;
but the
sea covered their enemies.
54 He brought them to the
border of his holy land,
to this land of
hills he had won for them.
55 He drove out the
nations before them;
he gave them their
inheritance by lot.
He settled the
tribes of Israel into their homes.
56 But
they kept testing and rebelling against God Most High.
They
did not obey his laws.
57 They turned back and were
as faithless as their parents.
They were
as undependable as a crooked bow.
58 They angered
God by building shrines to other gods;
they
made him jealous with their idols.
59 When God heard
them, he was very angry,
and he
completely rejected Israel.
60 Then he abandoned his
dwelling at Shiloh,
the Tabernacle where
he had lived among the people.
61 He allowed the Ark
of his might to be captured;
he
surrendered his glory into enemy hands.
62 He gave
his people over to be butchered by the sword,
because
he was so angry with his own people—his special
possession.
63 Their young men were killed by
fire;
their young women died before
singing their wedding songs.
64 Their priests were
slaughtered,
and their widows could not
mourn their deaths.
65 Then
the Lord rose up as though waking from sleep,
like
a warrior aroused from a drunken stupor.
66 He
routed his enemies
and sent them to
eternal shame.
67 But he rejected Joseph’s
descendants;
he did not choose the tribe
of Ephraim.
68 He chose instead the tribe of
Judah,
and Mount Zion, which he
loved.
69 There he built his sanctuary as high as
the heavens,
as solid and enduring as
the earth.
70 He chose his servant
David,
calling him from the sheep
pens.
71 He took David from tending the ewes and
lambs
and made him the shepherd of
Jacob’s descendants—
God’s own
people, Israel.
72 He cared for them with a true
heart
and led them with skillful hands.
Psalm 105
1 Give
thanks to the Lord and
proclaim his greatness.
Let the whole
world know what he has done.
2 Sing to him; yes,
sing his praises.
Tell everyone about
his wonderful deeds.
3 Exult in his holy
name;
rejoice, you who worship
the Lord.
4 Search
for the Lord and
for his strength;
continually seek
him.
5 Remember the wonders he has
performed,
his miracles, and the rulings
he has given,
6 you children of his servant
Abraham,
you descendants of Jacob, his
chosen ones.
7 He
is the Lord our
God.
His justice is seen throughout the
land.
8 He always stands by his covenant—
the
commitment he made to a thousand generations.
9 This
is the covenant he made with Abraham
and
the oath he swore to Isaac.
10 He confirmed it to
Jacob as a decree,
and to the people of
Israel as a never-ending covenant:
11 “I will give
you the land of Canaan
as your special
possession.”
12 He
said this when they were few in number,
a
tiny group of strangers in Canaan.
13 They wandered
from nation to nation,
from one kingdom
to another.
14 Yet he did not let anyone oppress
them.
He warned kings on their
behalf:
15 “Do not touch my chosen people,
and
do not hurt my prophets.”
16 He
called for a famine on the land of Canaan,
cutting
off its food supply.
17 Then he sent someone to
Egypt ahead of them—
Joseph, who was
sold as a slave.
18 They bruised his feet with
fetters
and placed his neck in an iron
collar.
19 Until the time came to fulfill his
dreams,
the Lord tested
Joseph’s character.
20 Then Pharaoh sent for him
and set him free;
the ruler of the
nation opened his prison door.
21 Joseph was put in
charge of all the king’s household;
he
became ruler over all the king’s possessions.
22 He
could instruct the king’s aides as he pleased
and
teach the king’s advisers.
23 Then
Israel arrived in Egypt;
Jacob lived as
a foreigner in the land of Ham.
24 And
the Lord multiplied
the people of Israel
until they became
too mighty for their enemies.
25 Then he turned the
Egyptians against the Israelites,
and
they plotted against the Lord’s
servants.
26 But
the Lord sent
his servant Moses,
along with Aaron,
whom he had chosen.
27 They performed miraculous
signs among the Egyptians,
and wonders
in the land of Ham.
28 The Lord blanketed
Egypt in darkness,
for they had
defied his commands to let his people go.
29 He
turned their water into blood,
poisoning
all the fish.
30 Then frogs overran the land
and
even invaded the king’s bedrooms.
31 When
the Lord spoke,
flies descended on the Egyptians,
and
gnats swarmed across Egypt.
32 He sent them hail
instead of rain,
and lightning flashed
over the land.
33 He ruined their grapevines and fig
trees
and shattered all the trees.
34 He
spoke, and hordes of locusts came—
young
locusts beyond number.
35 They ate up everything
green in the land,
destroying all the
crops in their fields.
36 Then he killed the oldest
son in each Egyptian home,
the pride and
joy of each family.
37 The Lord brought
his people out of Egypt, loaded with silver and gold;
and
not one among the tribes of Israel even stumbled.
38 Egypt
was glad when they were gone,
for they
feared them greatly.
39 The Lord spread
a cloud above them as a covering
and
gave them a great fire to light the darkness.
40 They
asked for meat, and he sent them quail;
he
satisfied their hunger with manna—bread from heaven.
41 He
split open a rock, and water gushed out
to
form a river through the dry wasteland.
42 For he
remembered his sacred promise
to his
servant Abraham.
43 So he brought his people out of
Egypt with joy,
his chosen ones with
rejoicing.
44 He gave his people the lands of pagan
nations,
and they harvested crops that
others had planted.
45 All this happened so they
would follow his decrees
and obey his
instructions.
Psalm 106
1 Praise the Lord!
Give
thanks to the Lord,
for he is good!
His faithful love
endures forever.
2 Who can list the glorious
miracles of the Lord?
Who
can ever praise him enough?
3 There is joy for those
who deal justly with others
and always
do what is right.
4 Remember
me, Lord, when you
show favor to your people;
come near and
rescue me.
5 Let me share in the prosperity of your
chosen ones.
Let me rejoice in the joy
of your people;
let me praise you with
those who are your heritage.
6 Like
our ancestors, we have sinned.
We have
done wrong! We have acted wickedly!
7 Our ancestors
in Egypt
were not impressed by
the Lord’s
miraculous deeds.
They soon forgot his many acts of kindness to
them.
Instead, they rebelled against him
at the Red Sea.
8 Even so, he saved them—
to
defend the honor of his name
and to
demonstrate his mighty power.
9 He commanded the Red
Sea to dry up.
He led Israel across
the sea as if it were a desert.
10 So he rescued
them from their enemies
and redeemed
them from their foes.
11 Then the water returned and
covered their enemies;
not one of them
survived.
12 Then his people believed his
promises.
Then they sang his praise.
13 Yet
how quickly they forgot what he had done!
They
wouldn’t wait for his counsel!
14 In the
wilderness their desires ran wild,
testing
God’s patience in that dry wasteland.
15 So he
gave them what they asked for,
but he
sent a plague along with it.
16 The people in the
camp were jealous of Moses
and envious
of Aaron, the Lord’s
holy priest.
17 Because of this, the earth opened
up;
it swallowed Dathan
and
buried Abiram and the other rebels.
18 Fire fell
upon their followers;
a flame consumed
the wicked.
19 The
people made a calf at Mount Sinai;
they
bowed before an image made of gold.
20 They traded
their glorious God
for a statue of a
grass-eating bull.
21 They forgot God, their
savior,
who had done such great things
in Egypt—
22 such wonderful things in the land of
Ham,
such awesome deeds at the Red
Sea.
23 So he declared he would destroy
them.
But Moses, his chosen one, stepped
between the Lord and
the people.
He begged him to turn from
his anger and not destroy them.
24 The
people refused to enter the pleasant land,
for
they wouldn’t believe his promise to care for them.
25 Instead,
they grumbled in their tents
and refused
to obey the Lord.
26 Therefore,
he solemnly swore
that he would kill
them in the wilderness,
27 that he would scatter
their descendants among the nations,
exiling
them to distant lands.
28 Then
our ancestors joined in the worship of Baal at Peor;
they
even ate sacrifices offered to the dead!
29 They
angered the Lord with
all these things,
so a plague broke out
among them.
30 But Phinehas had the courage to
intervene,
and the plague was
stopped.
31 So he has been regarded as a righteous
man
ever since that time.
32 At
Meribah, too, they angered the Lord,
causing
Moses serious trouble.
33 They made Moses
angry,
and he spoke foolishly.
34 Israel
failed to destroy the nations in the land,
as
the Lord had
commanded them.
35 Instead, they mingled among the
pagans
and adopted their evil
customs.
36 They worshiped their idols,
which
led to their downfall.
37 They even sacrificed their
sons
and their daughters to the
demons.
38 They shed innocent blood,
the
blood of their sons and daughters.
By sacrificing them to the
idols of Canaan,
they polluted the land
with murder.
39 They defiled themselves by their
evil deeds,
and their love of idols was
adultery in the Lord’s
sight.
40 That
is why the Lord’s
anger burned against his people,
and he
abhorred his own special possession.
41 He handed
them over to pagan nations,
and they
were ruled by those who hated them.
42 Their enemies
crushed them
and brought them under
their cruel power.
43 Again and again he rescued
them,
but they chose to rebel against
him,
and they were finally destroyed by
their sin.
44 Even so, he pitied them in their
distress
and listened to their
cries.
45 He remembered his covenant with
them
and relented because of his
unfailing love.
46 He even caused their
captors
to treat them with kindness.
47 Save
us, O Lord our
God!
Gather us back from among the
nations,
so we can thank your holy name
and
rejoice and praise you.
48 Praise
the Lord, the God
of Israel,
who lives from everlasting to
everlasting!
Let all the people say, “Amen!”
Praise the Lord!
Stop Here for Session 7
Session 8: Subject: Thanksgiving - Psalms 100, 103, 107, 111, 116 (NLT)
Psalm 100
A psalm of thanksgiving.
1 Shout
with joy to the Lord,
all the earth!
2 Worship
the Lord with
gladness.
Come before him, singing with
joy.
3 Acknowledge that the Lord is
God!
He made us, and we are his.
We
are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter
his gates with thanksgiving;
go into his
courts with praise.
Give thanks to him
and praise his name.
5 For the Lord is
good.
His unfailing love continues
forever,
and his faithfulness continues
to each generation.
Psalm 103
A psalm of David.
1 Let
all that I am praise the Lord;
with
my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.
2 Let
all that I am praise the Lord;
may
I never forget the good things he does for me.
3 He
forgives all my sins
and heals all my
diseases.
4 He redeems me from death
and
crowns me with love and tender mercies.
5 He fills
my life with good things.
My youth is
renewed like the eagle’s!
6 The Lord gives
righteousness
and justice to all who are
treated unfairly.
7 He
revealed his character to Moses
and his
deeds to the people of Israel.
8 The Lord is
compassionate and merciful,
slow to get
angry and filled with unfailing love.
9 He will not
constantly accuse us,
nor remain angry
forever.
10 He does not punish us for all our
sins;
he does not deal harshly with us,
as we deserve.
11 For his unfailing love toward
those who fear him
is as great as the
height of the heavens above the earth.
12 He has
removed our sins as far from us
as the
east is from the west.
13 The Lord is
like a father to his children,
tender
and compassionate to those who fear him.
14 For he
knows how weak we are;
he remembers we
are only dust.
15 Our days on earth are like
grass;
like wildflowers, we bloom and
die.
16 The wind blows, and we are gone—
as
though we had never been here.
17 But the love of
the Lord remains
forever
with those who fear him.
His
salvation extends to the children’s children
18 of
those who are faithful to his covenant,
of
those who obey his commandments!
19 The Lord has
made the heavens his throne;
from there
he rules over everything.
20 Praise
the Lord, you
angels,
you mighty ones who carry out
his plans,
listening for each of his
commands.
21 Yes, praise the Lord,
you armies of angels
who serve him and
do his will!
22 Praise the Lord,
everything he has created,
everything in
all his kingdom.
Let all that I am praise the Lord.
Psalm 107
1 Give
thanks to the Lord,
for he is good!
His faithful love
endures forever.
2 Has the Lord redeemed
you? Then speak out!
Tell others he has
redeemed you from your enemies.
3 For he has
gathered the exiles from many lands,
from
east and west,
from north and south.
4 Some
wandered in the wilderness,
lost and
homeless.
5 Hungry and thirsty,
they
nearly died.
6 “Lord,
help!” they cried in their trouble,
and
he rescued them from their distress.
7 He led them
straight to safety,
to a city where they
could live.
8 Let them praise the Lord for
his great love
and for the wonderful
things he has done for them.
9 For he satisfies the
thirsty
and fills the hungry with good
things.
10 Some
sat in darkness and deepest gloom,
imprisoned
in iron chains of misery.
11 They rebelled against
the words of God,
scorning the counsel
of the Most High.
12 That is why he broke them with
hard labor;
they fell, and no one was
there to help them.
13 “Lord,
help!” they cried in their trouble,
and
he saved them from their distress.
14 He led them
from the darkness and deepest gloom;
he
snapped their chains.
15 Let them praise
the Lord for
his great love
and for the wonderful
things he has done for them.
16 For he broke down
their prison gates of bronze;
he cut
apart their bars of iron.
17 Some
were fools; they rebelled
and suffered
for their sins.
18 They couldn’t stand the thought
of food,
and they were knocking on
death’s door.
19 “Lord,
help!” they cried in their trouble,
and
he saved them from their distress.
20 He sent out
his word and healed them,
snatching them
from the door of death.
21 Let them praise
the Lord for
his great love
and for the wonderful
things he has done for them.
22 Let them offer
sacrifices of thanksgiving
and sing
joyfully about his glorious acts.
23 Some
went off to sea in ships,
plying the
trade routes of the world.
24 They, too, observed
the Lord’s power
in action,
his impressive works on the
deepest seas.
25 He spoke, and the winds
rose,
stirring up the waves.
26 Their
ships were tossed to the heavens
and
plunged again to the depths;
the sailors
cringed in terror.
27 They reeled and staggered like
drunkards
and were at their wits’
end.
28 “Lord,
help!” they cried in their trouble,
and
he saved them from their distress.
29 He calmed the
storm to a whisper
and stilled the
waves.
30 What a blessing was that stillness
as
he brought them safely into harbor!
31 Let them
praise the Lord for
his great love
and for the wonderful
things he has done for them.
32 Let them exalt him
publicly before the congregation
and
before the leaders of the nation.
33 He
changes rivers into deserts,
and springs
of water into dry, thirsty land.
34 He turns the
fruitful land into salty wastelands,
because
of the wickedness of those who live there.
35 But he
also turns deserts into pools of water,
the
dry land into springs of water.
36 He brings the
hungry to settle there
and to build
their cities.
37 They sow their fields, plant their
vineyards,
and harvest their bumper
crops.
38 How he blesses them!
They
raise large families there,
and their
herds of livestock increase.
39 When
they decrease in number and become impoverished
through
oppression, trouble, and sorrow,
40 the Lord pours
contempt on their princes,
causing them
to wander in trackless wastelands.
41 But he rescues
the poor from trouble
and increases
their families like flocks of sheep.
42 The godly
will see these things and be glad,
while
the wicked are struck silent.
43 Those who are wise
will take all this to heart;
they will
see in our history the faithful love of the Lord.
Psalm 111
1 Praise the Lord!
I
will thank the Lord with
all my heart
as I meet with his godly
people.
2 How amazing are the deeds of
the Lord!
All
who delight in him should ponder them.
3 Everything
he does reveals his glory and majesty.
His
righteousness never fails.
4 He causes us to
remember his wonderful works.
How
gracious and merciful is our Lord!
5 He
gives food to those who fear him;
he
always remembers his covenant.
6 He has shown his
great power to his people
by giving them
the lands of other nations.
7 All he does is just
and good,
and all his commandments are
trustworthy.
8 They are forever true,
to
be obeyed faithfully and with integrity.
9 He has
paid a full ransom for his people.
He
has guaranteed his covenant with them forever.
What
a holy, awe-inspiring name he has!
10 Fear of
the Lord is
the foundation of true wisdom.
All who
obey his commandments will grow in wisdom.
Praise him forever!
Psalm 116
1 I
love the Lord because
he hears my voice
and my prayer for
mercy.
2 Because he bends down to listen,
I
will pray as long as I have breath!
3 Death wrapped
its ropes around me;
the terrors of the
grave overtook me.
I saw only
trouble and sorrow.
4 Then I called on the name of
the Lord:
“Please, Lord,
save me!”
5 How kind the Lord is!
How good he is!
So merciful, this God of
ours!
6 The Lord protects
those of childlike faith;
I was facing
death, and he saved me.
7 Let my soul be at rest
again,
for the Lord has
been good to me.
8 He has saved me from
death,
my eyes from tears,
my
feet from stumbling.
9 And so I walk in the Lord’s
presence
as I live here on earth!
10 I
believed in you, so I said,
“I am
deeply troubled, Lord.”
11 In
my anxiety I cried out to you,
“These
people are all liars!”
12 What can I offer
the Lord
for
all he has done for me?
13 I will lift up the cup of
salvation
and praise the Lord’s
name for saving me.
14 I will keep my promises to
the Lord
in
the presence of all his people.
15 The Lord cares
deeply
when his loved ones
die.
16 O Lord,
I am your servant;
yes, I am your
servant, born into your household;
you
have freed me from my chains.
17 I will offer you a
sacrifice of thanksgiving
and call on
the name of the Lord.
18 I
will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in
the presence of all his people—
19 in the house of
the Lord
in
the heart of Jerusalem.
Stop Here for Session 8
Session 9: Subject: Kingship - Psalms 24, 45, 47, 72, 110 (NLT)
Psalm 24
A psalm of David.
1 The
earth is the Lord’s,
and everything in it.
The world and all
its people belong to him.
2 For he laid the earth’s
foundation on the seas
and built it on
the ocean depths.
3 Who
may climb the mountain of the Lord?
Who
may stand in his holy place?
4 Only those whose
hands and hearts are pure,
who do not
worship idols
and never tell
lies.
5 They will receive the Lord’s
blessing
and have a right relationship
with God their savior.
6 Such people may seek
you
and worship in your presence, O God
of Jacob. Interlude
7 Open
up, ancient gates!
Open up, ancient
doors,
and let the King of glory
enter.
8 Who is the King of glory?
The Lord,
strong and mighty;
the Lord,
invincible in battle.
9 Open up, ancient
gates!
Open up, ancient doors,
and
let the King of glory enter.
10 Who is the King of
glory?
The Lord of
Heaven’s Armies—
he is the King of
glory. Interlude
Psalm 45
For the choir director: A love song to be sung to the tune “Lilies.” A psalm of the descendants of Korah.
1 Beautiful
words stir my heart.
I will recite a
lovely poem about the king,
for my
tongue is like the pen of a skillful poet.
2 You
are the most handsome of all.
Gracious
words stream from your lips.
God himself
has blessed you forever.
3 Put on your sword, O
mighty warrior!
You are so glorious, so
majestic!
4 In your majesty, ride out to
victory,
defending truth, humility, and
justice.
Go forth to perform
awe-inspiring deeds!
5 Your arrows are sharp,
piercing your enemies’ hearts.
The
nations fall beneath your feet.
6 Your
throne, O God, endures forever and ever.
You
rule with a scepter of justice.
7 You love justice
and hate evil.
Therefore God, your God,
has anointed you,
pouring out the oil of
joy on you more than on anyone else.
8 Myrrh, aloes,
and cassia perfume your robes.
In ivory
palaces the music of strings entertains you.
9 Kings’
daughters are among your noble women.
At
your right side stands the queen,
wearing
jewelry of finest gold from Ophir!
10 Listen
to me, O royal daughter; take to heart what I say.
Forget
your people and your family far away.
11 For your
royal husband delights in your beauty;
honor
him, for he is your lord.
12 The princess of
Tyre will shower you with gifts.
The
wealthy will beg your favor.
13 The bride, a
princess, looks glorious
in her golden
gown.
14 In her beautiful robes, she is led to the
king,
accompanied by her
bridesmaids.
15 What a joyful and enthusiastic
procession
as they enter the king’s
palace!
16 Your
sons will become kings like their father.
You
will make them rulers over many lands.
17 I will
bring honor to your name in every generation.
Therefore,
the nations will praise you forever and ever.
Psalm 47
For the choir director: A psalm of the descendants of Korah.
1 Come,
everyone! Clap your hands!
Shout to God
with joyful praise!
2 For the Lord Most
High is awesome.
He is the great King of
all the earth.
3 He subdues the nations before
us,
putting our enemies beneath our
feet.
4 He chose the Promised Land as our
inheritance,
the proud possession of
Jacob’s descendants, whom he loves. Interlude
5 God
has ascended with a mighty shout.
The Lord has
ascended with trumpets blaring.
6 Sing praises to
God, sing praises;
sing praises to our
King, sing praises!
7 For God is the King over all
the earth.
Praise him with a
psalm.
8 God reigns above the nations,
sitting
on his holy throne.
9 The rulers of the world have
gathered together
with the people of the
God of Abraham.
For all the kings of the earth belong to
God.
He is highly honored everywhere.
Psalm 72
A psalm of Solomon.
1 Give
your love of justice to the king, O God,
and
righteousness to the king’s son.
2 Help him judge
your people in the right way;
let the
poor always be treated fairly.
3 May the mountains
yield prosperity for all,
and may the
hills be fruitful.
4 Help him to defend the
poor,
to rescue the children of the
needy,
and to crush their
oppressors.
5 May they fear you as long as the
sun shines,
as long as the moon remains
in the sky.
Yes, forever!
6 May
the king’s rule be refreshing like spring rain on freshly cut
grass,
like the showers that water the
earth.
7 May all the godly flourish during his
reign.
May there be abundant prosperity
until the moon is no more.
8 May he reign from sea
to sea,
and from the Euphrates River to
the ends of the earth.
9 Desert nomads will bow
before him;
his enemies will fall before
him in the dust.
10 The western kings of Tarshish
and other distant lands
will bring him
tribute.
The eastern kings of Sheba and Seba
will
bring him gifts.
11 All kings will bow before
him,
and all nations will serve him.
12 He
will rescue the poor when they cry to him;
he
will help the oppressed, who have no one to defend them.
13 He
feels pity for the weak and the needy,
and
he will rescue them.
14 He will redeem them from
oppression and violence,
for their lives
are precious to him.
15 Long
live the king!
May the gold of Sheba be
given to him.
May the people always pray for him
and
bless him all day long.
16 May there be abundant
grain throughout the land,
flourishing
even on the hilltops.
May the fruit trees flourish like the
trees of Lebanon,
and may the people
thrive like grass in a field.
17 May the king’s
name endure forever;
may it continue as
long as the sun shines.
May all nations be blessed through
him
and bring him praise.
18 Praise
the Lord God,
the God of Israel,
who alone does such
wonderful things.
19 Praise his glorious name
forever!
Let the whole earth be filled
with his glory.
Amen and amen!
20 (This ends the prayers of David son of Jesse.)
Psalm 110
A psalm of David.
1 The Lord said
to my Lord,
“Sit in the place of honor
at my right hand
until I humble your enemies,
making
them a footstool under your feet.”
2 The Lord will
extend your powerful kingdom from Jerusalem;
you
will rule over your enemies.
3 When you go to
war,
your people will serve you
willingly.
You are arrayed in holy garments,
and
your strength will be renewed each day like the morning dew.
4 The Lord has
taken an oath and will not break his vow:
“You
are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.”
5 The
Lord stands at your right hand to protect you.
He
will strike down many kings when his anger erupts.
6 He
will punish the nations
and fill their
lands with corpses;
he will shatter
heads over the whole earth.
7 But he himself will be
refreshed from brooks along the way.
He
will be victorious.
Stop Here for Session 9
Session 10: Subject: Wisdom - Psalms 37, 49, 73, 112, 127 (NLT)
Psalm 37
A psalm of David.
1 Don’t
worry about the wicked
or envy those who
do wrong.
2 For like grass, they soon fade
away.
Like spring flowers, they soon
wither.
3 Trust
in the Lord and
do good.
Then you will live safely in
the land and prosper.
4 Take delight in
the Lord,
and
he will give you your heart’s desires.
5 Commit
everything you do to the Lord.
Trust
him, and he will help you.
6 He will make your
innocence radiate like the dawn,
and the
justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun.
7 Be
still in the presence of the Lord,
and
wait patiently for him to act.
Don’t worry about evil people
who prosper
or fret about their wicked
schemes.
8 Stop
being angry!
Turn from your rage!
Do
not lose your temper—
it only leads to
harm.
9 For the wicked will be destroyed,
but
those who trust in the Lord will
possess the land.
10 Soon
the wicked will disappear.
Though you
look for them, they will be gone.
11 The lowly will
possess the land
and will live in peace
and prosperity.
12 The
wicked plot against the godly;
they
snarl at them in defiance.
13 But the Lord just
laughs,
for he sees their day of
judgment coming.
14 The
wicked draw their swords
and string
their bows
to kill the poor and the oppressed,
to
slaughter those who do right.
15 But their swords
will stab their own hearts,
and their
bows will be broken.
16 It
is better to be godly and have little
than
to be evil and rich.
17 For the strength of the
wicked will be shattered,
but
the Lord takes
care of the godly.
18 Day
by day the Lord takes
care of the innocent,
and they will
receive an inheritance that lasts forever.
19 They
will not be disgraced in hard times;
even
in famine they will have more than enough.
20 But
the wicked will die.
The Lord’s
enemies are like flowers in a field—
they
will disappear like smoke.
21 The
wicked borrow and never repay,
but the
godly are generous givers.
22 Those the Lord blesses
will possess the land,
but those he
curses will die.
23 The Lord directs
the steps of the godly.
He delights in
every detail of their lives.
24 Though they stumble,
they will never fall,
for the Lord holds
them by the hand.
25 Once
I was young, and now I am old.
Yet I
have never seen the godly abandoned
or
their children begging for bread.
26 The godly
always give generous loans to others,
and
their children are a blessing.
27 Turn
from evil and do good,
and you will live
in the land forever.
28 For the Lord loves
justice,
and he will never abandon the
godly.
He
will keep them safe forever,
but the
children of the wicked will die.
29 The godly will
possess the land
and will live there
forever.
30 The
godly offer good counsel;
they teach
right from wrong.
31 They have made God’s law
their own,
so they will never slip from
his path.
32 The
wicked wait in ambush for the godly,
looking
for an excuse to kill them.
33 But the Lord will
not let the wicked succeed
or let the
godly be condemned when they are put on trial.
34 Put
your hope in the Lord.
Travel
steadily along his path.
He will honor you by giving you the
land.
You will see the wicked destroyed.
35 I
have seen wicked and ruthless people
flourishing
like a tree in its native soil.
36 But when I looked
again, they were gone!
Though I searched
for them, I could not find them!
37 Look
at those who are honest and good,
for a
wonderful future awaits those who love peace.
38 But
the rebellious will be destroyed;
they
have no future.
39 The Lord rescues
the godly;
he is their fortress in times
of trouble.
40 The Lord helps
them,
rescuing them from the wicked.
He
saves them,
and they find shelter in
him.
Psalm 49
For the choir director: A psalm of the descendants of Korah.
1 Listen
to this, all you people!
Pay attention,
everyone in the world!
2 High and low,
rich
and poor—listen!
3 For my words are wise,
and
my thoughts are filled with insight.
4 I listen
carefully to many proverbs
and solve
riddles with inspiration from a harp.
5 Why
should I fear when trouble comes,
when
enemies surround me?
6 They trust in their
wealth
and boast of great riches.
7 Yet
they cannot redeem themselves from death
by
paying a ransom to God.
8 Redemption does not come
so easily,
for no one can ever pay
enough
9 to live forever
and
never see the grave.
10 Those
who are wise must finally die,
just like
the foolish and senseless,
leaving all
their wealth behind.
11 The grave is their
eternal home,
where they will stay
forever.
They may name their estates after
themselves,
12 but their
fame will not last.
They will die, just
like animals.
13 This is the fate of
fools,
though they are remembered as
being wise. Interlude
14 Like
sheep, they are led to the grave,
where
death will be their shepherd.
In the morning the godly will rule
over them.
Their bodies will rot in the
grave,
far from their grand
estates.
15 But as for me, God will redeem my
life.
He will snatch me from the power
of the grave. Interlude
16 So
don’t be dismayed when the wicked grow rich
and
their homes become ever more splendid.
17 For when
they die, they take nothing with them.
Their
wealth will not follow them into the grave.
18 In
this life they consider themselves fortunate
and
are applauded for their success.
19 But they will
die like all before them
and never again
see the light of day.
20 People who boast of their
wealth don’t understand;
they will
die, just like animals.
Psalm 73
A psalm of Asaph.
1 Truly
God is good to Israel,
to those whose
hearts are pure.
2 But as for me, I almost lost my
footing.
My feet were slipping, and I
was almost gone.
3 For I envied the proud
when
I saw them prosper despite their wickedness.
4 They
seem to live such painless lives;
their
bodies are so healthy and strong.
5 They don’t
have troubles like other people;
they’re
not plagued with problems like everyone else.
6 They
wear pride like a jeweled necklace
and
clothe themselves with cruelty.
7 These fat cats
have everything
their hearts could ever
wish for!
8 They scoff and speak only evil;
in
their pride they seek to crush others.
9 They boast
against the very heavens,
and their
words strut throughout the earth.
10 And so the
people are dismayed and confused,
drinking
in all their words.
11 “What does God know?”
they ask.
“Does the Most High even
know what’s happening?”
12 Look at these wicked
people—
enjoying a life of ease while
their riches multiply.
13 Did
I keep my heart pure for nothing?
Did I
keep myself innocent for no reason?
14 I get nothing
but trouble all day long;
every morning
brings me pain.
15 If
I had really spoken this way to others,
I
would have been a traitor to your people.
16 So I
tried to understand why the wicked prosper.
But
what a difficult task it is!
17 Then I went into
your sanctuary, O God,
and I finally
understood the destiny of the wicked.
18 Truly, you
put them on a slippery path
and send
them sliding over the cliff to destruction.
19 In an
instant they are destroyed,
completely
swept away by terrors.
20 When you arise, O
Lord,
you will laugh at their silly
ideas
as a person laughs at dreams in
the morning.
21 Then
I realized that my heart was bitter,
and
I was all torn up inside.
22 I was so foolish and
ignorant—
I must have seemed like a
senseless animal to you.
23 Yet I still belong to
you;
you hold my right hand.
24 You
guide me with your counsel,
leading me
to a glorious destiny.
25 Whom have I in heaven but
you?
I desire you more than anything on
earth.
26 My health may fail, and my spirit may grow
weak,
but God remains the strength of my
heart;
he is mine forever.
27 Those
who desert him will perish,
for you
destroy those who abandon you.
28 But as for me, how
good it is to be near God!
I have made
the Sovereign Lord my
shelter,
and I will tell everyone about
the wonderful things you do.
Psalm 112
1 Praise the Lord!
How
joyful are those who fear the Lord
and
delight in obeying his commands.
2 Their children
will be successful everywhere;
an entire
generation of godly people will be blessed.
3 They
themselves will be wealthy,
and their
good deeds will last forever.
4 Light shines in the
darkness for the godly.
They are
generous, compassionate, and righteous.
5 Good comes
to those who lend money generously
and
conduct their business fairly.
6 Such people will
not be overcome by evil.
Those who are
righteous will be long remembered.
7 They do not
fear bad news;
they confidently trust
the Lord to
care for them.
8 They are confident and
fearless
and can face their foes
triumphantly.
9 They share freely and give
generously to those in need.
Their good
deeds will be remembered forever.
They
will have influence and honor.
10 The wicked will
see this and be infuriated.
They will
grind their teeth in anger;
they will
slink away, their hopes thwarted.
Psalm 127
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem. A psalm of Solomon.
1 Unless
the Lord builds
a house,
the work of the builders is
wasted.
Unless the Lord protects
a city,
guarding it with sentries will
do no good.
2 It is useless for you to work so
hard
from early morning until late at
night,
anxiously working for food to eat;
for
God gives rest to his loved ones.
3 Children
are a gift from the Lord;
they
are a reward from him.
4 Children born to a young
man
are like arrows in a warrior’s
hands.
5 How joyful is the man whose quiver is full
of them!
He will not be put to shame
when he confronts his accusers at the city gates.
Stop Here for Session 10
Session 11: Subject: Justice - Psalms 11, 14, 35, 40, 52, 57, 71 (NLT)
Psalm 11
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 I
trust in the Lord for
protection.
So why do you say to me,
“Fly
like a bird to the mountains for safety!
2 The
wicked are stringing their bows
and
fitting their arrows on the bowstrings.
They shoot from the
shadows
at those whose hearts are
right.
3 The foundations of law and order have
collapsed.
What can the righteous do?”
4 But
the Lord is
in his holy Temple;
the Lord still
rules from heaven.
He watches everyone closely,
examining
every person on earth.
5 The Lord examines
both the righteous and the wicked.
He
hates those who love violence.
6 He will rain down
blazing coals and burning sulfur on the wicked,
punishing
them with scorching winds.
7 For the
righteous Lord loves
justice.
The virtuous will see his face.
Psalm 14
For the choir director: 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 The Lord 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 the Lord.
5 Terror
will grip them,
for God is with those
who obey him.
6 The wicked frustrate the plans of
the oppressed,
but the Lord will
protect his people.
7 Who
will come from Mount Zion to rescue Israel?
When
the Lord restores
his people,
Jacob will shout with joy,
and Israel will rejoice.
Psalm 35
A psalm of David.
1 O Lord,
oppose those who oppose me.
Fight those
who fight against me.
2 Put on your armor, and take
up your shield.
Prepare for battle, and
come to my aid.
3 Lift up your spear and
javelin
against those who pursue me.
Let
me hear you say,
“I will give you
victory!”
4 Bring shame and disgrace on those
trying to kill me;
turn them back and
humiliate those who want to harm me.
5 Blow them
away like chaff in the wind—
a wind
sent by the angel of the Lord.
6 Make
their path dark and slippery,
with the
angel of the Lord pursuing
them.
7 I did them no wrong, but they laid a trap
for me.
I did them no wrong, but they
dug a pit to catch me.
8 So let sudden ruin come
upon them!
Let them be caught in the
trap they set for me!
Let them be
destroyed in the pit they dug for me.
9 Then
I will rejoice in the Lord.
I
will be glad because he rescues me.
10 With every
bone in my body I will praise him:
“Lord,
who can compare with you?
Who else rescues the helpless from the
strong?
Who else protects the helpless
and poor from those who rob them?”
11 Malicious
witnesses testify against me.
They
accuse me of crimes I know nothing about.
12 They
repay me evil for good.
I am sick with
despair.
13 Yet when they were ill, I grieved for
them.
I denied myself by fasting for
them,
but my prayers returned
unanswered.
14 I was sad, as though they were my
friends or family,
as if I were grieving
for my own mother.
15 But they are glad now that I
am in trouble;
they gleefully join
together against me.
I am attacked by people I don’t even
know;
they slander me
constantly.
16 They mock me and call me
names;
they snarl at me.
17 How
long, O Lord, will you look on and do nothing?
Rescue
me from their fierce attacks.
Protect my
life from these lions!
18 Then I will thank you in
front of the great assembly.
I will
praise you before all the people.
19 Don’t let my
treacherous enemies rejoice over my defeat.
Don’t
let those who hate me without cause gloat over my sorrow.
20 They
don’t talk of peace;
they plot against
innocent people who mind their own business.
21 They
shout, “Aha! Aha!
With our own eyes we
saw him do it!”
22 O Lord,
you know all about this.
Do not stay
silent.
Do not abandon me now, O
Lord.
23 Wake up! Rise to my defense!
Take
up my case, my God and my Lord.
24 Declare me not
guilty, O Lord my
God, for you give justice.
Don’t let
my enemies laugh about me in my troubles.
25 Don’t
let them say, “Look, we got what we wanted!
Now
we will eat him alive!”
26 May
those who rejoice at my troubles
be
humiliated and disgraced.
May those who triumph over me
be
covered with shame and dishonor.
27 But give great
joy to those who came to my defense.
Let
them continually say, “Great is the Lord,
who
delights in blessing his servant with peace!”
28 Then
I will proclaim your justice,
and I will
praise you all day long.
Psalm 40
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 I
waited patiently for the Lord to
help me,
and he turned to me and heard
my cry.
2 He lifted me out of the pit of
despair,
out of the mud and the mire.
He
set my feet on solid ground
and steadied
me as I walked along.
3 He has given me a new song
to sing,
a hymn of praise to our
God.
Many will see what he has done and be amazed.
They
will put their trust in the Lord.
4 Oh,
the joys of those who trust the Lord,
who
have no confidence in the proud
or in
those who worship idols.
5 O Lord my
God, you have performed many wonders for us.
Your
plans for us are too numerous to list.
You
have no equal.
If I tried to recite all your wonderful
deeds,
I would never come to the end of
them.
6 You
take no delight in sacrifices or offerings.
Now
that you have made me listen, I finally understand—
you
don’t require burnt offerings or sin offerings.
7 Then
I said, “Look, I have come.
As is
written about me in the Scriptures:
8 I take joy in
doing your will, my God,
for your
instructions are written on my heart.”
9 I
have told all your people about your justice.
I
have not been afraid to speak out,
as
you, O Lord, well
know.
10 I have not kept the good news of your
justice hidden in my heart;
I have
talked about your faithfulness and saving power.
I have told
everyone in the great assembly
of your
unfailing love and faithfulness.
11 Lord,
don’t hold back your tender mercies from me.
Let
your unfailing love and faithfulness always protect me.
12 For
troubles surround me—
too many to
count!
My sins pile up so high
I
can’t see my way out.
They outnumber the hairs on my
head.
I have lost all courage.
13 Please, Lord,
rescue me!
Come quickly, Lord,
and help me.
14 May those who try to destroy
me
be humiliated and put to shame.
May
those who take delight in my trouble
be
turned back in disgrace.
15 Let them be horrified by
their shame,
for they said, “Aha!
We’ve got him now!”
16 But
may all who search for you
be filled
with joy and gladness in you.
May those who love your
salvation
repeatedly shout, “The Lord is
great!”
17 As for me, since I am poor and
needy,
let the Lord keep me in his
thoughts.
You are my helper and my savior.
O
my God, do not delay.
Psalm 52
For the choir director: A psalm of David, regarding the time Doeg the Edomite said to Saul, “David has gone to see Ahimelech.”
1 Why
do you boast about your crimes, great warrior?
Don’t
you realize God’s justice continues forever?
2 All
day long you plot destruction.
Your
tongue cuts like a sharp razor;
you’re
an expert at telling lies.
3 You love evil more than
good
and lies more than truth. Interlude
4 You
love to destroy others with your words,
you
liar!
5 But God will strike you down once and for
all.
He will pull you from your
home
and uproot you from the land of the
living. Interlude
6 The
righteous will see it and be amazed.
They
will laugh and say,
7 “Look what happens to mighty
warriors
who do not trust in God.
They
trust their wealth instead
and grow more
and more bold in their wickedness.”
8 But
I am like an olive tree, thriving in the house of God.
I
will always trust in God’s unfailing love.
9 I
will praise you forever, O God,
for what
you have done.
I will trust in your good name
in
the presence of your faithful people.
Psalm 57
For the choir director: A psalm of David, regarding the time he fled from Saul and went into the cave. To be sung to the tune “Do Not Destroy!”
1 Have
mercy on me, O God, have mercy!
I look
to you for protection.
I will hide beneath the shadow of your
wings
until the danger passes by.
2 I
cry out to God Most High,
to God who
will fulfill his purpose for me.
3 He will send help
from heaven to rescue me,
disgracing
those who hound me. Interlude
My God will send forth
his unfailing love and faithfulness.
4 I
am surrounded by fierce lions
who
greedily devour human prey—
whose teeth pierce like spears and
arrows,
and whose tongues cut like
swords.
5 Be
exalted, O God, above the highest heavens!
May
your glory shine over all the earth.
6 My
enemies have set a trap for me.
I am
weary from distress.
They have dug a deep pit in my
path,
but they themselves have fallen
into it. Interlude
7 My
heart is confident in you, O God;
my
heart is confident.
No wonder I can sing
your praises!
8 Wake up, my heart!
Wake
up, O lyre and harp!
I will wake the
dawn with my song.
9 I will thank you, Lord, among
all the people.
I will sing your praises
among the nations.
10 For your unfailing love is as
high as the heavens.
Your faithfulness
reaches to the clouds.
11 Be
exalted, O God, above the highest heavens.
May
your glory shine over all the earth.
Psalm 71
1 O Lord,
I have come to you for protection;
don’t
let me be disgraced.
2 Save me and rescue
me,
for you do what is right.
Turn
your ear to listen to me,
and set me
free.
3 Be my rock of safety
where
I can always hide.
Give the order to save me,
for
you are my rock and my fortress.
4 My God, rescue me
from the power of the wicked,
from the
clutches of cruel oppressors.
5 O Lord, you alone
are my hope.
I’ve trusted you, O Lord,
from childhood.
6 Yes, you have been with me from
birth;
from my mother’s womb you have
cared for me.
No wonder I am always
praising you!
7 My
life is an example to many,
because you
have been my strength and protection.
8 That is why
I can never stop praising you;
I declare
your glory all day long.
9 And now, in my old age,
don’t set me aside.
Don’t abandon me
when my strength is failing.
10 For my enemies are
whispering against me.
They are plotting
together to kill me.
11 They say, “God has
abandoned him.
Let’s go and get
him,
for no one will help him now.”
12 O
God, don’t stay away.
My God, please
hurry to help me.
13 Bring disgrace and destruction
on my accusers.
Humiliate and shame
those who want to harm me.
14 But I will keep on
hoping for your help;
I will praise you
more and more.
15 I will tell everyone about your
righteousness.
All day long I will
proclaim your saving power,
though I am
not skilled with words.
16 I will praise your mighty
deeds, O Sovereign Lord.
I
will tell everyone that you alone are just.
17 O
God, you have taught me from my earliest childhood,
and
I constantly tell others about the wonderful things you do.
18 Now
that I am old and gray,
do not abandon
me, O God.
Let me proclaim your power to this new
generation,
your mighty miracles to all
who come after me.
19 Your
righteousness, O God, reaches to the highest heavens.
You
have done such wonderful things.
Who can
compare with you, O God?
20 You have allowed me to
suffer much hardship,
but you will
restore me to life again
and lift me up
from the depths of the earth.
21 You will restore me
to even greater honor
and comfort me
once again.
22 Then
I will praise you with music on the harp,
because
you are faithful to your promises, O my God.
I will sing praises
to you with a lyre,
O Holy One of
Israel.
23 I will shout for joy and sing your
praises,
for you have ransomed me.
24 I
will tell about your righteous deeds
all
day long,
for everyone who tried to hurt me
has
been shamed and humiliated.
Stop Here for Session 11
Session 12: Subject: Worship - Psalms 27, 48, 84, 122, 133 (NLT)
Psalm 27
A psalm of David.
1 The Lord is
my light and my salvation—
so why
should I be afraid?
The Lord is
my fortress, protecting me from danger,
so
why should I tremble?
2 When evil people come to
devour me,
when my enemies and foes
attack me,
they will stumble and
fall.
3 Though a mighty army surrounds me,
my
heart will not be afraid.
Even if I am attacked,
I
will remain confident.
4 The
one thing I ask of the Lord—
the
thing I seek most—
is to live in the house of the Lord all
the days of my life,
delighting in
the Lord’s
perfections
and meditating in his
Temple.
5 For he will conceal me there when troubles
come;
he will hide me in his
sanctuary.
He will place me out of reach
on a high rock.
6 Then I will hold my head
high
above my enemies who surround
me.
At his sanctuary I will offer sacrifices with shouts of
joy,
singing and praising the Lord with
music.
7 Hear
me as I pray, O Lord.
Be
merciful and answer me!
8 My heart has heard you
say, “Come and talk with me.”
And my
heart responds, “Lord,
I am coming.”
9 Do not turn your back on
me.
Do not reject your servant in
anger.
You have always been my
helper.
Don’t leave me now; don’t abandon me,
O
God of my salvation!
10 Even if my father and mother
abandon me,
the Lord will
hold me close.
11 Teach
me how to live, O Lord.
Lead
me along the right path,
for my enemies
are waiting for me.
12 Do not let me fall into their
hands.
For they accuse me of things I’ve
never done;
with every breath they
threaten me with violence.
13 Yet I am confident I
will see the Lord’s
goodness
while I am here in the land of
the living.
14 Wait
patiently for the Lord.
Be
brave and courageous.
Yes, wait
patiently for the Lord.
Psalm 48
A song. A psalm of the descendants of Korah.
1 How
great is the Lord,
how
deserving of praise,
in the city of our God,
which
sits on his holy mountain!
2 It is high and
magnificent;
the whole earth rejoices to
see it!
Mount Zion, the holy mountain,
is
the city of the great King!
3 God himself is in
Jerusalem’s towers,
revealing himself
as its defender.
4 The
kings of the earth joined forces
and
advanced against the city.
5 But when they saw it,
they were stunned;
they were terrified
and ran away.
6 They were gripped with
terror
and writhed in pain like a woman
in labor.
7 You destroyed them like the mighty ships
of Tarshish
shattered by a powerful east
wind.
8 We
had heard of the city’s glory,
but now
we have seen it ourselves—
the city of
the Lord of
Heaven’s Armies.
It is the city of our God;
he
will make it safe forever. Interlude
9 O
God, we meditate on your unfailing love
as
we worship in your Temple.
10 As your name deserves,
O God,
you will be praised to the ends
of the earth.
Your strong right hand is
filled with victory.
11 Let the people on Mount Zion
rejoice.
Let all the towns of Judah be
glad
because of your justice.
12 Go,
inspect the city of Jerusalem.
Walk
around and count the many towers.
13 Take note of
the fortified walls,
and tour all the
citadels,
that you may describe them
to
future generations.
14 For that is what God is
like.
He is our God forever and
ever,
and he will guide us until we die.
Psalm 84
For the choir director: A psalm of the descendants of Korah, to be accompanied by a stringed instrument.
1 How
lovely is your dwelling place,
O Lord of
Heaven’s Armies.
2 I long, yes, I faint with
longing
to enter the courts of
the Lord.
With
my whole being, body and soul,
I will
shout joyfully to the living God.
3 Even the sparrow
finds a home,
and the swallow builds her
nest and raises her young
at a place near your
altar,
O Lord of
Heaven’s Armies, my King and my God!
4 What joy
for those who can live in your house,
always
singing your praises. Interlude
5 What
joy for those whose strength comes from the Lord,
who
have set their minds on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
6 When
they walk through the Valley of Weeping,
it
will become a place of refreshing springs.
The
autumn rains will clothe it with blessings.
7 They
will continue to grow stronger,
and each
of them will appear before God in Jerusalem.
8 O Lord God
of Heaven’s Armies, hear my prayer.
Listen,
O God of Jacob. Interlude
9 O
God, look with favor upon the king, our shield!
Show
favor to the one you have anointed.
10 A
single day in your courts
is better than
a thousand anywhere else!
I would rather be a gatekeeper in the
house of my God
than live the good life
in the homes of the wicked.
11 For the Lord God
is our sun and our shield.
He gives us
grace and glory.
The Lord will
withhold no good thing
from those who do
what is right.
12 O Lord of
Heaven’s Armies,
what joy for those
who trust in you.
Psalm 122
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem. A psalm of David.
1 I
was glad when they said to me,
“Let us
go to the house of the Lord.”
2 And
now here we are,
standing inside your
gates, O Jerusalem.
3 Jerusalem is a well-built
city;
its seamless walls cannot be
breached.
4 All the tribes of Israel—the Lord’s
people—
make their pilgrimage
here.
They come to give thanks to the name of the Lord,
as
the law requires of Israel.
5 Here stand the thrones
where judgment is given,
the thrones of
the dynasty of David.
6 Pray
for peace in Jerusalem.
May all who love
this city prosper.
7 O Jerusalem, may there be peace
within your walls
and prosperity in your
palaces.
8 For the sake of my family and friends, I
will say,
“May you have peace.”
9 For
the sake of the house of the Lord our
God,
I will seek what is best for you, O
Jerusalem.
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.
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.
Stop Here for Session 12
Session 13: Subject: Hope - Psalms: 28, 62, 85–86, 91, 101–102, 108, 114–115, 120–121, 126 (NLT)
Psalm 28
A psalm of David.
1 I
pray to you, O Lord,
my rock.
Do not turn a deaf ear to
me.
For if you are silent,
I might
as well give up and die.
2 Listen to my prayer for
mercy
as I cry out to you for
help,
as I lift my hands toward your
holy sanctuary.
3 Do
not drag me away with the wicked—
with
those who do evil—
those who speak friendly words to their
neighbors
while planning evil in their
hearts.
4 Give them the punishment they so richly
deserve!
Measure it out in proportion to
their wickedness.
Pay them back for all their evil
deeds!
Give them a taste of what they
have done to others.
5 They care nothing for what
the Lord has
done
or for what his hands have made.
So
he will tear them down,
and they will
never be rebuilt!
6 Praise
the Lord!
For
he has heard my cry for mercy.
7 The Lord is
my strength and shield.
I trust him with
all my heart.
He helps me, and my heart is filled with
joy.
I burst out in songs of
thanksgiving.
8 The Lord gives
his people strength.
He is a safe
fortress for his anointed king.
9 Save your
people!
Bless Israel, your special
possession.
Lead them like a shepherd,
and
carry them in your arms forever.
Psalm 62
For Jeduthun, the choir director: A psalm of David.
1 I
wait quietly before God,
for my victory
comes from him.
2 He alone is my rock and my
salvation,
my fortress where I will
never be shaken.
3 So
many enemies against one man—
all of
them trying to kill me.
To them I’m just a broken-down
wall
or a tottering fence.
4 They
plan to topple me from my high position.
They
delight in telling lies about me.
They praise me to my
face
but curse me in their
hearts. Interlude
5 Let
all that I am wait quietly before God,
for
my hope is in him.
6 He alone is my rock and my
salvation,
my fortress where I will not
be shaken.
7 My victory and honor come from God
alone.
He is my refuge, a rock where no
enemy can reach me.
8 O my people, trust in him at
all times.
Pour out your heart to
him,
for God is our refuge. Interlude
9 Common
people are as worthless as a puff of wind,
and
the powerful are not what they appear to be.
If you weigh them
on the scales,
together they are lighter
than a breath of air.
10 Don’t
make your living by extortion
or put
your hope in stealing.
And if your wealth increases,
don’t
make it the center of your life.
11 God
has spoken plainly,
and I have heard it
many times:
Power, O God, belongs to you;
12 unfailing
love, O Lord, is yours.
Surely you repay all
people
according to what they have done.
Psalm 85
For the choir director: A psalm of the descendants of Korah.
1 Lord,
you poured out blessings on your land!
You
restored the fortunes of Israel.
2 You forgave the
guilt of your people—
yes, you covered
all their sins. Interlude
3 You held
back your fury.
You kept back your
blazing anger.
4 Now
restore us again, O God of our salvation.
Put
aside your anger against us once more.
5 Will you be
angry with us always?
Will you prolong
your wrath to all generations?
6 Won’t you revive
us again,
so your people can rejoice in
you?
7 Show us your unfailing love, O Lord,
and
grant us your salvation.
8 I
listen carefully to what God the Lord is
saying,
for he speaks peace to his
faithful people.
But let them not return
to their foolish ways.
9 Surely his salvation is
near to those who fear him,
so our land
will be filled with his glory.
10 Unfailing
love and truth have met together.
Righteousness
and peace have kissed!
11 Truth springs up from the
earth,
and righteousness smiles down
from heaven.
12 Yes, the Lord pours
down his blessings.
Our land will yield
its bountiful harvest.
13 Righteousness goes as a
herald before him,
preparing the way for
his steps.
Psalm 86
A prayer of David.
1 Bend
down, O Lord, and
hear my prayer;
answer me, for I need
your help.
2 Protect me, for I am devoted to
you.
Save me, for I serve you and trust
you.
You are my God.
3 Be
merciful to me, O Lord,
for I am calling
on you constantly.
4 Give me happiness, O
Lord,
for I give myself to you.
5 O
Lord, you are so good, so ready to forgive,
so
full of unfailing love for all who ask for your help.
6 Listen
closely to my prayer, O Lord;
hear
my urgent cry.
7 I will call to you whenever I’m
in trouble,
and you will answer me.
8 No
pagan god is like you, O Lord.
None can
do what you do!
9 All the nations you made
will
come and bow before you, Lord;
they will
praise your holy name.
10 For you are great and
perform wonderful deeds.
You alone are
God.
11 Teach
me your ways, O Lord,
that
I may live according to your truth!
Grant me purity of
heart,
so that I may honor you.
12 With
all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God.
I
will give glory to your name forever,
13 for your
love for me is very great.
You have
rescued me from the depths of death.
14 O
God, insolent people rise up against me;
a
violent gang is trying to kill me.
You
mean nothing to them.
15 But you, O Lord,
are
a God of compassion and mercy,
slow to get angry
and
filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.
16 Look
down and have mercy on me.
Give your
strength to your servant;
save me, the
son of your servant.
17 Send me a sign of your
favor.
Then those who hate me will be
put to shame,
for you, O Lord,
help and comfort me.
Psalm 91
1 Those
who live in the shelter of the Most High
will
find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 This I
declare about the Lord:
He
alone is my refuge, my place of safety;
he
is my God, and I trust him.
3 For he will rescue you
from every trap
and protect you from
deadly disease.
4 He will cover you with his
feathers.
He will shelter you with his
wings.
His faithful promises are your
armor and protection.
5 Do not be afraid of the
terrors of the night,
nor the arrow that
flies in the day.
6 Do not dread the disease that
stalks in darkness,
nor the disaster
that strikes at midday.
7 Though a thousand fall at
your side,
though ten thousand are dying
around you,
these evils will not touch
you.
8 Just open your eyes,
and
see how the wicked are punished.
9 If
you make the Lord your
refuge,
if you make the Most High your
shelter,
10 no evil will conquer you;
no
plague will come near your home.
11 For he will
order his angels
to protect you wherever
you go.
12 They will hold you up with their
hands
so you won’t even hurt your foot
on a stone.
13 You will trample upon lions and
cobras;
you will crush fierce lions and
serpents under your feet!
14 The Lord says,
“I will rescue those who love me.
I
will protect those who trust in my name.
15 When
they call on me, I will answer;
I will
be with them in trouble.
I will rescue
and honor them.
16 I will reward them with a long
life
and give them my salvation.”
Psalm 101
A psalm of David.
1 I
will sing of your love and justice, Lord.
I
will praise you with songs.
2 I will be careful to
live a blameless life—
when will you
come to help me?
I will lead a life of integrity
in
my own home.
3 I will refuse to look at
anything
vile and vulgar.
I hate all who deal crookedly;
I
will have nothing to do with them.
4 I will reject
perverse ideas
and stay away from every
evil.
5 I will not tolerate people who slander their
neighbors.
I will not endure conceit and
pride.
6 I
will search for faithful people
to be my
companions.
Only those who are above reproach
will
be allowed to serve me.
7 I will not allow deceivers
to serve in my house,
and liars will not
stay in my presence.
8 My daily task will be to
ferret out the wicked
and free the city
of the Lord from
their grip.
Psalm 102
A prayer of one overwhelmed with trouble, pouring out problems before the Lord.
1 Lord,
hear my prayer!
Listen to my
plea!
2 Don’t turn away from me
in
my time of distress.
Bend down to listen,
and
answer me quickly when I call to you.
3 For my days
disappear like smoke,
and my bones burn
like red-hot coals.
4 My heart is sick, withered
like grass,
and I have lost my
appetite.
5 Because of my groaning,
I
am reduced to skin and bones.
6 I am like an owl in
the desert,
like a little owl in a
far-off wilderness.
7 I lie awake,
lonely
as a solitary bird on the roof.
8 My enemies taunt
me day after day.
They mock and curse
me.
9 I eat ashes for food.
My
tears run down into my drink
10 because of your
anger and wrath.
For you have picked me
up and thrown me out.
11 My life passes as swiftly
as the evening shadows.
I am withering
away like grass.
12 But
you, O Lord, will
sit on your throne forever.
Your fame
will endure to every generation.
13 You will arise
and have mercy on Jerusalem—
and now
is the time to pity her,
now is the time
you promised to help.
14 For your people love every
stone in her walls
and cherish even the
dust in her streets.
15 Then the nations will
tremble before the Lord.
The
kings of the earth will tremble before his glory.
16 For
the Lord will
rebuild Jerusalem.
He will appear in his
glory.
17 He will listen to the prayers of the
destitute.
He will not reject their
pleas.
18 Let
this be recorded for future generations,
so
that a people not yet born will praise the Lord.
19 Tell
them the Lord looked
down
from his heavenly sanctuary.
He
looked down to earth from heaven
20 to
hear the groans of the prisoners,
to
release those condemned to die.
21 And so the Lord’s
fame will be celebrated in Zion,
his
praises in Jerusalem,
22 when multitudes gather
together
and kingdoms come to worship
the Lord.
23 He
broke my strength in midlife,
cutting
short my days.
24 But I cried to him, “O my God,
who lives forever,
don’t take my life
while I am so young!
25 Long ago you laid the
foundation of the earth
and made the
heavens with your hands.
26 They will perish, but
you remain forever;
they will wear out
like old clothing.
You will change them like a garment
and
discard them.
27 But you are always the
same;
you will live forever.
28 The
children of your people
will live in
security.
Their children’s children
will
thrive in your presence.”
Psalm 108
A song. A psalm of David.
1 My
heart is confident in you, O God;
no
wonder I can sing your praises with all my heart!
2 Wake
up, lyre and harp!
I will wake the dawn
with my song.
3 I will thank you, Lord,
among all the people.
I will sing your
praises among the nations.
4 For your unfailing love
is higher than the heavens.
Your
faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
5 Be exalted, O
God, above the highest heavens.
May your
glory shine over all the earth.
6 Now
rescue your beloved people.
Answer and
save us by your power.
7 God has promised this by
his holiness:
“I will divide up Shechem with joy.
I
will measure out the valley of Succoth.
8 Gilead is
mine,
and Manasseh, too.
Ephraim,
my helmet, will produce my warriors,
and
Judah, my scepter, will produce my kings.
9 But
Moab, my washbasin, will become my servant,
and
I will wipe my feet on Edom
and shout in
triumph over Philistia.”
10 Who
will bring me into the fortified city?
Who
will bring me victory over Edom?
11 Have you
rejected us, O God?
Will you no longer
march with our armies?
12 Oh, please help us against
our enemies,
for all human help is
useless.
13 With God’s help we will do mighty
things,
for he will trample down our
foes.
Psalm 114
1 When
the Israelites escaped from Egypt—
when
the family of Jacob left that foreign land—
2 the
land of Judah became God’s sanctuary,
and
Israel became his kingdom.
3 The
Red Sea saw them coming and hurried out of their way!
The
water of the Jordan River turned away.
4 The
mountains skipped like rams,
the hills
like lambs!
5 What’s wrong, Red Sea, that made you
hurry out of their way?
What happened,
Jordan River, that you turned away?
6 Why,
mountains, did you skip like rams?
Why,
hills, like lambs?
7 Tremble,
O earth, at the presence of the Lord,
at
the presence of the God of Jacob.
8 He turned the
rock into a pool of water;
yes, a spring
of water flowed from solid rock.
Psalm 115
1 Not
to us, O Lord, not
to us,
but to your name goes all the
glory
for your unfailing love and
faithfulness.
2 Why let the nations say,
“Where
is their God?”
3 Our God is in the
heavens,
and he does as he
wishes.
4 Their idols are merely things of silver
and gold,
shaped by human hands.
5 They
have mouths but cannot speak,
and eyes
but cannot see.
6 They have ears but cannot
hear,
and noses but cannot smell.
7 They
have hands but cannot feel,
and feet but
cannot walk,
and throats but cannot make
a sound.
8 And those who make idols are just like
them,
as are all who trust in them.
9 O
Israel, trust the Lord!
He
is your helper and your shield.
10 O priests,
descendants of Aaron, trust the Lord!
He
is your helper and your shield.
11 All you who fear
the Lord, trust
the Lord!
He
is your helper and your shield.
12 The Lord remembers
us and will bless us.
He will bless the
people of Israel
and bless the priests,
the descendants of Aaron.
13 He will bless those who
fear the Lord,
both
great and lowly.
14 May
the Lord richly
bless
both you and your children.
15 May
you be blessed by the Lord,
who
made heaven and earth.
16 The heavens belong to
the Lord,
but
he has given the earth to all humanity.
17 The dead
cannot sing praises to the Lord,
for
they have gone into the silence of the grave.
18 But
we can praise the Lord
both
now and forever!
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 120
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 I
took my troubles to the Lord;
I
cried out to him, and he answered my prayer.
2 Rescue
me, O Lord, from
liars
and from all deceitful people.
3 O
deceptive tongue, what will God do to you?
How
will he increase your punishment?
4 You will be
pierced with sharp arrows
and burned
with glowing coals.
5 How
I suffer in far-off Meshech.
It pains me
to live in distant Kedar.
6 I am tired of
living
among people who hate peace.
7 I
search for peace;
but when I speak of
peace, they want war!
Psalm 121
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 I
look up to the mountains—
does my help
come from there?
2 My help comes from
the Lord,
who
made heaven and earth!
3 He
will not let you stumble;
the one who
watches over you will not slumber.
4 Indeed, he who
watches over Israel
never slumbers or
sleeps.
5 The Lord himself
watches over you!
The Lord stands
beside you as your protective shade.
6 The sun will
not harm you by day,
nor the moon at
night.
7 The Lord keeps
you from all harm
and watches over your
life.
8 The Lord keeps
watch over you as you come and go,
both
now and forever.
Psalm 126
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 When
the Lord brought
back his exiles to Jerusalem,
it was
like a dream!
2 We were filled with
laughter,
and we sang for joy.
And
the other nations said,
“What amazing
things the Lord has
done for them.”
3 Yes, the Lord has
done amazing things for us!
What joy!
4 Restore
our fortunes, Lord,
as
streams renew the desert.
5 Those who plant in
tears
will harvest with shouts of
joy.
6 They weep as they go to plant their
seed,
but they sing as they return with
the harvest.
Stop Here for Session 13
Session 14: Subject: Praise - Psalms 146-150 (NLT)
Psalm 146
1 Praise the Lord!
Let
all that I am praise the Lord.
2 I
will praise the Lord as
long as I live.
I will sing praises to
my God with my dying breath.
3 Don’t
put your confidence in powerful people;
there
is no help for you there.
4 When they breathe their
last, they return to the earth,
and all
their plans die with them.
5 But joyful are those
who have the God of Israel as their helper,
whose
hope is in the Lord their
God.
6 He made heaven and earth,
the
sea, and everything in them.
He keeps
every promise forever.
7 He gives justice to the
oppressed
and food to the
hungry.
The Lord frees
the prisoners.
8 The Lord opens
the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts
up those who are weighed down.
The Lord loves
the godly.
9 The Lord protects
the foreigners among us.
He cares for
the orphans and widows,
but he
frustrates the plans of the wicked.
10 The Lord will
reign forever.
He will be your God, O
Jerusalem, throughout the generations.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 147
1 Praise the Lord!
How
good to sing praises to our God!
How
delightful and how fitting!
2 The Lord is
rebuilding Jerusalem
and bringing the
exiles back to Israel.
3 He heals the
brokenhearted
and bandages their
wounds.
4 He counts the stars
and
calls them all by name.
5 How great is our Lord! His
power is absolute!
His understanding is
beyond comprehension!
6 The Lord supports
the humble,
but he brings the wicked
down into the dust.
7 Sing
out your thanks to the Lord;
sing
praises to our God with a harp.
8 He covers the
heavens with clouds,
provides rain for
the earth,
and makes the grass grow in
mountain pastures.
9 He gives food to the wild
animals
and feeds the young ravens when
they cry.
10 He takes no pleasure in the strength of
a horse
or in human might.
11 No,
the Lord’s
delight is in those who fear him,
those
who put their hope in his unfailing love.
12 Glorify
the Lord, O
Jerusalem!
Praise your God, O
Zion!
13 For he has strengthened the bars of your
gates
and blessed your children within
your walls.
14 He sends peace across your
nation
and satisfies your hunger with
the finest wheat.
15 He sends his orders to the
world—
how swiftly his word
flies!
16 He sends the snow like white wool;
he
scatters frost upon the ground like ashes.
17 He
hurls the hail like stones.
Who can
stand against his freezing cold?
18 Then, at his
command, it all melts.
He sends his
winds, and the ice thaws.
19 He has revealed his
words to Jacob,
his decrees and
regulations to Israel.
20 He has not done this for
any other nation;
they do not know his
regulations.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 148
1 Praise the Lord!
Praise
the Lord from
the heavens!
Praise him from the
skies!
2 Praise him, all his angels!
Praise
him, all the armies of heaven!
3 Praise him, sun and
moon!
Praise him, all you twinkling
stars!
4 Praise him, skies above!
Praise
him, vapors high above the clouds!
5 Let every
created thing give praise to the Lord,
for
he issued his command, and they came into being.
6 He
set them in place forever and ever.
His
decree will never be revoked.
7 Praise
the Lord from
the earth,
you creatures of the ocean
depths,
8 fire and hail, snow and clouds,
wind
and weather that obey him,
9 mountains and all
hills,
fruit trees and all
cedars,
10 wild animals and all livestock,
small
scurrying animals and birds,
11 kings of the earth
and all people,
rulers and judges of the
earth,
12 young men and young women,
old
men and children.
13 Let
them all praise the name of the Lord.
For
his name is very great;
his glory towers
over the earth and heaven!
14 He has made his people
strong,
honoring his faithful
ones—
the people of Israel who are
close to him.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 149
1 Praise the Lord!
Sing
to the Lord a
new song.
Sing his praises in the
assembly of the faithful.
2 O
Israel, rejoice in your Maker.
O people
of Jerusalem, exult in your King.
3 Praise his
name with dancing,
accompanied by
tambourine and harp.
4 For the Lord delights
in his people;
he crowns the humble with
victory.
5 Let the faithful rejoice that he honors
them.
Let them sing for joy as they lie
on their beds.
6 Let
the praises of God be in their mouths,
and
a sharp sword in their hands—
7 to execute
vengeance on the nations
and punishment
on the peoples,
8 to bind their kings with
shackles
and their leaders with iron
chains,
9 to execute the judgment written against
them.
This is the glorious privilege of
his faithful ones.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 150
1 Praise the Lord!
Praise
God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his
mighty heaven!
2 Praise him for his mighty
works;
praise his unequaled
greatness!
3 Praise him with a blast of the ram’s
horn;
praise him with the lyre and
harp!
4 Praise him with the tambourine and
dancing;
praise him with strings and
flutes!
5 Praise him with a clash of
cymbals;
praise him with loud clanging
cymbals.
6 Let everything that breathes sing praises
to the Lord!
Praise the Lord!
END OF SESSION 14