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To the chief Musician. Of the sons of Korah. An instruction.

¹ O God, with our ears have we heard, our fathers have told us, the work thou wroughtest in their days, in the days of old:

² Thou, by thy hand, didst dispossess the nations, but them thou didst plant; thou didst afflict the peoples, but them didst thou cause to spread out.

³ For not by their own sword did they take possession of the land, neither did their own arm save them; but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst delight in them.

⁴ Thou thyself art my king, O God: command deliverance for Jacob.

⁵ Through thee will we push down our adversaries; through thy name will we tread them under that rise up against us.

⁶ For I will not put confidence in my bow, neither shall my sword save me.

⁷ For thou hast saved us from our adversaries, and hast put them to shame that hate us.

⁸ In God will we boast all the day, and we will praise thy name for ever. Selah.

⁹ But thou hast cast off, and put us to confusion, and dost not go forth with our armies;

¹⁰ Thou hast made us to turn back from the adversary, and they that hate us spoil for themselves;

¹¹ Thou hast given us over like sheep [appointed] for meat, and hast scattered us among the nations;

¹² Thou hast sold thy people for nought, and hast not increased [thy wealth] by their price;

¹³ Thou makest us a reproach to our neighbours, a mockery and a derision for them that are round about us;

¹⁴ Thou makest us a byword among the nations, a shaking of the head among the peoples.

¹⁵ All the day my confusion is before me, and the shame of my face hath covered me,

¹⁶ Because of the voice of him that reproacheth and blasphemeth; by reason of the enemy and the avenger.

¹⁷ All this is come upon us; yet have we not forgotten thee, neither have we dealt falsely against thy covenant:

¹⁸ Our heart is not turned back, neither have our steps declined from thy path;

¹⁹ Though thou hast crushed us in the place of jackals, and covered us with the shadow of death.

²⁰ If we had forgotten the name of our God, and stretched out our hands to a strange god,

²¹ Would not God search this out? for he knoweth the secrets of the heart.

²² But for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are reckoned as sheep for slaughter.

²³ Awake, why sleepest thou, Lord? arise, cast [us] not off for ever.

²⁴ Wherefore hidest thou thy face, [and] forgettest our affliction and our oppression?

²⁵ For our soul is bowed down to the dust; our belly cleaveth unto the earth.

²⁶ Rise up for our help, and redeem us for thy loving-kindness' sake.