Bible Reading Plan

¹  Lord , hear my prayer;
let my cry for help come before You.^(b)
2 Do not hide Your face from me in my day of trouble.
Listen closely to me;
answer me quickly when I call.^(c)

³ For my days vanish like smoke,
and my bones burn like a furnace.^(d)
4 My heart is afflicted, withered like grass;^(e)
I even forget to eat my food.^(f)
5 Because of the sound of my groaning,
my flesh sticks to my bones.^(g)
6 I am like a desert owl,^[a]
like an owl among the ruins.^(h)
7 I stay awake;⁽ⁱ⁾
I am like a solitary bird on a roof.
⁸ My enemies taunt me all day long;
they ridicule and curse me.^(j)
9 I eat ashes like bread
and mingle my drinks with tears^(k)
10 because of Your indignation and wrath;
for You have picked me up and thrown me aside.^(l)
11 My days are like a lengthening shadow,
and I wither away like grass.^(m)

¹² But You, Lord , are enthroned forever;⁽ⁿ⁾
Your fame endures to all generations.^(o)
13 You will rise up and have compassion on Zion,
for it is time to show favor to her—
the appointed time has come.^(p)
14 For Your servants take delight in its stones
and favor its dust.^(q)

¹⁵ Then the nations will fear the name of Yahweh,
and all the kings of the earth Your glory,^(r)
16 for the Lord will rebuild Zion;
He will appear in His glory.^(s)
17 He will pay attention to the prayer of the destitute
and will not despise their prayer.^(t)

¹⁸ This will be written for a later generation,
and a newly created people will praise the Lord :^(u)
19 He looked down from His holy heights—
the Lord gazed out from heaven to earth^(v)—
²⁰ to hear a prisoner's groaning,
to set free those condemned to die,^[b](w)
21 so that they might declare
the name of Yahweh in Zion
and His praise in Jerusalem,^(x)
22 when peoples and kingdoms are assembled
to serve the Lord .^(y)

²³ He has broken my^[c] strength in midcourse;
He has shortened my days.^(z)
24 I say: "My God, do not take me
in the middle of my life!^[d]
Your years continue through all generations.^(aa)
25 Long ago You established the earth,
and the heavens are the work of Your hands.^(ab)
26 They will perish, but You will endure;
all of them will wear out like clothing.
You will change them like a garment,
and they will pass away.^(ac)
27 But You are the same,
and Your years will never end.^(ad)
28 Your servants' children will dwell securely,
and their offspring will be established before You."^(ae)

¹ My soul, praise Yahweh,
and all that is within me, praise His holy name.^(a)
2 My soul, praise the Lord ,
and do not forget all His benefits.^(b)

³ He forgives all your sin;^(c)
He heals all your diseases.^(d)
4 He redeems your life from the Pit;^(e)
He crowns you with faithful love and compassion.^(f)
5 He satisfies you^[a] with goodness;^(g)
your youth is renewed like the eagle.^(h)

⁶ The Lord executes acts of righteousness
and justice for all the oppressed.^(i)
7 He revealed His ways to Moses,^(j)
His deeds to the people of Israel.^(k)
8 The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger and rich in faithful love.^(l)
9 He will not always accuse us
or be angry forever.^(m)
10 He has not dealt with us as our sins deserve
or repaid us according to our offenses.⁽ⁿ⁾

¹¹ For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is His faithful love
toward those who fear Him.^(o)
12 As far as the east is from the west,
so far has He removed
our transgressions from us.^(p)
13 As a father has compassion on his children,
so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him.^(q)
14 For He knows what we are made of,
remembering that we are dust.^(r)

¹⁵ As for man, his days are like grass—
he blooms like a flower of the field;^(s)
16 when the wind passes over it, it vanishes,
and its place is no longer known.^[b](t)
17 But from eternity to eternity
the Lord 's faithful love is toward those who fear Him,
and His righteousness toward the grandchildren^(u)
18 of those who keep His covenant,
who remember to observe His precepts.^(v)
19 The Lord has established His throne in heaven,
and His kingdom rules over all.^(w)

²⁰ Praise the Lord ,
all His angels of great strength,
who do His word,
obedient to His command.^(x)
21 Praise the Lord , all His armies,
His servants who do His will.^(y)
22 Praise the Lord , all His works
in all the places where He rules.^(z)
My soul, praise Yahweh!

¹ My soul, praise Yahweh!
Lord my God, You are very great;
You are clothed with majesty and splendor.^(a)
2 He wraps Himself in light as if it were a robe,
spreading out the sky like a canopy,^(b)
3 laying the beams of His palace
on the waters above,^(c)
making the clouds His chariot,^(d)
walking on the wings of the wind,^(e)
4 and making the winds His messengers,^[a]
flames of fire His servants.^(f)

⁵ He established the earth on its foundations;
it will never be shaken.^(g)
6 You covered it with the deep
as if it were a garment;
the waters stood above the mountains.^(h)
7 At Your rebuke the waters fled;
at the sound of Your thunder they hurried away⁽ⁱ⁾—
⁸ mountains rose and valleys sank^[b]—
to the place You established for them.^(j)
9 You set a boundary they cannot cross;
they will never cover the earth again.^(k)

¹⁰ He causes the springs to gush into the valleys;
they flow between the mountains.^(l)
11 They supply water for every wild beast;
the wild donkeys quench their thirst.^(m)
12 The birds of the sky live beside the springs;
they sing among the foliage.^(n)
13 He waters the mountains from His palace;
the earth is satisfied by the fruit of Your labor.^(o)

¹⁴ He causes grass to grow for the livestock
and provides crops for man to cultivate,
producing food from the earth,^(p)
15 wine that makes man's heart glad—
making his face shine with oil—
and bread that sustains man's heart.^(q)

¹⁶ The trees of the Lord flourish,^[c]
the cedars of Lebanon that He planted.^(r)
17 There the birds make their nests;
the stork makes its home in the pine trees.^(s)
18 The high mountains are for the wild goats;
the cliffs are a refuge for hyraxes.^(t)

¹⁹ He made the moon to mark the^[d] festivals;^[e]
the sun knows when to set.^(u)
20 You bring darkness, and it becomes night,
when all the forest animals stir.^(v)
21 The young lions roar for their prey
and seek their food from God.^(w)
22 The sun rises; they go back
and lie down in their dens.^(x)
23 Man goes out to his work
and to his labor until evening.^(y)

²⁴ How countless are Your works, Lord !
In wisdom You have made them all;
the earth is full of Your creatures.^[f](z)
25 Here is the sea, vast and wide,
teeming with creatures beyond number—
living things both large and small.^(aa)
26 There the ships move about,
and Leviathan, which You formed to play there.^(ab)

²⁷ All of them wait for You
to give them their food at the right time.^(ac)
28 When You give it to them,
they gather it;
when You open Your hand,
they are satisfied with good things.^(ad)
29 When You hide Your face,
they are terrified;
when You take away their breath,
they die and return to the dust.^(ae)
30 When You send Your breath,^[g]
they are created,
and You renew the face of the earth.^(af)

³¹ May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
may the Lord rejoice in His works.^(ag)
32 He looks at the earth, and it trembles;
He touches the mountains,
and they pour out smoke.^(ah)
33 I will sing to the Lord all my life;
I will sing praise to my God while I live.^(ai)
34 May my meditation be pleasing to Him;
I will rejoice in the Lord .^(aj)
35 May sinners vanish from the earth
and wicked people be no more.^(ak)
My soul, praise Yahweh!
Hallelujah!

¹ Give thanks to Yahweh, call on His name;
proclaim His deeds among the peoples.^(a)
2 Sing to Him, sing praise to Him;
tell about all His wonderful works!^(b)
3 Honor His holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek Yahweh rejoice.^(c)
4 Search for the Lord and for His strength;
seek His face always.^(d)
5 Remember the wonderful works He has done,
His wonders, and the judgments He has pronounced,^[a](e)
6 you offspring of Abraham His servant,
Jacob's descendants—His chosen ones.^(f)

⁷ He is the Lord our God;
His judgments govern the whole earth.^(g)
8 He remembers His covenant forever,
the promise He ordained
for a thousand generations^(h)—
⁹ the covenant He made with Abraham,
swore^[b] to Isaac,^(i)
10 and confirmed to Jacob as a decree
and to Israel as an everlasting covenant:^(j)
11 "I will give the land of Canaan to you
as your inherited portion."^(k)

¹² When they were few in number,
very few indeed,
and temporary residents in Canaan,^(l)
13 wandering from nation to nation
and from one kingdom to another,^(m)
14 He allowed no one to oppress them;
He rebuked kings on their behalf:^(n)
15 "Do not touch My anointed ones,^(o)
or harm My prophets."^(p)

¹⁶ He called down famine against the land
and destroyed the entire food supply.^(q)
17 He had sent a man ahead of them—
Joseph, who was sold as a slave.^(r)
18 They hurt his feet with shackles;
his neck was put in an iron collar.^(s)
19 Until the time his prediction came true,
the word of the Lord tested him.^(t)
20 The king sent for him and released him;
the ruler of peoples set him free.^(u)
21 He made him master of his household,
ruler over all his possessions^(v)—
²² binding^[c] his officials at will
and instructing his elders.^(w)

²³ Then Israel went to Egypt;
Jacob lived as a foreigner in the land of Ham.^[d](x)
24 The Lord ^[e] made His people very fruitful;
He made them more numerous than their foes,^(y)
25 whose hearts He turned to hate His people
and to deal deceptively with His servants.^(z)
26 He sent Moses His servant,
and Aaron, whom He had chosen.^(aa)
27 They performed His miraculous signs among them,
and wonders in the land of Ham.^[f](ab)
28 He sent darkness, and it became dark—
for did they not defy^[g] His commands?^(ac)
29 He turned their water into blood
and caused their fish to die.^(ad)
30 Their land was overrun with frogs,
even in their royal chambers.^(ae)
31 He spoke, and insects came^(af)—
gnats throughout their country.^(ag)
32 He gave them hail for rain,
and lightning throughout their land.^(ah)
33 He struck their vines and fig trees
and shattered the trees of their territory.^(ai)
34 He spoke, and locusts came—
young locusts without number.
³⁵ They devoured all the vegetation in their land
and consumed the produce of their land.^(aj)
36 He struck all the firstborn in their land,
all their first progeny.^(ak)

³⁷ Then He brought Israel out with silver and gold,
and no one among His tribes stumbled.^(al)
38 Egypt was glad when they left,
for the dread of Israel^[h] had fallen on them.^(am)
39 He spread a cloud as a covering
and gave a fire to light up the night.^(an)
40 They asked, and He brought quail
and satisfied them with bread from heaven.^(ao)
41 He opened a rock, and water gushed out;
it flowed like a stream in the desert.^(ap)
42 For He remembered His holy promise
to Abraham His servant.^(aq)
43 He brought His people out with rejoicing,
His chosen ones with shouts of joy.^(ar)
44 He gave them the lands of the nations,
and they inherited
what other peoples had worked for.^(as)

⁴⁵ All this happened
so that they might keep His statutes
and obey His instructions.^(at)
Hallelujah!

¹ Hallelujah!
Give thanks to the Lord , for He is good;
His faithful love endures forever.^(a)
2 Who can declare the Lord 's mighty acts
or proclaim all the praise due Him?^(b)
3 How happy are those who uphold justice,
who practice righteousness at all times.^(c)

⁴ Remember me, Lord ,
when You show favor to Your people.^(d)
Come to me with Your salvation
⁵ so that I may enjoy the prosperity
of Your chosen ones,
rejoice in the joy of Your nation,
and boast about Your heritage.^(e)

⁶ Both we and our fathers have sinned;
we have done wrong and have acted wickedly.^(f)
7 Our fathers in Egypt did not grasp
the significance of Your wonderful works
or remember Your many acts of faithful love;
instead, they rebelled by the sea—the Red Sea.^(g)
8 Yet He saved them because of His name,
to make His power known.^(h)
9 He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up;
He led them through the depths as through a desert.^(i)
10 He saved them from the hand of the adversary;
He redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.^(j)
11 Water covered their foes;
not one of them remained.^(k)
12 Then they believed His promises
and sang His praise.^(l)

¹³ They soon forgot His works
and would not wait for His counsel.^(m)
14 They were seized with craving in the wilderness
and tested God in the desert.^(n)
15 He gave them what they asked for,
but sent a wasting disease among them.^(o)

¹⁶ In the camp they were envious of Moses
and of Aaron, the Lord 's holy one.^(p)
17 The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan;
it covered the assembly of Abiram.^(q)
18 Fire blazed throughout their assembly;
flames consumed the wicked.^(r)

¹⁹ At Horeb they made a calf
and worshiped the cast metal image.^(s)
20 They exchanged their glory^[a][b]
for the image of a grass-eating ox.^(t)
21 They forgot God their Savior,
who did great things in Egypt,^(u)
22 wonderful works in the land of Ham,^[c]
awe-inspiring acts at the Red Sea.^(v)
23 So He said He would have destroyed them—
if Moses His chosen one
had not stood before Him in the breach
to turn His wrath away from destroying them.^(w)

²⁴ They despised the pleasant land
and did not believe His promise.^(x)
25 They grumbled in their tents
and did not listen to the Lord 's voice.^(y)
26 So He raised His hand against them with an oath
that He would make them fall in the desert^(z)
27 and would disperse their descendants^[d]
among the nations,
scattering them throughout the lands.^(aa)

²⁸ They aligned themselves with Baal of Peor
and ate sacrifices offered to lifeless gods.^[e](ab)
29 They provoked the Lord with their deeds,
and a plague broke out against them.^(ac)
30 But Phinehas stood up and intervened,
and the plague was stopped.^(ad)
31 It was credited to him as righteousness
throughout all generations to come.^(ae)

³² They angered the Lord at the waters of Meribah,
and Moses suffered^[f] because of them;^(af)
33 for they embittered his spirit,^[g]
and he spoke rashly with his lips.^(ag)

³⁴ They did not destroy the peoples
as the Lord had commanded them^(ah)
35 but mingled with the nations
and adopted their ways.^(ai)
36 They served their idols,
which became a snare to them.^(aj)
37 They sacrificed their sons and daughters to demons.^(ak)
38 They shed innocent blood—
the blood of their sons and daughters
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan;
so the land became polluted with blood.^(al)
39 They defiled themselves by their actions
and prostituted themselves by their deeds.^(am)

⁴⁰ Therefore the Lord 's anger burned against His people,
and He abhorred His own inheritance.^(an)
41 He handed them over to the nations;
those who hated them ruled them.^(ao)
42 Their enemies oppressed them,
and they were subdued under their power.^(ap)
43 He rescued them many times,
but they continued to rebel deliberately
and were beaten down by their sin.^(aq)

⁴⁴ When He heard their cry,
He took note of their distress,^(ar)
45 remembered His covenant with them,
and relented according to the riches
of His faithful love.^(as)
46 He caused them to be pitied
before all their captors.^(at)

⁴⁷ Save us, Yahweh our God,
and gather us from the nations,
so that we may give thanks to Your holy name
and rejoice in Your praise.^(au)

⁴⁸ May Yahweh, the God of Israel, be praised
from everlasting to everlasting.^(av)
Let all the people say, "Amen!"
Hallelujah!^(aw)

¹ Give thanks to the Lord , for He is good;
His faithful love endures forever.^(a)
2 Let the redeemed of the Lord proclaim
that He has redeemed them from the hand of the foe^(b)
3 and has gathered them from the lands—
from the east and the west,
from the north and the south.^(c)

⁴ Some^[a] wandered in the desolate wilderness,
finding no way to a city where they could live.^(d)
5 They were hungry and thirsty;
their spirits failed^[b] within them.^(e)
6 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble;
He rescued them from their distress.^(f)
7 He led them by the right path
to go to a city where they could live.^(g)
8 Let them give thanks to the Lord
for His faithful love
and His wonderful works for all humanity.^(h)
9 For He has satisfied the thirsty
and filled the hungry with good things.⁽ⁱ⁾

¹⁰ Others^[c] sat in darkness and gloom^[d]—
prisoners in cruel chains^(j)—
¹¹ because they rebelled against God's commands
and despised the counsel of the Most High.^(k)
12 He broke their spirits^[e] with hard labor;
they stumbled, and there was no one to help.^(l)
13 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble;
He saved them from their distress.^(m)
14 He brought them out of darkness and gloom^[f]
and broke their chains apart.^(n)
15 Let them give thanks to the Lord
for His faithful love
and His wonderful works for all humanity.^(o)
16 For He has broken down the bronze gates
and cut through the iron bars.^(p)

¹⁷ Fools suffered affliction
because of their rebellious ways and their sins.^(q)
18 They loathed all food
and came near the gates of death.^(r)
19 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble;
He saved them from their distress.^(s)
20 He sent His word and healed them;
He rescued them from the Pit.^(t)
21 Let them give thanks to the Lord
for His faithful love
and His wonderful works for all humanity.^(u)
22 Let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving
and announce His works with shouts of joy.^(v)

²³ Others^[g] went to sea in ships,
conducting trade on the vast waters.^(w)
24 They saw the Lord 's works,
His wonderful works in the deep.^(x)
25 He spoke and raised a tempest
that stirred up the waves of the sea.^[h](y)
26 Rising up to the sky, sinking down to the depths,
their courage^[i] melting away in anguish,^(z)
27 they reeled and staggered like drunken men,
and all their skill was useless.^(aa)
28 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
and He brought them out of their distress.^(ab)
29 He stilled the storm to a murmur,
and the waves of the sea^[j] were hushed.^(ac)
30 They rejoiced when the waves^[k] grew quiet.
Then He guided them to the harbor they longed for.^(ad)
31 Let them give thanks to the Lord
for His faithful love
and His wonderful works for all humanity.^(ae)
32 Let them exalt Him in the assembly of the people
and praise Him in the council of the elders.^(af)

³³ He turns rivers into desert,
springs of water into thirsty ground,^(ag)
34 and fruitful land into salty wasteland,
because of the wickedness of its inhabitants.^(ah)
35 He turns a desert into a pool of water,
dry land into springs of water.^(ai)
36 He causes the hungry to settle there,
and they establish a city where they can live.^(aj)
37 They sow fields and plant vineyards
that yield a fruitful harvest.^(ak)
38 He blesses them, and they multiply greatly;^(al)
He does not let their livestock decrease.^(am)

³⁹ When they are diminished and are humbled
by cruel oppression and sorrow,^(an)
40 He pours contempt on nobles^(ao)
and makes them wander in a trackless wasteland.^(ap)
41 But He lifts the needy out of their suffering^(aq)
and makes their families multiply like flocks.^(ar)
42 The upright see it and rejoice,^(as)
and all injustice shuts its mouth.^(at)

⁴³ Let whoever is wise pay attention to these things
and consider^[l] the Lord 's acts of faithful love.^(au)

¹ My heart is confident, God;^[a]
I will sing; I will sing praises
with the whole of my being.^[b](a)
2 Wake up, harp and lyre!
I will wake up the dawn.^(b)
3 I will praise You, Lord , among the peoples;
I will sing praises to You among the nations.^(c)
4 For Your faithful love is higher than the heavens,
and Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.^(d)
5 God, be exalted above the heavens,^(e)
and let Your glory be over the whole earth.^(f)
6 Save with Your right hand and answer me
so that those You love may be rescued.^(g)

⁷ God has spoken in His sanctuary:^[c]
"I will triumph!
I will divide up Shechem.^(h)
I will apportion the Valley of Succoth.^(i)
8 Gilead is Mine, Manasseh is Mine,
and Ephraim is My helmet;^(j)
Judah is My scepter.^(k)
9 Moab is My washbasin;^(l)
I throw My sandal on Edom.^(m)
I shout in triumph over Philistia."⁽ⁿ⁾

¹⁰ Who will bring me to the fortified city?
Who will lead me to Edom?^(o)
11 God, haven't You rejected us?
God, You do not march out with our armies.^(p)
12 Give us aid against the foe,
for human help is worthless.^(q)
13 With God we will perform valiantly;^(r)
He will trample our foes.^(s)