Study Desk

When I became embittered and my innermost being^[g] was wounded,^(v)

I was stupid and didn't understand; I was an unthinking animal toward You.^(w)

Yet I am always with You; You hold my right hand.^(x)

You guide me with Your counsel, and afterward You will take me up in glory.^[h](y)

Who do I have in heaven but You? And I desire nothing on earth but You.^(z)

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength^[i] of my heart, my portion forever.^(aa)

Those far from You will certainly perish; You destroy all who are unfaithful to You.^(ab)

But as for me, God's presence is my good. I have made the Lord God my refuge, so I can tell about all You do.^(ac)

A Maskil of Asaph.^(a)

Why have You rejected us forever, God? Why does Your anger burn against the sheep of Your pasture?^(b)

Remember Your congregation, which You purchased long ago and redeemed as the tribe for Your own possession.^(c) Remember Mount Zion where You dwell.^(d)

Make Your way^[a] to the everlasting ruins, to all that the enemy has destroyed in the sanctuary.^(e)

Your adversaries roared in the meeting place where You met with us.^[b] They set up their emblems as signs.^(f)

It was like men in a thicket of trees, wielding axes,^(g)

then smashing all the carvings with hatchets and picks.^(h)

They set Your sanctuary on fire; they utterly^[c] desecrated the dwelling place of Your name.⁽ⁱ⁾

They said in their hearts, "Let us oppress them relentlessly." They burned down every place throughout the land where God met with us.^[d](j)

There are no signs for us to see. There is no longer a prophet. And none of us knows how long this will last.^(k)

God, how long will the enemy mock? Will the foe insult Your name forever?^(l)

Why do You hold back Your hand? Stretch out^[e] Your right hand and destroy them!^(m)

God my King is from ancient times, performing saving acts on the earth.⁽ⁿ⁾

You divided the sea with Your strength; You smashed the heads of the sea monsters in the waters;^(o)

You crushed the heads of Leviathan; You fed him to the creatures of the desert.^(p)

You opened up springs and streams;^(q) You dried up ever-flowing rivers.^(r)

The day is Yours, also the night; You established the moon and the sun.^(s)

You set all the boundaries of the earth; You made summer and winter.^(t)

Remember this: the enemy has mocked Yahweh, and a foolish people has insulted Your name.^(u)

Do not give the life of Your dove to beasts;^[f] do not forget the lives of Your poor people forever.^(v)

Consider the covenant,^(w) for the dark places of the land are full of violence.^(x)

Do not let the oppressed turn away in shame; let the poor and needy praise Your name.^(y)

Rise up, God, defend Your cause!^(z) Remember the insults that fools bring against You all day long.^(aa)

Do not forget the clamor of Your adversaries, the tumult of Your opponents that goes up constantly.^(ab)

For the choir director: "Do Not Destroy."^[a] A psalm of Asaph.^(a) A song.

We give thanks to You, God; we give thanks to You, for Your name is near. People tell about Your wonderful works.^(b)

"When I choose a time, I will judge fairly.^(c)

When the earth and all its inhabitants shake, I am the One who steadies its pillars.^(d) Selah

I say to the boastful, ‘Do not boast,' and to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up your horn.^(e)

Do not lift up your horn against heaven or speak arrogantly.'"^(f)

Exaltation does not come from the east, the west, or the desert,

for God is the Judge: He brings down one and exalts another.^(g)

For there is a cup in the Lord 's hand, full of wine blended with spices, and He pours from it. All the wicked of the earth will drink, draining it to the dregs.^(h)

As for me, I will tell about Him forever; I will sing praise to the God of Jacob.⁽ⁱ⁾

"I will cut off all the horns of the wicked,^(j) but the horns of the righteous will be lifted up."^(k)

For the choir director: with stringed instruments. A psalm of Asaph.^(a) A song.

God is known in Judah; His name is great in Israel.^(b)

His tent is in Salem,^[a] His dwelling place in Zion.^(c)

There He shatters the bow's flaming arrows, the shield, the sword, and the weapons of war.^(d) Selah

You are resplendent and majestic coming down from the mountains of prey.^(e)

The brave-hearted have been plundered; they have slipped into their final sleep. None of the warriors was able to lift a hand.^(f)

At Your rebuke, God of Jacob, both chariot and horse lay still.^(g)

And You—You are to be feared.^[b] When You are angry, who can stand before You?^(h)