Psalms 136-142

Psalm 136

¹O give praise to the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

²O give praise to the God of gods: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

³O give praise to the Lord of lords: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

⁴To him who only does great wonders: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

⁵To him who by wisdom made the heavens: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

⁶To him by whom the earth was stretched out over the waters: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

⁷To him who made great lights: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

⁸The sun to have rule by day: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

⁹The moon and the stars to have rule by night: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

¹⁰To him who put to death the first-fruits of Egypt: for his mercy is unchanging for ever:

¹¹And took out Israel from among them: for his mercy is unchanging for ever:

¹²With a strong hand and an outstretched arm: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

¹³To him who made a way through the Red Sea: for his mercy is unchanging for ever:

¹⁴And let Israel go through it: for his mercy is unchanging for ever:

¹⁵By him Pharaoh and his army were overturned in the Red Sea: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

¹⁶To him who took his people through the waste land: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

¹⁷To him who overcame great kings: for his mercy is unchanging for ever:

¹⁸And put noble kings to death: for his mercy is unchanging for ever:

¹⁹Sihon, king of the Amorites: for his mercy is unchanging for ever:

²⁰And Og, king of Bashan: for his mercy is unchanging for ever:

²¹And gave their land to his people for a heritage: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

²²Even a heritage for his servant Israel: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

²³Who kept us in mind when we were in trouble: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

²⁴And has taken us out of the hands of our haters: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

²⁵Who gives food to all flesh: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

²⁶O give praise to the God of heaven: for his mercy is unchanging for ever.

Psalm 137

¹By the rivers of Babylon we were seated, weeping at the memory of Zion,

²Hanging our instruments of music on the trees by the waterside.

³For there those who had taken us prisoners made request for a song; and those who had taken away all we had gave us orders to be glad, saying, Give us one of the songs of Zion.

⁴How may we give the Lord's song in a strange land?

⁵If I keep not your memory, O Jerusalem, let not my right hand keep the memory of its art.

⁶If I let you go out of my thoughts, and if I do not put Jerusalem before my greatest joy, let my tongue be fixed to the roof of my mouth.

⁷O Lord, keep in mind against the children of Edom the day of Jerusalem; how they said, Let it be uncovered, uncovered even to its base.

⁸O daughter of Babylon, whose fate is destruction; happy is the man who does to you what you have done to us.

⁹Happy is the man who takes your little ones, crushing them against the rocks.

Psalm 138

¹Of David. I will give you praise with all my heart: I will make melody to you before the gods.

²I will give worship before your holy Temple, praising your name for your mercy and for your unchanging faith: for you have made your word greater than all your name.

³When my cry came to your ears you gave me an answer, and made me great with strength in my soul.

⁴All the kings of the earth will give you praise, O Lord, when the words of your mouth come to their ears.

⁵They will make songs about the ways of the Lord; for great is the glory of the Lord.

⁶Though the Lord is high, he sees those who are low; and he has knowledge from far off of those who are lifted up.

⁷Even when trouble is round me, you will give me life; your hand will be stretched out against the wrath of my haters, and your right hand will be my salvation.

⁸The Lord will make all things complete for me: O Lord, your mercy is eternal; do not give up the works of your hands.

Psalm 139

¹To the chief music-maker. A Psalm. Of David. O Lord, you have knowledge of me, searching out all my secrets.

²You have knowledge when I am seated and when I get up, you see my thoughts from far away.

³You keep watch over my steps and my sleep, and have knowledge of all my ways.

⁴For there is not a word on my tongue which is not clear to you, O Lord.

⁵I am shut in by you on every side, and you have put your hand on me.

⁶Such knowledge is a wonder greater than my powers; it is so high that I may not come near it.

⁷Where may I go from your spirit? how may I go in flight from you?

⁸If I go up to heaven, you are there: or if I make my bed in the underworld, you are there.

⁹If I take the wings of the morning, and go to the farthest parts of the sea;

¹⁰Even there will I be guided by your hand, and your right hand will keep me.

¹¹If I say, Only let me be covered by the dark, and the light about me be night;

¹²Even the dark is not dark to you; the night is as bright as the day: for dark and light are the same to you.

¹³My flesh was made by you, and my parts joined together in my mother's body.

¹⁴I will give you praise, for I am strangely and delicately formed; your works are great wonders, and of this my soul is fully conscious.

¹⁵My frame was not unseen by you when I was made secretly, and strangely formed in the lowest parts of the earth.

¹⁶Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book all my days were recorded, even those which were purposed before they had come into being.

¹⁷How dear are your thoughts to me, O God! how great is the number of them!

¹⁸If I made up their number, it would be more than the grains of sand; when I am awake, I am still with you.

¹⁹If only you would put the sinners to death, O God; go far from me, you men of blood.

²⁰For they go against you with evil designs, and your haters make sport of your name.

²¹Are not your haters hated by me, O Lord? are not those who are lifted up against you a cause of grief to me?

²²My hate for them is complete; my thoughts of them are as if they were making war on me.

²³O God, let the secrets of my heart be uncovered, and let my wandering thoughts be tested:

²⁴See if there is any way of sorrow in me, and be my guide in the eternal way.

Psalm 140

¹To the chief music-maker. A Psalm. Of David. O Lord, take me out of the power of the evil man; keep me safe from the violent man:

²For their hearts are full of evil designs; and they are ever making ready causes of war.

³Their tongues are sharp like the tongue of a snake; the poison of snakes is under their lips. (Selah.)

⁴O Lord, take me out of the hands of sinners; keep me safe from the violent man: for they are designing my downfall.

⁵The men of pride have put secret cords for my feet; stretching nets in my way, so that they may take me with their tricks. (Selah.)

⁶I have said to the Lord, You are my God: give ear, O Lord, to the voice of my prayer.

⁷O Lord God, the strength of my salvation, you have been a cover over my head in the day of the fight.

⁸O Lord, give not the wrongdoer his desire; give him no help in his evil designs, or he may be uplifted in pride. (Selah.)

⁹As for those who come round me, let their heads be covered by the evil of their lips.

¹⁰Let burning flames come down on them: let them be put into the fire, and into deep waters, so that they may not get up again.

¹¹Let not a man of evil tongue be safe on earth: let destruction overtake the violent man with blow on blow.

¹²I am certain that the Lord will take care of the cause of the poor, and of the rights of those who are troubled.

¹³Truly, the upright will give praise to your name: the holy will have a place in your house.

Psalm 141

¹A Psalm. Of David. Lord, I have made my cry to you; come to me quickly; give ear to my voice, when it goes up to you.

²Let my prayer be ordered before you like a sweet smell; and let the lifting up of my hands be like the evening offering.

³O Lord, keep a watch over my mouth; keep the door of my lips.

⁴Keep my heart from desiring any evil thing, or from taking part in the sins of the evil-doers with men who do wrong: and let me have no part in their good things.

⁵Let the upright give me punishment; and let the god-fearing man put me in the right way; but I will not let the oil of sinners come on my head: when they do evil I will give myself to prayer.

⁶When destruction comes to their judges by the side of the rock, they will give ear to my words, for they are sweet.

⁷Our bones are broken up at the mouth of the underworld, as the earth is broken by the plough.

⁸But my eyes are turned to you, O Lord God: my hope is in you; let not my soul be given up to death.

⁹Keep me from the net which they have put down for me, and from the designs of the workers of evil.

¹⁰Let the sinners be taken in the nets which they themselves have put down, while I go free.

Psalm 142

¹Maschil. Of David. A prayer when he was in the hole of the rock. The sound of my cry went up to the Lord; with my voice I made my prayer for grace to the Lord.

²I put all my sorrows before him; and made clear to him all my trouble.

³When my spirit is overcome, your eyes are on my goings; nets have been secretly placed in the way in which I go.

⁴Looking to my right side, I saw no man who was my friend: I had no safe place; no one had any care for my soul.

⁵I have made my cry to you, O Lord; I have said, You are my safe place, and my heritage in the land of the living.

⁶Give ear to my cry, for I am made very low: take me out of the hands of my haters, for they are stronger than I.

⁷Take my soul out of prison, so that I may give praise to your name: the upright will give praise because of me; for you have given me a full reward.