Psa 4, Psa 6, Psa 54-55, Psa 67, Psa 76, Tit | ESV | STEP | To the choirmaster : with stringed instruments . A Psalm of David . Answer me when I call , O God of my righteousness ! You have given me relief when I was in distress . Be gracious to me and hear my prayer !

1 Answer me when I call, O God of my ^crighteousness!
You have ^dgiven me relief when I was in distress.
Be gracious to me and hear my prayer!
2 O men, ^{▼▼Or O men of rank} how long shall my honor be turned into shame?
How long will you love vain words and seek after ^flies? Selah
3 But know that the Lord has ^gset apart ^hthe godly for himself;
the Lord hears when I call to him.
4 ⁱBe angry, ^{▼▼Or Be agitated} and do not sin;
^kponder in your own hearts ^lon your beds, and be silent. Selah
5 Offer ^mright sacrifices,
and put your ⁿtrust in the Lord.
6 There are many who say, “Who will show us some good?
^oLift up ^pthe light of your face upon us, O Lord!”
7 You have put ^qmore joy in my heart
than they have when their grain and wine abound.
8 In peace I will both ^rlie down and sleep;
for you alone, O Lord, make me ^sdwell in safety.

Psalms 6

O Lord, Deliver My Life

To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments; according to ^tThe Sheminith. ^{▼▼Probably a musical or liturgical term} A Psalm of David.

1 O Lord, ^vrebuke me not in your anger,
nor ^wdiscipline me in your wrath.
2 Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am languishing;
^xheal me, O Lord, ^yfor my bones are troubled.
3 My ^zsoul also is greatly troubled.
But you, O Lord— ^aahow long?
4 Turn, O Lord, deliver my life;
save me for the sake of your steadfast love.
5 For in ^abdeath there is no remembrance of you;
in Sheol who will give you praise?
6 I am ^acweary with my ^admoaning;
every night I flood my bed with tears;
I drench my couch with my weeping.
7 My ^aeeye wastes away because of grief;
it grows weak because of all my foes.
8 ^afDepart from me, all you ^agworkers of evil,
for the Lord ^ahhas heard the sound of my weeping.
9 The Lord has heard my ^aiplea;
the Lord accepts my prayer.
10 All my enemies shall be ashamed and greatly troubled;
they shall ^ajturn back and be put to shame in a moment.

Psalms 54

The Lord Upholds My Life

To the choirmaster: with ^akstringed instruments. A Maskil ^{▼▼Probably a musical or liturgical term} of David, ^amwhen the Ziphites went and told Saul, “Is not David hiding among us?”

1 O God, save me by your ^anname,
and vindicate me by your might.
2 O God, ^aohear my prayer;
give ear to the words of my mouth.
3 ^apFor ^aqstrangers ^{▼▼Some Hebrew manuscripts and Targum insolent men (compare Psalm 86:14)} have risen against me;
ruthless men ^asseek my life;
they do not set God before themselves. Selah
4 Behold, ^atGod is my helper;
the Lord is the upholder of my life.
5 He will return the evil to my enemies;
in your ^aufaithfulness ^avput an end to them.
6 With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to you;
I will give thanks to your name, O Lord, ^awfor it is good.
7 For he has delivered me from every trouble,
and my eye has ^axlooked in triumph on my enemies.

Psalms 55

Cast Your Burden on the Lord

To the choirmaster: with ^aystringed instruments. A Maskil ^{▼▼Probably a musical or liturgical term} of David.

1 ^baGive ear to my prayer, O God,
and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy!
2 Attend to me, and answer me;
I am restless ^bbin my complaint and I ^bcmoan,
3 because of the noise of the enemy,
because of the oppression of the wicked.
For they ^bddrop trouble upon me,
and in anger they bear a grudge against me.
4 My heart is in anguish within me;
^bethe terrors of death have fallen upon me.
5 Fear and trembling come upon me,
and ^bfhorror ^bgoverwhelms me.
6 And I say, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove!
I would fly away and be at rest;
7 ^bhyes, I would wander far away;
I would lodge in the wilderness; Selah
8 I would hurry to find a shelter
from ^bithe raging wind and tempest.”
9 Destroy, O Lord, ^bjdivide their tongues;
for I see ^bkviolence and strife in the city.
10 Day and night they go around it
on its walls,
and ^bliniquity and trouble are within it;
11 ruin is in its midst;
^bmoppression and fraud
do not depart from its marketplace.
12 For it is not an enemy who taunts me—
then I could bear it;
it is not an adversary who ^bndeals insolently with me—
then I could hide from him.
13 ^boBut it is you, a man, my equal,
my companion, my familiar friend.
14 We used to take sweet counsel together;
within God’s house we walked in ^bpthe throng.
15 Let death steal over them;
let them go down to Sheol ^bqalive;
for evil is in their dwelling place and in their heart.
16 But I call to God,
and the Lord will save me.
17 ^brEvening and ^bsmorning and at ^btnoon
I ^buutter my complaint and moan,
and he hears my voice.
18 He redeems my soul in safety
from the battle that I wage,
for ^bvmany are arrayed against me.
19 God will give ear and humble them,
he who is ^bwenthroned from of old, Selah
because they do not ^bxchange
and do not fear God.
20 My companion ^{▼▼Hebrew He} ^bzstretched out his hand against his friends;
he violated his covenant.
21 His ^caspeech was ^cbsmooth as butter,
yet war was in his heart;
his words were softer than oil,
yet they were ^ccdrawn swords.
22 ^cdCast your burden on the Lord,
and he will sustain you;
^cehe will never permit
the righteous to be moved.
23 But you, O God, ^cfwill cast them down
into ^cgthe pit of destruction;
men of ^chblood and treachery
shall not ^cilive out half their days.
But I will ^cjtrust in you.

Psalms 67

Make Your Face Shine upon Us

To the choirmaster: with ^ckstringed instruments. A Psalm. A Song.

1 May God ^clbe gracious to us and bless us
and make his face to ^cmshine upon us, Selah
2 that ^cnyour way may be known on earth,
your ^cosaving power among all nations.
3 ^cpLet the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you!
4 Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
for you ^cqjudge the peoples with equity
and guide the nations upon earth. Selah
5 ^crLet the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you!
6 The earth has ^csyielded its increase;
God, our God, shall bless us.
7 God shall bless us;
let ^ctall the ends of the earth fear him!

Psalms 76

Who Can Stand Before You?

To the choirmaster: with ^custringed instruments. A Psalm of ^cvAsaph. A Song.

1 In Judah God is ^cwknown;
his name is great in Israel.
2 His ^cxabode has been established in ^cySalem,
his ^czdwelling place in Zion.
3 There he ^dabroke the flashing arrows,
the shield, the sword, and the weapons of war. Selah
4 Glorious are you, more majestic
^dbthan the mountains full of ^dcprey.
5 ^ddThe stouthearted were stripped of their spoil;
^dethey sank into sleep;
all the men of war
were unable to use their hands.
6 At your rebuke, O God of Jacob,
both ^dfrider and horse lay stunned.
7 ^dgBut you, you are to be feared!
Who can ^dhstand before you
when once your anger is roused?
8 From the heavens you uttered judgment;
^dithe earth feared and was still,
9 when God ^djarose to establish judgment,
to save all the humble of the earth. Selah
10 Surely ^dkthe wrath of man shall praise you;
the remnant ^{▼▼Or extremity} of wrath you will put on like a belt.
11 ^dmMake your vows to the Lord your God and perform them;
let all around him ^dnbring gifts
to him who ^dois to be feared,
12 who ^dpcuts off the spirit of princes,
who ^dqis to be feared by the kings of the earth.

This pastoral letter from Paul to Titus was intended to offer encouragement and wisdom as Titus endured ongoing opposition from the ungodly and from legalists within his congregations. Paul instructed Titus to complete his assigned job of establishing overseers (elders) for the churches under his care. He described what sort of people these leaders should be, and how all believers should live in relation to each other as well as in their interactions with nonbelievers. Proper Christian behavior is based on the fact that “the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people,” and therefore those who believe in Christ are to “live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives” as they await his return (2:11-13). Paul probably wrote this letter in the 60s a.d.

Titus 1

Greeting

1 Paul, a servant ^{▼▼Or slave (for the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface)} of God and ^dsan apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God’s elect and ^dttheir knowledge of the truth, ^duwhich accords with godliness, 2 ^dvin hope of eternal life, which God, ^dwwho never lies, ^dxpromised ^dybefore the ages began ^{▼▼Greek before times eternal} 3 and ^eaat the proper time manifested in his word ^ebthrough the preaching ^ecwith which I have been entrusted ^edby the command of God our Savior;

4 To Titus, ^eemy true child in ^efa common faith:

^egGrace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.

Qualifications for Elders

5 ^ehThis is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and ^eiappoint elders in every town as I directed you— 6 ^ejif anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife, ^{▼▼Or a man of one woman} and his children are believers ^{▼▼Or are faithful} and not open to the charge of ^emdebauchery or insubordination. 7 For an overseer, ^{▼▼Or bishop; Greek episkopos} ^eoas God’s steward, must be above reproach. He must not ^epbe arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent ^eqor greedy for gain, 8 but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, ^erand disciplined. 9 He must ^eshold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in ^etsound ^{▼▼Or healthy; also verse 13} doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.

10 For there are many who are insubordinate, ^evempty talkers and deceivers, especially those of ^ewthe circumcision party. ^{▼▼Or especially those of the circumcision} 11 They must be silenced, since ^eythey are upsetting whole families by teaching ^ezfor shameful gain what they ought not to teach. 12 ^faOne of the Cretans, ^{▼▼Greek One of them} a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.” ^{▼▼Probably from Epimenides of Crete} 13 This testimony is true. Therefore ^fdrebuke them ^fesharply, that they ^ffmay be sound in the faith, 14 ^fgnot devoting themselves to Jewish myths and ^fhthe commands of people ^fiwho turn away from the truth. 15 ^fjTo the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and ^fkunbelieving, nothing is pure; but both ^fltheir minds and their consciences are defiled. 16 ^fmThey profess to know God, but they ^fndeny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, ^founfit for any good work.

Titus 2

Teach Sound Doctrine

1 But as for you, teach what accords with ^fpsound ^{▼▼Or healthy; also verses 2, 8} doctrine. 2 Older men are to be sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, ^frsound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness. 3 ^fsOlder women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, ^ftnot slanderers ^fuor slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, 4 and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, 5 to be self-controlled, ^fvpure, ^fwworking at home, kind, and ^fxsubmissive to their own husbands, ^fythat the word of God may not be reviled. 6 Likewise, urge ^fzthe younger men to be self-controlled. 7 Show yourself in all respects to be ^gaa model of good works, and in your teaching ^gbshow integrity, ^gcdignity, 8 and ^gdsound speech that cannot be condemned, ^geso that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us. 9 ^gfBondservants ^{▼▼Or Slaves (for the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface)} are to be submissive to their own masters ^ghin everything; they are to be well-pleasing, not argumentative, 10 not pilfering, ^gibut showing all good faith, ^gjso that in everything they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior.

11 For ^gkthe grace of God ^glhas appeared, bringing salvation ^gmfor all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and ^gnworldly passions, and ^goto live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in ^gpthe present age, 13 ^gqwaiting for our blessed ^grhope, the ^gsappearing of the glory of our great ^gtGod and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 ^guwho gave himself for us to ^gvredeem us from all lawlessness and ^gwto purify for himself ^gxa people for his own possession who are ^gyzealous for good works.

15 Declare these things; exhort and ^gzrebuke with all authority. ^haLet no one disregard you.

Titus 3

Be Ready for Every Good Work

1 Remind them ^hbto be submissive to rulers and authorities, ^hcto be obedient, to be ready for every good work, 2 ^hdto speak evil of no one, ^heto avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and ^hfto show perfect courtesy toward all people. 3 For ^hgwe ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4 But when ^hhthe goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, ^hinot because of works done by us in righteousness, but ^hjaccording to his own mercy, by ^hkthe washing of regeneration and ^hlrenewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he ^hmpoured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that ^hnbeing justified by his grace we might become ^hoheirs ^hpaccording to the hope of eternal life. 8 The saying is ^hqtrustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful ^hrto devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people. 9 But ^hsavoid foolish ^htcontroversies, ^hugenealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law, for ^hvthey are unprofitable and worthless. 10 As for a person who stirs up division, ^hwafter warning him once and then twice, ^hxhave nothing more to do with him, 11 knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.

Final Instructions and Greetings

12 When I send Artemas or ^hyTychicus to you, do your best to come to me ^hzat Nicopolis, for I have decided to spend the winter there. 13 Do your best to speed Zenas the lawyer and ^iaApollos on their way; see that they lack nothing. 14 And let our people learn ^ibto devote themselves to good works, so as to help cases of urgent need, and not ^icbe unfruitful.

15 All who are with me send greetings to you. Greet those who love us in the faith.

^idGrace be with you all.

Psalms 4

Answer Me When I Call

To the achoirmaster: with bstringed instruments. A Psalm of David.