Psalms 74

Arise, O God, Defend Your Cause

A Maskil ▼

▼Probably a musical or liturgical term

of ^bAsaph.

1 O God, why do you ^ccast us off forever?
Why does your anger ^dsmoke against ^ethe sheep of your pasture?
2 ^fRemember your congregation, which you have ^gpurchased of old,
which you have ^hredeemed to be ⁱthe tribe of your heritage!
Remember Mount Zion, ^jwhere you have dwelt.
3Direct your steps to ^kthe perpetual ruins;
the enemy has destroyed everything in the sanctuary!
4 Your foes have ^lroared in the midst of your meeting place;
^mthey set up their ⁿown signs for ^osigns.
5They were like those who swing ^paxes
in a forest of trees. ▼

▼The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain

6And all its ^rcarved wood
they broke down with hatchets and hammers.
7They ^sset your sanctuary on fire;
they ^tprofaned ^uthe dwelling place of your name,
bringing it down to the ground.
8They ^vsaid to themselves, “We will utterly subdue them”;
they burned all the meeting places of God in the land.
9 We do not see our ^wsigns;
^xthere is no longer any prophet,
and there is none among us who knows how long.
10How long, O God, ^yis the foe to scoff?
Is the enemy to revile your name forever?
11Why ^zdo you hold back your hand, your right hand?
Take it from the fold of your garment ▼

▼Hebrew  from your bosom

and destroy them!
12 Yet ^abGod my King is from of old,
working salvation in the midst of the earth.
13You ^acdivided the sea by your might;
you ^adbroke the heads of ^aethe sea monsters ▼

▼Or  the great sea creatures

on the waters.
14You crushed the heads of ^agLeviathan;
you gave him as food for the creatures of the wilderness.
15You ^ahsplit open springs and brooks;
you ^aidried up ever-flowing streams.
16Yours is the day, yours also the night;
you have established ^ajthe heavenly lights and the sun.
17You have ^akfixed all the boundaries of the earth;
you have made ^alsummer and winter.
18 ^amRemember this, O Lord, how the enemy scoffs,
and ^ana foolish people reviles your name.
19Do not deliver the soul of your ^aodove to the wild beasts;
^apdo not forget the life of your poor forever.
20 Have regard for ^aqthe covenant,
for ^arthe dark places of the land are full of the habitations of violence.
21Let not ^asthe downtrodden ^atturn back in shame;
let ^authe poor and needy praise your name.
22 Arise, O God, ^avdefend your cause;
^awremember how the foolish scoff at you all the day!
23Do not forget the clamor of your foes,
^axthe uproar of those who rise against you, which goes up continually!

Psalms 79

How Long, O Lord?

A Psalm of ^ayAsaph.

1 O God, ^azthe nations have come into your ^bainheritance;
they have defiled your ^bbholy temple;
they have ^bclaid Jerusalem in ruins.
2They have given ^bdthe bodies of your servants
to the birds of the heavens for food,
the flesh of your ^befaithful to ^bfthe beasts of the earth.
3They have poured out their blood like water
all around Jerusalem,
and there was ^bgno one to bury them.
4We have become ^bha taunt to our neighbors,
^bimocked and derided by those around us.
5 ^bjHow long, O Lord? Will you be angry ^bkforever?
Will your ^bljealousy ^bmburn like fire?
6 ^bnPour out your anger on the nations
that ^bodo not know you,
and on the kingdoms
that ^bpdo not call upon your name!
7For they have devoured Jacob
and laid waste his habitation.
8 ^bqDo not remember against us ^brour former iniquities; ▼

▼Or the iniquities of former generations

let your compassion come speedily to meet us,
for we are ^btbrought very low.
9 ^buHelp us, O God of our salvation,
for the glory of your name;
deliver us, and ^bvatone for our sins,
for your ^bwname’s sake!
10 ^bxWhy should the nations say,
“Where is their God?”
Let ^bythe avenging of the outpoured blood of your servants
be known among the nations before our eyes!
11 Let ^bzthe groans of the prisoners come before you;
according to your great power, preserve those ^cadoomed to die!
12Return ^cbsevenfold into the ^cclap of our neighbors
the ^cdtaunts with which they have taunted you, O Lord!
13But we your people, the ^cesheep of your pasture,
will ^cfgive thanks to you forever;
from generation to generation we will recount your praise.