Psalms 74
74
PSALM 74
Common Meter: 8,6,8,6
Maschil of Asaph.
1O God, why hast thou cast us off?
is it for evermore?
Against thy pasture-sheep why doth
thine anger smoke so sore?
2O call to thy rememberance
thy congregation,
Which thou hast purchased of old;
still think the same upon:
The rod of thine inheritance,
which thou redeemed hast,
This Sion hill, wherein thou hadst
thy dwelling in times past.
3To these long desolations
thy feet lift, do not tarry;
For all the ills thy foes have done
within thy sanctuary.
4Amidst thy congregations
thine enemies do roar:
Their ensigns they set up for signs
of triumph thee before.
5A man was famous, and was had
in estimation,
According as he lifted up
his axe thick trees upon.
6But all at once with axes now
and hammers they go to,
And down the carved work thereof
they break, and quite undo.
7They fired have thy sanctuary,
and have defil'd the same,
By casting down unto the ground
the place where dwelt thy name.
8Thus said they in their hearts, Let us
destroy them out of hand:
They burnt up all the synagogues
of God within the land.
9Our signs we do not now behold;
there is not us among
A prophet more, nor any one
that knows the time how long.
10How long, Lord, shall the enemy
thus in reproach exclaim?
And shall the adversary thus
always blaspheme thy name?
11Thy hand, ev'n thy right hand of might,
why dost thou thus draw back?
O from thy bosom pluck it out
for our deliv'rance sake.
12For certainly God is my King,
ev'n from the times of old,
Working in midst of all the earth
salvation manifold.
13The sea, by thy great pow'r, to part
asunder thou didst make;
And thou the dragons' heads, O Lord,
within the waters brake.
14The leviathan's head thou brak'st
in pieces, and didst give
Him to be meat unto the folk
in wilderness that live.
15Thou clav'st the fountain and the flood,
which did with streams abound:
Thou dry'dst the mighty waters up
unto the very ground.
16Thine only is the day, O Lord,
thine also is the night;
And thou alone prepared hast
the sun and shining light.
17By thee the borders of the earth
were settled ev'ry where:
The summer and the winter both
by thee created were.
18That th' enemy reproached hath,
O keep it in record;
And that the foolish people have
blasphem'd thy name, O Lord.
19Unto the multitude do not
thy turtle's soul deliver:
The congregation of thy poor
do not forget for ever.
20Unto thy cov'nant have respect;
for earth's dark places be
Full of the habitations
of horrid cruelty.
21O let not those that be oppress'd
return again with shame:
Let those that poor and needy are
give praise unto thy name.
22Do thou, O God, arise and plead
the cause that is thine own:
Remember how thou art reproach'd
still by the foolish one.
23Do not forget the voice of those
that are thine enemies:
Of those the tumult ever grows
that do against thee rise.
Currently Selected:
Psalms 74: MP1650
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society
Psalms 74
74
A Prayer for National Deliverance#Ps 74 Hebrew title: A poem by Asaph.
1Why have you abandoned us like this, O God?
Will you be angry with your own people for ever?
2Remember your people, whom you chose for yourself long ago,
whom you brought out of slavery to be your own tribe.
Remember Mount Zion, where once you lived.
3Walk over these total ruins;
our enemies have destroyed everything in the Temple.
4Your enemies have shouted in triumph in your Temple;
they have placed their flags there as signs of victory.
5They looked like woodmen
cutting down trees with their axes.#74.5 Verse 5 in Hebrew is unclear.
6They smashed all the wooden panels
with their axes and sledgehammers.
7They wrecked your Temple and set it on fire;
they desecrated the place where you are worshipped.
8They wanted to crush us completely;
they burnt down every holy place in the land.
9All our sacred symbols are gone;
there are no prophets left,
and no one knows how long this will last.
10How long, O God, will our enemies laugh at you?
Will they insult your name for ever?
11Why have you refused to help us?
Why do you keep your hands behind you?#74.11 Probable text Why do you keep your hands behind you; Hebrew unclear.
12But you have been our king from the beginning, O God;
you have saved us many times.
13 #
Ex 14.21
With your mighty strength you divided the sea
and smashed the heads of the sea monsters;
14 #
Job 41.1; Ps 104.26; Is 27.1 you crushed the heads of the monster Leviathan#74.14 Leviathan: A legendary monster which was a symbol of the forces of chaos and evil.
and fed his body to desert animals.#74.14 animals; or people.
15You made springs and fountains flow;
you dried up large rivers.
16You created the day and the night;
you set the sun and the moon in their places;
17you set the limits of the earth;
you made summer and winter.
18But remember, O LORD, that your enemies laugh at you,
that they are godless and despise you.
19Don't abandon your helpless people to their cruel enemies;
don't forget your persecuted people!
20Remember the covenant you made with us.
There is violence in every dark corner of the land.
21Don't let the oppressed be put to shame;
let those poor and needy people praise you.
22Rouse yourself, God, and defend your cause!
Remember that godless people laugh at you all day long.
23Don't forget the angry shouts of your enemies,
the continuous noise made by your foes.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.