Psalms 78
78
PSALM 78
Common Meter: 8,6,8,6
Maschil of Asaph.
1Attend, my people, to my law;
thereto give thou an ear;
The words that from my mouth proceed
attentively do hear.
2My mouth shall speak a parable,
and sayings dark of old;
3The same which we have heard and known,
and us our fathers told.
4We also will them not conceal
from their posterity;
Them to the generation
to come declare will we:
The praises of the Lord our God,
and his almighty strength,
The wondrous works that he hath done,
we will shew forth at length.
5His testimony and his law
in Isr'el he did place,
And charg'd our fathers it to show
to their succeeding race;
6That so the race which was to come
might well them learn and know;
And sons unborn, who should arise,
might to their sons them show:
7That they might set their hope in God,
and suffer not to fall
His mighty works out of their mind,
but keep his precepts all:
8And might not, like their fathers, be
a stiff rebellious race;
A race not right in heart; with God
whose sp'rit not stedfast was.
9The sons of Ephraim, who nor bows
nor other arms did lack,
When as the day of battle was,
they faintly turned back.
10They brake God's cov'nant,
and refus'd in his commands to go;
11His works and wonders they forgot,
which he to them did show.
12Things marvellous he brought to pass;
their fathers them beheld
Within the land of Egypt done,
yea, ev'n in Zoan's field.
13By him divided was the sea,
he caus'd them through to pass;
And made the waters so to stand,
as like an heap it was.
14With cloud by day, with light of fire
all night, he did them guide.
15In desert rocks he clave,
and drink, as from great depths, supply'd.
16He from the rock brought streams, like floods
made waters to run down.
17Yet sinning more, in desert they
provok'd the Highest One.
18For in their heart they tempted God,
and, speaking with mistrust,
They greedily did meat require
to satisfy their lust.
19Against the Lord himself they spake,
and, murmuring, said thus,
A table in the wilderness
can God prepare for us?
20Behold, he smote the rock, and thence
came streams and waters great;
But can he give his people bread?
and send them flesh to eat?
21The Lord did hear, and waxed wroth;
so kindled was a flame
'Gainst Jacob, and 'gainst Israel
up indignation came.
22For they believ'd not God, nor trust
in his salvation had;
23Though clouds above he did command,
and heav'n's doors open made,
24And manna rain'd on them,
and gave them corn of heav'n to eat.
25Man angels' food did eat; to them
he to the full sent meat.
26And in the heaven he did cause
an eastern wind to blow;
And by his power he let out
the southern wind to go.
27Then flesh as thick as dust he made
to rain down them among;
And feather'd fowls, like as the sand
which li'th the shore along.
28At his command amidst their camp
these show'rs of flesh down fell,
All round about the tabernacles
and tents where they did dwell.
29So they did eat abundantly,
and had of meat their fill;
For he did give to them what was
their own desire and will.
30They from their lust had not estrang'd
their heart and their desire;
But while the meat was in their mouths,
which they did so require,
31God's wrath upon them came,
and slew the fattest of them all;
So that the choice of Israel,
o'erthrown by death, did fall.
32Yet, notwithstanding of all this,
they sinned still the more;
And though he had great wonders wrought,
believ'd him not therefore:
33Wherefore their days in vanity
he did consume and waste;
And by his wrath their wretched years
away in trouble past.
34But when he slew them, then they did
to seek him shew desire;
Yea, they return'd, and after God
right early did enquire.
35And that the Lord had been their Rock,
they did remember then;
Ev'n that the high almighty God
had their Redeemer been.
36Yet with their mouth they flatter'd him,
and spake but feignedly;
And they unto the God of truth
with their false tongues did lie.
37For though their words were good, their heart
with him was not sincere;
Unstedfast and perfidious
they in his cov'nant were.
38But, full of pity, he forgave
their sin, them did not slay;
Nor stirr'd up all his wrath, but oft
his anger turn'd away.
39For that they were but fading flesh
to mind he did recall;
A wind that passeth soon away,
and not returns at all.
40How often did they him provoke
within the wilderness!
And in the desert did him grieve
with their rebelliousness!
41Yea, turning back, they tempted God,
and limits set upon
Him, who in midst of Isr'el is
the only Holy One.
42They did not call to mind his pow'r,
nor yet the day when he
Deliver'd them out of the hand
of their fierce enemy;
43Nor how great signs in Egypt land
he openly had wrought;
What miracles in Zoan's field
his hand to pass had brought.
44How lakes and rivers ev'ry where
he turned into blood;
So that nor man nor beast could drink
of standing lake or flood.
45He brought among them swarms of flies,
which did them sore annoy;
And divers kinds of filthy frogs
he sent them to destroy.
46He to the caterpillar gave
the fruits of all their soil;
Their labours he deliver'd up
unto the locusts' spoil.
47Their vines with hail, their sycamores
he with the frost did blast:
48Their beasts to hail he gave; their flocks
hot thunderbolts did waste.
49Fierce burning wrath he on them cast,
and indignation strong,
And troubles sore, by sending forth
ill angels them among.
50He to his wrath made way; their soul
from death he did not save;
But over to the pestilence
the lives of them he gave.
51In Egypt land the first-born all
he smote down ev'ry where;
Among the tents of Ham, ev'n these
chief of their strength that were.
52But his own people, like to sheep,
thence to go forth he made;
And he, amidst the wilderness,
them, as a flock, did lead.
53And he them safely on did lead,
so that they did not fear;
Whereas their en'mies by the sea
quite overwhelmed were.
54To borders of his sanctuary
the Lord his people led,
Ev'n to the mount which his right hand
for them had purchased.
55The nations of Canaan,
by his almighty hand,
Before their face he did expel
out of their native land;
Which for inheritance to them
by line he did divide,
And made the tribes of Israel
within their tents abide.
56Yet God most high they did provoke,
and tempted ever still;
And to observe his testimonies
did not incline their will:
57But, like their fathers, turned back,
and dealt unfaithfully:
Aside they turned, like a bow
that shoots deceitfully.
58For they to anger did provoke
him with their places high;
And with their graven images
mov'd him to jealousy.
59When God heard this, he waxed wroth,
and much loath'd Isr'el then:
60So Shiloh's tent he left, the tent
which he had plac'd with men.
61And he his strength delivered
into captivity;
He left his glory in the hand
of his proud enemy.
62His people also he gave o'er
unto the sword's fierce rage:
So sore his wrath inflamed was
against his heritage.
63The fire consum'd their choice young men;
their maids no marriage had;
64And when their priests fell by the sword,
their wives no mourning made.
65But then the Lord arose, as one
that doth from sleep awake;
And like a giant that, by wine
refresh'd, a shout doth make:
66Upon his en'mies' hinder parts
he made his stroke to fall;
And so upon them he did put
a shame perpetual.
67Moreover, he the tabernacle
of Joseph did refuse;
The mighty tribe of Ephraim
he would in no wise chuse:
68But he did chuse Jehudah's tribe
to be the rest above;
And of mount Sion he made choice,
which he so much did love.
69And he his sanctuary built
like to a palace high,
Like to the earth which he did found
to perpetuity.
70Of David, that his servant was,
he also choice did make,
And even from the folds of sheep
was pleased him to take:
71From waiting on the ewes with young,
he brought him forth to feed
Israel, his inheritance,
his people, Jacob's seed.
72So after the integrity
he of his heart them fed;
And by the good skill of his hands
them wisely governed.
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maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society
Psalms 78
78
God and his People#Ps 78 Hebrew title: A poem by Asaph.
1Listen, my people, to my teaching,
and pay attention to what I say.
2 #
Mt 13.35
I am going to use wise sayings
and explain mysteries from the past,
3things we have heard and known,
things that our ancestors told us.
4We will not keep them from our children;
we will tell the next generation
about the LORD's power and his great deeds
and the wonderful things he has done.
5He gave laws to the people of Israel
and commandments to the descendants of Jacob.
He instructed our ancestors
to teach his laws to their children,
6so that the next generation might learn them
and in turn should tell their children.
7In this way they also would put their trust in God
and not forget what he has done,
but always obey his commandments.
8They would not be like their ancestors,
a rebellious and disobedient people,
whose trust in God was never firm
and who did not remain faithful to him.
9The Ephraimites, armed with bows and arrows,
ran away on the day of battle.
10They did not keep their covenant with God;
they refused to obey his law.
11They forgot what he had done,
the miracles they had seen him perform.
12 #
Ex 7.8—12.32
While their ancestors watched, God performed miracles
in the plain of Zoan in the land of Egypt.
13 #
Ex 14.21–22
He divided the sea and took them through it;
he made the waters stand like walls.
14 #
Ex 13.21–22
By day he led them with a cloud
and all night long with the light of a fire.
15 #
Ex 17.1–7; Num 20.2–13 He split rocks open in the desert
and gave them water from the depths.
16He caused a stream to come out of the rock
and made water flow like a river.
17But they continued to sin against God,
and in the desert they rebelled against the Most High.
18 #
Ex 16.2–15; Num 11.4–23, 31–35 They deliberately put God to the test
by demanding the food they wanted.
19They spoke against God and said,
“Can God supply food in the desert?
20It is true that he struck the rock,
and water flowed out in a torrent;
but can he also provide us with bread
and give his people meat?”
21And so the LORD was angry when he heard them;
he attacked his people with fire,
and his anger against them grew,
22because they had no faith in him
and did not believe that he would save them.
23But he spoke to the sky above
and commanded its doors to open;
24 #
Jn 6.31
he gave them grain from heaven,
by sending down manna for them to eat.
25So they ate the food of angels,
and God gave them all they wanted.
26He also caused the east wind to blow,
and by his power he stirred up the south wind;
27and to his people he sent down birds,
as many as the grains of sand on the shore;
28they fell in the middle of the camp
all round the tents.
29So the people ate and were satisfied;
God gave them what they wanted.
30But they had not yet satisfied their craving
and were still eating,
31when God became angry with them
and killed their strongest men,
the best young men of Israel.
32In spite of all this the people kept sinning;
in spite of his miracles they did not trust him.
33So he ended their days like a breath
and their lives with sudden disaster.
34Whenever he killed some of them,
the rest would turn to him;
they would repent and pray earnestly to him.
35They remembered that God was their protector,
that the Almighty came to their aid.
36But their words were all lies;
nothing they said was sincere.
37They were not loyal to him;
they were not faithful to their covenant with him.
38But God was merciful to his people.
He forgave their sin
and did not destroy them.
Many times he held back his anger
and restrained his fury.
39He remembered that they were only mortal beings,
like a wind that blows by and is gone.
40How often they rebelled against him in the desert;
how many times they made him sad!
41Again and again they put God to the test
and brought pain to the Holy God of Israel.
42They forgot his great power
and the day when he saved them from their enemies
43and performed his mighty acts and miracles
in the plain of Zoan in the land of Egypt.
44 #
Ex 7.17–21
He turned the rivers into blood,
and the Egyptians had no water to drink.
45 #
Ex 8.1–6, 20–24 He sent flies among them, that tormented them,
and frogs that ruined their land.
46 #
Ex 10.12–15
He sent locusts to eat their crops
and to destroy their fields.
47 #
Ex 9.22–25
He killed their grapevines with hail
and their fig trees with frost.
48He killed their cattle with hail
and their flocks with lightning.#78.48 hail… lightning; or terrible disease… deadly plague.
49He caused them great distress
by pouring out his anger and fierce rage,
which came as messengers of death.
50He did not restrain his anger
or spare their lives,
but killed them with a plague.
51 #
Ex 12.29
He killed the firstborn sons
of all the families of Egypt.
52 #
Ex 13.17–22
Then he led his people out like a shepherd
and guided them through the desert.
53 #
Ex 14.26–28
He led them safely, and they were not afraid;
but the sea came rolling over their enemies.
54 #
Ex 15.17; Josh 3.14–17 He brought them to his holy land,
to the mountains which he himself conquered.
55 #
Josh 11.16–23
He drove out the inhabitants as his people advanced;
he divided their land among the tribes of Israel
and gave their homes to his people.
56 #
Judg 2.11–15
But they rebelled against Almighty God
and put him to the test.
They did not obey his commandments,
57but were rebellious and disloyal like their ancestors,
unreliable as a crooked arrow.
58They angered him with their heathen places of worship,
and with their idols they made him furious.
59God was angry when he saw it,
so he rejected his people completely.
60 #
Josh 18.1; Jer 7.12–14; 26.6 He abandoned his tent in Shiloh,#78.60 Shiloh: The central place of worship for the people of Israel before the time of King David.
the home where he had lived among us.
61 #
1 Sam 4.4–22
He allowed our enemies to capture the Covenant Box,
the symbol of his power and glory.
62He was angry with his own people
and let them be killed by their enemies.
63Young men were killed in war,
and young women had no one to marry.
64Priests died by violence,
and their widows were not allowed to mourn.
65At last the Lord woke up as though from sleep;
he was like a strong man excited by wine.
66He drove his enemies back
in lasting and shameful defeat.
67But he rejected the descendants of Joseph;
he did not select the tribe of Ephraim.
68Instead he chose the tribe of Judah
and Mount Zion, which he dearly loves.
69There he built his Temple
like his home in heaven;
he made it firm like the earth itself,
secure for all time.
70 #
1 Sam 16.11–12; 2 Sam 7.8; 1 Chr 17.7 He chose his servant David;
he took him from the pastures,
71where he looked after his flocks,
and he made him king of Israel,
the shepherd of the people of God.
72David took care of them with unselfish devotion
and led them with skill.
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Good News Bible with Deuterocanonicals/Apocrypha. 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.