My heart exults in Yahweh, in my God is
my strength lifted up, my mouth derides my foes, for I rejoice in your
deliverance.
2
There is no Holy One like Yahweh, (indeed, there is none but you) no Rock like
our God.
3
Do not keep talking so proudly, let no arrogance come from your mouth, for
Yahweh is a wise God, his to weigh up deeds.
4
The bow of the mighty has been broken but those who were tottering are now
braced with strength.
5
The full fed are hiring themselves out for bread but the hungry need labor no
more; the barren woman bears sevenfold but the mother of many is left desolate.
6
Yahweh gives death and life, brings down to Sheol and draws up; 7
Yahweh makes poor and rich, he humbles and also exalts.
8
He raises the poor from the dust, he lifts the needy from the dunghill to give
them a place with princes, to assign them a seat of honor; for to Yahweh belong
the pillars of the earth, on these he has poised the world.
9
He safeguards the steps of his faithful but the wicked vanish in darkness (for
human strength can win no victories).
10
Yahweh, his enemies are shattered, the Most High thunders in the heavens.
Yahweh judges the ends of the earth, he endows his king with power, he raises
up the strength of his Anointed.
I have seen the senseless taking root,
when a curse fell suddenly on his house.
4
His children are deprived of prop and stay, ruined at the gate, and no one to
defend them; 5
their harvest goes to feed the hungry, God snatches it from their mouths, and
covetous people thirst for their possessions.
***
8
If I were you, I should appeal to God and lay my case before him.
9
His works are great, past all reckoning, marvels beyond all counting.
10
He sends down rain to the earth, pours down water on the fields.
11
If his will is to raise up the downcast, or exalt the afflicted to the heights
of prosperity, 12
he frustrates the plans of the artful so that they cannot succeed in their
intrigues.
13 He traps the crafty in
the snare of their own trickery, throws the plans of the cunning into disarray.
14 In daylight they come up
against darkness, and grope their way as if noon were night.
15 He rescues the bankrupt
from their jaws, and the needy from the grasp of the mighty.
16 Hope springs afresh for
the weak, and wickedness must shut its mouth.
How different the wicked,
how different! Just like chaff blown around by the wind 5
the wicked will not stand firm at the Judgment nor sinners in the gathering of
the upright. 6
For Yahweh
watches over the path of the upright, but the path of the wicked is doomed.
Why this uproar among the nations, this
impotent muttering of the peoples?
2
Kings of the earth take up position, princes plot together against Yahweh and
his anointed, 3
'Now let us break their fetters! Now let us throw off their bonds!'
4
He who is enthroned in the heavens laughs, Yahweh makes a mockery of them, 5
then in his anger rebukes them, in his rage he strikes them with terror.
***
10
So now, you kings, come to your senses, you earthly rulers, learn your lesson!
11
In fear be submissive to Yahweh; 12 with trembling kiss
his feet, lest he be angry and your way come to nothing, for his fury flares up
in a moment. How blessed are all who take refuge in him!
The nations have fallen into the trap
they made, their feet caught in the snare they laid. 16
Yahweh has made himself known, given judgment, he has ensnared the wicked in
the work of their own hands. 17
May the wicked turn away to Sheol, all the nations forgetful of God. 18
For the needy is not forgotten for ever, not for ever does the hope of the poor
come to nothing.
19
Arise, Yahweh; human strength shall not prevail. The nations shall stand trial
before you. 20
Strike them with terror, Yahweh; the nations shall know that they are no more
than human!
Yahweh thwarts the plans
of nations, frustrates the counsels of peoples; 11 but Yahweh's own plan stands firm for ever, his heart's counsel
from age to age.
Commit your destiny to Yahweh, be
confident in him, and he will act, 6 making your
uprightness clear as daylight, and the justice of your cause as the noon. 7
Stay quiet before Yahweh, wait longingly for him, do not get heated over
someone who is making a fortune, succeeding by devious means.
A little while and the wicked will be no
more, however well you search for the place, the wicked will not be there; 11
but the poor will have the land for their own, to enjoy untroubled peace.
12
The wicked plots against the upright and gnashes his teeth at him, 13
but Yahweh only laughs at his efforts, knowing that his end is in sight. 14
Though the wicked draw his sword and bend his bow to slaughter the honest and
bring down the poor and the needy, 15 his sword will pierce
his own heart, and his bow will be shattered.
The wicked keeps a close eye on the
upright, looking out for a chance to kill him; 33 Yahweh will
never abandon him to the clutches of the wicked, nor let him be condemned if he
is tried.
34
Put your hope in Yahweh, keep to his path, he will raise you up to make the
land your own; you will look on while the wicked are annihilated. 35
I have seen the wicked exultant, towering like a cedar of Lebanon. 36
When next I passed he was gone, I searched for him and he was nowhere to be
found.
Why take pride in being wicked, you
champion in villainy, all day long2 plotting crime? Your
tongue is razor-sharp, you artist in perfidy.3 You prefer
evil to good, lying to uprightness. 4 You revel in
destructive talk, treacherous tongue!
5
That is why God will crush you, destroy you once and for all, snatch you from
your tent, uproot you from the land of the living.
6
The upright will be awestruck as they see it, they will mock him,
7
'So much for someone who would not place his reliance in God, but relied on his
own great wealth, and made himself strong by crime.'
8
But I, like a flourishing olive tree in the house of God, put my trust in God's
faithful love, for ever and ever. 9 I shall praise you
for ever for what you have done, and shall trust in your name, so full of
goodness, in the presence of your faithful.
As for a human person -- his days are
like grass, he blooms like the wild flowers; 16 as soon as the
wind blows he is gone, never to be seen there again. 17
But Yahweh's faithful love for those who fear him is from eternity and for
ever; and his saving justice to their children's children; 18
as long as they keep his covenant, and carefully obey his precepts.
To the needy he gives without stint, his
uprightness stands firm for ever; his reputation is founded on strength. 10
The wicked are vexed at the sight, they grind their teeth and waste away. The
desires of the wicked will be frustrated.
A human heart makes the plans, Yahweh
gives the answer.
2
A person's own acts seem right to the doer, but Yahweh is the weigher of souls.
3
Commend what you do to Yahweh, and what you plan will be achieved.
4
Yahweh made everything for its own purpose, yes, even the wicked for the day of
disaster.
The human heart may plan a
course, but it is Yahweh who makes the steps
secure.
Many are the plans in the human heart,
but the purpose of Yahweh -- that stands firm.
Like flowing water is a
king's heart in Yahweh's hand; he directs it wherever he pleases.
All actions are straight
in the doer's own eyes, but it is Yahweh who weighs hearts.
Woe to those who call what is bad, good,
and what is good, bad, who substitute darkness for light and light for
darkness, who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.
21
Woe to those who think themselves wise and believe themselves enlightened.
22
Woe to those whose might lies in wine bibbing, their heroism in mixing strong
drinks, 23
who acquit the guilty for a bribe and deny justice to the upright.
24
Yes, as the flame devours the stubble, as the straw flares up and disappears,
their root will be like decay and their shoot be carried off like dust, for
having rejected the law of Yahweh Sabaoth, for having despised the word of the
Holy One of Israel.
Realize this, peoples, and be afraid,
listen, all members of far-off nations! Arm yourselves yet be afraid! Arm
yourselves yet be afraid! 10 Devise plans as you may: they will come
to nothing! Make what pronouncements you like; it will not come about! For God
is with us!'
A voice said, 'Cry aloud!' and I said,
'What shall I cry?' -'All humanity is grass and all its beauty like the wild
flower's.
7
The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of Yahweh blows on them.
(The grass is surely the people.)
8
The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God remains for ever.
He who sits enthroned
above the circle of the earth, the inhabitants of which are like grasshoppers,
stretches out the heavens like a cloth, spreads them out like a tent to live
in. 23 He reduces princes to
nothing, the rulers of the world to mere emptiness.
24 Scarcely are they
planted, scarcely sown, scarcely has their stem taken root in the soil, than he
blows on them and they wither and the storm carries them away like chaff. 25 'To whom can you compare me, or who is my equal?' says the Holy
One.
Remember this and stand firm; rebels,
look into your hearts.
9
Remember the things that happened long ago, for I am God, and there is no
other; I am God, and there is none like me.
10
From the beginning I revealed the future, in advance, what has not yet
occurred. I say: My purpose will come about, I shall do whatever I please; 11
I call a bird of prey from the east, my man predestined, from a distant land.
What I have said, I shall do, what I have planned, I shall perform.
12
Listen to me, you hard-hearted people far removed from saving justice: 13
I am bringing my justice nearer, it is not far away, my salvation will not
delay. I shall place my salvation in Zion and my glory in Israel.
You have wearied Yahweh with your talk.
You ask, "How have we wearied him?" When you say, "Any evil-doer
is good as far as Yahweh is concerned; indeed he is delighted with them";
or when you say, "Where is the God of fair judgment now?"
31
'Look, I shall send my messenger to clear a way before me. And suddenly the
Lord whom you seek will come to his Temple; yes, the angel of the covenant, for
whom you long, is on his way, says Yahweh Sabaoth. 2
Who will be able to resist the day of his coming? Who will remain standing when
he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire, like fullers' alkali. 3
He will take his seat as refiner and purifier; he will
purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they can
make the offering to Yahweh with uprightness. 4 The offering
of Judah and Jerusalem will then be acceptable to Yahweh as in former days, as
in the years of old.5 I am coming to put you on trial and I
shall be a ready witness against sorcerers, adulterers, perjurers, and against
those who oppress the wage-earner, the widow and the orphan, and who rob the
foreigner of his rights and do not respect me, says Yahweh Sabaoth.
You have said harsh things about me, says
Yahweh. And yet you say, "What have we said against you?" 14
You have said, "It is useless to serve God; what is the good of keeping
his commands or of walking mournfully before Yahweh Sabaoth?15
In fact, we now call the proud the happy ones; the evil-doers are the ones who
prosper; they put God to the test, yet come to no harm!" '
16
Then those who feared Yahweh talked to one another about this, and Yahweh took
note and listened; and a book of remembrance was written in his presence
recording those who feared him and kept his name in mind. 17
'On the day when I act, says Yahweh Sabaoth, they will be my most prized
possession, and I shall spare them in the way a man spares the son who serves
him.18
Then once again you will see the difference between the upright person and the
wicked one, between the one who serves God and the one who does not serve him.
19
'For look, the Day is coming, glowing like a furnace. All the proud and all the
evil-doers will be the stubble, and the Day, when it comes, will set them
ablaze, says Yahweh Sabaoth, leaving them neither root nor branch.20
But for you who fear my name, the Sun of justice will rise with healing in his
rays, and you will come out leaping like calves from the stall, 21
and trample on the wicked, who will be like ashes under the soles of your feet
on the day when I act, says Yahweh Sabaoth.
What I suggest, therefore, is that you
leave these men alone and let them go. If this enterprise, this movement of
theirs, is of human origin it will break up of its own accord; 39
but if it does in fact come from God you will be unable to destroy them. Take
care not to find yourselves fighting against God.' His advice was accepted
For all humanity is grass, and all its
beauty like the wild flower's. As grass withers, the flower fades, 25
but the Word of the Lord remains for ever. And this Word is the Good News that
has been brought to you.
21
Rid yourselves, then, of all spite, deceit, hypocrisy, envy and carping
criticism.2
Like new-born babies all your longing should be for milk -- the unadulterated
spiritual milk -- which will help you to grow up to salvation
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