Psalm 42

New American Standard Bible

BOOK 2

Thirsting for God in Trouble and Exile.

For the music director. A ^[a]Maskil of the sons of Korah.

42 As the deer ^[b]pants for the water brooks,
So my soul ^[c]^(A)pants for You, God.
²My soul ^(B)thirsts for God, for the ^(C)living God;
When shall I come and ^[d]^(D)appear before God?
³My ^(E)tears have been my food day and night,
While they ^(F)say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
⁴I remember these things and ^(G)pour out my soul within me.
For I ^(H)used to go over with the multitude and walk them to the house of God,
With a voice of ^(I)joy and thanksgiving, a multitude celebrating a festival.

⁵^(J)Why are you ^[e]^(K)in despair, my soul?
And why are you ^(L)restless within me?
^(M)Wait for God, for I will ^[f]again praise ^[g]Him
For the ^[h]^(N)help of His ^[i]presence, my God.
⁶My soul is ^[j]in despair within me;
Therefore I ^(O)remember You from ^(P)the land of the Jordan
And the ^[k]peaks of ^(Q)Hermon, from Mount Mizar.
⁷Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls;
All Your ^(R)breakers and Your waves have passed over me.
⁸The Lord will ^(S)send His goodness in the daytime;
And His song will be with me ^(T)in the night,
A prayer to ^(U)the God of my life.

⁹I will say to God ^(V)my rock, “Why have You forgotten me?
Why do I go about ^(W)mourning ^[l]because of the ^(X)oppression of the enemy?”
¹⁰As a shattering of my bones, my adversaries taunt me,
While they ^(Y)say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
¹¹^(Z)Why are you ^[m]in despair, my soul?
And why are you restless within me?
Wait for God, for I will again praise ^[n]Him
For the ^[o]help of His presence, my God.

Footnotes

Psalm 42 Title Possibly Contemplative; or Didactic; or Skillful Psalm
Psalm 42:1 Lit longs for
Psalm 42:1 Lit longs for
Psalm 42:2 Some mss see the face of God
Psalm 42:5 Lit dissolved away
Psalm 42:5 Or still
Psalm 42:5 Some ancient versions Him, the help of my face and my God
Psalm 42:5 Or saving acts of
Psalm 42:5 Or presence. O my God, my soul...
Psalm 42:6 Or dissolved away
Psalm 42:6 Lit Hermons
Psalm 42:9 Or while the enemy oppresses
Psalm 42:11 Or dissolved away
Psalm 42:11 As in some ancient mss, cf. v 5; MT Him, the help of my face and my God
Psalm 42:11 Or saving acts of

Psalm 43

New American Standard Bible

Prayer for Help.

43 ^(A)Vindicate me, God, and ^(B)plead my case against an ungodly nation;
^[a]Save me from ^(C)the deceitful and unjust person!
²For You are the ^(D)God of my strength; why have You ^(E)rejected me?
Why do I go about ^(F)mourning ^[b]because of the oppression of the enemy?

³Send out Your ^(G)light and Your truth, they shall lead me;
They shall bring me to Your ^(H)holy hill
And to Your ^(I)dwelling places.
⁴Then I will go to ^(J)the altar of God,
To God ^[c]my exceeding ^(K)joy;
And I will praise You on the ^(L)lyre, God, my God.

⁵^(M)Why are you ^[d]in despair, my soul?
And why are you restless within me?
Wait for God, for I will ^[e]again praise ^[f]Him
For the ^[g]help of His presence, my God.

Footnotes

Psalm 43:1 Or May You
Psalm 43:2 Or while the enemy oppresses
Psalm 43:4 Lit the gladness of my joy
Psalm 43:5 Or dissolved away
Psalm 43:5 Or still
Psalm 43:5 As in some ancient mss; MT Him, the help of my face and my God
Psalm 43:5 Or saving acts of

Psalm 44

New American Standard Bible

Former Times of Help and Present Troubles.

For the music director. A ^[a]Maskil of the sons of Korah.

44 God, we have heard with our ears,
Our ^(A)fathers have told us
The ^(B)work that You did in their days,
In the ^(C)days of old.
²You with Your own hand ^(D)drove out the nations;
Then You ^(E)planted them;
You ^(F)afflicted the peoples,
Then You ^(G)let them go free.
³For by their own sword they ^(H)did not possess the land,
And their own arm did not save them,
But Your right hand and Your ^(I)arm and the ^(J)light of Your presence,
For You ^(K)favored them.

⁴You are ^(L)my King, God;
^(M)Command ^[b]victories for Jacob.
⁵Through You we will ^(N)push back our adversaries;
Through Your name we will ^(O)trample down those who rise up against us.
⁶For I will ^(P)not trust in my bow,
Nor will my sword save me.
⁷But You ^(Q)have saved us from our adversaries,
And You have ^(R)put to shame those who hate us.
⁸In God we have ^(S)boasted all day long,
And we will ^(T)give thanks to Your name forever. Selah

⁹Yet You ^(U)have rejected us and brought us to ^(V)dishonor,
And ^(W)do not go out with our armies.
¹⁰You cause us to ^(X)turn back from the enemy;
And those who hate us ^(Y)have taken spoils for themselves.
¹¹You turn us over ^[c]to be eaten like ^(Z)sheep,
And have ^(AA)scattered us among the nations.
¹²You ^(AB)sell Your people ^[d]cheaply,
And have not ^[e]profited by their sale.
¹³You make us an object of ^(AC)reproach to our neighbors,
Of scoffing and ^(AD)ridicule to those around us.
¹⁴You make us ^(AE)a proverb among the nations,
A ^[f]^(AF)laughingstock among the peoples.
¹⁵All day long my dishonor is before me
And ^[g]I am covered with my ^(AG)humiliation,
¹⁶Because of the voice of one who ^(AH)taunts and reviles,
Because of the presence of the ^(AI)enemy and the avenger.

¹⁷All this has come upon us, but we have ^(AJ)not forgotten You,
And we have not ^(AK)dealt falsely with Your covenant.
¹⁸Our heart has not ^(AL)turned back,
And our steps ^(AM)have not deviated from Your way,
¹⁹Yet You have ^(AN)crushed us in a place of ^(AO)jackals
And covered us with ^[h]^(AP)deep darkness.

²⁰If we had ^(AQ)forgotten the name of our God
Or extended our ^[i]hands to ^(AR)a strange god,
²¹Would God not ^(AS)find this out?
For He knows the secrets of the heart.
²²But ^(AT)for Your sake we are killed all day long;
We are regarded as ^(AU)sheep to be slaughtered.
²³^(AV)Wake Yourself up, why ^(AW)do You sleep, Lord?
Awake, ^(AX)do not reject us forever.
²⁴Why do You ^(AY)hide Your face
And ^(AZ)forget our affliction and oppression?
²⁵For our ^(BA)souls have sunk down into the dust;
Our bodies cling to the earth.
²⁶^(BB)Rise up, be our help,
And ^(BC)redeem us because of Your mercy.

Footnotes

Psalm 44 Title Possibly Contemplative; or Didactic; or Skillful Psalm
Psalm 44:4 Lit salvation
Psalm 44:11 Lit for food
Psalm 44:12 Lit for no wealth
Psalm 44:12 Or set a high price on them
Psalm 44:14 Lit shaking of the head
Psalm 44:15 Lit the shame of my face has covered me
Psalm 44:19 Or the shadow of death
Psalm 44:20 Lit palms

Psalm 45

New American Standard Bible

A Song Celebrating the King’s Marriage.

For the music director; according to the ^[a]Shoshannim. A ^[b]Maskil of the sons of Korah. A Song of Love.

45 My heart is moved with a good theme;
I ^[c]address my ^[d]verses to the ^[e]King;
My tongue is the pen of ^(A)a ready writer.
²You are the most handsome of the sons of mankind;
^(B)Grace is poured ^[f]upon Your lips;
Therefore God has ^(C)blessed You forever.

³Strap ^(D)Your sword on Your thigh, ^[g]^(E)Mighty One,
In Your splendor and majesty!
⁴And in Your majesty ride on victoriously,
For the cause of truth, ^(F)humility, and righteousness;
Let Your ^(G)right hand teach You ^[h]awesome things.
⁵Your ^(H)arrows are sharp;
The ^(I)peoples fall under You;
Your arrows are ^(J)in the heart of the King’s enemies.

⁶^(K)Your throne, God, is forever and ever;
^(L)The scepter of Your kingdom is a scepter of justice.
⁷You have ^(M)loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
Therefore God, Your God, has ^(N)anointed You
With the oil of joy above Your companions.
⁸All Your garments are fragrant with ^(O)myrrh, aloes, and cassia;
From ivory palaces ^(P)stringed instruments have made You joyful.
⁹Kings’ daughters are among ^(Q)Your noble women;
At Your ^(R)right hand stands the queen in ^(S)gold from Ophir.

¹⁰Listen, daughter, look and incline your ear:
^(T)Forget your people and your father’s house;
¹¹Then the King will crave your beauty.
Because He is your ^(U)Lord, ^(V)bow down to Him.
¹²The daughter of ^(W)Tyre will come with a gift;
The ^(X)wealthy among the people will seek your favor.

¹³The King’s daughter is all glorious within;
Her clothing is ^(Y)interwoven with gold.
¹⁴She will be ^(Z)brought to the King ^(AA)in colorful garments;
The ^(AB)virgins, her companions who follow her,
Will be brought to You.
¹⁵They will be brought with joy and rejoicing;
They will enter into the King’s palace.

¹⁶In place of your fathers will be your sons;
You shall make them princes in all the earth.
¹⁷I will make ^(AC)Your name known among all generations;
Therefore the peoples ^(AD)will praise You forever and ever.

Footnotes

Psalm 45 Title Or possibly Lilies
Psalm 45 Title Possibly Contemplative; or Didactic; or Wisdom Psalm
Psalm 45:1 Lit am saying
Psalm 45:1 Lit works
Psalm 45:1 Prob. refers to a Davidic king as a type of Christ
Psalm 45:2 Or through
Psalm 45:3 Or Warrior
Psalm 45:4 Or fearful

Psalm 46

New American Standard Bible

God, the Refuge of His People.

For the music director. A Psalm of the sons of Korah, ^[a]set to Alamoth. A Song.

46 God is our ^(A)refuge and strength,
A ^[b]very ^(B)ready help ^(C)in ^[c]trouble.
²Therefore we will ^(D)not fear, though ^(E)the earth shakes
And ^(F)the mountains slip into the heart of the ^[d]sea;
³Though its ^(G)waters roar and foam,
Though the mountains quake at its swelling pride. Selah

⁴There is a ^(H)river whose streams make the ^(I)city of God happy,
The holy ^(J)dwelling places of the Most High.
⁵God is ^(K)in the midst of her, she will not be moved;
God will ^(L)help her ^[e]when morning dawns.
⁶The ^[f]nations ^(M)made an uproar, the kingdoms tottered;
He ^[g]^(N)raised His voice, the earth ^(O)quaked.
⁷The Lord of armies ^(P)is with us;
The God of Jacob is ^(Q)our stronghold. Selah

⁸Come, ^(R)behold the works of the Lord,
^[h]Who has inflicted ^(S)horrific events on the earth.
⁹He ^(T)makes wars to cease to the end of the earth;
He ^(U)breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two;
He ^(V)burns the chariots with fire.
¹⁰“^[i]Stop striving and ^(W)know that I am God;
I will be ^(X)exalted among the ^[j]nations, I will be exalted on the earth.”
¹¹The Lord of armies is with us;
The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah