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Psalm 89
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
Psalm 89
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
Psalm 89
A skillful song, or a didactic or reflective poem, of Ethan the Ezrahite.
1 I will sing of the mercy and loving-kindness of the Lord forever; with my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness from generation to generation.
2 For I have said, Mercy and loving-kindness shall be built up forever; Your faithfulness will You establish in the very heavens [unchangeable and perpetual].
3 [You have said] I have made a [a]covenant with My chosen one, I have sworn to David My servant,
4 Your Seed I will establish forever, and I will build up your throne for all generations. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!(A)
5 Let heaven (the angels) praise Your wonders, O Lord, Your faithfulness also in the assembly of the holy ones (the holy angels).
6 For who in the heavens can be compared to the Lord? Who among the mighty [heavenly beings] can be likened to the Lord,
7 A God greatly feared and revered in the council of the holy (angelic) ones, and to be feared and worshipfully revered above all those who are round about Him?
8 O Lord God of hosts, who is a mighty one like unto You, O Lord? And Your faithfulness is round about You [an essential part of You at all times].
9 You rule the raging of the sea; when its waves arise, You still them.
10 You have broken Rahab (Egypt) in pieces; with Your mighty arm You have scattered Your enemies.
11 The heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours; the world and all that is in it, You have founded them.
12 The north and the south, You have created them; Mount Tabor and Mount Hermon joyously praise Your name.
13 You have a mighty arm; strong is Your hand, Your right hand is soaring high.
14 Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; mercy and loving-kindness and truth go before Your face.
15 Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are the people who know the joyful sound [who understand and appreciate the spiritual blessings symbolized by the feasts]; they walk, O Lord, in the light and favor of Your countenance!
16 In Your name they rejoice all the day, and in Your righteousness they are exalted.
17 For You are the glory of their strength [their proud adornment], and by Your favor our horn is exalted and we walk with uplifted faces!
18 For our shield belongs to the Lord, and our king to the Holy One of Israel.
19 Once You spoke in a vision to Your devoted ones and said, I have endowed one who is mighty [a hero, giving him the power to help—to be a champion for Israel]; I have exalted one chosen from among the people.
20 I have found David My servant; with My holy oil have I anointed him,(B)
21 With whom My hand shall be established and ever abide; My arm also shall strengthen him.
22 The enemy shall not exact from him or do him violence or outwit him, nor shall the wicked afflict and humble him.
23 I will beat down his foes before his face and smite those who hate him.
24 My faithfulness and My mercy and loving-kindness shall be with him, and in My name shall his horn be exalted [great power and prosperity shall be conferred upon him].
25 I will set his hand in control also on the [Mediterranean] Sea, and his right hand on the rivers [Euphrates with its tributaries].
26 He shall cry to Me, You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation!
27 Also I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth.(C)
28 My mercy and loving-kindness will I keep for him forevermore, and My covenant shall stand fast and be faithful with him.
29 His [b]Offspring also will I make to endure forever, and his throne as the days of heaven.(D)
30 If his children forsake My law and walk not in My ordinances,
31 If they break or profane My statutes and keep not My commandments,
32 Then will I punish their transgression with the rod [of chastisement], and their iniquity with stripes.(E)
33 Nevertheless, My loving-kindness will I not break off from him, nor allow My faithfulness to fail [to lie and be false to him].
34 My covenant will I not break or profane, nor alter the thing that is gone out of My lips.
35 Once [for all] have I sworn by My holiness, which cannot be violated; I will not lie to David:
36 His Offspring shall endure forever, and his throne [shall continue] as the sun before Me.(F)
37 It shall be established forever as the moon, the faithful witness in the heavens. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!(G)
38 But [in apparent contradiction to all this] You [even You the faithful Lord] have cast off and rejected; You have been full of wrath against Your anointed.
39 You have despised and loathed and renounced the covenant with Your servant; You have profaned his crown by casting it to the ground.
40 You have broken down all his hedges and his walls; You have brought his strongholds to ruin.
41 All who pass along the road spoil and rob him; he has become the scorn and reproach of his neighbors.
42 You have exalted the right hand of his foes; You have made all his enemies rejoice.
43 Moreover, You have turned back the edge of his sword and have not made him to stand in battle.
44 You have made his glory and splendor to cease and have hurled to the ground his throne.
45 The days of his youth have You shortened; You have covered him with shame. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!
46 How long, O Lord? Will You hide Yourself forever? How long shall Your wrath burn like fire?
47 O [earnestly] remember how short my time is and what a mere fleeting life mine is. For what emptiness, falsity, futility, and frailty You have created all men!
48 What man can live and shall not see death, or can deliver himself from the [powerful] hand of Sheol (the place of the dead)? Selah [pause, and calmly consider that]!
49 Lord, where are Your former loving-kindnesses [shown in the reigns of David and Solomon], which You swore to David in Your faithfulness?
50 Remember, Lord, and earnestly imprint [on Your heart] the reproach of Your servants, scorned and insulted, how I bear in my bosom the reproach of all the many and mighty peoples,
51 With which Your enemies have taunted, O Lord, with which they have mocked the footsteps of Your anointed.
52 Blessed be the Lord forevermore! Amen and Amen.
Footnotes
- Psalm 89:3 “This covenant most incontestably had Jesus Christ in view. This is the Seed or Posterity Who would sit on the throne and reign forever and ever. David and his family have long since become extinct; none of his race has sat on the Jewish throne for more than two thousand years. But the Christ... will reign until all His enemies are put under His feet (Ps. 110:1; I Cor. 15:25, 27; Eph. 1:22); and to this the psalmist says, Selah.” (One of many similar 19th-century comments.)
- Psalm 89:29 See footnote on Ps. 89:3.
Psalm 89
New International Version
Psalm 89
New International Version
Psalm 89[a]
A maskil[b] of Ethan the Ezrahite.
1 I will sing(A) of the Lord’s great love forever;
with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known(B)
through all generations.
2 I will declare that your love stands firm forever,
that you have established your faithfulness in heaven itself.(C)
3 You said, “I have made a covenant with my chosen one,
I have sworn to David my servant,
4 ‘I will establish your line forever
and make your throne firm through all generations.’”[c](D)
5 The heavens(E) praise your wonders, Lord,
your faithfulness too, in the assembly(F) of the holy ones.
6 For who in the skies above can compare with the Lord?
Who is like the Lord among the heavenly beings?(G)
7 In the council(H) of the holy ones(I) God is greatly feared;
he is more awesome than all who surround him.(J)
8 Who is like you,(K) Lord God Almighty?(L)
You, Lord, are mighty, and your faithfulness surrounds you.
9 You rule over the surging sea;
when its waves mount up, you still them.(M)
10 You crushed Rahab(N) like one of the slain;
with your strong arm you scattered(O) your enemies.
11 The heavens are yours,(P) and yours also the earth;(Q)
you founded the world and all that is in it.(R)
12 You created the north and the south;
Tabor(S) and Hermon(T) sing for joy(U) at your name.
13 Your arm is endowed with power;
your hand is strong, your right hand exalted.(V)
14 Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;(W)
love and faithfulness go before you.(X)
15 Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you,
who walk(Y) in the light(Z) of your presence, Lord.
16 They rejoice in your name(AA) all day long;
they celebrate your righteousness.
17 For you are their glory and strength,(AB)
and by your favor you exalt our horn.[d](AC)
18 Indeed, our shield[e](AD) belongs to the Lord,
our king(AE) to the Holy One of Israel.
19 Once you spoke in a vision,
to your faithful people you said:
“I have bestowed strength on a warrior;
I have raised up a young man from among the people.
20 I have found David(AF) my servant;(AG)
with my sacred oil(AH) I have anointed(AI) him.
21 My hand will sustain him;
surely my arm will strengthen him.(AJ)
22 The enemy will not get the better of him;(AK)
the wicked will not oppress(AL) him.
23 I will crush his foes before him(AM)
and strike down his adversaries.(AN)
24 My faithful love will be with him,(AO)
and through my name his horn[f] will be exalted.
25 I will set his hand over the sea,
his right hand over the rivers.(AP)
26 He will call out to me, ‘You are my Father,(AQ)
my God, the Rock(AR) my Savior.’(AS)
27 And I will appoint him to be my firstborn,(AT)
the most exalted(AU) of the kings(AV) of the earth.
28 I will maintain my love to him forever,
and my covenant with him will never fail.(AW)
29 I will establish his line forever,
his throne as long as the heavens endure.(AX)
30 “If his sons forsake my law
and do not follow my statutes,
31 if they violate my decrees
and fail to keep my commands,
32 I will punish their sin with the rod,
their iniquity with flogging;(AY)
33 but I will not take my love from him,(AZ)
nor will I ever betray my faithfulness.
34 I will not violate my covenant
or alter what my lips have uttered.(BA)
35 Once for all, I have sworn by my holiness—
and I will not lie to David—
36 that his line will continue forever
and his throne endure before me like the sun;(BB)
37 it will be established forever like the moon,
the faithful witness in the sky.”(BC)
38 But you have rejected,(BD) you have spurned,
you have been very angry with your anointed one.
39 You have renounced the covenant with your servant
and have defiled his crown in the dust.(BE)
40 You have broken through all his walls(BF)
and reduced his strongholds(BG) to ruins.
41 All who pass by have plundered(BH) him;
he has become the scorn of his neighbors.(BI)
42 You have exalted the right hand of his foes;
you have made all his enemies rejoice.(BJ)
43 Indeed, you have turned back the edge of his sword
and have not supported him in battle.(BK)
44 You have put an end to his splendor
and cast his throne to the ground.
45 You have cut short(BL) the days of his youth;
you have covered him with a mantle of shame.(BM)
46 How long, Lord? Will you hide yourself forever?
How long will your wrath burn like fire?(BN)
47 Remember how fleeting is my life.(BO)
For what futility you have created all humanity!
48 Who can live and not see death,
or who can escape the power of the grave?(BP)
49 Lord, where is your former great love,
which in your faithfulness you swore to David?
50 Remember, Lord, how your servant has[g] been mocked,(BQ)
how I bear in my heart the taunts of all the nations,
51 the taunts with which your enemies, Lord, have mocked,
with which they have mocked every step of your anointed one.(BR)
52 Praise be to the Lord forever!
Amen and Amen.(BS)
Footnotes
- Psalm 89:1 In Hebrew texts 89:1-52 is numbered 89:2-53.
- Psalm 89:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
- Psalm 89:4 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verses 37, 45 and 48.
- Psalm 89:17 Horn here symbolizes strong one.
- Psalm 89:18 Or sovereign
- Psalm 89:24 Horn here symbolizes strength.
- Psalm 89:50 Or your servants have
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