Psalm 97

The Lord reigns,(A) let the earth be glad;(B)
    let the distant shores(C) rejoice.
Clouds(D) and thick darkness(E) surround him;
    righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.(F)
Fire(G) goes before(H) him
    and consumes(I) his foes on every side.
His lightning(J) lights up the world;
    the earth(K) sees and trembles.(L)
The mountains melt(M) like wax(N) before the Lord,
    before the Lord of all the earth.(O)
The heavens proclaim his righteousness,(P)
    and all peoples see his glory.(Q)

All who worship images(R) are put to shame,(S)
    those who boast in idols(T)
    worship him,(U) all you gods!(V)

Zion hears and rejoices
    and the villages of Judah are glad(W)
    because of your judgments,(X) Lord.
For you, Lord, are the Most High(Y) over all the earth;(Z)
    you are exalted(AA) far above all gods.
10 Let those who love the Lord hate evil,(AB)
    for he guards(AC) the lives of his faithful ones(AD)
    and delivers(AE) them from the hand of the wicked.(AF)
11 Light shines[a](AG) on the righteous(AH)
    and joy on the upright in heart.(AI)
12 Rejoice in the Lord,(AJ) you who are righteous,
    and praise his holy name.(AK)

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 97:11 One Hebrew manuscript and ancient versions (see also 112:4); most Hebrew manuscripts Light is sown

97 The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof.

Clouds and darkness are round about him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne.

A fire goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies round about.

His lightnings enlightened the world: the earth saw, and trembled.

The hills melted like wax at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.

The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory.

Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols: worship him, all ye gods.

Zion heard, and was glad; and the daughters of Judah rejoiced because of thy judgments, O Lord.

For thou, Lord, art high above all the earth: thou art exalted far above all gods.

10 Ye that love the Lord, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.

11 Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart.

12 Rejoice in the Lord, ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.

A Song of Praise to the Sovereign Lord

97 The Lord (A)reigns;
Let the earth rejoice;
Let the multitude of [a]isles be glad!

(B)Clouds and darkness surround Him;
(C)Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne.
(D)A fire goes before Him,
And burns up His enemies round about.
(E)His lightnings light the world;
The earth sees and trembles.
(F)The mountains melt like wax at the presence of the Lord,
At the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.
(G)The heavens declare His righteousness,
And all the peoples see His glory.

(H)Let all be put to shame who serve carved images,
Who boast of idols.
(I)Worship Him, all you gods.
Zion hears and is glad,
And the daughters of Judah rejoice
Because of Your judgments, O Lord.
For You, Lord, are (J)most high above all the earth;
(K)You are exalted far above all gods.

10 You who love the Lord, (L)hate evil!
(M)He preserves the souls of His saints;
(N)He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked.
11 (O)Light is sown for the righteous,
And gladness for the upright in heart.
12 (P)Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous,
(Q)And give thanks [b]at the remembrance of [c]His holy name.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 97:1 Or coastlands
  2. Psalm 97:12 Or for the memory
  3. Psalm 97:12 Or His holiness

Psalm 98

A psalm.

Sing to the Lord(A) a new song,(B)
    for he has done marvelous things;(C)
his right hand(D) and his holy arm(E)
    have worked salvation(F) for him.
The Lord has made his salvation known(G)
    and revealed his righteousness(H) to the nations.(I)
He has remembered(J) his love
    and his faithfulness to Israel;
all the ends of the earth(K) have seen
    the salvation of our God.(L)

Shout for joy(M) to the Lord, all the earth,
    burst into jubilant song with music;
make music to the Lord with the harp,(N)
    with the harp and the sound of singing,(O)
with trumpets(P) and the blast of the ram’s horn(Q)
    shout for joy(R) before the Lord, the King.(S)

Let the sea(T) resound, and everything in it,
    the world, and all who live in it.(U)
Let the rivers clap their hands,(V)
    let the mountains(W) sing together for joy;
let them sing before the Lord,
    for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
    and the peoples with equity.(X)

98 O sing unto the Lord a new song; for he hath done marvellous things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory.

The Lord hath made known his salvation: his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen.

He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel: all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.

Sing unto the Lord with the harp; with the harp, and the voice of a psalm.

With trumpets and sound of cornet make a joyful noise before the Lord, the King.

Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.

Let the floods clap their hands: let the hills be joyful together

Before the Lord; for he cometh to judge the earth: with righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity.

A Song of Praise to the Lord for His Salvation and Judgment

A Psalm.

98 Oh, (A)sing to the Lord a new song!
For He has (B)done marvelous things;
His right hand and His holy arm have gained Him the victory.
(C)The Lord has made known His salvation;
(D)His righteousness He has revealed in the sight of the [a]nations.
He has remembered His mercy and His faithfulness to the house of Israel;
(E)All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth;
Break forth in song, rejoice, and sing praises.
Sing to the Lord with the harp,
With the harp and the sound of a psalm,
With trumpets and the sound of a horn;
Shout joyfully before the Lord, the King.

Let the sea roar, and all its fullness,
The world and those who dwell in it;
Let the rivers clap their hands;
Let the hills be joyful together
    before the Lord,
(F)For He is coming to judge the earth.
With righteousness He shall judge the world,
And the peoples with [b]equity.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 98:2 Gentiles
  2. Psalm 98:9 uprightness

But God remembered(A) Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth,(B) and the waters receded. Now the springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavens(C) had been closed, and the rain(D) had stopped falling from the sky. The water receded steadily from the earth. At the end of the hundred and fifty days(E) the water had gone down, and on the seventeenth day of the seventh month(F) the ark came to rest on the mountains(G) of Ararat.(H) The waters continued to recede until the tenth month, and on the first day of the tenth month the tops of the mountains became visible.

After forty days(I) Noah opened a window he had made in the ark and sent out a raven,(J) and it kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth.(K) Then he sent out a dove(L) to see if the water had receded from the surface of the ground. But the dove could find nowhere to perch because there was water over all the surface of the earth; so it returned to Noah in the ark. He reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back to himself in the ark. 10 He waited seven more days and again sent out the dove from the ark. 11 When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth.(M) 12 He waited seven more days and sent the dove out again, but this time it did not return to him.

13 By the first day of the first month of Noah’s six hundred and first year,(N) the water had dried up from the earth. Noah then removed the covering from the ark and saw that the surface of the ground was dry. 14 By the twenty-seventh day of the second month(O) the earth was completely dry.

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And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters assuaged;

The fountains also of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained;

And the waters returned from off the earth continually: and after the end of the hundred and fifty days the waters were abated.

And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat.

And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month: in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, were the tops of the mountains seen.

And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made:

And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth.

Also he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face of the ground;

But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him into the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth: then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the ark.

10 And he stayed yet other seven days; and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark;

11 And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the earth.

12 And he stayed yet other seven days; and sent forth the dove; which returned not again unto him any more.

13 And it came to pass in the six hundredth and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried up from off the earth: and Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and, behold, the face of the ground was dry.

14 And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, was the earth dried.

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Noah’s Deliverance

Then God (A)remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the animals that were with him in the ark. (B)And God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters subsided. (C)The fountains of the deep and the windows of heaven were also (D)stopped, and (E)the rain from heaven was restrained. And the waters receded continually from the earth. At the end (F)of the hundred and fifty days the waters decreased. Then the ark rested in the seventh month, the seventeenth day of the month, on the mountains of Ararat. And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month. In the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were seen.

So it came to pass, at the end of forty days, that Noah opened (G)the window of the ark which he had made. Then he sent out a raven, which kept going to and fro until the waters had dried up from the earth. He also sent out from himself a dove, to see if the waters had receded from the face of the ground. But the dove found no resting place for the sole of her foot, and she returned into the ark to him, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth. So he put out his hand and took her, and drew her into the ark to himself. 10 And he waited yet another seven days, and again he sent the dove out from the ark. 11 Then the dove came to him in the evening, and behold, a freshly plucked olive leaf was in her mouth; and Noah knew that the waters had receded from the earth. 12 So he waited yet another seven days and sent out the dove, which did not return again to him anymore.

13 And it came to pass in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, that the waters were dried up from the earth; and Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and indeed the surface of the ground was dry. 14 And in the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dried.

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29 “Immediately after the distress of those days

“‘the sun will be darkened,
    and the moon will not give its light;
the stars will fall from the sky,
    and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’[a](A)

30 “Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth[b] will mourn(B) when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven,(C) with power and great glory.[c] 31 And he will send his angels(D) with a loud trumpet call,(E) and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

32 “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 33 Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it[d] is near, right at the door.(F) 34 Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.(G) 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.(H)

The Day and Hour Unknown(I)(J)

36 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son,[e] but only the Father.(K) 37 As it was in the days of Noah,(L) so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage,(M) up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39 and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.(N) 40 Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left.(O) 41 Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.(P)

42 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.(Q) 43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming,(R) he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready,(S) because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

45 “Who then is the faithful and wise servant,(T) whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? 46 It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns.(U) 47 Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.(V) 48 But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time,’ 49 and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards.(W) 50 The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. 51 He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.(X)

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 24:29 Isaiah 13:10; 34:4
  2. Matthew 24:30 Or the tribes of the land
  3. Matthew 24:30 See Daniel 7:13-14.
  4. Matthew 24:33 Or he
  5. Matthew 24:36 Some manuscripts do not have nor the Son.

29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:

30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:

33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.

34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.

35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.

36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

37 But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,

39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.

43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.

44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.

45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?

46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.

47 Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.

48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;

49 And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;

50 The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,

51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

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The Coming of the Son of Man(A)

29 (B)“Immediately after the tribulation of those days (C)the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 (D)Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, (E)and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 (F)And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His [a]elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

The Parable of the Fig Tree(G)

32 “Now learn (H)this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. 33 So you also, when you see all these things, know (I)that [b]it is near—at the doors! 34 Assuredly, I say to you, (J)this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. 35 (K)Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.

No One Knows the Day or Hour(L)

36 (M)“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of [c]heaven, (N)but My Father only. 37 But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 (O)For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 40 (P)Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. 42 (Q)Watch therefore, for you do not know what [d]hour your Lord is coming. 43 (R)But know this, that if the master of the house had known what [e]hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. 44 (S)Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

The Faithful Servant and the Evil Servant(T)

45 (U)“Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food [f]in due season? 46 (V)Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing. 47 Assuredly, I say to you that (W)he will make him ruler over all his goods. 48 But if that evil servant says in his heart, ‘My master (X)is delaying [g]his coming,’ 49 and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, 50 the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is (Y)not aware of, 51 and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites. (Z)There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 24:31 chosen ones
  2. Matthew 24:33 Or He
  3. Matthew 24:36 NU adds nor the Son
  4. Matthew 24:42 NU day
  5. Matthew 24:43 Lit. watch of the night
  6. Matthew 24:45 at the right time
  7. Matthew 24:48 NU omits his coming