Psalm 144

¹ Praise the Lord, who is my rock.
    He trains my hands for war
    and gives my fingers skill for battle.
² He is my loving ally and my fortress,
    my tower of safety, my rescuer.
He is my shield, and I take refuge in him.
    He makes the nations^[a] submit to me.

³ O Lord, what are human beings that you should notice them,
    mere mortals that you should think about them?
⁴ For they are like a breath of air;
    their days are like a passing shadow.

⁵ Open the heavens, Lord, and come down.
    Touch the mountains so they billow smoke.
⁶ Hurl your lightning bolts and scatter your enemies!
    Shoot your arrows and confuse them!
⁷ Reach down from heaven and rescue me;
    rescue me from deep waters,
    from the power of my enemies.
⁸ Their mouths are full of lies;
    they swear to tell the truth, but they lie instead.

⁹ I will sing a new song to you, O God!
    I will sing your praises with a ten-stringed harp.
¹⁰ For you grant victory to kings!
    You rescued your servant David from the fatal sword.
¹¹ Save me!
    Rescue me from the power of my enemies.
Their mouths are full of lies;
    they swear to tell the truth, but they lie instead.

¹² May our sons flourish in their youth
    like well-nurtured plants.
May our daughters be like graceful pillars,
    carved to beautify a palace.
¹³ May our barns be filled
    with crops of every kind.
May the flocks in our fields multiply by the thousands,
    even tens of thousands,
¹⁴     and may our oxen be loaded down with produce.
May there be no enemy breaking through our walls,
    no going into captivity,
    no cries of alarm in our town squares.
¹⁵ Yes, joyful are those who live like this!
    Joyful indeed are those whose God is the Lord.