Tag Archives: Bill Cloud

⁸ Think again, you fools!
    When will you finally catch on?
⁹ Is he deaf—the one who made your ears?
    Is he blind—the one who formed your eyes?
¹⁰ He punishes the nations—won’t he also punish you?
    He knows everything—doesn’t he also know what you are doing?
¹¹ The Lord knows people’s thoughts;
    he knows they are worthless!

¹² Joyful are those you discipline, Lord,
    those you teach with your instructions.
¹³ You give them relief from troubled times
    until a pit is dug to capture the wicked.
¹⁴ The Lord will not reject his people;
    he will not abandon his special possession.
¹⁵ Judgment will again be founded on justice,
    and those with virtuous hearts will pursue it.

¹⁶ Who will protect me from the wicked?
    Who will stand up for me against evildoers?
¹⁷ Unless the Lord had helped me,
    I would soon have settled in the silence of the grave.
¹⁸ I cried out, “I am slipping!”
    but your unfailing love, O Lord, supported me.
¹⁹ When doubts filled my mind,
    your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer.

²⁰ Can unjust leaders claim that God is on their side—
    leaders whose decrees permit injustice?
²¹ They gang up against the righteous
    and condemn the innocent to death.
²² But the Lord is my fortress;
    my God is the mighty rock where I hide.
²³ God will turn the sins of evil people back on them.
    He will destroy them for their sins.
    The Lord our God will destroy them.

² Your throne, O Lord, has stood from time immemorial.
    You yourself are from the everlasting past.
³ The floods have risen up, O Lord.
    The floods have roared like thunder;
    the floods have lifted their pounding waves.
⁴ But mightier than the violent raging of the seas,
    mightier than the breakers on the shore—
    the Lord above is mightier than these!
⁵ Your royal laws cannot be changed.
    Your reign, O Lord, is holy forever and ever.

¹ It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
    to sing praises to the Most High.
² It is good to proclaim your unfailing love in the morning,
    your faithfulness in the evening,
³ accompanied by a ten-stringed instrument, a harp,
    and the melody of a lyre.

⁴ You thrill me, Lord, with all you have done for me!
    I sing for joy because of what you have done.
⁵ O Lord, what great works you do!
    And how deep are your thoughts.
⁶ Only a simpleton would not know,
    and only a fool would not understand this:
⁷ Though the wicked sprout like weeds
    and evildoers flourish,
    they will be destroyed forever.

⁸ But you, O Lord, will be exalted forever.
⁹ Your enemies, Lord, will surely perish;
    all evildoers will be scattered.
¹⁰ But you have made me as strong as a wild ox.
    You have anointed me with the finest oil.
¹¹ My eyes have seen the downfall of my enemies;
    my ears have heard the defeat of my wicked opponents.
¹² But the godly will flourish like palm trees
    and grow strong like the cedars of Lebanon.
¹³ For they are transplanted to the Lord’s own house.
    They flourish in the courts of our God.
¹⁴ Even in old age they will still produce fruit;
    they will remain vital and green.
¹⁵ They will declare, “The Lord is just!
    He is my rock!
    There is no evil in him!”

¹ Lord, through all the generations
    you have been our home!
² Before the mountains were born,
    before you gave birth to the earth and the world,
    from beginning to end, you are God.

³ You turn people back to dust, saying,
    “Return to dust, you mortals!”
⁴ For you, a thousand years are as a passing day,
    as brief as a few night hours.
⁵ You sweep people away like dreams that disappear.
    They are like grass that springs up in the morning.
⁶ In the morning it blooms and flourishes,
    but by evening it is dry and withered.
⁷ We wither beneath your anger;
    we are overwhelmed by your fury.
⁸ You spread out our sins before you—
    our secret sins—and you see them all.
⁹ We live our lives beneath your wrath,
    ending our years with a groan.

¹⁰ Seventy years are given to us!
    Some even live to eighty.
But even the best years are filled with pain and trouble;
    soon they disappear, and we fly away.
¹¹ Who can comprehend the power of your anger?
    Your wrath is as awesome as the fear you deserve.
¹² Teach us to realize the brevity of life,
    so that we may grow in wisdom.

¹³ O Lord, come back to us!
    How long will you delay?
    Take pity on your servants!
¹⁴ Satisfy us each morning with your unfailing love,
    so we may sing for joy to the end of our lives.
¹⁵ Give us gladness in proportion to our former misery!
    Replace the evil years with good.
¹⁶ Let us, your servants, see you work again;
    let our children see your glory.
¹⁷ And may the Lord our God show us his approval
    and make our efforts successful.
    Yes, make our efforts successful!

¹ Bend down, O Lord, and hear my prayer;
    answer me, for I need your help.
² Protect me, for I am devoted to you.
    Save me, for I serve you and trust you.
    You are my God.
³ Be merciful to me, O Lord,
    for I am calling on you constantly.
⁴ Give me happiness, O Lord,
    for I give myself to you.
⁵ O Lord, you are so good, so ready to forgive,
    so full of unfailing love for all who ask for your help.
⁶ Listen closely to my prayer, O Lord;
    hear my urgent cry.
⁷ I will call to you whenever I’m in trouble,
    and you will answer me.

⁸ No pagan god is like you, O Lord.
    None can do what you do!
⁹ All the nations you made
    will come and bow before you, Lord;
    they will praise your holy name.
¹⁰ For you are great and perform wonderful deeds.
    You alone are God.

¹¹ Teach me your ways, O Lord,
    that I may live according to your truth!
Grant me purity of heart,
    so that I may honor you.
¹² With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God.
    I will give glory to your name forever,
¹³ for your love for me is very great.
    You have rescued me from the depths of death.^[a]

¹⁴ O God, insolent people rise up against me;
    a violent gang is trying to kill me.
    You mean nothing to them.
¹⁵ But you, O Lord,
    are a God of compassion and mercy,
slow to get angry
    and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.
¹⁶ Look down and have mercy on me.
    Give your strength to your servant;
    save me, the son of your servant.
¹⁷ Send me a sign of your favor.
    Then those who hate me will be put to shame,
    for you, O Lord, help and comfort me.