Psalms 44
1 For the choirmaster. A Maskil of the sons of Korah. We have heard with our ears, O God; our fathers have told us the work You did in their days, in the days of old.
“To the chief musician, for the sons of Korach, a Maskil.” O God, with our ears have we heard, our fathers have told us, deeds which thou hadst done in their days, in times of old.
2 With Your hand You drove out the nations and planted our fathers there; You crushed the peoples and cast them out.
Thou, with thy hand, didst indeed drive out nations, and plant them; thou didst ill-treat people, and cause them to spread out.
3 For it was not by their sword that they took the land; their arm did not bring them victory. It was by Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your face, because You favored them.
For not by their sword did they obtain possession of the land, and their own arm brought them no victory; but thy right hand, and thy arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst given them thy favor.
4 You are my King, O God, who ordains victories for Jacob.
Thou art my King, O God: ordain salvation for Jacob.
5 Through You we repel our foes; through Your name we trample our enemies.
Through thee will we butt down our assailants: through thy name will we tread under foot our opponents.
6 For I do not trust in my bow, nor does my sword save me.
For not in my bow will I trust, and my sword shall not help me.
7 For You save us from our enemies; You put those who hate us to shame.
But thou helpest us against our assailants, and those that hate us thou puttest to shame.
8 In God we have boasted all day long, and Your name we will praise forever.
Of God we boast all the day, and to thy name will we give thanks for ever. (Selah)
9 But You have rejected and humbled us; You no longer go forth with our armies.
But [now] thou hast cast off, and put us to the blush, and goest not forth with our armies.
10 You have made us retreat from the foe, and those who hate us have plundered us.
Thou causest us to turn back from before our assailant: and they who hate us take spoil for themselves.
11 You have given us up as sheep to be devoured; You have scattered us among the nations.
Thou givest us up like sheep for food, and among the nations hast thou dispersed us.
12 You sell Your people for nothing; no profit do You gain from their sale.
Thou sellest thy people for no value, and acquirest no gain by their price.
13 You have made us a reproach to our neighbors, a mockery and derision to those around us.
Thou renderest us a reproach to our neighbors, a scorn and a derision to those that are round about us.
14 You have made us a byword among the nations, a laughingstock among the peoples.
Thou renderest us a by-word among the nations, a shaking of the head among the people.
15 All day long my disgrace is before me, and shame has covered my face,
All the day is my disgrace before me, and the shame of my face covereth me;
16 at the voice of the scorner and reviler, because of the enemy, bent on revenge.
Because of the voice of him that reproacheth and blasphemeth; by reason of the enemy and him that seeketh vengeance.
17 All this has come upon us, though we have not forgotten You or betrayed Your covenant.
All this is come over us, yet have we not forgotten thee; nor have we dealt falsely by thy covenant;
18 Our hearts have not turned back; our steps have not strayed from Your path.
Our heart is not moved backward, nor hath our step turned aside from thy path:
19 But You have crushed us in the lair of jackals; You have covered us with deepest darkness.
Even when thou didst crush us in the abode of monsters, and cover us with the shadow of death.
20 If we had forgotten the name of our God or spread out our hands to a foreign god,
If we had forgotten the name of our God, or spread forth our hands to a strange God:
21 would not God have discovered, since He knows the secrets of the heart?
Would not God search out this? for he knoweth the secrets of the heart.
22 Yet for Your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.
But for thy sake are we slain all the day; we are counted as flocks [destined] for slaughter.
23 Wake up, O Lord! Why are You sleeping? Arise! Do not reject us forever.
Awake, wherefore wilt thou sleep, O Lord? arise, abandon us not for ever.
24 Why do You hide Your face and forget our affliction and oppression?
Wherefore wilt thou hide thy face, wilt thou forget our misery, and our oppression?
25 For our soul has sunk to the dust; our bodies cling to the earth.
For our soul is bowed down to the dust; our body cleaveth unto the earth.
26 Rise up; be our help! Redeem us on account of Your loving devotion.
Arise unto our help, and redeem us for the sake of thy kindness.
