Psalms 44
1 To the chief music-maker. Of the sons of Korah Maschil. It has come to our ears, O God, our fathers have given us the story, of the works which you did in their days, in the old times,
To the Chief Musician. For the Sons of Korah. An Instructive Psalm. O God! with our own ears, have we heard, Our fathers, have recounted to us, —The work thou didst work, In their day, In the days of aforetime:
2 Uprooting the nations with your hand, and planting our fathers in their place; cutting down the nations, but increasing the growth of your people.
Thou thyself, with thine own hand—Didst dispossess, nations, and didst plant them, Didst break peoples in pieces, and didst spread them out:
3 For they did not make the land theirs by their swords, and it was not their arms which kept them safe; but your right hand, and your arm, and the light of your face, because you had pleasure in them.
For, not by their own sword, gat they possession of the land, Nor did, their own arm, win victory for them, —But thine own right hand, and thine own arm, and the light of thy face, Because thou hadst accepted them.
4 You are my King and my God; ordering salvation for Jacob.
Thou thyself, art my king, O God, Command thou the victories of Jacob.
5 Through you will we overcome our haters; by your name will they be crushed under our feet who are violent against us.
By thee, will we thrust at, our adversaries, In thy Name, will we tread down our assailants;
6 I will not put faith in my bow, my sword will not be my salvation.
For, not in my bow, will I trust, Nor shall, my sword, give me victory;
7 But it is you who have been our saviour from those who were against us, and have put to shame those who had hate for us.
For thou hast saved us from our adversaries, And, them who hated us, hast thou put to shame.
8 Our pride is in God at all times, to his name we give praise for ever. (Selah)
In God, have we boasted all the day, And, thy Name—unto times age-abiding, will we praise. (Selah)
9 But now you have sent us away from you, and put us to shame; you do not go out with our armies.
But nay thou hast rejected, and confounded us, And wilt not go forth with our hosts;
10 Because of this we are turned back by the attacker: those who have hate for us take our goods for themselves.
Thou sufferest us to turn back from the adversary, And, they who hate us, have plundered at will:
11 You have made us like sheep which are taken for meat; we are put to flight among the nations.
Thou dost give us up like sheep to be devoured, And, amongst the nations, hast thou scattered us.
12 You let your people go for nothing; your wealth is not increased by their price.
Thou dost sell thy people for, no-value, And hast not made increase by their price.
13 You have made us to be looked down on by our neighbours, we are laughed at and shamed by those who are round about us.
Thou dost make us, A reproach to our neighbours, A mockery and a derision to them who are round about us:
14 Our name is a word of shame among the nations, a sign for the shaking of heads among the peoples.
Thou dost make us, A by-word among the nations, —A shaking of the head among the peoples.
15 My downfall is ever before me, and I am covered with the shame of my face;
All the day, is my confusion before me, And, the shame of my face, hath covered me:
16 Because of the voice of him who says sharp and bitter words; because of the hater and him who is the instrument of punishment.
At the voice of him who reproacheth and revileth, At the face of the foe and avenger.
17 All this has come on us, but still we have kept you in our memory; and we have not been false to your word.
All this, hath come upon us, Yet had we not forgotten thee, Neither had we dealt falsely with thy covenant;
18 Our hearts have not gone back, and our steps have not been turned out of your way;
Our heart had not drawn back, Nor had our goings swerved from thy path;
19 Though you have let us be crushed in the place of jackals, though we are covered with darkest shade.
That thou shouldst have crushed us down in the place of wild dogs, And covered us over with a deadly shadow.
20 If the name of our God has gone out of our minds, or if our hands have been stretched out to a strange god,
If we had forgotten the Name of our God, And had spread forth our hands unto the GOD of the foreigner,
21 Will not God make search for it? for he sees the secrets of the heart.
Would not, God, have searched into this, Seeing that, he, knoweth the secrets of the heart?
22 Truly, because of you we are put to death every day; we are numbered like sheep for destruction.
Surely, for thy sake, have we been slain all the day, We have been accounted as sheep for slaughter.
23 Why are you sleeping, O Lord? awake! and come to our help, do not give us up for ever.
Awake thou! wherefore shouldst thou sleep, O Lord? Bestir thee! do not reject us altogether!
24 Why is your face covered, and why do you give no thought to our trouble and our cruel fate?
Wherefore shouldst thou hide, thy face? Shouldst forget our humiliation and our oppression?
25 For our souls are crushed down to the dust: our bodies are stretched out on the earth.
For our soul, sinketh down to the dust, Our body, cleaveth to the earth.
26 Up! and come to our help, and give us salvation because of your mercy.
Arise to our help, And ransom us, because of thine own lovingkindness.
