Psalms 73
1 A psalm of Asaph. Truly God is good to Israel, to those whose minds are pure.
A psalm of Asaph. Surely God is good to Israel, to those with a pure heart.
2 But I was stumbling, my feet were starting to slide,
But as for me, my feet almost slipped; my feet almost slipped out from under me
3 because I was jealous of self-important people—I saw how well the wicked were doing.
because I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
4 They don't ever seem to get sick; they are strong and healthy.
For they have no pain until their death, but they are strong and well fed.
5 They don't have problems like other people; they don't get hit by disasters like everybody else.
They are free from the burdens of other men; they are not afflicted like other men.
6 They wear their pride like a necklace; they clothe themselves with violence.
Pride adorns them like a necklace around their neck; violence clothes them like a robe.
7 Their eyes bulge out because they're so fat; their minds are full of selfish vanity.
Out of such blindness comes sin; evil thoughts pass through their hearts.
8 They mock people, and speak maliciously; they arrogantly threaten cruelty.
They mock and speak wickedly; in their arrogance they threaten oppression.
9 They talk irreverently against heaven above, and defame people here on earth.
They set their mouth against the heavens, and their tongues march through the earth.
10 As a result people turn to them and drink in everything they say.
Therefore his people turn to them and abundant waters are drained out.
11 “God won't find out,” they say. “The Most High doesn't even know what's going on!”
They say, “How does God know? Is there knowledge with the Most High?”
12 Look at these wicked people! They don't have a care in the world, and they're always making money!
Take notice: these people are wicked; they are always carefree, becoming richer and richer.
13 It's been pointless to keep my mind pure and my hands clean.
Surely it is in vain that I have guarded my heart and washed my hands in innocence.
14 I'm cursed with suffering all day long; every morning I'm punished.
For all the day long I have been afflicted and disciplined every morning.
15 If I'd talked like this to others, I would have betrayed your people.
If I had said, “I will say these things,” then I would have betrayed this generation of your children.
16 So I thought about it and tried to understand, but it looked like a lot of hard work to me—
Though I tried to understand these things, it was too difficult for me.
17 until I went into God's Temple. Then I understood what happens to the wicked in the end.
Then I went into God's sanctuary and came to understand their fate.
18 For you send them on a slippery path; you throw them down to destruction.
Surely you put them in slippery places; you bring them down to ruin.
19 How quickly they're destroyed! They come to a terrifying end.
How they become a wilderness in a moment! They come to an end and are finished in awful terrors.
20 Like waking up from a dream, Lord—when you get up you will forget all about them!
They are like a dream after one wakes up; Lord, when you arise, you will think nothing of those dreams.
21 At that time my thoughts were bitter. I felt like I had been stabbed.
For my heart was grieved, and I was deeply wounded.
22 I was stupid and ignorant. I was like a brute beast to you.
I was ignorant and lacked insight; I was like a senseless animal before you.
23 Yet I'm always with you; you hold me by the hand.
Yet I am always with you; you hold my right hand.
24 You tell me what to do; and ultimately you will welcome me in glory.
You will guide me with your advice and afterward receive me to glory.
25 Who is there in heaven for me except you? And I want nothing on earth except you.
Whom have I in heaven but you? There is no one on earth that I desire but you.
26 My body and my mind may fail, but God is the foundation of my life. He is mine forever!
My flesh and my heart grow weak, but God is the strength of my heart forever.
27 Those people who are far from God will die. You destroy all those unfaithful to you.
Those who are far from you will perish; you will destroy all those who are unfaithful to you.
28 But I love to stay close to God! I have chosen the Lord God to protect me. I will share all that you have done.
But as for me, all I need to do is to approach God. I have made the Lord Yahweh my refuge. I will declare all your deeds.
