Psalms 78

1 AN INSTRUCTION OF ASAPH. Give ear, O my people, to my law, Incline your ear to sayings of my mouth.

[A Psalm] of instruction for Asaph. Give heed, O my people, to my law: incline your ear to the words of my mouth.

2 I open my mouth with an allegory, I bring forth hidden things of old,

I will open my mouth in parables: I will utter dark sayings [which have been] from the beginning.

3 That we have heard and know, And our fathers have recounted to us.

All which we have heard and known, and our fathers have declared to us.

4 We do not hide from their sons, Recounting praises of YHWH to a later generation, And His strength, and His wonders that He has done.

They were not hid from their children to a second generations; [the fathers] declaring the praises of the Lord, and his mighty acts, and his wonders which he wrought.

5 And He raises up a testimony in Jacob, And has placed a law in Israel, That He commanded our fathers, To make them known to their sons.

And he raised up a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, to make it known to their children:

6 So that a later generation knows, Sons who are born, rise and recount to their sons,

that another generation might know, even the sons which should be born; and they should arise and declare them to their children.

7 And place their confidence in God, And do not forget the doings of God, But keep His commands.

That they might set their hope on God, and not forget the works of God, but diligently seek his commandments.

8 And they are not like their fathers, A generation apostatizing and being rebellious, A generation—it has not prepared its heart, Nor [is] its spirit steadfast with God.

That they should not be as their fathers, a perverse and provoking generation; a generation which set not its heart aright, and its spirit was not steadfast with God.

9 Sons of Ephraim—armed bearers of bow, Have turned in a day of conflict.

The children of Ephraim, bending and shooting [with] the bow, turned [back] in the day of battle.

10 They have not kept the covenant of God, And they have refused to walk in His law,

They kept not the covenant of God, and would not walk in his law.

11 And they forget His doings, And His wonders that He showed them.

And they forgot his benefits, and his miracles which he [had] showed them;

12 He has done wonders before their fathers, In the land of Egypt—the field of Zoan.

the miracles which he wrought before their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the plain of Tanes.

13 He cleft a sea, and causes them to pass over, Indeed, He causes waters to stand as a heap.

He clave the sea, and led them through: he made the waters to stand as [in] a bottle.

14 And leads them with a cloud by day, And with a light of fire all the night.

And he guided them with a cloud by day, and all the night with a light of fire.

15 He cleaves rocks in a wilderness, And gives drink—as the great deep.

he clave a rock in the wilderness, and made them drink as in a great deep.

16 And brings out streams from a rock, And causes waters to come down as rivers.

And he brought water out of the rock, and caused waters to flow down as rivers.

17 And they still add to sin against Him, To provoke the Most High in the dry place.

And they sinned yet more against him; they provoked the Most High in the wilderness.

18 And they try God in their heart, To ask food for their lust.

And they tempted God in their hearts, in asking meat for [the desire of] their souls.

19 And they speak against God—they said: “Is God able to array a table in a wilderness?”

They spoke also against God, and said, Will God be able to prepare a table in the wilderness?

20 Behold, He has struck a rock, And waters flow, indeed, streams overflow. “Also, [is] He able to give bread? Does He prepare flesh for His people?”

Forasmuch as he struck the rock, and the waters flowed, and the torrents ran abundantly; will he be able also to give bread, or prepare a table for his people?

21 Therefore YHWH has heard, And He shows Himself angry, And fire has been kindled against Jacob, And anger has also gone up against Israel,

Therefore the Lord heard, and was provoked: and fire was kindled in Jacob, and wrath went up against Israel.

22 For they have not believed in God, Nor have they trusted in His salvation.

Because they believed not in God, and trusted not in his salvation.

23 And He commands clouds from above, Indeed, He has opened doors of the heavens.

Yet he commanded the clouds from above, and opened the doors of heaven,

24 And He rains manna on them to eat, Indeed, He has given grain of the heavens to them.

and rained upon them manna to eat, and gave them the bread of heaven.

25 Each has eaten food of the mighty, He sent provision to them to satiety.

Man ate angels' bread; he sent them provision to the full.

26 He causes an east wind to journey in the heavens, And leads a south wind by His strength,

He removed the south wind from heaven; and by his might he brought in the southwest wind.

27 And He rains on them flesh as dust, And as sand of the seas—winged bird,

And he rained upon them flesh like dust, and feathered birds like the sand of the seas.

28 And causes [it] to fall in the midst of His camp, Around His dwelling places.

And they fell into the midst of their camp, round about their tents.

29 And they eat, and are greatly satisfied, And He brings their desire to them.

So they ate, and were completely filled; and he gave them their desire.

30 They have not been estranged from their desire, Their food [is] yet in their mouth,

They were not disappointed of their desire: [but] when their food was yet in their mouth,

31 And the anger of God has gone up against them, And He slays among their fat ones, And He caused youths of Israel to bend.

then the indignation of God rose up against them, and killed the fattest of them, and overthrew the choice men of Israel.

32 With all this they have sinned again, And have not believed in His wonders.

In the midst of all this they sinned yet more, and believed not his miracles.

33 And He consumes their days in vanity, And their years in trouble.

And their days were consumed in vanity, and their years with anxiety.

34 If He slew them, then they sought Him, And turned back, and earnestly sought God,

When he killed them, they sought him: and they returned and called betimes upon God.

35 And they remember that God [is] their rock, And God Most High their redeemer.

And they remembered that God was their helper, and the most high God was their redeemer.

36 And they deceive Him with their mouth, And lie to Him with their tongue,

Yet they loved him [only] with their mouth, and lied to him with their tongue.

37 And their heart has not been right with Him, And they have not been steadfast in His covenant.

For their heart [was] not right with him, neither were they steadfast in his covenant.

38 And He, the Merciful One, pardons iniquity, and does not destroy, And has often turned back His anger, And does not awaken all His fury.

But he is compassionate, and will forgive their sins, and will not destroy [them]: yes, he will frequently turn away his wrath, and will not kindle all his anger.

39 And He remembers that they [are] flesh, A wind going on—and it does not return.

And he remembered that they are flesh; a wind that passes away, and returns not.

40 How often do they provoke Him in the wilderness, Grieve Him in the desolate place?

How often did they provoke him in the wilderness, [and] anger him in a dry land!

41 Indeed, they turn back, and try God, And have limited the Holy One of Israel.

Yes, they turned back, and tempted God, and provoked the Holy One of Israel.

42 They have not remembered His hand The day He ransomed them from the adversary.

They remembered not his hand, the day in which he delivered them from the hand of the oppressor.

43 When He set His signs in Egypt, And His wonders in the field of Zoan,

How he had wrought his signs in Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Tanes:

44 And He turns their streams to blood, And they do not drink their floods.

and had changed their rivers into blood; and their streams, that they should not drink.

45 He sends among them the beetle, and it consumes them, And the frog, and it destroys them,

He sent against them the dog-fly, and it devoured them; and the frog, and it spoiled them.

46 And gives their increase to the caterpillar, And their labor to the locust.

And he gave their fruit to the canker worm, and their labours to the locust.

47 He destroys their vine with hail, And their sycamores with frost,

He killed their vines with hail, and their sycamores with frost.

48 And delivers their beasts up to the hail, And their livestock to the burning flames.

And he gave up their cattle to hail, and their substance to the fire.

49 He sends on them the fury of His anger, Wrath, and indignation, and distress—A discharge of evil messengers.

He sent out against them the fury of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and affliction, a message by evil angels.

50 He ponders a path for His anger, He did not keep back their soul from death, Indeed, He delivered up their life to the pestilence.

He made a way for his wrath; he spared not their souls from death, but consigned their cattle to death;

51 And He strikes every firstborn in Egypt, The first-fruit of the strong in tents of Ham.

and struck every firstborn in the land of Egypt; the first fruits of their labours in the tents of Cham.

52 And causes His people to journey as a flock, And guides them as a drove in a wilderness,

And he removed his people like sheep; he led them as a flock in the wilderness.

53 And He leads them confidently, And they have not been afraid, And the sea has covered their enemies.

And he guided them with hope, and they feared not: but the sea covered their enemies.

54 And He brings them to the border of His sanctuary, This mountain His right hand had acquired,

And he brought them in to the mountain of his sanctuary, this mountain which his right hand had purchased.

55 And casts out nations from before them, And causes them to fall in the line of inheritance, And causes the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents,

And he cast out the nations from before them, and made them to inherit by a line of inheritance, and made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents.

56 And they tempt and provoke God Most High, And have not kept His testimonies.

Yet they tempted and provoked the most high God, and kept not his testimonies.

57 And they turn back, And deal treacherously like their fathers, They have been turned like a deceitful bow,

And they turned back, and broke covenant, even as also their fathers: they became like a crooked bow.

58 And make Him angry with their high places, And make Him zealous with their carved images,

And they provoked him with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their graven images.

59 God has heard, and shows Himself angry. And kicks exceedingly against Israel.

God heard and lightly regarded [them], and greatly despised Israel.

60 And He leaves the Dwelling Place of Shiloh, The tent He had placed among men,

And he rejected the tabernacle of Selom, his tent where he lived amongst men.

61 And He gives His strength to captivity, And His beauty into the hand of an adversary,

And he gave their strength into captivity, and their beauty into the enemy's hand.

62 And delivers His people up to the sword, And showed Himself angry with His inheritance.

And he gave his people to the sword; and disdained his inheritance.

63 Fire has consumed His young men, And His virgins have not been praised.

Fire devoured their young men; and their virgins mourned not.

64 His priests have fallen by the sword, And their widows do not weep.

Their priests fell by the sword; and their widows shall not be wept for.

65 And the Lord wakes as a sleeper, As a mighty one crying aloud from wine.

So the Lord awaked as one out of sleep, [and] as a mighty man who has been heated with wine.

66 And He strikes His adversaries backward, He has put a continuous reproach on them,

And he struck his enemies in the hinder parts: he brought on them a perpetual reproach.

67 And He kicks against the tent of Joseph, And has not fixed on the tribe of Ephraim.

And he rejected the tabernacle of Joseph, and chose not the tribe of Ephraim;

68 And He chooses the tribe of Judah, With Mount Zion that He loved,

but chose the tribe of Juda, the mount Sion which he loved.

69 And builds His sanctuary as a high place, Like the earth, He founded it for all time.

And he built his sanctuary as [the place] of unicorns; he founded it for ever on the earth.

70 And He fixes on His servant David, And takes him from the folds of a flock,

He chose David also his servant, and took him up from the flocks of sheep.

71 He has brought him in from behind suckling ones, To rule over Jacob His people, And over Israel His inheritance.

He took him from following the ewes great with young, to be the shepherd of Jacob his servant, and Israel his inheritance.

72 And he rules them according to the integrity of his heart, And leads them by the skillfulness of his hands!

So he tended them in the innocency of his heart; and guided them by the skilfulness of his hands.