Psalms 78

1 “A psalm of Asaph.” Give ear, O my people, to my instruction! Incline your ears to the words of my mouth!

An Instructive Psalm. Asaph’s. Give ear, O my people, to mine instruction, Bend your ear to the sayings of my mouth;

2 I will open my mouth in a psalm; I will utter sayings of ancient times.

I will open, in a parable, my mouth, I will pour forth enigmas out of antiquity; —

3 What we have heard and learned, And our fathers have told us,

Which we have heard, and come to know, And, our fathers, have recounted to us;

4 We will not hide from their children; Showing to the generation to come the praises of Jehovah, His might, and the wonders he hath wrought.

We will not withhold [them] from their children, To a later generation, recounting the praises of Yahweh, Even his might and his wonders which he wrought;

5 For he appointed statutes in Jacob, And established a law in Israel, Which he commanded our fathers To make known to their children;

When he set up a testimony in Jacob, And, a law, appointed in Israel, —Which he commanded our fathers, That they might make them known to their children;

6 So that the generation to come might know them; The children, which should be born, and rise up, Who should declare them to their children;

To the end, A later generation, might come to know, Children who should be born, Who should arise, and recount [them] to their children;

7 That they might put their trust in God, And not forget his deeds, But keep his commandments;

That they might set, in Elohim, their confidence, —And not forget the doings of El, But, his commandments, might observe;

8 And might not be, like their forefathers, A stubborn and rebellious generation, —A generation whose heart was not fixed upon God, And whose spirit was not steadfast toward the Almighty.

And not become, like their fathers, a generation stubborn and rebellious, —A generation that fixed not their heart, Neither was their spirit, faithful with GOD.

9 The children of Ephraim were like armed bowmen, Who turn their backs in the day of battle.

The sons of Ephraim—armed bowmen, Turned in the day of battle;

10 They kept not the covenant of God, And refused to walk in his law;

They kept not the covenant of God, And, in his law, refused to walk;

11 And forgot his mighty deeds, And the wonders he had shown them.

And forgat His doings, And his wonders which he had showed them:

12 Marvellous things did he in the sight of their fathers, In the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.

In presence of their fathers, wrought he, wondrously, —In the land of Egypt—the field of Zoan:

13 He divided the sea, and caused them to pass through; Yea, he made the waters to stand as a heap.

He clave the sea, and caused them to pass through, And reared up the waters like a mound;

14 By day he led them by a cloud, And all the night by a light of fire.

And led them, by a cloud, in the daytime, And all the night, by a light of fire;

15 He clave the rocks in the wilderness, And gave them drink, as from the great deep.

He used to cleave rocks in the desert, And let them drink as out of mighty deeps;

16 From the rock he brought flowing streams, And made water to run down like rivers.

And he brought forth streams out of the cliff, And caused waters to flow down, like rivers.

17 Yet still they sinned against him, And provoked the Most High in the desert.

But again, once more sinned they against him, Resisting the Most High in a land of drought:

18 They tempted God in their hearts, By asking food for their delight.

They put GOD to the proof in their heart, By asking food to their mind:

19 Yea, they spake against God, and said, “Can God spread a table in the wilderness?

Yea they spake against Elohim, —They said, Can GOD prepare a table in the desert?

20 Behold! he smote the rock, and the water flowed, And streams gushed forth: Is he also able to give bread? Can he provide flesh for his people?”

Lo! he hath smitten a rock, And waters, have gushed out, Yea, torrents, have rushed along, —Food also, can he give? Or provide flesh for his people?

21 When, therefore, the LORD heard this, he was wroth: So a fire was kindled against Jacob, And anger arose against Israel.

Therefore, Yahweh hearkened, and became wroth, —And, a fire, was kindled against Jacob, Moreover also, anger, mounted against Israel;

22 Because they believed not in God, And trusted not in his aid.

Because, They believed not in God, Nor trusted in his salvation;

23 Yet he had commanded the clouds above, And had opened the doors of heaven;

Though he had commanded the skies above, And, the doors of the heavens, had opened;

24 And had rained down upon them manna for food, And had given them the corn of heaven.

And had rained on them manna to eat, And, the corn of the heavens, had given to them:

25 Every one ate the food of princes; He sent them bread to the full.

The food of the mighty, each one did eat, Nourishment, sent he them to the full;

26 Then he caused a strong wind to blow in the heavens, And by his power he brought a south wind;

He let loose an east wind in the heavens, Then guided he, in his might, a south wind;

27 He rained down flesh upon them as dust, And feathered fowls as the sand of the sea.

And rained upon them flesh as the dust, And, like the sand of the seas, birds of wing;

28 He caused them to fall in the midst of their camp, Round about their habitations.

And let them fall in the midst of their camp, —Round about their habitations.

29 So they did eat, and were filled; For he gave them their own desire.

So they did eat and were abundantly filled, When, what they longed for, he had brought them: —

30 Their desire was not yet satisfied, And their meat was yet in their mouths,

They had not turned away from what they had longed for, Yet was their food in their mouth,

31 When the wrath of God came upon them, And slew their strong men, And smote down the chosen men of Israel.

When, the anger of God, mounted against them, And he slew of their vigorous youths, And, the choice young men of Israel, caused he to bow down in death.

32 For all this they sinned still, And put no trust in his wondrous works.

For all this, sinned they still, And believed not in his wonders;

33 Therefore he consumed their days in vanity, And their years in sudden destruction.

So he ended, in a breath, their days, And their years, in a sudden terror!

34 When he slew them, they sought him; They returned, and sought earnestly for God;

If he slew [of] them, then they sought him, Yea they turned, and did earnestly seek GOD;

35 And remembered that God was their rock, And the Most High their redeemer.

And remembered that, Elohim, was their rock, Yea, EL Most High, their Redeemer:

36 But they only flattered him with their mouths, And spake falsely to him with their tongues.

So they spake him fair with their mouth, And, with their tongue, did promise him falsely;

37 For their hearts were not true to him, Nor were they steadfast in his covenant.

But, their heart, was not fixed with him, Nor were they trusty in his covenant:

38 Yet, being full of compassion, he forgave their iniquity, And would not utterly destroy them; Often he restrained his indignation, And stirred not up all his anger.

Yet, he, full of compassion, would put a propitiatory-covering over iniquity, and not destroy, —Yea, many a time, turned he back his anger, And would not stir up all his wrath.

39 He remembered that they were but flesh, —A breath, that passeth and cometh not back.

So then he remembered, That, Flesh, they were, A Wind departing, that returneth not.

40 How often did they provoke him in the wilderness! How often did they anger him in the desert!

How often they, Resisted him in the desert, Vexed him, in the waste:

41 Again and again they tempted God, And offended the Holy One of Israel.

Yea they again put GOD to the test, And, to the Holy One of Israel, caused they sorrow:

42 They remembered not his hand, Nor the day when he delivered them from the enemy;

They remembered not his hand—The day, When he ransomed them from the adversary;

43 What signs he had wrought in Egypt, And what wonders in the fields of Zoan.

When he set, in Egypt, his signs, And his wonders, in the plain of Zoan;

44 He turned their rivers into blood, So that they could not drink of their streams.

When he turned, into blood, their Nile-streams, And, their own rivers, could they not drink;

45 He sent amongst them flies, which devoured them, And frogs, which destroyed them.

He sent among them, The gad-fly, and it devoured them, And the frog, and it despoiled them;

46 He gave also their fruits to the caterpillar, And their labor to the locust.

When he gave to the corn-locust their produce, And their toil, to the swarming locust;

47 He destroyed their vines with hail, And their sycamore-trees with frost.

He killed, with hail, their vine, And their sycomores, with frost:

48 He also gave up their cattle to hail, And their flocks to hot thunderbolts.

When he gave up, to hail-storms, their beasts, And their cattle, to pestilent fevers;

49 He sent against them the fierceness of his anger, Wrath, indignation, and woe, —A host of angels of evil.

He sent among them the heat of his anger, Wrath and indignation and distress, —A mission of messengers of misfortune:

50 He made a way for his anger, He spared them not from death, But gave up their lives to the pestilence.

He leveled a path for his anger, Withheld not, from death, their soul, But, their life—to the pestilence, he delivered:

51 He smote all the firstborn in Egypt; The first-fruits of their strength in the tents of Ham.

So he smote, Every first-born in Egypt, The beginning of their strength, in the tents of Ham;

52 But he led forth his own people like sheep, And guided them like a flock in the wilderness.

And he set forth, like sheep, his people, And guided them, like a flock in the desert;

53 He led them on safely, so that they feared not, While the sea overwhelmed their enemies.

Yea he led them securely, and they dreaded not, And, their enemies, the sea did cover.

54 He brought them to his own sacred border, Even to this mountain which his right hand had gained.

Then brought he them within his own holy bounds, The mountain-range, which his right hand made his own:

55 He cast out the nations before them, And divided their land by a measuring-line, as an inheritance, And caused the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents.

So he drave out, before them, [whole] nations, And allotted them, by line, an inheritance, And caused to dwell, in their own homes, the tribes of Israel.

56 Yet they tempted and provoked God, the Most High, And kept not his statutes;

But they tested and resisted God Most High, And, his testimonies, did not observe;

57 Like their fathers they were faithless, and turned back; They turned aside, like a deceitful bow.

But drew back and dealt treacherously, like their fathers, They turned aside, like deceitful bowmen;

58 They provoked his anger by their high places, And stirred up his jealousy by their graven images.

And provoked him to anger with their high places, And, with their images, used to move him to jealousy.

59 God saw this, and was wroth, And greatly abhorred Israel;

God heard and was wroth, And greatly abhorred Israel;

60 So that he forsook the habitation at Shiloh, The tabernacle where he dwelt among men,

So he gave up the habitation of Shiloh, The tent he had set up among Men;

61 And delivered his strength into captivity, And his glory into the hand of the enemy.

Yea he gave up, into captivity, his strength, And his beauty into the hand of an adversary;

62 His own people he gave up to the sword, And was wroth with his own inheritance.

And delivered up, to the sword, his people, And, with his own inheritance, was he wroth;

63 Fire consumed their young men, And their maidens did not bewail them.

His young men, were devoured by fire, And, his virgins, were not praised in song;

64 Their priests fell by the sword, And their widows made no lamentation.

His priests, by the sword, did fall, And, his widows, were not able to bewail.

65 But at length the Lord awaked as from sleep, As a hero who had been overpowered by wine;

Then awoke, as one that had slept, Adonay, As a warrior exulting with wine!

66 He smote his enemies, and drove them back, And covered them with everlasting disgrace.

So he smote his adversaries in the rear, Reproach age-abiding, laid he upon them.

67 Yet he rejected the tents of Joseph, And chose not the tribe of Ephraim;

Howbeit he rejected the tent of Joseph, And, the tribe of Ephraim, did not choose:

68 But chose the tribe of Judah, The Mount Zion which he loved;

But made choice of the tribe of Judah, The mountain of Zion, which he loved;

69 Where he built, like the heavens, his sanctuary; Like the earth, which he hath established for ever.

And built, like the heights, his sanctuary, Like the earth, he founded it to times age-abiding.

70 And he chose David, his servant, And took him from the sheepfolds;

And made choice of David his servant, And took him from among the folds of the sheep:

71 From tending the suckling ewes he brought him To feed Jacob his people, And Israel his inheritance.

From after the sucking ewes, he brought him in, —To be shepherd to Jacob his people, And to Israel, his inheritance.

72 He fed them with an upright heart, And guided them with skilful hands.

So he did shepherd them, according to the singleness of his heart, And, with the discernment of his hands, used he to guide them.