Psalms 33
1 You righteous people should sing joyfully to Yahweh because that is what he deserves.
Shout for joy in the Lord, you righteous: praise for the upright is seemly.
2 Praise Yahweh as you play songs on the lyre/harp. Praise him as you play [other] instruments that have many strings.
Give thanks to the Lord on the lyre, play to him on a ten-stringed harp.
3 Sing a new song to him; Play those instruments well, and shout joyfully as you play them!
Sing to him a new song, play skilfully and shout merrily.
4 Yahweh always does what he says that he will do; we can trust that everything that he does is right.
For the Lord is straight in his promise; and all that he does is in faithfulness.
5 He loves everything that we do that is just and right. People all over the earth can know that Yahweh faithfully loves us.
Justice and right he loves; the earth is full of his kindness.
6 Yahweh created everything in the sky by commanding it. By what he said [MTY] he created all the stars.
By his word the heavens were made, all their host by the breath of his mouth.
7 He gathered all the water into one huge mass like [someone scoops liquid] into a container.
He gathers the sea in a bottle, the ocean he puts into store-houses.
8 Everyone on the earth should revere Yahweh [DOU].
Let the whole world honour the Lord, let all who live on earth be in awe.
9 When he spoke, the world (was created/started to exist). Everything started to exist as a result of him commanding it.
For at his word it came into being, at his command it stood forth.
10 Yahweh frustrates the things that the [pagan] nations decide to do. He prevents them from doing the [evil] things that they plan to do.
The Lord frustrates the designs of the nations, what the peoples have purposed, he brings to nought,
11 But what Yahweh decides to do will last forever. What he plans to do will never be changed.
but the Lord’s own design will stand forever, and what his heart has purposed, through all generations.
12 Yahweh blesses those nations who choose him to be their God; He is pleased with those whom he has chosen to receive what he has promised.
Happy the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for himself as his own.
13 Yahweh looks down from heaven and sees all us people;
The Lord looks down from heaven, he sees all of humanity;
14 from where he rules [MTY], he looks down on all the people who live on the earth.
from where he rules he gazes on all who inhabit the earth.
15 He formed our inner beings, and he sees everything that we do.
He fashions the hearts of them all, and gives heed to all that they do.
16 It is not because a king has a great army that he is able to win [battles], and it is not because a soldier is very strong that he is able to defeat [his enemy].
It is not by great armies that kings are victorious, it is not by great strength that a warrior saves himself;
17 It is foolish to trust that because horses are very strong that they will able to win a battle and save their riders.
false hope is the war-horse to usher in victory, for all its great might it can provide no escape.
18 Do not forget that Yahweh watches over those who revere him, those who confidently expect him to faithfully love them.
See! The eye of the Lord is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his kindness;
19 He saves them [SYN] from dying [before they should die] and preserves them when there is a famine.
to deliver their life from death, and to keep them alive in famine.
20 We trust that Yahweh will help us; he protects us like a shield protects a soldier [MET].
We wait for the Lord: he is our help and our shield.
21 We rejoice because of what he [has done for us]; we trust in him because he [MTY] is holy.
For in him our heart is glad, we trust in his holy name.
22 Yahweh, we pray that you will always faithfully love us while we confidently expect you [to do great things for us].
Let your kindness, O Lord, be upon us, as is our hope in you.
