Psalms 50
1 God, the all-powerful one, speaks; he summons all people, from the east to the west.
A Psalm. Of Asaph. God, Elohim-Jehovah, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof.
2 His glory shines from Zion [Hill in Jerusalem], an extremely beautiful city.
Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined forth.
3 Our God comes to us, and he is not silent. A great fire is in front of him, and a storm is around him.
Our God will come, and will not keep silence: fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him.
4 He comes to judge his people. He shouts to the [angels in] heaven and to [the people on] the earth.
He will call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people:
5 He says, “Summon those who faithfully [worship] me, those who made an agreement with me by offering sacrifices to me.”
Gather unto me my godly ones, those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice!
6 The [angels in] heaven declare, “God is righteous, and he is the supreme judge.”
And the heavens shall declare his righteousness; for God executeth judgment himself. (Selah)
7 God says, “My people, listen! You Israeli people, listen, as I, your God, say what you have done that is wrong.
Hear, my people, and I will speak; O Israel, and I will testify unto thee: I am God, thy God.
8 I am not rebuking you for making sacrifices to me, for the offerings that you completely burn [on the altar].
I will not reprove thee for thy sacrifices, or thy burnt-offerings, continually before me;
9 But I do not really need [you to sacrifice] the bulls from your barns and the goats from your pens,
I will take no bullock out of thy house, [nor] he-goats out of thy folds:
10 because all the animals in the forest belong to me, [and all] the cattle on 1,000 hills also belong to me.
For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle upon a thousand hills;
11 I [own and] know all the birds and all [the creatures] that move around in the fields.
I know all the fowl of the mountains, and the roaming creatures of the field are mine:
12 [So], if I were hungry, I would not tell you [to bring me some food], because everything in the world belongs to me!
If I were hungry, I would not tell thee; for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof.
13 I do not eat the flesh of the bulls [that you sacrifice], and I do not drink the blood of the goats [that you offer to me].
Should I eat the flesh of bulls, and drink the blood of goats?
14 The sacrifice [that I really want is that] you thank me and do all that you have promised to do.
Offer unto God thanksgiving, and perform thy vows unto the Most High;
15 And pray to me when you have troubles. [If you do that], I will rescue you, and [then] you will praise me.
And call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.
16 But I say this to the wicked people: (Why do you/It does not benefit you at all to) [RHQ] recite my commandments or talk about the agreement that I made with you,
But unto the wicked God saith, What hast thou to do to declare my statutes, or that thou shouldest take my covenant into thy mouth,
17 because you have refused to allow me to discipline you, and you have rejected what I told you to do.
Seeing thou hast hated correction and hast cast my words behind thee?
18 Every time that you see a thief, you become his friend, and you spend [much] time with those who commit adultery.
When thou sawest a thief, thou didst take pleasure in him, and thy portion was with adulterers;
19 You are [always] talking [MTY] about doing wicked things, and you are [always] to deceive people.
Thou lettest thy mouth loose to evil, and thy tongue frameth deceit;
20 You are always accusing members of your own family [of doing wrong], and slandering them.
Thou sittest [and] speakest against thy brother, thou revilest thine own mother's son:
21 You did [all] those things, and I did not say anything to you, [so] you thought that I was [a sinner] just like you. But now I rebuke you and accuse you, right in front of you.
These [things] hast thou done, and I kept silence; thou thoughtest that I was altogether as thyself: [but] I will reprove thee, and set [them] in order before thine eyes.
22 So, all you who have ignored me, pay attention to this, because if you do not, I will tear you to pieces, and there will be no one to rescue you.
Now consider this, ye that forget God, lest I tear in pieces, and there be no deliverer.
23 The sacrifice that [truly] honors me is to thank me [for what I have done]; and I will save those who always do the things that I want them to.”
Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me; and to him that ordereth [his] way will I shew the salvation of God.
