< Psalms 78 >
1 A maschil of Asaph. Hear my teaching, my people, listen to the words of my mouth.
An instruction. Of Asaph. Give ear, O my people, to my law; incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth in parables; I will sing about hidden things about the past.
I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter riddles from of old,
3 These are things that we have heard and learned, things that our ancestors have told us.
Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us:
4 We will not keep them from their descendants. We will tell the next generation about the praiseworthy deeds of Yahweh, his strength, and the wonders that he has done.
We will not hide [them] from their sons, shewing forth to the generation to come the praises of Jehovah, and his strength, and his marvellous works which he hath done.
5 For he established covenant decrees in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel. He commanded our ancestors that they were to teach them to their children.
For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children;
6 He commanded this so that the generation to come might know his decrees, the children not yet born, who should tell them in turn to their own children.
That the generation to come might know [them], the children that should be born; that they might rise up and tell [them] to their children,
7 Then they would place their hope in God and not forget his deeds but keep his commandments.
And that they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but observe his commandments;
8 Then they would not be like their ancestors, who were a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation whose hearts were not right, and whose spirits were not committed and faithful to God.
And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that prepared not their heart, and whose spirit was not stedfast with God.
9 The Ephraimites were armed with bows, but they turned back on the day of battle.
The sons of Ephraim, armed bowmen, turned back in the day of battle.
10 They did not keep the covenant with God, and they refused to obey his law.
They kept not the covenant of God, and refused to walk in his law;
11 They forgot his deeds, the wonderful things that he had shown them.
And forgot his doings, and his marvellous works which he had shewn them.
12 They forgot the marvelous things he did in the sight of their ancestors in the land of Egypt, in the land of Zoan.
In the sight of their fathers had he done wonders, in the land of Egypt, the field of Zoan.
13 He divided the sea and led them across it; he made the waters to stand like walls.
He clave the sea, and caused them to pass through; and made the waters to stand as a heap;
14 In the daytime he led them with a cloud and all the night with the light of fire.
And he led them with a cloud in the daytime, and all the night with the light of fire.
15 He split the rocks in the wilderness, and he gave them water abundantly, enough to fill the depths of the sea.
He clave rocks in the wilderness, and gave [them] drink as out of the depths, abundantly;
16 He made streams flow out of the rock and made the water flow like rivers.
And he brought streams out of the rock, and caused waters to run down like rivers.
17 Yet they continued to sin against him, rebelling against the Most High in the wilderness.
Yet they still went on sinning against him, provoking the Most High in the desert;
18 They challenged God in their hearts by asking for food to satisfy their appetites.
And they tempted God in their heart, by asking meat for their lust;
19 They spoke against God; they said, “Can God really lay out a table for us in the wilderness?
And they spoke against God: they said, Is God able to prepare a table in the wilderness?
20 See, when he struck the rock, waters gushed out and streams overflowed. But can he give bread also? Will he provide meat for his people?”
Behold, he smote the rock, and waters gushed out, and streams overflowed; is he able to give bread also, or provide flesh for his people?
21 When Yahweh heard this, he was angry; so his fire burned against Jacob, and his anger attacked Israel,
Therefore Jehovah heard, and was wroth; and fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also went up against Israel:
22 because they did not believe in God and did not trust in his salvation.
Because they believed not in God, and confided not in his salvation;
23 Yet he commanded the skies above and opened the doors of the sky.
Though he had commanded the clouds from above, and had opened the doors of the heavens,
24 He rained down manna for them to eat, and gave them the grain from heaven.
And had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them the corn of the heavens.
25 People ate the bread of angels. He sent them food in abundance.
Man did eat the bread of the mighty; he sent them provision to the full.
26 He caused the east wind to blow in the sky, and by his power he guided the south wind.
He caused the east wind to rise in the heavens, and by his strength he brought the south wind;
27 He rained down meat on them like dust, birds as numerous as the sands of the sea.
And he rained flesh upon them as dust, and feathered fowl as the sand of the seas,
28 They fell in the middle of their camp, all around their tents.
And he let it fall in the midst of their camp, round about their habitations:
29 So they ate and were full. He gave them what they craved.
And they did eat, and were well filled; for that they lusted after, he brought to them.
30 But they had not yet filled up; their food was still in their mouths.
They were not alienated from their lust, their meat was yet in their mouths,
31 Then God's anger attacked them and killed the strongest of them. He brought down the young men of Israel.
When the anger of God went up against them; and he slew the fattest of them, and smote down the chosen men of Israel.
32 Despite this, they continued to sin and did not believe his wonderful deeds.
For all this, they sinned still, and believed not in his marvellous works;
33 Therefore God cut short their days; their years were filled with terror.
And he consumed their days in vanity, and their years in terror.
34 Whenever God afflicted them, they would start to seek him, and they would return and look earnestly for him.
When he slew them, then they sought him, and returned and sought early after God;
35 They would call to mind that God was their rock and that the Most High God was their rescuer.
And they remembered that God was their rock, and God, the Most High, their redeemer.
36 But they would flatter him with their mouth and lie to him with their words.
But they flattered him with their mouth, and lied unto him with their tongue;
37 For their hearts were not firmly fixed on him, and they were not faithful to his covenant.
For their heart was not firm toward him, neither were they stedfast in his covenant.
38 Yet he, being merciful, forgave their iniquity and did not destroy them. Yes, many times he held back his anger and did not stir up all his wrath.
But he was merciful: he forgave the iniquity, and destroyed [them] not; but many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his fury:
39 He called to mind that they were made of flesh, a wind that passes away and does not return.
And he remembered that they were flesh, a breath that passeth away and cometh not again.
40 How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness and grieved him in the barren regions!
How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness, and grieve him in the desert!
41 Again and again they challenged God and offended the Holy One of Israel.
And they turned again and tempted God, and grieved the Holy One of Israel.
42 They did not think about his power, how he had rescued them from the enemy
They remembered not his hand, the day when he delivered them from the oppressor,
43 when he performed his terrifying signs in Egypt and his wonders in the region of Zoan.
How he set his signs in Egypt, and his miracles in the field of Zoan;
44 He turned the Egyptians' rivers to blood so that they could not drink from their streams.
And turned their rivers into blood, and their streams, that they could not drink;
45 He sent swarms of flies that devoured them and frogs that overran their land.
He sent dog-flies among them, which devoured them, and frogs, which destroyed them;
46 He gave their crops to the grasshopper and their labor to the locust.
And he gave their increase unto the caterpillar, and their labour unto the locust;
47 He destroyed their vines with hail and their sycamore trees with more hail.
He killed their vines with hail, and their sycamore trees with hail-stones;
48 He rained hail on their cattle and hurled lightning bolts at their livestock.
And he delivered up their cattle to the hail, and their flocks to thunderbolts.
49 The fierceness of his anger lashed out against them. He sent wrath, fury, and trouble like agents who bring disaster.
He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and distress, — a mission of angels of woes.
50 He leveled a path for his anger; he did not spare them from death but gave them over to the plague.
He made a way for his anger; he spared not their soul from death, but gave their life over to the pestilence;
51 He killed all the firstborn in Egypt, the firstborn of their strength in the tents of Ham.
And he smote all the firstborn in Egypt, the first-fruits of their vigour in the tents of Ham.
52 He led his own people out like sheep and guided them through the wilderness like a flock.
And he made his own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock;
53 He led them secure and unafraid, but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.
And he led them safely, so that they were without fear; and the sea covered their enemies.
54 Then he brought them to the border of his holy land, to this mountain that his right hand acquired.
And he brought them to his holy border, this mountain, which his right hand purchased;
55 He drove out the nations from before them and assigned them their inheritance. He settled the tribes of Israel in their tents.
And he drove out the nations before them, and allotted them for an inheritance by line, and made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents.
56 Yet they challenged and defied the Most High God and did not keep his solemn commands.
But they tempted and provoked God, the Most High, and kept not his testimonies,
57 They were unfaithful and acted treacherously like their fathers; they were as undependable as a faulty bow.
And they drew back and dealt treacherously like their fathers: they turned like a deceitful bow.
58 For they made him angry with their high places and provoked him to jealous anger with their idols.
And they provoked him to anger with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their graven images.
59 When God heard this, he was angry and completely rejected Israel.
God heard, and was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel:
60 He abandoned the sanctuary of Shiloh, the tent where he had lived among people.
And he forsook the tabernacle at Shiloh, the tent where he had dwelt among men,
61 He allowed his strength to be captured and gave his glory into the enemy's hand.
And gave his strength into captivity, and his glory into the hand of the oppressor;
62 He handed his people over to the sword, and he was angry with his heritage.
And delivered up his people unto the sword, and was very wroth with his inheritance:
63 Fire devoured their young men, and their young women had no wedding songs.
The fire consumed their young men, and their maidens were not praised in [nuptial] song;
64 Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows could not weep.
Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows made no lamentation.
65 Then the Lord awakened as one from sleep, like a warrior who shouts because of wine.
Then the Lord awoke as one out of sleep, like a mighty man that shouteth aloud by reason of wine;
66 He drove his adversaries back; he put them to everlasting shame.
And he smote his adversaries in the hinder part, and put them to everlasting reproach.
67 He rejected the tent of Joseph, and he did not chose the tribe of Ephraim.
And he rejected the tent of Joseph, and chose not the tribe of Ephraim,
68 He chose the tribe of Judah and Mount Zion that he loved.
But chose the tribe of Judah, the mount Zion which he loved;
69 He built his sanctuary like the heavens, like the earth that he has established forever.
And he built his sanctuary like the heights, like the earth which he hath founded for ever.
70 He chose David, his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds.
And he chose David his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds:
71 He took him from following the ewes with their young, and he brought him to be shepherd of Jacob, his people, and of Israel, his heritage.
From following the suckling-ewes, he brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance.
72 David shepherded them with the integrity of his heart, and he guided them with the skill of his hands.
And he fed them according to the integrity of his heart, and led them by the skilfulness of his hands.