Psalms 78
1 An Instruction of Asaph. Give ear, O my people, to my law, Incline your ear to sayings of my mouth.
Understanding for Asaph. Attend, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
2 I open with a simile my mouth, I bring forth hidden things of old,
I will open my mouth in parables: I will utter propositions from the beginning.
3 That we have heard and do know, And our fathers have recounted to us.
How great things have we heard and known, and our fathers have told us.
4 We do not hide from their sons, To a later generation recounting praises of Jehovah, And His strength, and His wonders that He hath done.
They have not been hidden from their children, in another generation. Declaring the praises of the Lord, and his powers, and his wonders which he hath done.
5 And He raiseth up a testimony in Jacob, And a law hath placed in Israel, That He commanded our fathers, To make them known to their sons.
And he set up a testimony in Jacob: and made a law in Israel. How great things he commanded our fathers, that they should make the same known to their children:
6 So that a later generation doth know, Sons who are born, do rise and recount to their sons,
That another generation might know them. The children that should be born and should rise up, and declare them to their children.
7 And place in God their confidence, And forget not the doings of God, But keep His commands.
That they may put their hope in God and may not forget the works of God: and may seek his commandments.
8 And they are not like their fathers, A generation apostate and rebellious, A generation! it hath not prepared its heart, Nor stedfast with God [is] its spirit.
That they may not become like their fathers, a perverse and exasperating generation. A generation that set not their heart aright: and whose spirit was not faithful to God.
9 Sons of Ephraim — armed bearers of bow, Have turned in a day of conflict.
The sons of Ephraim who bend and shoot with the bow: they have turned back in the day of battle.
10 They have not kept the covenant of God, And in His law they have refused to walk,
They kept not the covenant of God: and in his law they would not walk.
11 And they forget His doings, And His wonders that He shewed them.
And they forgot his benefits, and his wonders that he had shewn them.
12 Before their fathers He hath done wonders, In the land of Egypt — the field of Zoan.
Wonderful things did he do in the sight of their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the field of Tanis.
13 He cleft a sea, and causeth them to pass over, Yea, He causeth waters to stand as a heap.
He divided the sea and brought them through: and he made the waters to stand as in a vessel.
14 And leadeth them with a cloud by day, And all the night with a light of fire.
And he conducted them with a cloud by day: and all the night with a light of fire.
15 He cleaveth rocks in a wilderness, And giveth drink — as the great deep.
He struck the rock in the wilderness: and gave them to drink, as out of the great deep.
16 And bringeth out streams from a rock, And causeth waters to come down as rivers.
He brought forth water out of the rock: and made streams run down as rivers.
17 And they add still to sin against Him, To provoke the Most High in the dry place.
And they added yet more sin against him: they provoked the most High to wrath in the place without water.
18 And they try God in their heart, To ask food for their lust.
And they tempted God in their hearts, by asking meat for their desires.
19 And they speak against God — they said: 'Is God able to array a table in a wilderness?'
And they spoke ill of God: they said: Can God furnish a table in the wilderness?
20 Lo, He hath smitten a rock, And waters flow, yea, streams overflow. 'Also — bread [is] He able to give? Doth He prepare flesh for His people?'
Because he struck the rock, and the waters gushed out, and the streams overflowed. Can he also give bread, or provide a table for his people?
21 Therefore hath Jehovah heard, And He sheweth Himself wroth, And fire hath been kindled against Jacob, And anger also hath gone up against Israel,
Therefore the Lord heard, and was angry: and a fire was kindled against Jacob, and wrath came 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 commandeth clouds from above, Yea, doors of the heavens He hath opened.
And he had commanded the clouds from above, and had opened the doors of heaven.
24 And He raineth on them manna to eat, Yea, corn of heaven He hath given to them.
And had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them the bread of heaven.
25 Food of the mighty hath each eaten, Venison He sent to them to satiety.
Man ate the bread of angels: he sent them provisions in abundance.
26 He causeth an east wind to journey in the heavens, And leadeth by His strength a south wind,
He removed the south wind from heaven: and by his power brought in the southwest wind.
27 And He raineth on them flesh as dust, And as sand of the seas — winged fowl,
And he rained upon them flesh as dust: and feathered fowls like as the sand of the sea.
28 And causeth [it] to fall in the midst of His camp, Round about His tabernacles.
And they fell in the midst of their camp, round about their pavilions.
29 And they eat, and are greatly satisfied, And their desire He bringeth to them.
So they did eat, and were filled exceedingly, and he gave them their desire:
30 They have not been estranged from their desire, Yet [is] their food in their mouth,
They were not defrauded of that which they craved. As yet their meat was in their mouth:
31 And the anger of God hath gone up against them, And He slayeth among their fat ones, And youths of Israel He caused to bend.
And the wrath of God came upon them. And he slew the fat ones amongst them, and brought down the chosen men of Israel.
32 With all this they have sinned again, And have not believed in His wonders.
In all these things they sinned still: and they believed not for his wondrous works.
33 And He consumeth in vanity their days, And their years in trouble.
And their days were consumed in vanity, and their years in haste.
34 If He slew them, then they sought Him, And turned back, and sought God earnestly,
When he slew them, then they sought him: and they returned, and came to him early in the morning.
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 their redeemer.
36 And — they deceive Him with their mouth, And with their tongue do lie to Him,
And they loved him with their mouth: and with their tongue they lied unto him:
37 And their heart hath not been right with Him, And they have not been stedfast in His covenant.
But their heart was not right with him: nor were they counted faithful in his covenant.
38 And He — the Merciful One, Pardoneth iniquity, and destroyeth not, And hath often turned back His anger, And waketh not up all His fury.
But he is merciful, and will forgive their sins: and will not destroy them. And many a time did he turn away his anger: and did not kindle all his wrath.
39 And He remembereth that they [are] flesh, A wind going on — and it returneth not.
And he remembered that they are flesh: a wind that goeth and returneth 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 desert: and move him to wrath in the place without water?
41 Yea, they turn back, and try God, And the Holy One of Israel have limited.
And they turned back and tempted God: and grieved 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, in the day that he redeemed them from the hand of him that afflicted them:
43 When He set His signs in Egypt, And His wonders in the field of Zoan,
How he wrought his signs in Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Tanis.
44 And He turneth to blood their streams, And their floods they drink not.
And he turned their rivers into blood, and their showers that they might, not drink.
45 He sendeth among them the beetle, and it consumeth them, And the frog, and it destroyeth them,
He sent amongst them divers sores of flies, which devoured them: and frogs which destroyed them.
46 And giveth to the caterpillar their increase, And their labour to the locust.
And he gave up their fruits to the blast, and their labours to the locust.
47 He destroyeth with hail their vine, And their sycamores with frost,
And he destroyed their vineyards with hail, and their mulberry trees with hoarfrost.
48 And delivereth up to the hail their beasts, And their cattle to the burning flames.
And he gave up their cattle to the hail, and their stock to the fire.
49 He sendeth on them the fury of His anger, Wrath, and indignation, and distress — A discharge of evil messengers.
And he sent upon them the wrath of his indignation: indignation and wrath and trouble, which he sent by evil angels.
50 He pondereth a path for His anger, He kept not back their soul from death, Yea, their life to the pestilence He delivered up.
He made a way for a path to his anger: he spared not their souls from death, and their cattle he shut up in death.
51 And He smiteth every first-born in Egypt, The first-fruit of the strong in tents of Ham.
And he killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt: the firstfruits of all their labour in the tabernacles of Cham.
52 And causeth His people to journey as a flock, And guideth them as a drove in a wilderness,
And he took away his own people as sheep: and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.
53 And He leadeth them confidently, And they have not been afraid, And their enemies hath the sea covered.
And he brought them out in hope, and they feared not: band the sea overwhelmed their enemies.
54 And He bringeth them in unto the border of His sanctuary, This mountain His right hand had got,
And he brought them into the mountain of his sanctuary: the mountain which his right hand had purchased. And he cast out the Gentiles before them: and by lot divided to them their land by a line of distribution.
55 And casteth out nations from before them, And causeth them to fall in the line of inheritance, And causeth the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents,
And he made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tabernacles.
56 And they tempt and provoke God Most High, And His testimonies have not kept.
Yet they tempted, and provoked the most high God: and they 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 away, and kept not the covenant: even like their fathers they were turned aside as a crooked bow.
58 And make Him angry with their high places, And with their graven images make Him zealous,
They provoked him to anger on their hills: and moved him to jealousy with their graven things.
59 God hath heard, and sheweth Himself wroth. And kicketh exceedingly against Israel.
God heard, and despised them, and he reduced Israel exceedingly as it were to nothing.
60 And He leaveth the tabernacle of Shiloh, The tent He had placed among men,
And he put away the tabernacle of Silo, his tabernacle where he dwelt among men.
61 And He giveth His strength to captivity, And His beauty into the hand of an adversary,
And he delivered their strength into captivity: and their beauty into the hands of the enemy.
62 And delivereth up to the sword His people, And with His inheritance shewed Himself angry.
And he shut up his people under the sword: and he despised his inheritance.
63 His young men hath fire consumed, And His virgins have not been praised.
Fire consumed their young men: and their maidens were not lamented.
64 His priests by the sword have fallen, And their widows weep not.
Their priests fell by the sword: and their widows did not mourn.
65 And the Lord waketh as a sleeper, As a mighty one crying aloud from wine.
And the Lord was awaked as one out of sleep, and like a mighty man that hath been surfeited with wine.
66 And He smiteth His adversaries backward, A reproach age-during He hath put on them,
And he smote his enemies on the hinder parts: he put them to an everlasting reproach.
67 And He kicketh against the tent of Joseph, And on the tribe of Ephraim hath not fixed.
And he rejected the tabernacle of Joseph: and chose not the tribe of Ephraim:
68 And He chooseth the tribe of Judah, With mount Zion that He loved,
But he chose the tribe of Juda, mount Sion which he loved.
69 And buildeth His sanctuary as a high place, Like the earth, He founded it to the age.
And he built his sanctuary as of unicorns, in the land which he founded for ever.
70 And He fixeth on David His servant, And taketh him from the folds of a flock,
And he chose his servant David, and took him from the hocks of sheep: he brought him from following the ewes great with young,
71 From behind suckling ones He hath brought him in, To rule over Jacob His people, And over Israel His inheritance.
To feed Jacob his servant, and Israel his inheritance.
72 And he ruleth them according to the integrity of his heart, And by the skilfulness of his hands leadeth them!
And he fed them in the innocence of his heart: and conducted them by the skillfulness of his hands.
