Psalms 102; Psalms 103; Psalms 104

Psalms 102

1 Lord, hear my prayer. Listen to my cry for help.

2 Don't turn your face away from me when I'm in trouble. Pay attention to me. When I call out for help, answer me quickly.

3 My days are disappearing like smoke. My body burns like glowing coals.

4 My strength has dried up like grass. I even forget to eat my food.

5 I groan out loud because of my suffering. I'm nothing but skin and bones.

6 I'm like a desert owl. I'm like an owl among destroyed buildings.

7 I can't sleep. I've become like a bird alone on a roof.

8 All day long my enemies laugh at me. Those who make fun of me use my name as a curse.

9 I eat ashes as my food. My tears fall into what I'm drinking.

10 You were very angry with me. So you picked me up and threw me away.

11 The days of my life are like an evening shadow. I dry up like grass.

12 But Lord, you are seated on your throne forever. Your fame will continue for all time to come.

13 You will rise up and show deep concern for Zion. The time has come for you to show favor to it.

14 The stones of your destroyed city are priceless to us. Even its dust brings deep concern to us.

15 The nations will worship the Lord. All of the kings on earth will respect his glorious power.

16 The LORD will build Zion again. He will appear in his glory.

17 He will answer the prayer of those who don't have anything. He won't say no to their cry for help.

18 Let this be written down for those born after us. Then people who are not yet born can praise the Lord.

19 Here is what should be written. "The LORD looked down from his temple in heaven. From heaven he viewed the earth.

20 He heard the groans of the prisoners. He set free those who were sentenced to death."

21 So people will talk about him in Zion. They will praise him in Jerusalem.

22 Nations and kingdoms will gather there to worship the Lord.

23 When I was still young, he took away my strength. He wasn't going to let me live much longer.

24 So I said, "My God, don't let me die in the middle of my life. You will live for all time to come.

25 In the beginning you made the earth secure. You placed it on its foundations. Your hands created the heavens.

26 They will pass away. But you will remain. They will all wear out like a piece of clothing. You will make them like clothes that are taken off and thrown away.

27 But you remain the same. Your years will never end.

28 Our children will live with you. Their sons and daughters will be safe in your care."

Psalms 103

1 I will praise the Lord. Deep down inside me, I will praise him. I will praise him, because his name is holy.

2 I will praise the Lord. I won't forget anything he does for me.

3 He forgives all my sins. He heals all my sicknesses.

4 He saves my life from going down into the grave. His faithful and tender love makes me feel like a king.

5 He satisfies me with the good things I long for. Then I feel young and strong again, just like an eagle.

6 The LORD does what is right and fair for all who are beaten down.

7 He told Moses all about his plans. He let the people of Israel see his mighty acts.

8 The LORD is tender and kind. He is gracious. He is slow to get angry. He is full of love.

9 He won't keep bringing charges against us. He won't stay angry with us forever.

10 He doesn't punish us for our sins as much as we should be punished. He doesn't pay us back in keeping with the evil things we've done.

11 His love for those who have respect for him is as high as the heavens are above the earth.

12 He has removed our lawless acts from us as far as the east is from the west.

13 A father is tender and kind to his children. In the same way, the LORD is tender and kind to those who have respect for him.

14 He knows what we are made of. He remembers that we are dust.

15 People's lives are like grass. People grow like the flowers in the field.

16 When the wind blows on them, they are gone. No one can tell that they had ever been there.

17 But the LORD's love for those who have respect for him lasts for ever and ever. Their children's children will know that he always does what is right.

18 He always loves those who keep his covenant. He always does what is right for those who remember to obey his commands.

19 The LORD has set up his throne in heaven. His kingdom rules over all.

20 Praise the Lord, you angels of his. Praise him, you mighty ones who carry out his orders and obey his word.

21 Praise the Lord, all you angels in heaven. Praise him, all you who serve him and do what he wants.

22 Let everything the LORD has made praise him everywhere in his kingdom. I will praise the Lord.

Psalms 104

1 I will praise the Lord. LORD my God, you are very great. You are dressed in glory and majesty.

2 You wrap yourself in light as if it were a robe. You spread the heavens out like a tent.

3 You build your palace high in the heavens. You make the clouds serve as your chariot. You ride on the wings of the wind.

4 You make the winds serve as your messengers. You make flashes of lightning serve you.

5 You placed the earth on its foundations. It can never be moved.

6 You covered it with the oceans like a blanket. The waters covered the mountains.

7 But you commanded the waters, and they ran away. At the sound of your thunder they rushed off.

8 They flowed down the mountains. They went into the valleys. They went to the place you appointed for them.

9 You drew a line they can't cross. They will never cover the earth again.

10 You make springs pour water into the valleys. It flows between the mountains.

11 The springs give water to all of the wild animals. The wild donkeys satisfy their thirst.

12 The birds of the air build nests by the waters. They sing among the branches.

13 You water the mountains from your palace high in the clouds. The earth is filled with the things you have made.

14 You make grass grow for the cattle and plants for people to take care of. That's how they get food from the earth.

15 There is wine to make people glad. There is olive oil to make them healthy. And there is bread to make them strong.

16 The cedar trees of Lebanon belong to the Lord. You planted them and gave them plenty of water.

17 There the birds make their nests. The stork has its home in the pine trees.

18 The high mountains belong to the wild goats. The cliffs are a safe place for the rock badgers.

19 The moon serves to mark off the seasons. The sun knows when to go down.

20 You bring darkness, and it becomes night. Then all the animals of the forest prowl around.

21 The lions roar while they hunt. All of their food comes from God.

22 The sun rises, and they slip away. They return to their dens and lie down.

23 Then a man gets up and goes to work. He keeps working until evening.

24 Lord, you have made so many things! How wise you were when you made all of them! The earth is full of your creatures.

25 Look at the ocean, so big and wide! It is filled with more creatures than people can count. It is filled with living things, from the largest to the smallest.

26 Ships sail back and forth on it. The leviathan, the sea monster you made, plays in it.

27 All of those creatures depend on you to give them their food when they need it.

28 When you give it to them, they eat it. When you open your hand, they are satisfied with good things.

29 When you turn your face away from them, they are terrified. When you take away their breath, they die and turn back into dust.

30 When you send your Spirit, you create them. You give new life to the earth.

31 May the glory of the LORD continue forever. May the LORD be happy with what he has made.

32 When he looks at the earth, it trembles. When he touches the mountains, they pour out smoke.

33 I will sing to the LORD all my life. I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.

34 May these thoughts of mine please him. I find my joy in the Lord.

35 But may those who sin be gone from the earth. May evil people disappear. I will praise the Lord. Praise the Lord.