Psalm 43; Psalm 44; Psalm 45; Psalm 49; Psalm 84; Psalm 85; Psalm 87

1 God, when you hand down your decision, let it be in my favor. Stand up for me against an ungodly nation. Save me from those lying and sinful people. 2 You are God, my place of safety. Why have you turned your back on me? Why must I go around in sorrow? Why am I beaten down by my enemies? 3 Send out your light and your truth. Let them guide me. Let them bring me back to your holy mountain, to the place where you live. 4 Then I will go to the altar of God. I will go to God. He is my joy and my delight. God, you are my God. I will praise you by playing the harp. 5 My spirit, why are you so sad? Why are you so upset deep down inside me? Put your hope in God. Once again I will have reason to praise him. He is my Savior and my God.

1 God, we have heard what you did. Those who came before us have told us what you did in their days, in days long ago. 2 With your powerful hand you drove out the nations. You settled our people in the land. You crushed the people who were there. And you made our people do well. 3 They didn't win the land with their swords. They didn't gain success with their powerful arms. Your powerful right hand and your mighty arm gave them success. You looked on them with favor. You loved them. 4 You are my King and my God. You give success to the people of Jacob. 5 With your help we push our enemies back. By your power we walk all over them. 6 I don't trust in my bow. My sword doesn't bring me success. 7 But you give us success over our enemies. You put them to shame. 8 All day long we talk about how great God is. We will praise your name forever. "Selah" 9 But now you have turned your back on us and made us low. You don't march out with our armies anymore. 10 You made us turn and run from our enemies. They have taken what belongs to us. 11 You handed us over to be eaten up like sheep. You have scattered us among the nations. 12 You sold your people for very little. You didn't gain anything when you sold them. 13 You have made us something that our neighbors laugh at. Those who live around us make fun of us and tease us. 14 The nations make jokes about us. They shake their heads at us. 15 All day long I am reminded of my shame. My face is covered with it 16 because of those who laugh at me and attack me with their words. They want to get even with me. 17 All of this happened to us, even though we had not forgotten you. We had been true to the covenant you made with us. 18 Our hearts had not turned away from you. Our feet had not wandered from your path. 19 But you crushed us and left us to the wild dogs. You covered us over with deep darkness. 20 We didn't forget our God. We didn't spread out our hands in prayer to a strange god. 21 If we had, God would have discovered it. He knows the secrets of our hearts. 22 But because of you, we face death all day long. We are considered as sheep to be killed. 23 Lord, wake up! Why are you sleeping? Get up! Don't say no to us forever. 24 Why do you turn your face away from us? Why do you forget our pain and troubles? 25 We are brought down to the dust. Our bodies lie flat on the ground. 26 Rise up and help us. Save us because of your faithful love.

1 My heart is full of beautiful words as I say my poem for the king. My tongue is like the pen of a skillful writer. 2 You are the most excellent of men. Your lips have been given the ability to speak gracious words. God has blessed you forever. 3 Mighty one, put your sword at your side. Put on glory and majesty as if they were your clothes. 4 In your majesty ride out with power in honor of what is true and right. Do it in honor of all those who are not proud. Let your right hand do wonderful things. 5 Shoot your sharp arrows into the hearts of your enemies. Let the nations come under your control. 6 Your throne is the very throne of God. Your kingdom will last for ever and ever. You will rule by treating everyone fairly. 7 You love what is right and hate what is evil. So your God has placed you above your companions. He has filled you with joy by pouring the sacred oil on your head. 8 Myrrh and aloes and cassia make all of your robes smell good. In palaces decorated with ivory the music played on stringed instruments makes you glad. 9 Daughters of kings are among the women you honor. At your right hand is the royal bride dressed in gold from Ophir. 10 Royal bride, listen. Think about this and pay attention to it. Forget about your people and the home you came from. 11 The king is charmed by your beauty. Honor him. He is now your master. 12 The people of Tyre will come with gifts. Wealthy people will try to gain your favor. 13 The princess comes into the palace in all her glory. Her gown has gold threads running through it. 14 Dressed in beautiful clothes, she is led to the king. Her virgin companions follow her and are brought to him. 15 They are led in with joy and gladness. They enter the palace of the king. 16 Your sons will rule just as your father and grandfather did. You will make them princes through the whole land. 17 I will make sure that people will always remember you. The nations will praise you for ever and ever.

1 Hear this, all you nations. Listen, all you who live in this world. 2 Listen, ordinary and important people alike. Listen, those of you who are rich or poor. 3 My mouth will speak wise words. What I say from my heart will give understanding. 4 I will pay attention to a proverb. I will explain my riddle as I play the harp. 5 Why should I be afraid when trouble comes? Why should I fear when sinners are all around me? They are the kind of people who want to take advantage of me. 6 They trust in their wealth. They brag about how rich they are. 7 No man can pay for the life of anyone else. No one can give God what that would cost. 8 The price for a life is very high. No payment is ever enough. 9 No one can pay enough to live forever and not rot in the grave. 10 Everyone can see that even wise people die. Foolish and dumb people also pass away. All of them leave their wealth to others. 11 Their graves will remain their houses forever. Their graves will be their homes for all time to come. Naming lands after themselves won't help either. 12 Even though people may be very rich, they don't live on and on. They are like the animals. They die. 13 That's what happens to those who trust in themselves. It also happens to their followers, who agree with what they say. "Selah" 14 Like sheep they will end up in the grave. Death will swallow them up. When honest people come to power, a new day will dawn. The bodies of sinners will waste away in the grave. They will end up far away from their princely houses. 15 But God will save me from the grave. He will certainly take me to himself. "Selah" 16 Don't be upset when someone becomes rich. Don't be troubled when he becomes more and more wealthy. 17 He won't take anything with him when he dies. His riches won't go down to the grave with him. 18 While he lived, he believed he was blessed. People praised him when things were going well for him. 19 But he will die, like his people of long ago. He will never again see the light that leads to life. 20 People who have riches but don't understand are like the animals. They die.

1 LORD who rules over all, how lovely is the place where you live! 2 I long to be in the courtyards of the LORD's temple. I deeply long to be there. My whole being cries out for the living God. 3 LORD who rules over all, even the sparrow has found a home near your altar. My King and my God, the swallow also has a nest there, where she may have her young. 4 Blessed are those who live in your house. They are always praising you. "Selah" 5 Blessed are those whose strength comes from you. They have decided to travel to your temple. 6 As they pass through the dry Valley of Baca, they make it a place where water flows. The rain in the fall covers it with pools. 7 Those people get stronger as they go along, until each of them appears in Zion, where God lives. 8 LORD God who rules over all, hear my prayer. God of the people of Jacob, listen to me. "Selah" 9 God, look with favor on your anointed king. You appointed him to be like a shield that keeps us safe. 10 A single day in your courtyards is better than a thousand anywhere else. I would rather guard the door of the house of my God than live in the tents of sinful people. 11 The LORD God is like the sun that gives us light. He is like a shield that keeps us safe. The LORD blesses us with favor and honor. He doesn't hold back anything good from those whose lives are without blame. 12 LORD who rules over all, blessed is everyone who trusts in you.

1 Lord, you showed favor to your land. You blessed the people of Jacob with great success again. 2 You forgave the evil things your people did. You took away all of their sins. "Selah" 3 You stopped being angry with them. You turned your burning anger away from them. 4 God our Savior, make us new again. Stop being unhappy with us. 5 Will you be angry with us forever? Will you be angry for all time to come? 6 Won't you give us new life again? Then we'll be joyful because of what you have done. 7 Lord, show us your faithful love. Save us. 8 I will listen to what God the LORD will say. He promises peace to his faithful people. But they must not return to their foolish ways. 9 I know he's ready to save those who have respect for him. Then his glory can be seen in our land. 10 God's truth and faithful love join together. His peace and holiness kiss each other. 11 His truth springs up from the earth. His holiness looks down from heaven. 12 The LORD will certainly give what is good. Our land will produce its crops. 13 God's holiness leads the way in front of him. It prepares the way for his coming.

1 The LORD has built his city on the holy mountain. 2 He loves the city of Zion more than all of the other places where the people of Jacob live. 3 City of God, the LORD says glorious things about you. "Selah" 4 He says, "I will include Egypt and Babylon in a list of those who recognize me as king. I will also include Philistia and Tyre, along with Cush. I will say about them, 'They were born in Zion.' " 5 Certainly it will be said about Zion, "This nation and that nation were born in her. The Most High God himself will make her secure." 6 Here is what the LORD will write in his list of the nations. "Each of them was born in Zion." "Selah" 7 As they make music they will sing, "Zion, all of our blessings come from you."