The Message Bible MSG
New International Version NIV
1 O my soul, bless God! God, my God, how great you are! beautifully, gloriously robed,
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Praise the LORD, my soul. LORD my God, you are very great; you are clothed with splendor and majesty.
2 Dressed up in sunshine, and all heaven stretched out for your tent.
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The LORD wraps himself in light as with a garment; he stretches out the heavens like a tent
3 You built your palace on the ocean deeps, made a chariot out of clouds and took off on wind-wings.
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and lays the beams of his upper chambers on their waters. He makes the clouds his chariot and rides on the wings of the wind.
4 You commandeered winds as messengers, appointed fire and flame as ambassadors.
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He makes winds his messengers,flames of fire his servants.
5 You set earth on a firm foundation so that nothing can shake it, ever.
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He set the earth on its foundations; it can never be moved.
6 You blanketed earth with ocean, covered the mountains with deep waters;
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You covered it with the watery depths as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains.
7 Then you roared and the water ran away - your thunder crash put it to flight.
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But at your rebuke the waters fled, at the sound of your thunder they took to flight;
8 Mountains pushed up, valleys spread out in the places you assigned them.
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they flowed over the mountains, they went down into the valleys, to the place you assigned for them.
9 You set boundaries between earth and sea; never again will earth be flooded.
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You set a boundary they cannot cross; never again will they cover the earth.
10 You started the springs and rivers, sent them flowing among the hills.
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He makes springs pour water into the ravines; it flows between the mountains.
11 All the wild animals now drink their fill, wild donkeys quench their thirst.
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They give water to all the beasts of the field; the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 Along the riverbanks the birds build nests, ravens make their voices heard.
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The birds of the sky nest by the waters; they sing among the branches.
13 You water the mountains from your heavenly cisterns; earth is supplied with plenty of water.
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He waters the mountains from his upper chambers; the land is satisfied by the fruit of his work.
14 You make grass grow for the livestock, hay for the animals that plow the ground. Oh yes, God brings grain from the land,
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He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for people to cultivate— bringing forth food from the earth:
15 wine to make people happy, Their faces glowing with health, a people well-fed and hearty.
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wine that gladdens human hearts, oil to make their faces shine, and bread that sustains their hearts.
16 God's trees are well-watered - the Lebanon cedars he planted.
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The trees of the LORD are well watered, the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.
17 Birds build their nests in those trees; look - the stork at home in the treetop.
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There the birds make their nests; the stork has its home in the junipers.
18 Mountain goats climb about the cliffs; badgers burrow among the rocks.
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The high mountains belong to the wild goats; the crags are a refuge for the hyrax.
19 The moon keeps track of the seasons, the sun is in charge of each day.
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He made the moon to mark the seasons, and the sun knows when to go down.
20 When it's dark and night takes over, all the forest creatures come out.
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You bring darkness, it becomes night, and all the beasts of the forest prowl.
21 The young lions roar for their prey, clamoring to God for their supper.
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The lions roar for their prey and seek their food from God.
22 When the sun comes up, they vanish, lazily stretched out in their dens.
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The sun rises, and they steal away; they return and lie down in their dens.
23 Meanwhile, men and women go out to work, busy at their jobs until evening.
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Then people go out to their work, to their labor until evening.
24 What a wildly wonderful world, God! You made it all, with Wisdom at your side, made earth overflow with your wonderful creations.
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How many are your works, LORD! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.
25 Oh, look - the deep, wide sea, brimming with fish past counting, sardines and sharks and salmon.
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There is the sea, vast and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number— living things both large and small.
26 Ships plow those waters, and Leviathan, your pet dragon, romps in them.
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There the ships go to and fro, and Leviathan, which you formed to frolic there.
27 All the creatures look expectantly to you to give them their meals on time.
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All creatures look to you to give them their food at the proper time.
28 You come, and they gather around; you open your hand and they eat from it.
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When you give it to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are satisfied with good things.
29 If you turned your back, they'd die in a minute - Take back your Spirit and they die, revert to original mud;
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When you hide your face, they are terrified; when you take away their breath, they die and return to the dust.
30 Send out your Spirit and they spring to life - the whole countryside in bloom and blossom.
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When you send your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the ground.
31 The glory of God - let it last forever! Let God enjoy his creation!
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May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in his works—
32 He takes one look at earth and triggers an earthquake, points a finger at the mountains, and volcanoes erupt.
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he who looks at the earth, and it trembles, who touches the mountains, and they smoke.
33 Oh, let me sing to God all my life long, sing hymns to my God as long as I live!
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I will sing to the LORD all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
34 Oh, let my song please him; I'm so pleased to be singing to God.
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May my meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the LORD.
35 But clear the ground of sinners - no more godless men and women! O my soul, bless God!
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But may sinners vanish from the earth and the wicked be no more. Praise the LORD, my soul. Praise the LORD.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.
Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NIV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica. All rights reserved worldwide.