The Message Bible MSG
New Living Translation NLT
1 Oh, thank God - he's so good! His love never runs out.
1
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.
2 All of you set free by God, tell the world! Tell how he freed you from oppression,
2
Has the LORD redeemed you? Then speak out! Tell others he has redeemed you from your enemies.
3 Then rounded you up from all over the place, from the four winds, from the seven seas.
3
For he has gathered the exiles from many lands, from east and west, from north and south.
4 Some of you wandered for years in the desert, looking but not finding a good place to live,
4
Some wandered in the wilderness, lost and homeless.
5 Half-starved and parched with thirst, staggering and stumbling, on the brink of exhaustion.
5
Hungry and thirsty, they nearly died.
6 Then, in your desperate condition, you called out to God. He got you out in the nick of time;
6
“ LORD, help!” they cried in their trouble, and he rescued them from their distress.
7 He put your feet on a wonderful road that took you straight to a good place to live.
7
He led them straight to safety, to a city where they could live.
8 So thank God for his marvelous love, for his miracle mercy to the children he loves.
8
Let them praise the LORD for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done for them.
9 He poured great draughts of water down parched throats; the starved and hungry got plenty to eat.
9
For he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.
10 Some of you were locked in a dark cell, cruelly confined behind bars,
10
Some sat in darkness and deepest gloom, imprisoned in iron chains of misery.
11 Punished for defying God's Word, for turning your back on the High God's counsel -
11
They rebelled against the words of God, scorning the counsel of the Most High.
12 A hard sentence, and your hearts so heavy, and not a soul in sight to help.
12
That is why he broke them with hard labor; they fell, and no one was there to help them.
13 Then you called out to God in your desperate condition; he got you out in the nick of time.
13
“ LORD, help!” they cried in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress.
14 He led you out of your dark, dark cell, broke open the jail and led you out.
14
He led them from the darkness and deepest gloom; he snapped their chains.
15 So thank God for his marvelous love, for his miracle mercy to the children he loves;
15
Let them praise the LORD for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done for them.
16 He shattered the heavy jailhouse doors, he snapped the prison bars like matchsticks!
16
For he broke down their prison gates of bronze; he cut apart their bars of iron.
17 Some of you were sick because you'd lived a bad life, your bodies feeling the effects of your sin;
17
Some were fools; they rebelled and suffered for their sins.
18 You couldn't stand the sight of food, so miserable you thought you'd be better off dead.
18
They couldn’t stand the thought of food, and they were knocking on death’s door.
19 Then you called out to God in your desperate condition; he got you out in the nick of time.
19
“ LORD, help!” they cried in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress.
20 He spoke the word that healed you, that pulled you back from the brink of death.
20
He sent out his word and healed them, snatching them from the door of death.
21 So thank God for his marvelous love, for his miracle mercy to the children he loves;
21
Let them praise the LORD for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done for them.
22 Offer thanksgiving sacrifices, tell the world what he's done - sing it out!
22
Let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving and sing joyfully about his glorious acts.
23 Some of you set sail in big ships; you put to sea to do business in faraway ports.
23
Some went off to sea in ships, plying the trade routes of the world.
24 Out at sea you saw God in action, saw his breathtaking ways with the ocean:
24
They, too, observed the LORD ’s power in action, his impressive works on the deepest seas.
25 With a word he called up the wind - an ocean storm, towering waves!
25
He spoke, and the winds rose, stirring up the waves.
26 You shot high in the sky, then the bottom dropped out; your hearts were stuck in your throats.
26
Their ships were tossed to the heavens and plunged again to the depths; the sailors cringed in terror.
27 You were spun like a top, you reeled like a drunk, you didn't know which end was up.
27
They reeled and staggered like drunkards and were at their wits’ end.
28 Then you called out to God in your desperate condition; he got you out in the nick of time.
28
“ LORD, help!” they cried in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress.
29 He quieted the wind down to a whisper, put a muzzle on all the big waves.
29
He calmed the storm to a whisper and stilled the waves.
30 And you were so glad when the storm died down, and he led you safely back to harbor.
30
What a blessing was that stillness as he brought them safely into harbor!
31 So thank God for his marvelous love, for his miracle mercy to the children he loves.
31
Let them praise the LORD for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done for them.
32 Lift high your praises when the people assemble, shout Hallelujah when the elders meet!
32
Let them exalt him publicly before the congregation and before the leaders of the nation.
33 God turned rivers into wasteland, springs of water into sunbaked mud;
33
He changes rivers into deserts, and springs of water into dry, thirsty land.
34 Luscious orchards became alkali flats because of the evil of the people who lived there.
34
He turns the fruitful land into salty wastelands, because of the wickedness of those who live there.
35 Then he changed wasteland into fresh pools of water, arid earth into springs of water,
35
But he also turns deserts into pools of water, the dry land into springs of water.
36 Brought in the hungry and settled them there; they moved in - what a great place to live!
36
He brings the hungry to settle there and to build their cities.
37 They sowed the fields, they planted vineyards, they reaped a bountiful harvest.
37
They sow their fields, plant their vineyards, and harvest their bumper crops.
38 He blessed them and they prospered greatly; their herds of cattle never decreased.
38
How he blesses them! They raise large families there, and their herds of livestock increase.
39 But abuse and evil and trouble declined
39
When they decrease in number and become impoverished through oppression, trouble, and sorrow,
40 as he heaped scorn on princes and sent them away. He gave the poor a safe place to live,
40
the LORD pours contempt on their princes, causing them to wander in trackless wastelands.
41 treated their clans like well-cared-for sheep.
41
But he rescues the poor from trouble and increases their families like flocks of sheep.
42 Good people see this and are glad; bad people are speechless, stopped in their tracks.
42
The godly will see these things and be glad, while the wicked are struck silent.
43 If you are really wise, you'll think this over - it's time you appreciated God's deep love.
43
Those who are wise will take all this to heart; they will see in our history the faithful love of 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.
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by
Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.