King James Version KJV
Good News Translation GNT
1 Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
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Listen, my people, to my teaching, and pay attention to what I say.
2 I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old:
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I am going to use wise sayings and explain mysteries from the past,
3 Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us.
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things we have heard and known, things that our ancestors told us.
4 We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done.
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We will not keep them from our children; we will tell the next generation about the Lord's power and his great deeds and the wonderful things he has done.
5 For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children:
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He gave laws to the people of Israel and commandments to the descendants of Jacob. He instructed our ancestors to teach his laws to their children,
6 That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children:
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so that the next generation might learn them and in turn should tell their children.
7 That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments:
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In this way they also will put their trust in God and not forget what he has done, but always obey his commandments.
8 And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation; a generation that set not their heart aright, and whose spirit was not stedfast with God.
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They will not be like their ancestors, a rebellious and disobedient people, whose trust in God was never firm and who did not remain faithful to him.
9 The children of Ephraim, being armed, and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle.
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The Ephraimites, armed with bows and arrows, ran away on the day of battle.
10 They kept not the covenant of God, and refused to walk in his law;
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They did not keep their covenant with God; they refused to obey his law.
11 And forgat his works, and his wonders that he had shewed them.
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They forgot what he had done, the miracles they had seen him perform.
12 Marvellous things did he in the sight of their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.
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While their ancestors watched, God performed miracles in the plain of Zoan in the land of Egypt.
13 He divided the sea, and caused them to pass through; and he made the waters to stand as an heap.
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He divided the sea and took them through it; he made the waters stand like walls.
14 In the daytime also he led them with a cloud, and all the night with a light of fire.
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By day he led them with a cloud and all night long with the light of a fire.
15 He clave the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of the great depths.
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He split rocks open in the desert and gave them water from the depths.
16 He brought streams also out of the rock, and caused waters to run down like rivers.
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He caused a stream to come out of the rock and made water flow like a river.
17 And they sinned yet more against him by provoking the most High in the wilderness.
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But they continued to sin against God, and in the desert they rebelled against the Most High.
18 And they tempted God in their heart by asking meat for their lust.
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They deliberately put God to the test by demanding the food they wanted.
19 Yea, they spake against God; they said, Can God furnish a table in the wilderness?
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They spoke against God and said, "Can God supply food in the desert?
20 Behold, he smote the rock, that the waters gushed out, and the streams overflowed; can he give bread also? can he provide flesh for his people?
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It is true that he struck the rock, and water flowed out in a torrent; but can he also provide us with bread and give his people meat?"
21 Therefore the LORD heard this, and was wroth: so a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also came up against Israel;
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And so the Lord was angry when he heard them; he attacked his people with fire, and his anger against them grew,
22 Because they believed not in God, and trusted not in his salvation:
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because they had no faith in him and did not believe that he would save them.
23 Though he had commanded the clouds from above, and opened the doors of heaven,
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But he spoke to the sky above and commanded its doors to open;
24 And had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them of the corn of heaven.
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he gave them grain from heaven, by sending down manna for them to eat.
25 Man did eat angels' food: he sent them meat to the full.
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So they ate the food of angels, and God gave them all they wanted.
26 He caused an east wind to blow in the heaven: and by his power he brought in the south wind.
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He also caused the east wind to blow, and by his power he stirred up the south wind;
27 He rained flesh also upon them as dust, and feathered fowls like as the sand of the sea:
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and to his people he sent down birds, as many as the grains of sand on the shore;
28 And he let it fall in the midst of their camp, round about their habitations.
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they fell in the middle of the camp all around the tents.
29 So they did eat, and were well filled: for he gave them their own desire;
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So the people ate and were satisfied; God gave them what they wanted.
30 They were not estranged from their lust. But while their meat was yet in their mouths,
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But they had not yet satisfied their craving and were still eating,
31 The wrath of God came upon them, and slew the fattest of them, and smote down the chosen men of Israel.
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when God became angry with them and killed their strongest men, the best young men of Israel.
32 For all this they sinned still, and believed not for his wondrous works.
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In spite of all this the people kept sinning; in spite of his miracles they did not trust him.
33 Therefore their days did he consume in vanity, and their years in trouble.
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So he ended their days like a breath and their lives with sudden disaster.
34 When he slew them, then they sought him: and they returned and enquired early after God.
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Whenever he killed some of them, the rest would turn to him; they would repent and pray earnestly to him.
35 And they remembered that God was their rock, and the high God their redeemer.
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They remembered that God was their protector, that the Almighty came to their aid.
36 Nevertheless they did flatter him with their mouth, and they lied unto him with their tongues.
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But their words were all lies; nothing they said was sincere.
37 For their heart was not right with him, neither were they stedfast in his covenant.
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They were not loyal to him; they were not faithful to their covenant with him.
38 But he, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and destroyed them not: yea, many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his wrath.
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But God was merciful to his people. He forgave their sin and did not destroy them. Many times he held back his anger and restrained his fury.
39 For he remembered that they were but flesh; a wind that passeth away, and cometh not again.
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He remembered that they were only mortal beings, like a wind that blows by and is gone.
40 How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness, and grieve him in the desert!
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How often they rebelled against him in the desert; how many times they made him sad!
41 Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.
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Again and again they put God to the test and brought pain to the Holy God of Israel.
42 They remembered not his hand, nor the day when he delivered them from the enemy.
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They forgot his great power and the day when he saved them from their enemies
43 How he had wrought his signs in Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Zoan:
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and performed his mighty acts and miracles in the plain of Zoan in the land of Egypt.
44 And had turned their rivers into blood; and their floods, that they could not drink.
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He turned the rivers into blood, and the Egyptians had no water to drink.
45 He sent divers sorts of flies among them, which devoured them; and frogs, which destroyed them.
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He sent flies among them, that tormented them, and frogs that ruined their land.
46 He gave also their increase unto the caterpiller, and their labour unto the locust.
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He sent locusts to eat their crops and to destroy their fields.
47 He destroyed their vines with hail, and their sycomore trees with frost.
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He killed their grapevines with hail and their fig trees with frost.
48 He gave up their cattle also to the hail, and their flocks to hot thunderbolts.
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He killed their cattle with hail and their flocks with lightning.
49 He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and trouble, by sending evil angels among them.
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He caused them great distress by pouring out his anger and fierce rage, which came as messengers of death.
50 He made a way to his anger; he spared not their soul from death, but gave their life over to the pestilence;
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He did not restrain his anger or spare their lives, but killed them with a plague.
51 And smote all the firstborn in Egypt; the chief of their strength in the tabernacles of Ham:
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He killed the first-born sons of all the families of Egypt.
52 But made his own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.
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Then he led his people out like a shepherd and guided them through the desert.
53 And he led them on safely, so that they feared not: but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.
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He led them safely, and they were not afraid; but the sea came rolling over their enemies.
54 And he brought them to the border of his sanctuary, even to this mountain, which his right hand had purchased.
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He brought them to his holy land, to the mountains which he himself conquered.
55 He cast out the heathen also before them, and divided them an inheritance by line, and made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents.
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He drove out the inhabitants as his people advanced; he divided their land among the tribes of Israel and gave their homes to his people.
56 Yet they tempted and provoked the most high God, and kept not his testimonies:
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But they rebelled against Almighty God and put him to the test. They did not obey his commandments,
57 But turned back, and dealt unfaithfully like their fathers: they were turned aside like a deceitful bow.
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but were rebellious and disloyal like their ancestors, unreliable as a crooked arrow.
58 For they provoked him to anger with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their graven images.
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They angered him with their heathen places of worship, and with their idols they made him furious.
59 When God heard this, he was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel:
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God was angry when he saw it, so he rejected his people completely.
60 So that he forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent which he placed among men;
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He abandoned his tent in Shiloh, the home where he had lived among us.
61 And delivered his strength into captivity, and his glory into the enemy's hand.
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He allowed our enemies to capture the Covenant Box, the symbol of his power and glory.
62 He gave his people over also unto the sword; and was wroth with his inheritance.
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He was angry with his own people and let them be killed by their enemies.
63 The fire consumed their young men; and their maidens were not given to marriage.
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Young men were killed in war, and young women had no one to marry.
64 Their priests fell by the sword; and their widows made no lamentation.
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Priests died by violence, and their widows were not allowed to mourn.
65 Then the Lord awaked as one out of sleep, and like a mighty man that shouteth by reason of wine.
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At last the Lord woke up as though from sleep; he was like a strong man excited by wine.
66 And he smote his enemies in the hinder parts: he put them to a perpetual reproach.
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He drove his enemies back in lasting and shameful defeat.
67 Moreover he refused the tabernacle of Joseph, and chose not the tribe of Ephraim:
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But he rejected the descendants of Joseph; he did not select the tribe of Ephraim.
68 But chose the tribe of Judah, the mount Zion which he loved.
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Instead he chose the tribe of Judah and Mount Zion, which he dearly loves.
69 And he built his sanctuary like high palaces, like the earth which he hath established for ever.
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There he built his Temple like his home in heaven; he made it firm like the earth itself, secure for all time.
70 He chose David also his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds:
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He chose his servant David; he took him from the pastures,
71 From following the ewes great with young he brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance.
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where he looked after his flocks, and he made him king of Israel, the shepherd of the people of God.
72 So he fed them according to the integrity of his heart; and guided them by the skilfulness of his hands.
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David took care of them with unselfish devotion and led them with skill.
The King James Version is in the public domain.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.