New King James Version

International Standard Version

1A Contemplation of Asaph. Give ear, O my people, to my law; Incline your ears to the words of my mouth.

1Listen, my people, to my instruction. Hear the words of my mouth.

2I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings of old,

2I will tell a parable, speaking riddles from long ago—

3Which we have heard and known, And our fathers have told us.

3things that we have heard and known and that our ancestors related to us.

4We will not hide them from their children, Telling to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, And His strength and His wonderful works that He has done.

4We will not withhold them from their descendants; we'll declare to the next generation the praises of the LORD— his might and awesome deeds that he has performed.

5For 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;

5He established a decree in Jacob, and established the Law in Israel, that he commanded our ancestors to reveal to their children

6That the generation to come might know them, The children who would be born, That they may arise and declare them to their children,

6in order that the next generation— children yet to be born— will know them and in turn teach them to their children.

7That they may set their hope in God, And not forget the works of God, But keep His commandments;

7Then they will put their trust in God and they will not forget his awesome deeds. Instead, they will keep his commandments.

8And may not be like their fathers, A stubborn and rebellious generation, A generation that did not set its heart aright, And whose spirit was not faithful to God.

8They will not be like the rebellious generation of their ancestors, a rebellious generation, whose heart was not steadfast, and whose spirits were unfaithful to God.

9The children of Ephraim, being armed and carrying bows, Turned back in the day of battle.

9The descendants of Ephraim were sharp shooters with the bow, but they retreated in the day of battle.

10They did not keep the covenant of God; They refused to walk in His law,

10They did not keep God's covenant, and refused to live by his Law.

11And forgot His works And His wonders that He had shown them.

11They have forgotten what he has done, his awesome deeds that they witnessed.

12Marvelous things He did in the sight of their fathers, In the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.

12He performed marvelous things in the presence of their ancestors in the land of Egypt— in the fields of Zoan.

13He divided the sea and caused them to pass through; And He made the waters stand up like a heap.

13He divided the sea so that they were able to cross; he caused the water to stand in a single location.

14In the daytime also He led them with the cloud, And all the night with a light of fire.

14He led them with a cloud during the day, and during the night with light from the fire.

15He split the rocks in the wilderness, And gave them drink in abundance like the depths.

15He caused the rocks to split in the wilderness, and gave them water as from an abundant sea.

16He also brought streams out of the rock, And caused waters to run down like rivers.

16He brought streams from rock, causing water to flow like a river.

17But they sinned even more against Him By rebelling against the Most High in the wilderness.

17But time and again, they sinned against him, rebelling against the Most High in the desert.

18And they tested God in their heart By asking for the food of their fancy.

18To test God was in their minds, when they demanded food to satisfy their cravings.

19Yes, they spoke against God: They said, “Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?

19They spoke against God by asking, "Is God able to prepare a feast in the desert?

20Behold, He struck the rock, So that the waters gushed out, And the streams overflowed. Can He give bread also? Can He provide meat for His people?”

20It's true that Moses struck the rock so that water flowed forth and torrents of water gushed out, but is he also able to give bread or to supply meat for his people?"

21Therefore the LORD heard this and was furious; So a fire was kindled against Jacob, And anger also came up against Israel,

21Therefore, when the LORD heard this, he was angry, and fire broke out against Jacob. Moreover, his anger flared against Israel,

22Because they did not believe in God, And did not trust in His salvation.

22because they didn't believe in God and didn't trust in his deliverance.

23Yet He had commanded the clouds above, And opened the doors of heaven,

23Yet he commanded the skies above and the doors of the heavens to open,

24Had rained down manna on them to eat, And given them of the bread of heaven.

24so that manna rained down on them for food and he sent them the grain of heaven.

25Men ate angels’ food; He sent them food to the full.

25Mortal men ate the food of angels; he sent provision to them in abundance.

26He caused an east wind to blow in the heavens; And by His power He brought in the south wind.

26He stirred up the east wind in the heavens and drove the south wind by his might.

27He also rained meat on them like the dust, Feathered fowl like the sand of the seas;

27He caused meat to rain on them like dust and winged birds as the sand of the sea.

28And He let them fall in the midst of their camp, All around their dwellings.

28He caused these to fall in the middle of the camp and all around their tents.

29So they ate and were well filled, For He gave them their own desire.

29So they ate and were very satisfied, because he granted their desire.

30They were not deprived of their craving; But while their food was still in their mouths,

30However, before they had fulfilled their desire, while their food was still in their mouths,

31The wrath of God came against them, And slew the stoutest of them, And struck down the choice men of Israel.

31the anger of God flared against them, and he killed the strongest men and humbled Israel's young men.

32In spite of this they still sinned, And did not believe in His wondrous works.

32In spite of all of this, they kept on sinning and didn't believe in his marvelous deeds.

33Therefore their days He consumed in futility, And their years in fear.

33So he made their days end in futility, and their years with sudden terror.

34When He slew them, then they sought Him; And they returned and sought earnestly for God.

34When he struck them, they sought him; they repented, and eagerly sought God.

35Then they remembered that God was their rock, And the Most High God their Redeemer.

35Then they remembered that God was their rock, and the Most High God was their deliverer.

36Nevertheless they flattered Him with their mouth, And they lied to Him with their tongue;

36But they deceived him with their mouths; they lied to him with their tongues.

37For their heart was not steadfast with Him, Nor were they faithful in His covenant.

37For their hearts weren't committed to him, and they weren't faithful to his covenant.

38But He, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, And did not destroy them. Yes, many a time He turned His anger away, And did not stir up all His wrath;

38But he, being merciful, forgave their iniquity and didn't destroy them; He restrained his anger and didn't vent all his wrath.

39For He remembered that they were but flesh, A breath that passes away and does not come again.

39For he remembered that they were only flesh, a passing wind that doesn't return.

40How often they provoked Him in the wilderness, And grieved Him in the desert!

40How they rebelled against him in the desert, grieving him in the wilderness!

41Yes, again and again they tempted God, And limited the Holy One of Israel.

41They tested God again and again, provoking the Holy One of Israel.

42They did not remember His power: The day when He redeemed them from the enemy,

42They did not remember his power— the day he delivered them from their adversary,

43When He worked His signs in Egypt, And His wonders in the field of Zoan;

43when he set his signs in Egypt and his wonders in the plain of Zoan.

44Turned their rivers into blood, And their streams, that they could not drink.

44He turned their rivers into blood and made their streams undrinkable.

45He sent swarms of flies among them, which devoured them, And frogs, which destroyed them.

45He sent swarms of insects to bite them and frogs to destroy them.

46He also gave their crops to the caterpillar, And their labor to the locust.

46He gave their crops to caterpillars and what they worked for to locusts.

47He destroyed their vines with hail, And their sycamore trees with frost.

47He destroyed their vines with hail and their sycamore trees with frost.

48He also gave up their cattle to the hail, And their flocks to fiery lightning.

48He delivered their beasts to hail and their livestock to lightning bolts.

49He cast on them the fierceness of His anger, Wrath, indignation, and trouble, By sending angels of destruction among them.

49He inflicted his burning anger, wrath, indignation, and distress, sending destroying angels among them.

50He made a path for His anger; He did not spare their soul from death, But gave their life over to the plague,

50He blazed a path for his anger; he did not stop short from killing them, but handed them over to pestilence.

51And destroyed all the firstborn in Egypt, The first of their strength in the tents of Ham.

51He struck every firstborn in Egypt, the first fruits of their manhood in the tents of Ham.

52But He made His own people go forth like sheep, And guided them in the wilderness like a flock;

52Yet he led out his people like sheep, guiding them like a flock in the desert.

53And He led them on safely, so that they did not fear; But the sea overwhelmed their enemies.

53He led them to safety so they would not fear. As for their enemies, the sea covered them.

54And He brought them to His holy border, This mountain which His right hand had acquired.

54He brought the people to the border of his holy mountain, which he acquired by his might.

55He also drove out the nations before them, Allotted them an inheritance by survey, And made the tribes of Israel dwell in their tents.

55He drove out nations before them and allotted their tribal inheritance, settling the tribes of Israel in their tents.

56Yet they tested and provoked the Most High God, And did not keep His testimonies,

56But they tested the Most High God by rebelling against him, and they did not obey his statutes.

57But turned back and acted unfaithfully like their fathers; They were turned aside like a deceitful bow.

57They fell away and were as disloyal as their ancestors. They became unreliable, like a defective bow;

58For they provoked Him to anger with their high places, And moved Him to jealousy with their carved images.

58they angered him with their high places and with their carved images they made him jealous.

59When God heard this, He was furious, And greatly abhorred Israel,

59God heard and became furious, and he completely rejected Israel.

60So that He forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, The tent He had placed among men,

60He abandoned the tent at Shiloh, the tent that he established among mankind.

61And delivered His strength into captivity, And His glory into the enemy’s hand.

61Then he sent his might into captivity and his glory into the control of the adversary.

62He also gave His people over to the sword, And was furious with His inheritance.

62He delivered his people over to the sword and was angry with his possession.

63The fire consumed their young men, And their maidens were not given in marriage.

63The young men were consumed by fire, and the virgins had no marriage celebrations.

64Their priests fell by the sword, And their widows made no lamentation.

64The priests fell by the sword, yet their widows couldn't weep.

65Then the Lord awoke as from sleep, Like a mighty man who shouts because of wine.

65The LORD awoke as though from sleep, like a mighty warrior stimulated by wine.

66And He beat back His enemies; He put them to a perpetual reproach.

66He beat back his adversaries, permanently disgracing them.

67Moreover He rejected the tent of Joseph, And did not choose the tribe of Ephraim,

67He rejected the clan of Joseph; and the tribe of Ephraim he did not choose.

68But chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion which He loved.

68But he chose the tribe of Judah, the mountain of Zion, which he loves.

69And He built His sanctuary like the heights, Like the earth which He has established forever.

69He built his sanctuary, high as the heavens, like the earth that he established forever.

70He also chose David His servant, And took him from the sheepfolds;

70Then he chose his servant David, whom he took from the sheepfold.

71From following the ewes that had young He brought him, To shepherd Jacob His people, And Israel His inheritance.

71He brought him from birthing sheep to care for Jacob, his people, Israel, his possession.

72So he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart, And guided them by the skillfulness of his hands.

72David shepherded them with a devoted heart, and led them with skillful hands.

The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.

The Holy Bible: International Standard Version® Release 2.1 Copyright © 1996-2012 The ISV Foundation ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY.