Prayers, Songs, Praises: Psalm 74

Prayer for Israel

A Maskil of Asaph.

74:1 Why have you rejected us forever, God?

Why does your anger burn
against the sheep of your pasture?

2 Remember your congregation,

which you purchased long ago
and redeemed as the tribe for your own possession.
Remember Mount Zion where you dwell.

3 Make your way to the perpetual ruins,

to all that the enemy has destroyed in the sanctuary.

4 Your adversaries roared in the meeting place

where you met with us.
They set up their emblems as signs.

5 It was like men in a thicket of trees,

wielding axes,

6 then smashing all the carvings

with hatchets and picks.

7 They set your sanctuary on fire;

they utterly desecrated

the dwelling place of your name.

8 They said in their hearts,

“Let’s oppress them relentlessly.”

They burned every place throughout the land

where God met with us.

9 There are no signs for us to see.

There is no longer a prophet.

And none of us knows how long this will last.

10 God, how long will the enemy mock?

Will the foe insult your name forever?

11 Why do you hold back your hand?

Stretch out your right hand and destroy them!

12 God my King is from ancient times,

performing saving acts on the earth.

13 You divided the sea with your strength;

you smashed the heads of the sea monsters in the water;

14 you crushed the heads of Leviathan;

you fed him to the creatures of the desert.

15 You opened up springs and streams;

you dried up ever-flowing rivers.

16 The day is yours, also the night;

you established the moon and the sun.

17 You set all the boundaries of the earth;

you made summer and winter.

18 Remember this: the enemy has mocked the Lord,

and a foolish people has insulted your name.

19 Do not give to beasts the life of your dove;

do not forget the lives of your poor people forever.

20 Consider the covenant,

for the dark places of the land are full of violence.

21 Do not let the oppressed turn away in shame;

let the poor and needy praise your name.

22 Rise up, God, champion your cause!

Remember the insults

that fools bring against you all day long.

23 Do not forget the clamor of your adversaries,

the tumult of your opponents that goes up constantly.

CSB

Prayers, Songs, Praises: Psalm 73

God’s Ways Vindicated

A psalm of Asaph.

73:1 God is indeed good to Israel,

to the pure in heart.

2 But as for me, my feet almost slipped;

my steps nearly went astray.

3 For I envied the arrogant;

I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

4 They have an easy time until they die,

and their bodies are well fed.

5 They are not in trouble like others;

they are not afflicted like most people.

6 Therefore, pride is their necklace,

and violence covers them like a garment.

7 Their eyes bulge out from fatness;

the imaginations of their hearts run wild.

8 They mock, and they speak maliciously;

they arrogantly threaten oppression.

9 They set their mouths against heaven,

and their tongues strut across the earth.

10 Therefore his people turn to them

and drink in their overflowing words.

11 The wicked say, “How can God know?

Does the Most High know everything?”

12 Look at them—the wicked!

They are always at ease,

and they increase their wealth.

13 Did I purify my heart

and wash my hands in innocence for nothing?

14 For I am afflicted all day long

and punished every morning.

15 If I had decided to say these things aloud,

I would have betrayed your people.

16 When I tried to understand all this,

it seemed hopeless

17 until I entered God’s sanctuary.

Then I understood their destiny.

18 Indeed, you put them in slippery places;

you make them fall into ruin.

19 How suddenly they become a desolation!

They come to an end, swept away by terrors.

20 Like one waking from a dream,

Lord, when arising, you will despise their image.

21 When I became embittered

and my innermost being was wounded,

22 I was stupid and didn’t understand;

I was an unthinking animal toward you.

23 Yet I am always with you;

you hold my right hand.

24 You guide me with your counsel,

and afterward you will take me up in glory.

25 Who do I have in heaven but you?

And I desire nothing on earth but you.

26 My flesh and my heart may fail,

but God is the strength of my heart,

my portion forever.

27 Those far from you will certainly perish;

you destroy all who are unfaithful to you.

28 But as for me, God’s presence is my good.

I have made the Lord God my refuge,

so I can tell about all you do.

CSB