Psalm 44

Come to Our Help

To the choirmaster. A Maskil of the Sons of Korah.

1  O God, we have heard with our ears,
our fathers have told us,
what deeds you performed in their days,
in the days of old:
2  you with your own hand drove out the nations,
but them you planted;
you afflicted the peoples,
but them you set free;
3  for not by their own sword did they win the land,
nor did their own arm save them,
but your right hand and your arm,
and the light of your face,
for you delighted in them.

4  You are my King, O God;
ordain salvation for Jacob!
5  Through you we push down our foes;
through your name we tread down those who rise up against us.
6  For not in my bow do I trust,
nor can my sword save me.
7  But you have saved us from our foes
and have put to shame those who hate us.
8  In God we have boasted continually,
and we will give thanks to your name forever. Selah

9  But you have rejected us and disgraced us
and have not gone out with our armies.
10  You have made us turn back from the foe,
and those who hate us have gotten spoil.
11  You have made us like sheep for slaughter
and have scattered us among the nations.
12  You have sold your people for a trifle,
demanding no high price for them.
13  You have made us the taunt of our neighbors,
the derision and scorn of those around us.
14  You have made us a byword among the nations,
a laughingstockt among the peoples.
15  All day long my disgrace is before me,
and shame has covered my face
16  at the sound of the taunter and reviler,
at the sight of the enemy and the avenger.

17  All this has come upon us,
though we have not forgotten you,
and we have not been false to your covenant.
18  Our heart has not turned back,
nor have our steps departed from your way;
19  yet you have broken us in the place of jackals
and covered us with the shadow of death.
20  If we had forgotten the name of our God
or spread out our hands to a foreign god,
21  would not God discover this?
For he knows the secrets of the heart.
22  Yet for your sake we are killed all the day long;
we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.

23  Awake! Why are you sleeping, O Lord?
Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever!
24  Why do you hide your face?
Why do you forget our affliction and oppression?
25  For our soul is bowed down to the dust;
our belly clings to the ground.
26  Rise up; come to our help!
Redeem us for the sake of your steadfast love!

Psalm 45

Your Throne, O God, Is Forever

To the choirmaster: according to Lilies. A Maskil of the Sons of Korah; a love song.

1  My heart overflows with a pleasing theme;
I address my verses to the king;
my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.

2  You are the most handsome of the sons of men;
grace is poured upon your lips;
therefore God has blessed you forever.
3  Gird your sword on your thigh, O mighty one,
in your splendor and majesty!

4  In your majesty ride out victoriously
for the cause of truth and meekness and righteousness;
let your right hand teach you awesome deeds!
5  Your arrows are sharp
in the heart of the king's enemies;
the peoples fall under you.

6  Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.
The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of uprightness;
7  you have loved righteousness and hated wickedness.
Therefore God, your God, has anointed you
with the oil of gladness beyond your companions;
8  your robes are all fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia.
From ivory palaces stringed instruments make you glad;
9  daughters of kings are among your ladies of honor;
at your right hand stands the queen in gold of Ophir.

10  Hear, O daughter, and consider, and incline your ear:
forget your people and your father's house,
11  and the king will desire your beauty.
Since he is your lord, bow to him.
12  The peoplet of Tyre will seek your favor with gifts,
the richest of the people.t

13  All glorious is the princess in her chamber, with robes interwoven with gold.
14  In many-colored robes she is led to the king,
with her virgin companions following behind her.
15  With joy and gladness they are led along
as they enter the palace of the king.

16  In place of your fathers shall be your sons;
you will make them princes in all the earth.
17  I will cause your name to be remembered in all generations;
therefore nations will praise you forever and ever.

Psalm 46

God Is Our Fortress

To the choirmaster. Of the Sons of Korah. According to Alamoth. A Song.

1  God is our refuge and strength,
a very presentt help in trouble.
2  Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way,
though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,
3  though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah

4  There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy habitation of the Most High.
5  God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved;
God will help her when morning dawns.
6  The nations rage, the kingdoms totter;
he utters his voice, the earth melts.
7  The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

8  Come, behold the works of the Lord,
how he has brought desolations on the earth.
9  He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;
he breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
he burns the chariots with fire.
10  "Be still, and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!"
11  The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah