Psalm 44

1 We have heard with our ears, O God, Our fathers have told us,

Redemption Remembered in Present DishonorTo the Chief Musician. A Contemplation Of the Sons of Korah. The deeds You did in their days, In days of old:

2 You drove out the nations with Your hand, But them You planted; You afflicted the peoples, and cast them out.3 For they did not gain possession of the land by their own sword, Nor did their own arm save them; But it was Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your countenance, Because You favored them.4 You are my King, O God; Command victories for Jacob.5 Through You we will push down our enemies; Through Your name we will trample those who rise up against us.6 For I will not trust in my bow, Nor shall my sword save me.7 But You have saved us from our enemies, And have put to shame those who hated us.8 In God we boast all day long, And praise Your name forever. Selah9 But You have cast us off and put us to shame, And You do not go out with our armies.10 You make us turn back from the enemy, And those who hate us have taken spoil for themselves.11 You have given us up like sheep intended for food, And have scattered us among the nations.12 You sell Your people for next to nothing, And are not enriched by selling them.13 You make us a reproach to our neighbors, A scorn and a derision to those all around us.14 You make us a byword among the nations, A shaking of the head among the peoples.15 My dishonor is continually before me, And the shame of my face has covered me,16 Because of the voice of him who reproaches and reviles, Because of the enemy and the avenger.17 All this has come upon us; But we have not forgotten You, Nor have we dealt falsely with Your covenant.18 Our heart has not turned back, Nor have our steps departed from Your way;19 But You have severely 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 stretched out our hands to a foreign god,21 Would not God search this out? For He knows the secrets of the heart.22 Yet for Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.23 Awake! Why do You sleep, O Lord? Arise! Do not cast us off forever.24 Why do You hide Your face, And forget our affliction and our oppression?25 For our soul is bowed down to the dust; Our body clings to the ground.26 Arise for our help, And redeem us for Your mercies sake.

PSALMS 44

A Prayer for Help

1 Our God, our ancestors told us
what wonders you worked
and we listened carefully.

2 You chased off the nations
by causing them trouble
with your powerful arm.
Then you let our ancestors
take over their land.

3 Their strength and weapons
were not what won the land
and gave them victory!
You loved them and fought
with your powerful arm
and your shining glory.

4 You are my God and King,
and you give victoryt
to the people of Jacob.

5 By your great power,
we knocked our enemies down
and trampled on them.

6 I don't depend on my arrows
or my sword to save me.

7 But you saved us
from our hateful enemies,
and you put them to shame.

8 We boast about you, our God,
and we are always grateful.

9 But now you have rejected us;
you don't lead us into battle,
and we look foolish.

10 You made us retreat,
and our enemies have taken
everything we own.

11 You let us be slaughtered
like sheep,
and you scattered us
among the nations.

12 You sold your people
for little or nothing,
and you earned no profit.

13 You made us look foolish
to our neighbors;
people who live nearby
insult us and sneer.

14 Foreigners joke about us
and shake their heads.

15 I am embarrassed every day,
and I blush with shame.

16 But others mock and sneer,
as they watch my enemies
take revenge on me.

17 All this happened to us,
though we didn't forget you
or break our agreement.

18 We always kept you in mind
and followed your teaching.

19 But you crushed us,
and you covered us
with deepest darkness
where wild animals live.

20 We did not forget you
or lift our hands in prayer
to foreign gods.

21 You would have known it
because you discover
every secret thought.

22  t We face death all day for you.
We are like sheep on their way
to be slaughtered.

23 Wake up! Do something, Lord!
Why are you sleeping?
Don't desert us forever.

24 Why do you keep looking away?
Don't forget our sufferings
and all our troubles.

25 We are flat on the ground,
holding on to the dust.

26 Do something! Help us!
Show how kind you are
and come to our rescue.