Psalms 78
1 An instruction. Of Asaph. Give ear, O my people, to my law; incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
A maskil of Asaph. My people, attend to my teaching: bend your ears to the words of my mouth,
2 I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter riddles from of old,
as I open my mouth in a poem on the riddling story of the past.
3 Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us:
What we have heard and known, and what our ancestors have told us,
4 We will not hide [them] from their sons, shewing forth to the generation to come the praises of Jehovah, and his strength, and his marvellous works which he hath done.
we will not hide from their children. We will tell to the next generation the praises and might of the Lord, and the wonders that 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;
He set up a testimony in Jacob, a law he appointed in Israel, which he commanded our ancestors to make known to their children,
6 That the generation to come might know [them], the children that should be born; that they might rise up and tell [them] to their children,
that the next generation should know it, that the children yet to be born should arise and tell their children;
7 And that they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but observe his commandments;
that in God they might put their confidence, and not forget God’s works; but that they might keep his commandments,
8 And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that prepared not their heart, and whose spirit was not stedfast with God.
and not be like their ancestors, a generation defiant and stubborn, a generation with heart unsteady, and spirit unfaithful towards God.
9 The sons of Ephraim, armed bowmen, turned back in the day of battle.
Ephraimites, armed bowmen, turned back in the day of battle.
10 They kept not the covenant of God, and refused to walk in his law;
They did not keep God’s covenant, they refused to walk in his law.
11 And forgot his doings, and his marvellous works which he had shewn them.
They forgot what he had done, and the wonders he had shown them.
12 In the sight of their fathers had he done wonders, in the land of Egypt, the field of Zoan.
He did wonders before their ancestors in the country of Zoan in Egypt.
13 He clave the sea, and caused them to pass through; and made the waters to stand as a heap;
Through the sea which he split he brought them, making waters stand up like a heap;
14 And he led them with a cloud in the daytime, and all the night with the light of fire.
he led them by day with a cloud, all the night with a light of fire.
15 He clave rocks in the wilderness, and gave [them] drink as out of the depths, abundantly;
From the rocks which he split in the wilderness, he gave them to drink as of ocean’s abundance.
16 And he brought streams out of the rock, and caused waters to run down like rivers.
He brought streams out of the rock, and made water run down like rivers.
17 Yet they still went on sinning against him, provoking the Most High in the desert;
Yet they still went on sinning against him, they defied the Most High in the desert.
18 And they tempted God in their heart, by asking meat for their lust;
They wilfully challenged God, demanding the food that they longed for.
19 And they spoke against God: they said, Is God able to prepare a table in the wilderness?
‘Is God able,’ such was their challenge, ‘to spread in the desert a table?
20 Behold, he smote the rock, and waters gushed out, and streams overflowed; is he able to give bread also, or provide flesh for his people?
From the rock that he struck there gushed water, and torrents that overflowed; but can he also give bread, or provide his people with meat?’
21 Therefore Jehovah heard, and was wroth; and fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also went up against Israel:
When the Lord heard this, he was furious, and fire was kindled on Jacob, anger flared up against Israel.
22 Because they believed not in God, and confided not in his salvation;
For they put no trust in God, no confidence in his help.
23 Though he had commanded the clouds from above, and had opened the doors of the heavens,
So he summoned the clouds above; and, opening the doors of heaven,
24 And had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them the corn of the heavens.
he rained manna upon them for food, and grain of heaven he gave them.
25 Man did eat the bread of the mighty; he sent them provision to the full.
Everyone ate the bread of angels; he sent them food to the full.
26 He caused the east wind to rise in the heavens, and by his strength he brought the south wind;
He launched the east wind in the heavens, and guided the south by his power.
27 And he rained flesh upon them as dust, and feathered fowl as the sand of the seas,
He rained meat upon them like dust, winged bird like the sand of the sea.
28 And he let it fall in the midst of their camp, round about their habitations:
In the midst of their camp he dropped it, all around their tents.
29 And they did eat, and were well filled; for that they lusted after, he brought to them.
They ate and were more than filled; he had brought them the thing they desired.
30 They were not alienated from their lust, their meat was yet in their mouths,
But the thing they desired became loathsome: while their food was still in their mouths,
31 When the anger of God went up against them; and he slew the fattest of them, and smote down the chosen men of Israel.
the wrath of God rose against them. He slew the stoutest among them, and laid low the young men of Israel.
32 For all this, they sinned still, and believed not in his marvellous works;
Yet for all this they sinned yet more, and refused to believe in his wonders.
33 And he consumed their days in vanity, and their years in terror.
So he ended their days in a breath, and their years in sudden dismay.
34 When he slew them, then they sought him, and returned and sought early after God;
When he slew them, then they sought after him, they turned and sought God with diligence.
35 And they remembered that God was their rock, and God, the Most High, their redeemer.
They remembered that God was their rock, and the Most High God their redeemer.
36 But they flattered him with their mouth, and lied unto him with their tongue;
But they flattered him with their mouth, and lied to him with their tongue.
37 For their heart was not firm toward him, neither were they stedfast in his covenant.
Their heart was not steady with him, they were faithless to his covenant.
38 But he was merciful: he forgave the iniquity, and destroyed [them] not; but many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his fury:
But he is full of pity: he pardons sin and destroys not. Often he turns his anger away, without stirring his wrath at all.
39 And he remembered that they were flesh, a breath that passeth away and cometh not again.
So he remembered that they were but flesh, breath that passes and does not return.
40 How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness, and grieve him in the desert!
But how often they rebelled in the desert, and caused him grief in the wilderness,
41 And they turned again and tempted God, and grieved the Holy One of Israel.
tempting God again and again, provoking the Holy One of Israel.
42 They remembered not his hand, the day when he delivered them from the oppressor,
They did not remember his strength, nor the day he redeemed from the foe,
43 How he set his signs in Egypt, and his miracles in the field of Zoan;
how he set his signs in Egypt, in the country of Zoan his wonders.
44 And turned their rivers into blood, and their streams, that they could not drink;
He turned their canals into blood, their streams undrinkable.
45 He sent dog-flies among them, which devoured them, and frogs, which destroyed them;
He sent forth flies, which devoured them; frogs, too, which destroyed them.
46 And he gave their increase unto the caterpillar, and their labour unto the locust;
Their crops he gave to the caterpillar, and the fruits of their toil to the locust.
47 He killed their vines with hail, and their sycamore trees with hail-stones;
He slew their vines with hail, and their sycamore trees with frost.
48 And he delivered up their cattle to the hail, and their flocks to thunderbolts.
He delivered their cattle to the hail, and their flocks to bolts of fire.
49 He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and distress, — a mission of angels of woes.
He let loose his hot anger among them, fury and wrath and distress, a band of destroying angels.
50 He made a way for his anger; he spared not their soul from death, but gave their life over to the pestilence;
He cleared a path for his anger, did not spare them from death, but gave them over to pestilence.
51 And he smote all the firstborn in Egypt, the first-fruits of their vigour in the tents of Ham.
He struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, the first fruits of their strength in the tents of Ham.
52 And he made his own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock;
He led forth his people like sheep, he was guide to his flock in the desert.
53 And he led them safely, so that they were without fear; and the sea covered their enemies.
Securely he led them, and free from fear, while their foes were drowned in the sea.
54 And he brought them to his holy border, this mountain, which his right hand purchased;
To his holy realm he brought them, to the mountain his right hand had purchased.
55 And he drove out the nations before them, and allotted them for an inheritance by line, and made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents.
He drove out the nations before them, and allotted their land for possession, and their tents for Israel to live in.
56 But they tempted and provoked God, the Most High, and kept not his testimonies,
Yet they tempted and angered the Most High God, they did not observe his decrees.
57 And they drew back and dealt treacherously like their fathers: they turned like a deceitful bow.
They drew back, false like their ancestors; they failed like a treacherous bow.
58 And they provoked him to anger with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their graven images.
Their shrines stirred him to anger, their idols moved him to jealousy.
59 God heard, and was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel:
When God heard of this, he was furious, and he spurned Israel utterly.
60 And he forsook the tabernacle at Shiloh, the tent where he had dwelt among men,
He abandoned his home in Shiloh, the tent he had pitched among people.
61 And gave his strength into captivity, and his glory into the hand of the oppressor;
He gave his strength up to captivity, his glory to the hands of the foe.
62 And delivered up his people unto the sword, and was very wroth with his inheritance:
He gave his people to the sword, he was furious with his own.
63 The fire consumed their young men, and their maidens were not praised in [nuptial] song;
Fire devoured their young men, and their maidens had no marriage-song.
64 Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows made no lamentation.
Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows could not weep.
65 Then the Lord awoke as one out of sleep, like a mighty man that shouteth aloud by reason of wine;
Then the Lord awoke as from sleep, like a warrior flushed with wine;
66 And he smote his adversaries in the hinder part, and put them to everlasting reproach.
and he beat back his foes, putting them to perpetual scorn.
67 And he rejected the tent of Joseph, and chose not the tribe of Ephraim,
He disowned the tent of Joseph, he rejected the tribe of Ephraim;
68 But chose the tribe of Judah, the mount Zion which he loved;
but he chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion, which he loves.
69 And he built his sanctuary like the heights, like the earth which he hath founded for ever.
And he built like the heights his sanctuary, like the earth which he founded forever.
70 And he chose David his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds:
And he chose David his servant, taking him from the sheepfolds.
71 From following the suckling-ewes, he brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance.
From the mother-ewes he brought him, to be shepherd to Jacob his people, and to Israel his inheritance.
72 And he fed them according to the integrity of his heart, and led them by the skilfulness of his hands.
With upright heart did he shepherd them, and with skilful hands did he guide them.
