Psalms 78

1 Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth.

An Instructive Psalm. Asaph’s. Give ear, O my people, to mine instruction, Bend your ear to the sayings of my mouth;

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

I will open, in a parable, my mouth, I will pour forth enigmas out of antiquity; —

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

Which we have heard, and come to know, And, our fathers, have recounted to us;

4 We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of YHWH, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done.

We will not withhold [them] from their children, To a later generation, recounting the praises of Yahweh, Even his might and his wonders which he wrought;

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:

When he set up a testimony in Jacob, And, a law, appointed in Israel, —Which he commanded our fathers, That they might make them known to their children;

6 That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children:

To the end, A later generation, might come to know, Children who should be born, Who should arise, and recount [them] to their children;

7 That they might set their hope in Elohim, and not forget the works of El, but keep his commandments:

That they might set, in Elohim, their confidence, —And not forget the doings of El, But, his commandments, might observe;

8 And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation; a generation that set not their heart aright, and whose spirit was not stedfast with El.

And not become, like their fathers, a generation stubborn and rebellious, —A generation that fixed not their heart, Neither was their spirit, faithful with GOD.

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

The sons of Ephraim—armed bowmen, Turned in the day of battle;

10 They kept not the covenant of Elohim, and refused to walk in his law;

They kept not the covenant of God, And, in his law, refused to walk;

11 And forgat his works, and his wonders that he had shewed them.

And forgat His doings, And his wonders which he had showed them:

12 Marvellous things did he in the sight of their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.

In presence of their fathers, wrought he, wondrously, —In the land of Egypt—the field of Zoan:

13 He divided the sea, and caused them to pass through; and he made the waters to stand as an heap.

He clave the sea, and caused them to pass through, And reared up the waters like a mound;

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

And led them, by a cloud, in the daytime, And all the night, by a light of fire;

15 He clave the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of the great depths.

He used to cleave rocks in the desert, And let them drink as out of mighty deeps;

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

And he brought forth streams out of the cliff, And caused waters to flow down, like rivers.

17 And they sinned yet more against him by provoking the most High in the wilderness.

But again, once more sinned they against him, Resisting the Most High in a land of drought:

18 And they tempted El in their heart by asking meat for their lust.

They put GOD to the proof in their heart, By asking food to their mind:

19 Yea, they spake against Elohim; they said, Can El furnish a table in the wilderness?

Yea they spake against Elohim, —They said, Can GOD prepare a table in the desert?

20 Behold, he smote the rock, that the waters gushed out, and the streams overflowed; can he give bread also? can he provide flesh for his people?

Lo! he hath smitten a rock, And waters, have gushed out, Yea, torrents, have rushed along, —Food also, can he give? Or provide flesh for his people?

21 Therefore YHWH heard this, and was wroth: so a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also came up against Israel;

Therefore, Yahweh hearkened, and became wroth, —And, a fire, was kindled against Jacob, Moreover also, anger, mounted against Israel;

22 Because they believed not in Elohim, and trusted not in his salvation:

Because, They believed not in God, Nor trusted in his salvation;

23 Though he had commanded the clouds from above, and opened the doors of heaven,

Though he had commanded the skies above, And, the doors of the heavens, had opened;

24 And had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them of the corn of heaven.

And had rained on them manna to eat, And, the corn of the heavens, had given to them:

25 Man did eat angels' food: he sent them meat to the full.

The food of the mighty, each one did eat, Nourishment, sent he them to the full;

26 He caused an east wind to blow in the heaven: and by his power he brought in the south wind.

He let loose an east wind in the heavens, Then guided he, in his might, a south wind;

27 He rained flesh also upon them as dust, and feathered fowls like as the sand of the sea:

And rained upon them flesh as the dust, And, like the sand of the seas, birds of wing;

28 And he let it fall in the midst of their camp, round about their habitations.

And let them fall in the midst of their camp, —Round about their habitations.

29 So they did eat, and were well filled: for he gave them their own desire;

So they did eat and were abundantly filled, When, what they longed for, he had brought them: —

30 They were not estranged from their lust. But while their meat was yet in their mouths,

They had not turned away from what they had longed for, Yet was their food in their mouth,

31 The wrath of Elohim came upon them, and slew the fattest of them, and smote down the chosen men of Israel.

When, the anger of God, mounted against them, And he slew of their vigorous youths, And, the choice young men of Israel, caused he to bow down in death.

32 For all this they sinned still, and believed not for his wondrous works.

For all this, sinned they still, And believed not in his wonders;

33 Therefore their days did he consume in vanity, and their years in trouble.

So he ended, in a breath, their days, And their years, in a sudden terror!

34 When he slew them, then they sought him: and they returned and inquired early after El.

If he slew [of] them, then they sought him, Yea they turned, and did earnestly seek GOD;

35 And they remembered that Elohim was their rock, and El Elyon their redeemer.

And remembered that, Elohim, was their rock, Yea, EL Most High, their Redeemer:

36 Nevertheless they did flatter him with their mouth, and they lied unto him with their tongues.

So they spake him fair with their mouth, And, with their tongue, did promise him falsely;

37 For their heart was not right with him, neither were they stedfast in his covenant.

But, their heart, was not fixed with him, Nor were they trusty in his covenant:

38 But he, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and destroyed them not: yea, many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his wrath.

Yet, he, full of compassion, would put a propitiatory-covering over iniquity, and not destroy, —Yea, many a time, turned he back his anger, And would not stir up all his wrath.

39 For he remembered that they were but flesh; a wind that passeth away, and cometh not again.

So then he remembered, That, Flesh, they were, A Wind departing, that returneth not.

40 How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness, and grieve him in the desert!

How often they, Resisted him in the desert, Vexed him, in the waste:

41 Yea, they turned back and tempted El, and limited the Holy One of Israel.

Yea they again put GOD to the test, And, to the Holy One of Israel, caused they sorrow:

42 They remembered not his hand, nor the day when he delivered them from the enemy.

They remembered not his hand—The day, When he ransomed them from the adversary;

43 How he had wrought his signs in Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Zoan:

When he set, in Egypt, his signs, And his wonders, in the plain of Zoan;

44 And had turned their rivers into blood; and their floods, that they could not drink.

When he turned, into blood, their Nile-streams, And, their own rivers, could they not drink;

45 He sent divers sorts of flies among them, which devoured them; and frogs, which destroyed them.

He sent among them, The gad-fly, and it devoured them, And the frog, and it despoiled them;

46 He gave also their increase unto the caterpiller, and their labour unto the locust.

When he gave to the corn-locust their produce, And their toil, to the swarming locust;

47 He destroyed their vines with hail, and their sycomore trees with frost.

He killed, with hail, their vine, And their sycomores, with frost:

48 He gave up their cattle also to the hail, and their flocks to hot thunderbolts.

When he gave up, to hail-storms, their beasts, And their cattle, to pestilent fevers;

49 He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and trouble, by sending evil angels among them.

He sent among them the heat of his anger, Wrath and indignation and distress, —A mission of messengers of misfortune:

50 He made a way to his anger; he spared not their soul from death, but gave their life over to the pestilence;

He leveled a path for his anger, Withheld not, from death, their soul, But, their life—to the pestilence, he delivered:

51 And smote all the firstborn in Egypt; the chief of their strength in the tabernacles of Ham:

So he smote, Every first-born in Egypt, The beginning of their strength, in the tents of Ham;

52 But made his own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.

And he set forth, like sheep, his people, And guided them, like a flock in the desert;

53 And he led them on safely, so that they feared not: but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.

Yea he led them securely, and they dreaded not, And, their enemies, the sea did cover.

54 And he brought them to the border of his sanctuary, even to this mountain, which his right hand had purchased.

Then brought he them within his own holy bounds, The mountain-range, which his right hand made his own:

55 He cast out the heathen also before them, and divided them an inheritance by line, and made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents.

So he drave out, before them, [whole] nations, And allotted them, by line, an inheritance, And caused to dwell, in their own homes, the tribes of Israel.

56 Yet they tempted and provoked the most high Elohim, and kept not his testimonies:

But they tested and resisted God Most High, And, his testimonies, did not observe;

57 But turned back, and dealt unfaithfully like their fathers: they were turned aside like a deceitful bow.

But drew back and dealt treacherously, like their fathers, They turned aside, like deceitful bowmen;

58 For they provoked him to anger with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their graven images.

And provoked him to anger with their high places, And, with their images, used to move him to jealousy.

59 When Elohim heard this, he was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel:

God heard and was wroth, And greatly abhorred Israel;

60 So that he forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent which he placed among men;

So he gave up the habitation of Shiloh, The tent he had set up among Men;

61 And delivered his strength into captivity, and his glory into the enemy's hand.

Yea he gave up, into captivity, his strength, And his beauty into the hand of an adversary;

62 He gave his people over also unto the sword; and was wroth with his inheritance.

And delivered up, to the sword, his people, And, with his own inheritance, was he wroth;

63 The fire consumed their young men; and their maidens were not given to marriage.

His young men, were devoured by fire, And, his virgins, were not praised in song;

64 Their priests fell by the sword; and their widows made no lameintation.

His priests, by the sword, did fall, And, his widows, were not able to bewail.

65 Then YHWH awaked as one out of sleep, and like a mighty man that shouteth by reason of wine.

Then awoke, as one that had slept, Adonay, As a warrior exulting with wine!

66 And he smote his enemies in the hinder parts: he put them to a perpetual reproach.

So he smote his adversaries in the rear, Reproach age-abiding, laid he upon them.

67 Moreover he refused the tabernacle of Joseph, and chose not the tribe of Ephraim:

Howbeit he rejected the tent of Joseph, And, the tribe of Ephraim, did not choose:

68 But chose the tribe of Judah, the mount Zion which he loved.

But made choice of the tribe of Judah, The mountain of Zion, which he loved;

69 And he built his sanctuary like high palaces, like the earth which he hath established for ever.

And built, like the heights, his sanctuary, Like the earth, he founded it to times age-abiding.

70 He chose David also his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds:

And made choice of David his servant, And took him from among the folds of the sheep:

71 From following the ewes great with young he brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance.

From after the sucking ewes, he brought him in, —To be shepherd to Jacob his people, And to Israel, his inheritance.

72 So he fed them according to the integrity of his heart; and guided them by the skilfulness of his hands.

So he did shepherd them, according to the singleness of his heart, And, with the discernment of his hands, used he to guide them.