Psalms 78

1 A contemplation by Asaph. Hear my teaching, my people. Turn 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, telling to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, his strength, and his wondrous deeds that he has 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 covenant in Jacob, and appointed a teaching 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, even the children who should be born; who should arise and tell 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 God, and not forget God’s deeds, 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 didn’t make their hearts loyal, whose spirit was not steadfast with God.

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 didn’t keep God’s covenant, and refused to walk in his law.

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

11 They forgot his doings, his wondrous deeds that he had shown them.

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

12 He did marvellous things 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 split the sea, and caused them to pass through. He made the waters stand as a heap.

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

14 In the daytime he also led them with a cloud, and all 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 split rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink abundantly as out of the 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 Yet they still went on to sin against him, to rebel against the Most High in the desert.

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

18 They tempted God in their heart by asking food according to their desire.

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

19 Yes, they spoke against God. They said, “Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?

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

20 Behold, he struck the rock, so that waters gushed out, and streams overflowed. Can he give bread also? Will he provide meat 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 the LORD heard, and was angry. A fire was kindled against Jacob, anger also went 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 didn’t believe in God, and didn’t trust in his salvation.

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

23 Yet he commanded the skies above, and opened the doors of heaven.

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

24 He rained down manna on them to eat, and gave them food from the sky.

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

25 Man ate the bread of angels. He sent them food to the full.

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

26 He caused the east wind to blow in the sky. By his power he guided the south wind.

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

27 He also rained meat on them as the dust, winged birds as the sand of the seas.

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

28 He let them fall in the middle of their camp, around their habitations.

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

29 So they ate, and were well filled. 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 didn’t turn from their cravings. Their food was yet in their mouths,

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

31 when the anger of God went up against them, killed some of their strongest, and struck down the young 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 still sinned, and didn’t believe in his wondrous works.

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

33 Therefore he consumed their days in vanity, and their years in terror.

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

34 When he killed them, then they enquired after him. They returned and sought God earnestly.

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

35 They remembered that God was their rock, the Most High God, their redeemer.

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

36 But they flattered him with their mouth, and lied to him with their tongue.

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 faithful in his covenant.

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

38 But he, being merciful, forgave iniquity, and didn’t destroy them. Yes, many times he turned his anger away, and didn’t 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 He remembered that they were but flesh, a wind that passes away, and doesn’t come again.

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

40 How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness, and grieved him in the desert!

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

41 They turned again and tempted God, and provoked 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 didn’t remember his hand, nor the day when he redeemed them from the adversary;

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

43 how he set his signs in Egypt, his wonders in the field of Zoan,

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

44 he turned their rivers into blood, and their streams, so that they could not drink.

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

45 He sent amongst them swarms of flies, 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 also gave their increase to the caterpillar, and their labour to 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, their sycamore fig trees with frost.

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

48 He also gave over their livestock 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 threw on them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, indignation, and trouble, and a band of angels of evil.

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

50 He made a path for his anger. He didn’t spare 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 struck all the firstborn in Egypt, the chief of their strength in the tents of Ham.

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

52 But he led out his own people 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 He led them safely, so that they weren’t afraid, but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.

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

54 He brought them to the border of his sanctuary, to this mountain, which his right hand had taken.

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

55 He also drove out the nations before them, allotted them for 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 rebelled against the Most High God, and didn’t keep his testimonies,

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

57 but turned back, and dealt treacherously like their fathers. They were twisted 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 engraved images.

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

59 When God heard this, he was angry, and greatly abhorred Israel,

God heard and was wroth, And greatly abhorred Israel;

60 so that he abandoned the tent of Shiloh, the tent which he placed amongst men,

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

61 and delivered his strength into captivity, his glory into the adversary’s hand.

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

62 He also gave his people over to the sword, and was angry with his inheritance.

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

63 Fire devoured their young men. Their virgins had no wedding song.

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 couldn’t weep.

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

65 Then the Lord awakened as one out of sleep, like a mighty man who shouts by reason of wine.

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

66 He struck his adversaries backward. 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 rejected the tent of Joseph, and didn’t choose 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, Mount Zion which he loved.

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

69 He built his sanctuary like the heights, like the earth which he has established forever.

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

70 He also chose David 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 that have their young, he brought him to be the shepherd of 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 was their shepherd 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.