Month: December 2019

God the Protector of His People

1 What if theLordhad not been on our side?

Answer, O Israel!

2 “If theLordhad not been on our side

when our enemies attacked us,

3 then they would have swallowed us alive

in their furious anger against us;

4 then the flood would have carried us away,

the water would have covered us,

5 the raging torrent would have drowned us.”

6 Let us thank theLord,

who has not let our enemies destroy us.

7 We have escaped like a bird from a hunter’s trap;

the trap is broken, and we are free!

8 Our help comes from theLord,

who made heaven and earth.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/PSA/124-083b45707d4add66698749891ec8898c.mp3?version_id=68—

The Security of God’s People

1 Those who trust in theLordare like Mount Zion,

which can never be shaken, never be moved.

2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,

so theLordsurrounds his people,

now and forever.

3 The wicked will not always rule over the land of the righteous;

if they did, the righteous themselves might do evil.

4 Lord, do good to those who are good,

to those who obey your commands.

5 But when you punish the wicked,

punish also those who abandon your ways.

Peace be with Israel!

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/PSA/125-d95e318e7f1efede29bcfbfb41a7f1b3.mp3?version_id=68—

A Prayer for Deliverance

1 When theLordbrought us back to Jerusalem,

it was like a dream!

2 How we laughed, how we sang for joy!

Then the other nations said about us,

“TheLorddid great things for them.”

3 Indeed he did great things for us;

how happy we were!

4 Lord, make us prosperous again,

just as the rain brings water back to dry riverbeds.

5 Let those who wept as they planted their crops,

gather the harvest with joy!

6 Those who wept as they went out carrying the seed

will come back singing for joy,

as they bring in the harvest.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/PSA/126-bc44cd7ee2a8ce0afc40b75be15c8043.mp3?version_id=68—

In Praise of God’s Goodness

1 If theLorddoes not build the house,

the work of the builders is useless;

if theLorddoes not protect the city,

it does no good for the sentries to stand guard.

2 It is useless to work so hard for a living,

getting up early and going to bed late.

For theLordprovides for those he loves,

while they are asleep.

3 Children are a gift from theLord;

they are a real blessing.

4 The sons a man has when he is young

are like arrows in a soldier’s hand.

5 Happy is the man who has many such arrows.

He will never be defeated

when he meets his enemies in the place of judgment.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/PSA/127-8b110c1ebb8f2a55455d9af6a90d8fd4.mp3?version_id=68—

The Reward of Obedience to the Lord

1 Happy are those who obey theLord,

who live by his commands.

2 Your work will provide for your needs;

you will be happy and prosperous.

3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine in your home,

and your children will be like young olive trees around your table.

4 A man who obeys theLord

will surely be blessed like this.

5 May theLordbless you from Zion!

May you see Jerusalem prosper

all the days of your life!

6 May you live to see your grandchildren!

Peace be with Israel!

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/PSA/128-dacec8b830003a8068e3d31556b91aa3.mp3?version_id=68—

A Prayer against Israel’s Enemies

1 Israel, tell us how your enemies have persecuted you

ever since you were young.

2 “Ever since I was young,

my enemies have persecuted me cruelly,

but they have not overcome me.

3 They cut deep wounds in my back

and made it like a plowed field.

4 But theLord, the righteous one,

has freed me from slavery.”

5 May everyone who hates Zion

be defeated and driven back.

6 May they all be like grass growing on the housetops,

which dries up before it can grow;

7 no one gathers it up

or carries it away in bundles.

8 No one who passes by will say,

“May theLordbless you!

We bless you in the name of theLord.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/PSA/129-ec975a8ae4cd46f6fa62b8ff3cd2af71.mp3?version_id=68—

A Prayer for Help

1 From the depths of my despair I call to you,Lord.

2 Hear my cry, O Lord;

listen to my call for help!

3 If you kept a record of our sins,

who could escape being condemned?

4 But you forgive us,

so that we should stand in awe of you.

5 I wait eagerly for theLord’s help,

and in his word I trust.

6 I wait for the Lord

more eagerly than sentries wait for the dawn—

than sentries wait for the dawn.

7 Israel, trust in theLord,

because his love is constant

and he is always willing to save.

8 He will save his people Israel

from all their sins.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/PSA/130-1487cbbb94c6a52c193a2889ca80168d.mp3?version_id=68—

A Prayer of Humble Trust

1 Lord, I have given up my pride

and turned away from my arrogance.

I am not concerned with great matters

or with subjects too difficult for me.

2 Instead, I am content and at peace.

As a child lies quietly in its mother’s arms,

so my heart is quiet within me.

3 Israel, trust in theLord

now and forever!

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/PSA/131-bc8cee123196efba8683d3bb560821b6.mp3?version_id=68—

In Praise of the Temple

1 Lord, do not forget David

and all the hardships he endured.

2 Remember,Lord, what he promised,

the vow he made to you, the Mighty God of Jacob:

3 “I will not go home or go to bed;

4 I will not rest or sleep,

5 until I provide a place for theLord,

a home for the Mighty God of Jacob.”

6 In Bethlehem we heard about the Covenant Box,

and we found it in the fields of Jearim.

7 We said, “Let us go to theLord’s house;

let us worship before his throne.”

8 Come to the Temple,Lord, with the Covenant Box,

the symbol of your power,

and stay here forever.

9 May your priests do always what is right;

may your people shout for joy!

10 You made a promise to your servant David;

do not reject your chosen king,Lord.

11 You made a solemn promise to David—

a promise you will not take back:

“I will make one of your sons king,

and he will rule after you.

12 If your sons are true to my covenant

and to the commands I give them,

their sons, also, will succeed you for all time as kings.”

13 TheLordhas chosen Zion;

he wants to make it his home:

14 “This is where I will live forever;

this is where I want to rule.

15 I will richly provide Zion with all she needs;

I will satisfy her poor with food.

16 I will bless her priests in all they do,

and her people will sing and shout for joy.

17 Here I will make one of David’s descendants a great king;

here I will preserve the rule of my chosen king.

18 I will cover his enemies with shame,

but his kingdom will prosper and flourish.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/PSA/132-9f10548ae395557909e3aba1a0b5cf7a.mp3?version_id=68—

In Praise of Living in Peace

1 How wonderful it is, how pleasant,

for God’s people to live together in harmony!

2 It is like the precious anointing oil

running down from Aaron’s head and beard,

down to the collar of his robes.

3 It is like the dew on Mount Hermon,

falling on the hills of Zion.

That is where theLordhas promised his blessing—

life that never ends.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/PSA/133-2f2faa78c1b0d75fbba1af1a6c5bcf6b.mp3?version_id=68—