Psalms 78

¹Give ear, O my people, to my law; let your ears be bent down to the words of my mouth.

²Opening my mouth I will give out a story, even the dark sayings of old times;

³Which have come to our hearing and our knowledge, as they were given to us by our fathers.

⁴We will not keep them secret from our children; we will make clear to the coming generation the praises of the Lord and his strength, and the great works of wonder which he has done.

⁵He put up a witness in Jacob, and made a law in Israel; which he gave to our fathers so that they might give knowledge of them to their children;

⁶So that the generation to come might have knowledge of them, even the children of the future, who would give word of them to their children;

⁷So that they might put their hope in God, and not let God's works go out of their minds, but keep his laws;

⁸And not be like their fathers, a stiff-necked and uncontrolled generation; a generation whose heart was hard, whose spirit was not true to God.

⁹The children of Ephraim, armed with bows, were turned back on the day of the fight.

¹⁰They were not ruled by God's word, and they would not go in the way of his law;

¹¹They let his works go out of their memory, and the wonders which he had made them see.

¹²He did great works before the eyes of their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the fields of Zoan.

¹³The sea was cut in two so that they might go through; the waters were massed together on this side and on that.

¹⁴In the daytime he was guiding them in the cloud, and all through the night with a light of fire.

¹⁵The rocks of the waste land were broken by his power, and he gave them drink as out of the deep waters.

¹⁶He made streams come out of the rock; and waters came flowing down like rivers.

¹⁷And they went on sinning against him even more, turning away from the Most High in the waste land;

¹⁸Testing God in their hearts, requesting meat for their desire.

¹⁹They said bitter words against God, saying, Is God able to make ready a table in the waste land?

²⁰See, the rock was cut open by his power, so that the water came rushing out, and overflowing streams; is he able to give us bread? is he able to get meat for his people?

²¹So these things came to the Lord's ears, and he was angry; and a fire was lighted against Jacob, and wrath came up against Israel;

²²Because they had no faith in God, and no hope in his salvation.

²³And he gave orders to the clouds on high, and the doors of heaven were open;

²⁴And he sent down manna like rain for their food, and gave them the grain of heaven.

²⁵Man took part in the food of strong ones; he sent them meat in full measure.

²⁶He sent an east wind from heaven, driving on the south wind by his power.

²⁷He sent down meat on them like dust, and feathered birds like the sand of the sea,

²⁸And he let it come down into their resting-place, round about their tents.

²⁹So they had food and were full; for he gave them their desire;

³⁰But they were not turned from their desires; and while the food was still in their mouths,

³¹The wrath of God came on them, and put to death the fattest of them, and put an end to the young men of Israel.

³²For all this they went on sinning even more, and had no faith in his great wonders.

³³So their days were wasted like a breath, and their years in trouble.

³⁴When he sent death on them, then they made search for him; turning to him and looking for him with care;

³⁵In the memory that God was their Rock, and the Most High God their saviour.

³⁶But their lips were false to him, and their tongues were untrue to him;

³⁷And their hearts were not right with him, and they did not keep their agreement with him.

³⁸But he, being full of pity, has forgiveness for sin, and does not put an end to man: frequently turning back his wrath, and not being violently angry.

³⁹So he kept in mind that they were only flesh; a breath which is quickly gone, and will not come again.

⁴⁰How frequently did they go against him in the waste land, and give him cause for grief in the dry places!

⁴¹Again they put God to the test, and gave pain to the Holy One of Israel.

⁴²They did not keep in mind the work of his hand, or the day when he took them from the power of their haters;

⁴³How he had done his signs in Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Zoan;

⁴⁴So that their rivers were turned to blood, and they were not able to get drink from their streams.

⁴⁵He sent different sorts of flies among them, poisoning their flesh; and frogs for their destruction.

⁴⁶He gave the increase of their fields to worms, the fruits of their industry to the locusts.

⁴⁷He sent ice for the destruction of their vines; their trees were damaged by the bitter cold.

⁴⁸Ice was rained down on their cattle; thunderstorms sent destruction among the flocks.

⁴⁹He sent on them the heat of his wrath, his bitter disgust, letting loose evil angels among them.

⁵⁰He let his wrath have its way; he did not keep back their soul from death, but gave their life to disease.

⁵¹He gave to destruction all the first sons of Egypt; the first-fruits of their strength in the tents of Ham;

⁵²But he took his people out like sheep, guiding them in the waste land like a flock.

⁵³He took them on safely so that they had no fear; but their haters were covered by the sea.

⁵⁴And he was their guide to his holy land, even to the mountain, which his right hand had made his;

⁵⁵Driving out nations before them, marking out the line of their heritage, and giving the people of Israel their tents for a resting-place.

⁵⁶But they were bitter against the Most High God, testing him, and not keeping his laws;

⁵⁷Their hearts were turned back and untrue like their fathers; they were turned to one side like a twisted bow.

⁵⁸They made him angry with their high places; moving him to wrath with their images.

⁵⁹When this came to God's ears he was very angry, and gave up Israel completely;

⁶⁰So that he went away from the holy place in Shiloh, the tent which he had put among men;

⁶¹And he let his strength be taken prisoner, and gave his glory into the hands of his hater.

⁶²He gave his people up to the sword, and was angry with his heritage.

⁶³Their young men were burned in the fire; and their virgins were not praised in the bride-song.

⁶⁴Their priests were put to death by the sword, and their widows made no weeping for them.

⁶⁵Then was the Lord like one awaking from sleep, and like a strong man crying out because of wine.

⁶⁶His haters were turned back by his blows and shamed for ever.

⁶⁷And he put the tent of Joseph on one side, and took not the tribe of Ephraim;

⁶⁸But he took the tribe of Judah for himself, and the mountain of Zion, in which he had pleasure.

⁶⁹And he made his holy place like the high heaven, like the earth which is fixed by him for ever.

⁷⁰He took David to be his servant, taking him from the place of the flocks;

⁷¹From looking after the sheep which were giving milk, he took him to give food to Jacob his people, and to Israel his heritage.

⁷²So he gave them food with an upright heart, guiding them by the wisdom of his hands.

Psalms 78

¹Hear my teaching, my people. Turn your ears to the words of my mouth.

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

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

⁴We will not hide them from their children, telling to the generation to come the praises of the Lord, his strength, and his wondrous works that he has done.

⁵For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a teaching in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children;

⁶that the generation to come might know, even the children who should be born; who should arise and tell their children,

⁷that they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments,

⁸and might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that did not make their hearts loyal, whose spirit was not steadfast with God.

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

¹⁰They did not keep God's covenant, and refused to walk by his Law.

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

¹²He did marvelous things in the sight of their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.

¹³He split the sea, and caused them to pass through. He made the waters stand as a heap.

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

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

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

¹⁷Yet they still went on to sin against him, to rebel against the Most High in the desert.

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

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

²⁰Behold, he struck the rock, so that waters gushed out, and streams overflowed. Can he give bread also? Will he provide flesh for his people?"

²¹Therefore the Lord heard, and was angry. A fire was kindled against Jacob, anger also went up against Israel,

²²because they did not believe in God, and did not trust in his salvation.

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

²⁴He rained down manna on them to eat, and gave them bread from heaven.

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

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

²⁷He rained also flesh on them as the dust; winged birds as the sand of the seas.

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

²⁹So they ate, and were well filled. He gave them their own desire.

³⁰They did not turn from their cravings. Their food was yet in their mouths,

³¹when the anger of God went up against them, killed some of the fattest of them, and struck down the young men of Israel.

³²For all this they still sinned, and did not believe in his wondrous works.

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

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

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

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

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

³⁸But he, being merciful, forgave iniquity, and did not destroy them. Yes, many times he turned his anger away, and did not stir up all his wrath.

³⁹He remembered that they were but flesh, a wind that passes away, and doesn't come again.

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

⁴¹They turned again and tempted God, and provoked the Holy One of Israel.

⁴²They did not remember his hand, nor the day when he redeemed them from the adversary;

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

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

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

⁴⁶He gave also their increase to the caterpillar, and their labor to the locust.

⁴⁷He destroyed their vines with hail, their sycamore fig trees with frost.

⁴⁸He gave over their livestock also to the hail, and their flocks to hot thunderbolts.

⁴⁹He threw on them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, indignation, and trouble, and a band of destroying angels.

⁵⁰He made a path for his anger. He did not spare their soul from death, but gave their life over to the pestilence,

⁵¹and struck all the firstborn in Egypt, the chief of their strength in the tents of Ham.

⁵²But he led forth his own people like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.

⁵³He led them safely, so that they weren't afraid, but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.

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

⁵⁵He 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.

⁵⁶Yet they tempted and rebelled against the Most High God, and did not keep his testimonies;

⁵⁷but turned back, and dealt treacherously like their fathers. They were turned aside like a deceitful bow.

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

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

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

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

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

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

⁶⁴Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows couldn't weep.

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

⁶⁶He struck his adversaries backward. He put them to a perpetual reproach.

⁶⁷Moreover he rejected the tent of Joseph, and did not choose the tribe of Ephraim,

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

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

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

⁷¹from following the ewes that have their young, he brought him to be the shepherd of Jacob, his people, and Israel, his inheritance.

⁷²So he was their shepherd according to the integrity of his heart, and guided them by the skillfulness of his hands.