1 Praise the LORD. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. |
2 Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the LORD or fully declare his praise? |
3 Blessed are they who maintain justice, who constantly do what is right. |
4 Remember me, O LORD, when you show favor to your people, come to my aid when you save them, |
5 that I may enjoy the prosperity of your chosen ones, that I may share in the joy of your nation and join your inheritance in giving praise. |
6 We have sinned, even as our fathers did; we have done wrong and acted wickedly. |
7 When our fathers were in Egypt, they gave no thought to your miracles; they did not remember your many kindnesses, and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea. |
8 Yet he saved them for his name's sake, to make his mighty power known. |
9 He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up; he led them through the depths as through a desert. |
10 He saved them from the hand of the foe; from the hand of the enemy he redeemed them. |
11 The waters covered their adversaries; not one of them survived. |
12 Then they believed his promises and sang his praise. |
13 But they soon forgot what he had done and did not wait for his counsel. |
14 In the desert they gave in to their craving; in the wasteland they put God to the test. |
15 So he gave them what they asked for, but sent a wasting disease upon them. |
16 In the camp they grew envious of Moses and of Aaron, who was consecrated to the LORD. |
17 The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan; it buried the company of Abiram. |
18 Fire blazed among their followers; a flame consumed the wicked. |
19 At Horeb they made a calf and worshiped an idol cast from metal. |
20 They exchanged their Glory for an image of a bull, which eats grass. |
21 They forgot the God who saved them, who had done great things in Egypt, |
22 miracles in the land of Ham and awesome deeds by the Red Sea. |
23 So he said he would destroy them--had not Moses, his chosen one, stood in the breach before him to keep his wrath from destroying them. |
24 Then they despised the pleasant land; they did not believe his promise. |
25 They grumbled in their tents and did not obey the LORD. |
26 So he swore to them with uplifted hand that he would make them fall in the desert, |
27 make their descendants fall among the nations and scatter them throughout the lands. |
28 They yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor and ate sacrifices offered to lifeless gods; |
29 they provoked the LORD to anger by their wicked deeds, and a plague broke out among them. |
30 But Phinehas stood up and intervened, and the plague was checked. |
31 This was credited to him as righteousness for endless generations to come. |
32 By the waters of Meribah they angered the LORD, and trouble came to Moses because of them; |
33 for they rebelled against the Spirit of God, and rash words came from Moses' lips. |
34 They did not destroy the peoples as the LORD had commanded them, |
35 but they mingled with the nations and adopted their customs. |
36 They worshiped their idols, which became a snare to them. |
37 They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to demons. |
38 They shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, and the land was desecrated by their blood. |
39 They defiled themselves by what they did; by their deeds they prostituted themselves. |
40 Therefore the LORD was angry with his people and abhorred his inheritance. |
41 He handed them over to the nations, and their foes ruled over them. |
42 Their enemies oppressed them and subjected them to their power. |
43 Many times he delivered them, but they were bent on rebellion and they wasted away in their sin. |
44 But he took note of their distress when he heard their cry; |
45 for their sake he remembered his covenant and out of his great love he relented. |
46 He caused them to be pitied by all who held them captive. |
47 Save us, O LORD our God, and gather us from the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise. |
48 Praise be to the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Let all the people say, "Amen!" Praise the LORD. |