137:1 By the rivers of Babylon
we sit down and weep
when we remember Zion.
137:2 On the poplars in her midst
we hang our harps,
137:3 for there our captors ask us to compose songs;
those who mock us demand that we be happy, saying:
“Sing for us a song about Zion!”
137:4 How can we sing a song to the Lord
in a foreign land?
137:5 If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
may my right hand be crippled!
137:6 May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth,
if I do not remember you,
and do not give Jerusalem priority
over whatever gives me the most joy.
137:7 Remember, O Lord, what the Edomites did
on the day Jerusalem fell.
They said, “Tear it down, tear it down,
right to its very foundation!”
137:8 O daughter Babylon, soon to be devastated!
How blessed will be the one who repays you
for what you dished out to us!
137:9 How blessed will be the one who grabs your babies
and smashes them on a rock!
By David.
138:1 I will give you thanks with all my heart;
before the heavenly assembly
138:2 I will bow down toward your holy temple,
and give thanks to your name,
because of your loyal love and faithfulness,
for you have exalted your promise above the entire sky.
138:3 When
You made me bold and energized me.
138:4 Let all the kings of the earth give thanks
when they hear the words you speak.
138:5 Let them sing about the Lord’s deeds,
for the Lord’s splendor is magnificent.
138:6 Though the Lord is exalted, he takes note of the lowly,
and recognizes the proud from far away.
138:7 Even when I must walk in the midst of danger,
You oppose my angry enemies,
and your right hand delivers me.
138:8 The Lord avenges me.
O Lord, your loyal love endures.
Do not abandon those whom you have made!
For the music director, a psalm of David.
139:1 O Lord, you examine me
139:2 You know when I sit down and when I get up;
even from far away you understand my motives.
139:3 You carefully observe me when I travel or when I lie down to rest;
you are aware of everything I do.
139:4 Certainly
without you, O Lord, being thoroughly aware of it.
139:5 You squeeze me in from behind and in front;
you place your hand on me.
139:6 Your knowledge is beyond my comprehension;
it is so far beyond me, I am unable to fathom it.
139:7 Where can I go to escape your spirit?
Where can I flee to escape your presence?
139:8 If I were to ascend
If I were to sprawl out in Sheol, there you would be.
139:9 If I were to fly away
and settle down on the other side
139:10 even there your hand would guide me,
your right hand would grab hold of me.
139:11 If I were to say, “Certainly the darkness will cover me,
and the light will turn to night all around me,”
139:12 even the darkness is not too dark for you to see,
and the night is as bright as
darkness and light are the same to you.
139:13 Certainly
you wove me together
139:14 I will give you thanks because your deeds are awesome and amazing.
You knew me thoroughly;
139:15 my bones were not hidden from you,
when
and sewed together in the depths of the earth.
139:16 Your eyes saw me when I was inside the womb.
All the days ordained for me
were recorded in your scroll
before one of them came into existence.
139:17 How difficult it is for me to fathom your thoughts about me, O God!
How vast is their sum total!
139:18 If I tried to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
Even if I finished counting them,
I would still have to contend with you.
139:19 If only
Get away from me, you violent men!
139:20 They
your enemies lie.
139:21 O Lord, do I not hate those who hate you,
and despise those who oppose you?
139:22 I absolutely hate them,
they have become my enemies!
139:23 Examine me, and probe my thoughts!
Test me, and know my concerns!
139:24 See if there is any idolatrous tendency
and lead me in the reliable ancient path!