Pray for victory

David’s hymn to the chief musician.

1 Let the LORD answer thee in the day of trouble, and let the name of the God of Jacob exalt thee.

2 He hath sent thee out of the holy place, and hath delivered thee out of Zion.

3 Remember all your offerings, and accept your burnt offerings.  Advice.

4 He will give you according to your purpose, and will fulfill all your plans.

5 We will shout for your salvation, and raise up our flags in the name of our God.  May the Lord grant all your demands.

6 Now I know that the LORD delivereth his anointed, and from his holy heaven he shall answer him with the salvation of his right hand.

7 Some to the chariots and some to the horses, but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.

8 They have bowed down and fallen, but we have risen and stood upright.

9 Save me, O Lord!  At the time of our cry, the king answers us!

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God comforts Israel

1 Silence before me, ye islands, and hear; let the nations renew their strength; let them draw nigh: let us draw nigh together for judgment.

2 Who provoked the king from the east, whose footsteps kiss victory?  He subdues the nations before him, that he may reign over the kings. He makes them like dust with his sword, and like a hammer blown by his bow.

3 He pursueth them, and passeth in peace;

4 Who hath done this, and called the generations to the end?  I, Jehovah!  I am the same from beginning to end!

5 And the isles saw and were afraid: the ends of the earth tremble, and they come nigh.

6 Everyone helps his neighbor, and says to his brother, Be strong!

7 The carpenter strengthens the goldsmith, and the one who plows with the hammer strikes the one who strikes on the ax.  He says at the stitches, he is good, he fixes it with nails so that he does not move.

8 But thou, O Israel, my servant, O Jacob, whom I have chosen, the seed of my friend Abraham,

9 whom I have gathered together from the ends of the earth, and called unto him out of the corners of the earth, and said unto thee, Thou art my servant; I have chosen thee, and have not forsaken thee.

10 Do not be afraid, for I am with you, do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. Yes, I will help you.

11 Behold, they which are wroth with thee shall be ashamed, and their faces shall be darkened; and they that fight against thee shall perish.

12 Thou shalt seek those who fight with thee, but shalt not find them.  Those who fight with you will be as useless as they were!

13 I, Jehovah your God, am holding your right hand. I tell you, do not be afraid. I will help you.

14 Fear not, O worm Jacob, O little Israel, be not afraid.  I will help you, says the Lord. Your deliverer is the Holy One of Israel.

15 Behold, I will make thee to threshe with new sharp grass, and with teeth, and thou shalt grind the mountains, and thou shalt make them fine, and thou shalt make the hills as chaff.

16 Thou shalt scatter them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the storm shall scatter them: but thou shalt rejoice in the LORD, and boast in the Holy One of Israel.

17 The poor and needy seek water, but no, their tongues are dry with thirst. I, Yahweh, will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.

18 And I will open rivers upon the bare hills, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land a pool of water.

19 I will take cedar and acacia, henna, and olive trees in the wilderness.  I will put together cypress, eagle, and poplar trees in the field.

20 That the people may see, and know, and consider, and understand, that the hand of the LORD hath done this, and that the Holy One of Israel hath made it.

Challenge the Lord Jehovah

21 This is what the Lord says: Present your claim, says the King of Jacob, bring your proofs.

22 Bring the idols and tell us what will happen in the future.  You tell the first things, what they were, so that we may pay attention, and know their end, or tell the things to come.

23 Tell us what will happen, and we will know that you are a god. Yes, do good or evil, so that we may be amazed and see it together.

24 Behold, you are nothing, and your works are folly.  What chooses you is disgusting.

25 I have stirred up a man from the north, and he has come, from the rising of the sun, and he will call on my name.

26 Who told us from the beginning, that we might know, and that from the beginning it was true?  There is no one to tell, no one to tell, no one to listen to you.

27 I was the first to say to Zion, ‘Look, look at them!  And for Jerusalem I gave a gospel.

28 When I look, there is no one, and there is no counselor among them, so that when I ask them, they will answer me first.

29 Behold, they are all vanities, and their work is vain;