Chapter 44

¹{To the chief Musician. Of the sons of Korah. An instruction.} O God, with our ears have we heard, our fathers have told us, the work thou wroughtest in their days, in the days of old: ²Thou, by thy hand, didst dispossess the nations, but them thou didst plant; thou didst afflict the peoples, but them didst thou cause to spread out. ³For not by their own sword did they take possession of the land, neither did their own arm save them; but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst delight in them. ⁴Thou thyself art my king, O God: command deliverance for Jacob. ⁵Through thee will we push down our adversaries; through thy name will we tread them under that rise up against us. ⁶For I will not put confidence in my bow, neither shall my sword save me. ⁷For thou hast saved us from our adversaries, and hast put them to shame that hate us. ⁸In God will we boast all the day, and we will praise thy name for ever. Selah. ⁹But thou hast cast off, and put us to confusion, and dost not go forth with our armies; ¹⁰Thou hast made us to turn back from the adversary, and they that hate us spoil for themselves; ¹¹Thou hast given us over like sheep [appointed] for meat, and hast scattered us among the nations; ¹²Thou hast sold thy people for nought, and hast not increased [thy wealth] by their price; ¹³Thou makest us a reproach to our neighbours, a mockery and a derision for them that are round about us; ¹⁴Thou makest us a byword among the nations, a shaking of the head among the peoples. ¹⁵All the day my confusion is before me, and the shame of my face hath covered me, ¹⁶Because of the voice of him that reproacheth and blasphemeth; by reason of the enemy and the avenger. ¹⁷All this is come upon us; yet have we not forgotten thee, neither have we dealt falsely against thy covenant: ¹⁸Our heart is not turned back, neither have our steps declined from thy path; ¹⁹Though thou hast crushed us in the place of jackals, and covered us with the shadow of death. ²⁰If we had forgotten the name of our God, and stretched out our hands to a strange god, ²¹Would not God search this out? for he knoweth the secrets of the heart. ²²But for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are reckoned as sheep for slaughter. ²³Awake, why sleepest thou, Lord? arise, cast [us] not off for ever. ²⁴Wherefore hidest thou thy face, [and] forgettest our affliction and our oppression? ²⁵For our soul is bowed down to the dust; our belly cleaveth unto the earth. ²⁶Rise up for our help, and redeem us for thy loving-kindness` sake.