1 G ive ear, O my people, to my teaching; incline your ears to the words of my mouth.

Give ear, O my people, to my law; incline your ears to the words of my mouth.

2 I will open my mouth in a parable (in instruction by numerous examples); I will utter dark sayings of old —

I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter riddles from of old,

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

Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us:

4 W e will not hide them from their children, but we will tell to the generation to come the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, and His might, and the wonderful works that He has performed.

We will not hide from their sons, shewing forth to the generation to come the praises of Jehovah, and his strength, and his marvellous works which he hath done.

5 F or He established a testimony (an express precept) in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, commanding our fathers that they should make known to their children,

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

6 T hat the generation to come might know them, that the children still to be born might arise and recount them to their children,

That the generation to come might know, the children that should be born; that they might rise up and tell to their children,

7 T hat they might set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but might keep His commandments

And that they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but observe his commandments;

8 A nd might not be as their fathers—a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that set not their hearts aright nor prepared their hearts to know God, and whose spirits were not steadfast and faithful to God.

And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that prepared not their heart, and whose spirit was not stedfast with God.

9 T he children of Ephraim were armed and carrying bows, yet they turned back in the day of battle.

The sons of Ephraim, armed bowmen, turned back in the day of battle.

10 T hey kept not the covenant of God and refused to walk according to His law

They kept not the covenant of God, and refused to walk in his law;

11 A nd forgot His works and His wonders that He had shown them.

And forgot his doings, and his marvellous works which he had shewn them.

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

In the sight of their fathers had he done wonders, in the land of Egypt, the field of Zoan.

13 H e divided the Sea and caused them to pass through it, and He made the waters stand like a heap.

He clave the sea, and caused them to pass through; and made the waters to stand as a heap;

14 I n the daytime also He led them with a cloud and all the night with a light of fire.

And he led them with a cloud in the daytime, and all the night with the light of fire.

15 H e split rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink abundantly as out of the deep.

He clave rocks in the wilderness, and gave drink as out of the depths, abundantly;

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

And he brought streams out of the rock, and caused waters to run down like rivers.

17 Y et they still went on to sin against Him by provoking and rebelling against the Most High in the wilderness (in the land of drought).

Yet they still went on sinning against him, provoking the Most High in the desert;

18 A nd they tempted God in their hearts by asking for food according to their desire and appetite.

And they tempted God in their heart, by asking meat for their lust;

19 Y es, they spoke against God; they said, Can God furnish a table in the wilderness?

And they spoke against God: they said, Is God able to prepare a table in the wilderness?

20 B ehold, He did smite the rock so that waters gushed out and the streams overflowed; but can He give bread also? Can He provide flesh for His people?

Behold, he smote the rock, and waters gushed out, and streams overflowed; is he able to give bread also, or provide flesh for his people?

21 T herefore, when the Lord heard, He was wrath; a fire was kindled against Jacob, His anger mounted up against Israel,

Therefore Jehovah heard, and was wroth; and fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also went up against Israel:

22 B ecause in God they believed not, and they trusted not in His salvation (His power to save).

Because they believed not in God, and confided not in his salvation;

23 Y et He commanded the clouds above and opened the doors of heaven;

Though he had commanded the clouds from above, and had opened the doors of the heavens,

24 A nd He rained down upon them manna to eat and gave them heaven’s grain.

And had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them the corn of the heavens.

25 E veryone ate the bread of the mighty; God sent them meat in abundance.

Man did eat the bread of the mighty; he sent them provision to the full.

26 H e let forth the east wind to blow in the heavens, and by His power He guided the south wind.

He caused the east wind to rise in the heavens, and by his strength he brought the south wind;

27 H e rained flesh also upon them like the dust, and winged birds like the sand of the seas.

And he rained flesh upon them as dust, and feathered fowl as the sand of the seas,

28 A nd He let fall in the midst of their camp, round about their tents.

And he let it fall in the midst of their camp, round about their habitations:

29 S o they ate and were well filled; He gave them what they craved and lusted after.

And they did eat, and were well filled; for that they lusted after, he brought to them.

30 B ut scarce had they stilled their craving, and while their meat was yet in their mouths,

They were not alienated from their lust, their meat was yet in their mouths,

31 T he wrath of God came upon them and slew the strongest and sturdiest of them and smote down Israel’s chosen youth.

When the anger of God went up against them; and he slew the fattest of them, and smote down the chosen men of Israel.

32 I n spite of all this, they sinned still more, for they believed not in (relied not on and adhered not to Him for) His wondrous works.

For all this, they sinned still, and believed not in his marvellous works;

33 T herefore their days He consumed like a breath and their years in terror and sudden haste.

And he consumed their days in vanity, and their years in terror.

34 W hen He slew them, inquired after Him diligently, and they repented and sincerely sought God.

When he slew them, then they sought him, and returned and sought early after God;

35 A nd they remembered that God was their Rock, and the Most High God their Redeemer.

And they remembered that God was their rock, and God, the Most High, their redeemer.

36 N evertheless they flattered Him with their mouths and lied to Him with their tongues.

But they flattered him with their mouth, and lied unto him with their tongue;

37 F or their hearts were not right or sincere with Him, neither were they faithful and steadfast to His covenant.

For their heart was not firm toward him, neither were they stedfast in his covenant.

38 B ut He, full of compassion, forgave their iniquity and destroyed them not; yes, many a time He turned His anger away and did not stir up all His wrath and indignation.

But he was merciful: he forgave the iniquity, and destroyed not; but many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his fury:

39 F or He remembered that they were but flesh, a wind that goes and does not return.

And he remembered that they were flesh, a breath that passeth away and cometh not again.

40 H ow often they defied and rebelled against Him in the wilderness and grieved Him in the desert!

How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness, and grieve him in the desert!

41 A nd time and again they turned back and tempted God, provoking and incensing the Holy One of Israel.

And they turned again and tempted God, and grieved the Holy One of Israel.

42 T hey remembered not His hand, nor the day when He delivered them from the enemy,

They remembered not his hand, the day when he delivered them from the oppressor,

43 H ow He wrought His miracles in Egypt and His wonders in the field of Zoan

How he set his signs in Egypt, and his miracles in the field of Zoan;

44 A nd turned their rivers into blood, and their streams, so that they could not drink from them.

And turned their rivers into blood, and their streams, that they could not drink;

45 H e sent swarms of flies among them which devoured them, and frogs which destroyed them.

He sent dog-flies among them, which devoured them, and frogs, which destroyed them;

46 H e gave also their crops to the caterpillar and their labor to the locust.

And he gave their increase unto the caterpillar, and their labour unto the locust;

47 H e destroyed their vines with hail and their sycamore trees with frost and ice.

He killed their vines with hail, and their sycamore trees with hail-stones;

48 H e gave them up also to the hail and their flocks to hot thunderbolts.

And he delivered up their cattle to the hail, and their flocks to thunderbolts.

49 H e let loose upon them the fierceness of His anger, His wrath and indignation and distress, by sending angels of calamity and woe among them.

He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and distress,—a mission of angels of woes.

50 H e leveled and made a straight path for His anger; He did not spare from death but gave their beasts over to the pestilence and the life over to the plague.

He made a way for his anger; he spared not their soul from death, but gave their life over to the pestilence;

51 H e smote all the firstborn in Egypt, the chief of their strength in the tents of Ham.

And he smote all the firstborn in Egypt, the first-fruits of their vigour in the tents of Ham.

52 B ut led His own people forth like sheep and guided them like a flock in the wilderness.

And he made his own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock;

53 A nd He led them on safely and in confident trust, so that they feared not; but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.

And he led them safely, so that they were without fear; and the sea covered their enemies.

54 A nd He brought them to His holy border, the border of His sanctuary, even to this mountain which His right hand had acquired.

And he brought them to his holy border, this mountain, which his right hand purchased;

55 H e drove out the nations also before and allotted their land as a heritage, measured out and partitioned; and He made the tribes of Israel to dwell in the tents of those dispossessed.

And he drove out the nations before them, and allotted them for an inheritance by line, and made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents.

56 Y et they tempted and provoked and rebelled against the Most High God and kept not His testimonies.

But they tempted and provoked God, the Most High, and kept not his testimonies,

57 B ut they turned back and dealt unfaithfully and treacherously like their fathers; they were twisted like a warped and deceitful bow.

And they drew back and dealt treacherously like their fathers: they turned like a deceitful bow.

58 F or they provoked Him to anger with their high places and moved Him to jealousy with their graven images.

And they provoked him to anger with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their graven images.

59 W hen God heard this, He was full of wrath; and He utterly rejected Israel, greatly abhorring and loathing,

God heard, and was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel:

60 S o that He forsook the tabernacle at Shiloh, the tent in which He had dwelt among men,

And he forsook the tabernacle at Shiloh, the tent where he had dwelt among men,

61 A nd delivered His strength and power (the ark of the covenant) into captivity, and His glory into the hands of the foe (the Philistines).

And gave his strength into captivity, and his glory into the hand of the oppressor;

62 H e gave His people over also to the sword and was wroth with His heritage.

And delivered up his people unto the sword, and was very wroth with his inheritance:

63 T he fire devoured their young men, and their bereaved virgins were not praised in a wedding song.

The fire consumed their young men, and their maidens were not praised in song;

64 T heir priests fell by the sword, and their widows made no lamentation.

Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows made no lamentation.

65 T hen the Lord awakened as from sleep, as a strong man whose consciousness of power is heightened by wine.

Then the Lord awoke as one out of sleep, like a mighty man that shouteth aloud by reason of wine;

66 A nd He smote His adversaries in the back; He put them to lasting shame and reproach.

And he smote his adversaries in the hinder part, and put them to everlasting reproach.

67 M oreover, He rejected the tent of Joseph and chose not the tribe of Ephraim.

And he rejected the tent of Joseph, and chose not the tribe of Ephraim,

68 B ut He chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion, which He loved.

But chose the tribe of Judah, the mount Zion which he loved;

69 A nd He built His sanctuary like the heights and like the earth which He established forever.

And he built his sanctuary like the heights, like the earth which he hath founded for ever.

70 H e chose David His servant and took him from the sheepfolds;

And he chose David his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds:

71 F rom tending the ewes that had their young He brought him to be the shepherd of Jacob His people, of Israel His inheritance.

From following the suckling-ewes, he brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance.

72 S o was their shepherd with an upright heart; he guided them by the discernment and skillfulness his hands.

And he fed them according to the integrity of his heart, and led them by the skilfulness of his hands.