4 Lord, for to thee I will cry all the day long. Comfort the soul of thy servant; for to thee, O Lord, I have lifted up my soul: 5 for thou, Lord, art kind and gentle, and plenteous in mercy 6 to all who invoke thee. Listen, O Lord, to my prayer, and at7 tend to the voice of my supplication. In the day of my afflic8 tion, I cried to thee, because thou didst hear me. There is none among gods like thee, O Lord: nor are any works to be 9 compared to thine. Let all the nations which thou hast made,

come and worship before thee, O Lord, and praise thy name; 10 for thou art great and doest wonders-thou art the Only, the 11 Great God. Conduct me, O Lord, in thy way; and I will walk in thy truth. Let my heart be gladdened, that thy name may 12 be feared. I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with my whole 13 heart, and glorify thy name forever. For thy mercy to me hath

been great; thou hast delivered my soul from the deepest man14 sion of the dead. O God, transgressors rose up against me,

and an assembly of violent men sought my life; they indeed 15 did not set thee before them. But thou, Lord God, who art

merciful and gracious, long suffering and abundant in good16 ness and truth, look down upon me and pity me; give thy strength to thy servant and save the son of thy handmaid. 17 Vouchsafe to me a token for good, and let them who hate me, see it and be ashamed, because thou, O Lord, hast helped me and given me comfort.

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ON the holy mountains are his foundations! The Lord lov3 eth the gates of Sion more than all the dwellings of Jacob. Glo4 rious things have been said of thee, O city of God. Shall I men

tion Rahab or Babylon to those gaining a knowledge of me? Behold the Philistines and Tyrians, and the tribe of the Ethi5 opians say, Such and such were born there. Man will say,

"Sion is my mother;" and, "In it such a man was born." 6 "The Most High himself founded it" this will be the account which the Lord will give in the enrollment of peoples and of

7 those chiefs who were born in it. How delighted must all be, whose habitation is in thee!

LXXXVIII.

An Ode of a Psalm for the sons of Kore. For the conclusion. On the responsive Maeleth. On understanding. By Aiman the Israelite.

1 O LORD God of my salvation, before thee I have cried 2 day and night. Let my prayer come before thee, incline, O 3 Lord, thine ear to my supplication; for my soul is full of trou4 ble, and my life draweth near to the mansion of the dead. I was counted with them who are going down to the pit; I be 5 came like a man who is past recovery-like one set free among the dead-like the prostrate slain, asleep in the grave, whom thou hast no more remembered.

6 Though they were cast off out of thy hand, they laid me in 7 the lowest pit- in dark places and in the shade of death. On me thy wrath was pressed hard, and all thy billows thou didst 8 bring upon me. Thou hast removed far from me my acquaint

ance, they accounted me an abomination to them. I was deli9 vered up and did not go abroad; mine eyes were weakened by affliction. To thee, O Lord, I cried all the day long: to thee 10 I stretched forth my hands. Wilt thou work wonders among 11 the dead? Or can physicians raise them up to praise thee? Can

any in the grave declare thy kindness?-Or thy faithfulness, 12 in destruction? Can thy wonders be known in darkness-Or 13 thy saving mercy, in the land of forgetfulness? As for me, I

have cried to thee, O Lord, and in the morning my prayers 14 shall be before thee. O Lord, why rejectest thou my prayer15 why turnest thou away thy face from me? I am afflicted and

in troubles from my youth: though raised high I have been 16 humbled and distressed. Thy resentments have come upon 17 me; and thy terrors have quite confounded me: they have encompassed me like water: all the day long they begirt me at 18 once. Thou hast removed a friend far from me, my acquaintance also, because of misery.

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LXXXIX.

On understanding. By Aitham the Israelite.

O LORD, I will sing of thy mercies forever; I will

pro2 claim thy truth with my mouth to all generations. Since thou hast said, "Mercy shall be built up forever. My truth shall 3 be established in the heavens. I have made a covenant with 4 my chosen, I have sworn to my servant David, I will establish

thy seed forever; I will build up thy throne to all generations.” 5 O Lord, let the heavens praise thy wonders and thy truth in 6 the congregation of the saints. For who in heaven can be com

pared to the Lord? Or who among the sons of God, likened 7 to the Lord? God is glorified in the counsel of the holy-great 8 and awful among all around him. O Lord, the God of hosts,

who is like thee? Thou, Lord, art mighty and thy truth is 9 around thee. Thou rulest the raging of the sea, and stillest the 10 rolling billows thereof. Thou hast humbled the proud like one 11 slain-with thy mighty arm thou hast scattered thy foes. Thine

are the heavens, and the earth is thine, thou hast founded the 12 world and its fulness. Thou hast created the north and the 13 west; let Thabor and Hermon rejoice at thy name. Thine arm

is endowed with power; let thy hand be strong-thy right hand 14 exalted. Justice and judgment are the preparation of thy throne; 15 mercy and truth shall march before thee. Happy the people

who know the joyful sound! They will walk, O Lord, in the 16 light of thy presence, and rejoice in thy name all the day long, 17 and be exalted by thy righteousness. For thou art the glory

of their strength; and by thy favour our horn shall be exalted. 18 For thou art the help of our Lord even of the Holy One of Israel, 19 our king. At that time thou didst speak in vision to thy children

and say, "I have laid help on one who is Mighty: I have exalted 20 a chosen one of my people; I have found David my servant; 21 I have anointed him with holy oil. My hand will indeed sup22 port him. And him mine arm will strengthen. Over him an

enemy shall not gain advantage; nor shall a son of wicked23 ness any more afflict him. For before him I will hew down 24 his enemies: and them who hate him I will put to flight. And

my truth and my mercy shall be with him; and by my name

25 his horn shall be exalted. And I will put his hand on the sea; 26 and his right hand on the rivers: and he will invoke me say

ing, Thou art my father; my God and the support of my sal27 vation; and I will set him as a first born; high above all the 28 kings of the earth. My mercy I will keep for him evermore. 29 And my covenant with him shall be firm. And I will establish 30 his seed forever, and his throne as the days of heaven. If his

children forsake my law, and do not walk in my judgments31 If they profane my statutes; and do not keep my command32 ments: I will visit their transgressions with a rod; and their 33 iniquities with scourges. But from him I will not withdraw 34 my mercy; nor suffer my faithfulness to fail. I will not vio35 late my covenant; nor annul what have passed my lips. Once

for all I have sworn by my holiness; that I will not be false 36 to David. His seed shall endure forever, and his throne as the 37 sun before me; and as the moon forever fixed: and the witness in heaven is faithful."

38 Hast thou then cast off and set at naught-hast thou given 39 up this thine anointed? Hast thou made void the covenant

with thy servant: and profaned his sanctuary to the ground? 40 Thou hast broken down all his hedges, and made his strong 41 holds a ruin. All that pass by have plundered him he is be42 come a subject of reproach to his neighbours. Thou hast

raised up the right hand of his foes, thou hast made all his. 43 enemies glad. Thou hast turned back the edge of his sword; 44 and hast not assisted him in battle. Thou hast caused his pu

rification to cease: thou hast dashed down his throne to the 45 ground. Thou hast shortened the days of his throne, and pour46 ed contempt upon him. How long, O Lord, wilt thou turn 47 away? Shall thy wrath burn like fire forever? Remember

what my being is. Hast thou created all the sons of men in 48 vain? Is there any man who can live and not see death? Can 49 he deliver his soul from the mansion of the dead? O Lord,

where are thy mercies of old; which thou didst solemnly pro50 mise David by thy truth? Remember, O Lord, the reproach

of thy servants-that of many nations, which I retain in my 51 bosom-that with which thine enemies, O Lord, have reproached—with which they have reproached the redemption

52 of thine anointed one. Blessed be the Lord forever. Amen. Amen.

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XC.

A prayer of Moses the man of God.

O LORD, thou hast been a refuge for us, from one gene2 ration to another. Before the mountains were brought forth; or the earth or the world was formed: even from everlasting 3 to everlasting thou existest. Wilt thou turn man away to de

spondency; when thou hast said, Return ye sons of men? 4 Since in thy sight a thousand years are but as yesterday which 5 is past; or as a watch in the night: shall these trifling years

of theirs be as if in the morning, a green herb passed away? 6 Should it in the morning bloom and pass away? In the even7 ing it would have fallen, withered and become dry. Because

we have fallen short by thine anger, and by thine indignation 8 have been troubled-thou hast placed our iniquities before thee: let this age of ours be for the light of thy countenance. 9 Because all our days have fallen short; and we have failed by

thine indignation; our years have exercised themselves like 10 a spider. The days of these years of ours are seventy years:

and if by reason of strength they be eighty years; still the 11 surplus of them is labour and sorrow. Because gentleness hath come upon us: let us, therefore, whoever knoweth the power of thine anger, be taught, on the account of the terror 12 of thy wrath, so to number them. Thus make known thy

right hand; and them whose hearts are instructed in wisdom. 13 Return, O Lord. How long shall it first be? And be pacified 14 with thy servants. In the morning we were filled with thy 15 mercy. We indeed rejoiced and were made glad. During all these days of ours may we be gladdened; in lieu of the days wherein thou hast humbled us; and of the years in which we 16 have seen evils. And look upon these thy servants and on thy 17 works and be thou the guide of their children. And let the splendor of the Lord our God be over us: and do thou direct for us the works of our hands.