Psalms 106
106
A Confession of Israel's Sins
1Praise the Lord!
O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever.
2Who can utter the mighty doings of the Lord,
or declare all his praise?
3Happy are those who observe justice,
who do righteousness at all times.
4Remember me, O Lord, when you show favor to your people;
help me when you deliver them;
5that I may see the prosperity of your chosen ones,
that I may rejoice in the gladness of your nation,
that I may glory in your heritage.
6Both we and our ancestors have sinned;
we have committed iniquity, have done wickedly.
7Our ancestors, when they were in Egypt,
did not consider your wonderful works;
they did not remember the abundance of your steadfast love,
but rebelled against the Most High#106.7 Cn Compare 78.17, 56: Heb rebelled at the sea at the Red Sea.#106.7 Or Sea of Reeds
8Yet he saved them for his name's sake,
so that he might make known his mighty power.
9He rebuked the Red Sea,#106.9 Or Sea of Reeds and it became dry;
he led them through the deep as through a desert.
10So he saved them from the hand of the foe,
and delivered them from the hand of the enemy.
11The waters covered their adversaries;
not one of them was left.
12Then they believed his words;
they sang his praise.
13But they soon forgot his works;
they did not wait for his counsel.
14But they had a wanton craving in the wilderness,
and put God to the test in the desert;
15he gave them what they asked,
but sent a wasting disease among them.
16They were jealous of Moses in the camp,
and of Aaron, the holy one of the Lord.
17The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan,
and covered the faction of Abiram.
18Fire also broke out in their company;
the flame burned up the wicked.
19They made a calf at Horeb
and worshiped a cast image.
20They exchanged the glory of God#106.20 Compare Gk Mss: Heb exchanged their glory
for the image of an ox that eats grass.
21They forgot God, their Savior,
who had done great things in Egypt,
22wondrous works in the land of Ham,
and awesome deeds by the Red Sea.#106.22 Or Sea of Reeds
23Therefore he said he would destroy them—
had not Moses, his chosen one,
stood in the breach before him,
to turn away his wrath from destroying them.
24Then they despised the pleasant land,
having no faith in his promise.
25They grumbled in their tents,
and did not obey the voice of the Lord.
26Therefore he raised his hand and swore to them
that he would make them fall in the wilderness,
27and would disperse#106.27 Syr Compare Ezek 20.23: Heb cause to fall their descendants among the nations,
scattering them over the lands.
28Then they attached themselves to the Baal of Peor,
and ate sacrifices offered to the dead;
29they provoked the Lord to anger with their deeds,
and a plague broke out among them.
30Then Phinehas stood up and interceded,
and the plague was stopped.
31And that has been reckoned to him as righteousness
from generation to generation forever.
32They angered the Lord#106.32 Heb him at the waters of Meribah,
and it went ill with Moses on their account;
33for they made his spirit bitter,
and he spoke words that were rash.
34They did not destroy the peoples,
as the Lord commanded them,
35but they mingled with the nations
and learned to do as they did.
36They served their idols,
which became a snare to them.
37They sacrificed their sons
and their daughters to the demons;
38they poured out innocent blood,
the blood of their sons and daughters,
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan;
and the land was polluted with blood.
39Thus they became unclean by their acts,
and prostituted themselves in their doings.
40Then the anger of the Lord was kindled against his people,
and he abhorred his heritage;
41he gave them into the hand of the nations,
so that those who hated them ruled over them.
42Their enemies oppressed them,
and they were brought into subjection under their power.
43Many times he delivered them,
but they were rebellious in their purposes,
and were brought low through their iniquity.
44Nevertheless he regarded their distress
when he heard their cry.
45For their sake he remembered his covenant,
and showed compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love.
46He caused them to be pitied
by all who held them captive.
47Save us, O Lord our God,
and gather us from among the nations,
that we may give thanks to your holy name
and glory in your praise.
48Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting.
And let all the people say, “Amen.”
Praise the Lord!
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Psalms 106: NRSV
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New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1989 Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Psalms 106
106
Israel’s Confession of Sin
1Hallelujah!
A
Give thanks to the Lord, who is good,
whose mercy endures forever.#Ps 100:5; 107:1; 1 Chr 16:34; Jer 33:11; Dn 3:89.
2Who can recount the mighty deeds of the Lord,
proclaim in full God’s praise?
3Blessed those who do what is right,
whose deeds are always just.#Is 56:1–2.
4Remember me, Lord, as you favor your people;
come to me with your saving help,#Ps 25:7; Neh 5:19.
5That I may see the prosperity of your chosen ones,
rejoice in the joy of your people,
and glory with your heritage.
B
6We have sinned like our ancestors;#Ps 78:11–17; Ex 14:11; Lv 26:40; 1 Kgs 8:47; Bar 2:12; Dn 9:5.
we have done wrong and are guilty.
I
7Our ancestors in Egypt
did not attend to your wonders.
They did not remember your manifold mercy;
they defied the Most High at the Red Sea.
8Yet he saved them for his name’s sake
to make his power known.#Ez 36:20–22.
9He roared at the Red Sea and it dried up.
He led them through the deep as through a desert.#Ex 14:21–31; Is 50:2; 63:11–14; Na 1:4.
10He rescued them from hostile hands,
freed them from the power of the enemy.
11The waters covered their oppressors;
not one of them survived.
12Then they believed his words
and sang his praise.#Ex 15:1–21.
II
13But they soon forgot all he had done;
they had no patience for his plan.
14In the desert they gave in to their cravings,
tempted God in the wasteland.#Ps 78:18; Ex 15:24; 16:3; Nm 11:1–6.
15So he gave them what they asked
and sent a wasting disease against them.#Ps 78:26–31; Nm 11:33.
III
16In the camp they challenged Moses#Nm 16; Dt 11:6; Is 26:11.
and Aaron, the holy one of the Lord.
17The earth opened and swallowed Dathan,
it closed on the followers of Abiram.
18Against their company the fire blazed;
flames consumed the wicked.
IV
19At Horeb they fashioned a calf,#Ex 32; Dt 9:8–21; Jer 2:11; Acts 7:41; Rom 1:23.
worshiped a metal statue.
20They exchanged their glory#Their glory: meant as a reference to God.
for the image of a grass-eating bull.
21They forgot the God who had saved them,
who had done great deeds in Egypt,#Ps 78:42–58; Dt 32:18; Jer 2:32.
22Amazing deeds in the land of Ham,
fearsome deeds at the Red Sea.
23He would have decreed their destruction,
had not Moses, his chosen one,
Withstood him in the breach#Withstood him in the breach: the image is that of Moses standing in a narrow break made in the wall to keep anyone from entering.
to turn back his destroying anger.#Ex 32:11; Dt 9:25; Ez 22:30.
V
24Next they despised the beautiful land;#Lv 26:33; Nm 14; Dt 1:25–36; Ez 20:15, 23.
they did not believe the promise.
25In their tents they complained;
they did not heed the voice of the Lord.
26So with raised hand he swore
he would destroy them in the desert,
27And scatter their descendants among the nations,
disperse them in foreign lands.
VI
28They joined in the rites of Baal of Peor,#Nm 25; Dt 26:14; Sir 45:23–24.
ate food sacrificed to the dead.
29They provoked him by their actions,
and a plague broke out among them.
30Then Phinehas rose to intervene,
and the plague was brought to a halt.
31This was counted for him as a righteous deed
for all generations to come.
VII
32At the waters of Meribah they angered God,#Ps 95:8–9; Ex 17:1–7; Nm 20:2–13; Dt 6:16; 33:8.
and Moses suffered because of them.#Moses suffered because of them: Moses was not allowed to enter the promised land because of his rash words (Nm 20:12). According to Dt 1:37, Moses was not allowed to cross because of the people’s sin, not his own.
33They so embittered his spirit
that rash words crossed his lips.
VIII
34They did not destroy the peoples
as the Lord had commanded them,#Dt 7:1; Jgs 2:1–5.
35But mingled with the nations
and imitated their ways.#Lv 18:3; Jgs 1:27–35; 3:5.
36They served their idols
and were ensnared by them.#Lv 18:21; Nm 35:33; Dt 32:17; Jgs 2:11–13, 17, 19; 2 Kgs 16:3; Bar 4:7; 1 Cor 10:20.
37They sacrificed to demons#Demons: Hebrew shedim occurs in parallelism with “gods” in an important inscription from Transjordan and hence can also be translated “the gods.”
their own sons and daughters,
38Shedding innocent blood,
the blood of their own sons and daughters,
Whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan,
desecrating the land with bloodshed.
39They defiled themselves by their actions,
became adulterers by their conduct.
40So the Lord grew angry with his people,
abhorred his own heritage.
41He handed them over to the nations,
and their adversaries ruled over them.#Jgs 2:14–23.
42Their enemies oppressed them,
kept them under subjection.
43Many times did he rescue them,
but they kept rebelling and scheming
and were brought low by their own guilt.#Is 63:7–9.
44Still God had regard for their affliction
when he heard their wailing.
45For their sake he remembered his covenant
and relented in his abundant mercy,#Lv 26:42.
46Winning for them compassion
from all who held them captive.
C
47Save us, Lord, our God;
gather us from among the nations
That we may give thanks to your holy name
and glory in praising you.#1 Chr 16:35.
48#A doxology ending Book IV of the Psalter. It is not part of the Psalm.Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting!
Let all the people say, Amen!#Ps 41:14; 72:18; 89:53; 1 Chr 16:36; Neh 9:5.
Hallelujah!
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