Psalms 89:28-38 - Compare All Versions

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A long time ago you spoke in a vision, you spoke to your faithful beloved: “I’ve crowned a hero, I chose the best I could find; I found David, my servant, poured holy oil on his head, And I’ll keep my hand steadily on him, yes, I’ll stick with him through thick and thin. No enemy will get the best of him, no scoundrel will do him in. I’ll weed out all who oppose him, I’ll clean out all who hate him. I’m with him for good and I’ll love him forever; I’ve set him on high—he’s riding high! I’ve put Ocean in his one hand, River in the other; he’ll call out, ‘Oh, my Father—my God, my Rock of Salvation!’ Yes, I’m setting him apart as the First of the royal line, High King over all of earth’s kings. I’ll preserve him eternally in my love, I’ll faithfully do all I so solemnly promised. I’ll guarantee his family tree and underwrite his rule. If his children refuse to do what I tell them, if they refuse to walk in the way I show them, If they spit on the directions I give them and tear up the rules I post for them— I’ll rub their faces in the dirt of their rebellion and make them face the music. But I’ll never throw them out, never abandon or disown them. Do you think I’d withdraw my holy promise? or take back words I’d already spoken? I’ve given my word, my whole and holy word; do you think I would lie to David? His family tree is here for good, his sovereignty as sure as the sun, Dependable as the phases of the moon, inescapable as weather.” But GOD, you did walk off and leave us, you lost your temper with the one you anointed. You tore up the promise you made to your servant, you stomped his crown in the mud. You blasted his home to kingdom come, reduced his city to a pile of rubble Picked clean by wayfaring strangers, a joke to all the neighbors. You declared a holiday for all his enemies, and they’re celebrating for all they’re worth. Angry, you opposed him in battle, refused to fight on his side; You robbed him of his splendor, humiliated this warrior, ground his kingly honor in the dirt. You took the best years of his life and left him an impotent, ruined husk. How long do we put up with this, GOD? Are you gone for good? Will you hold this grudge forever? Remember my sorrow and how short life is. Did you create men and women for nothing but this? We’ll see death soon enough. Everyone does. And there’s no back door out of hell. So where is the love you’re so famous for, Lord? What happened to your promise to David? Take a good look at your servant, dear Lord; I’m the butt of the jokes of all nations, The taunting jokes of your enemies, GOD, as they dog the steps of your dear anointed.

My mercy will I keep for him for evermore, And my covenant shall stand fast with him. His seed also will I make to endure for ever, And his throne as the days of heaven. If his children forsake my law, And walk not in my judgments; If they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments; Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes. Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, Nor suffer my faithfulness to fail. My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips. Once have I sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David. His seed shall endure for ever, And his throne as the sun before me. It shall be established for ever as the moon, And as a faithful witness in heaven. Selah. But thou hast cast off and abhorred, Thou hast been wroth with thine anointed.

My lovingkindness I will keep for him forever, And My covenant shall be confirmed to him. So I will establish his descendants forever And his throne as the days of heaven. “If his sons forsake My law And do not walk in My judgments, If they violate My statutes And do not keep My commandments, Then I will punish their transgression with the rod And their iniquity with stripes. But I will not break off My lovingkindness from him, Nor deal falsely in My faithfulness. My covenant I will not violate, Nor will I alter the utterance of My lips. Once I have sworn by My holiness; I will not lie to David. His descendants shall endure forever And his throne as the sun before Me. It shall be established forever like the moon, And the witness in the sky is faithful.” Selah. But You have cast off and rejected, You have been full of wrath against Your anointed.

My love will watch over him forever, and my agreement with him will never end. I will make his family continue, and his kingdom will last as long as the skies. “If his descendants reject my teachings and do not follow my laws, if they ignore my demands and disobey my commands, then I will punish their sins with a rod and their wrongs with a whip. But I will not hold back my love from David, nor will I stop being loyal. I will not break my agreement nor change what I have said. I have promised by my holiness, I will not lie to David. His family will go on forever. His kingdom will last before me like the sun. It will continue forever, like the moon, like a dependable witness in the sky.”Selah But now you have refused and rejected your appointed king. You have been angry with him.

My lovingkindness will I keep for him for evermore; And my covenant shall stand fast with him. His seed also will I make to endure for ever, And his throne as the days of heaven. If his children forsake my law, And walk not in mine ordinances; If they break my statutes, And keep not my commandments; Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, And their iniquity with stripes. But my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, Nor suffer my faithfulness to fail. My covenant will I not break, Nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips. Once have I sworn by my holiness: I will not lie unto David: His seed shall endure for ever, And his throne as the sun before me. It shall be established for ever as the moon, And as the faithful witness in the sky. [Selah But thou hast cast off and rejected, Thou hast been wroth with thine anointed.

I will maintain my love to him forever, and my covenant with him will never fail. I will establish his line forever, his throne as long as the heavens endure. “If his sons forsake my law and do not follow my statutes, if they violate my decrees and fail to keep my commands, I will punish their sin with the rod, their iniquity with flogging; but I will not take my love from him, nor will I ever betray my faithfulness. I will not violate my covenant or alter what my lips have uttered. Once for all, I have sworn by my holiness— and I will not lie to David— that his line will continue forever and his throne endure before me like the sun; it will be established forever like the moon, the faithful witness in the sky.” But you have rejected, you have spurned, you have been very angry with your anointed one.

My mercy I will keep for him forever, And My covenant shall stand firm with him. His seed also I will make to endure forever, And his throne as the days of heaven. “If his sons forsake My law And do not walk in My judgments, If they break My statutes And do not keep My commandments, Then I will punish their transgression with the rod, And their iniquity with stripes. Nevertheless My lovingkindness I will not utterly take from him, Nor allow My faithfulness to fail. My covenant I will not break, Nor alter the word that has gone out of My lips. Once I have sworn by My holiness; I will not lie to David: His seed shall endure forever, And his throne as the sun before Me; It shall be established forever like the moon, Even like the faithful witness in the sky.” Selah But You have cast off and abhorred, You have been furious with Your anointed.

“My lovingkindness I will keep for him forevermore, And My covenant will be confirmed to him. “His descendants I will establish forever, And his throne [will endure] as the days of heaven. [Is 9:7; Jer 33:14-26; Gal 3:16] ¶“If his children turn away from My law And do not walk in My ordinances, If they break My statutes And do not keep My commandments, Then I will punish their transgression with the rod [of discipline], And [correct] their wickedness with stripes. [2 Sam 7:14] “Nevertheless, I will not break off My lovingkindness from him, Nor allow My faithfulness to fail. “My covenant I will not violate, Nor will I alter the utterance of My lips. “Once [for all] I have sworn by My holiness, [My vow which cannot be violated]; I will not lie to David. “His descendants shall endure forever And his throne [will continue] as the sun before Me. [Is 9:7; Jer 33:14-26; Gal 3:16] “It shall be established forever like the moon, And the witness in the heavens is ever faithful.” [Rev 1:5; 3:14] Selah. ¶But [in apparent contradiction of all this] You [the faithful LORD] have cast off and rejected; You have been full of wrath against Your anointed.

I will love him and be kind to him forever; my covenant with him will never end. I will preserve an heir for him; his throne will be as endless as the days of heaven. But if his descendants forsake my instructions and fail to obey my regulations, if they do not obey my decrees and fail to keep my commands, then I will punish their sin with the rod, and their disobedience with beating. But I will never stop loving him nor fail to keep my promise to him. No, I will not break my covenant; I will not take back a single word I said. I have sworn an oath to David, and in my holiness I cannot lie: His dynasty will go on forever; his kingdom will endure as the sun. It will be as eternal as the moon, my faithful witness in the sky!” Interlude But now you have rejected him and cast him off. You are angry with your anointed king.

I will love him forever and always show him kindness. My covenant with him will never be broken. For I have decreed that he will always have an heir— a dynasty that will release the days of heaven on earth. But if his children turn from me and forsake my words, refusing to walk in my truth, renouncing and violating my laws, then I will surely punish them for their sins with my stern discipline until they regret it. But I will never, no never, lift my faithful love from off their lives. My kindness will prevail and I will never disown them. How could I revoke my covenant of love that I promised David? For I have given him my word, my holy, irrevocable word. How could I lie to my loving servant David? Sons of David will continue to reign on his throne, and their kingdom will endure as long as the sun is in the sky. This covenant will be an unbreakable promise that I have established for all time.” Pause in his presence Why have you rejected me, the one you anointed? Why would you cast me away? Why would you lose your temper with me?

My steadfast love I will keep for him forever, and my covenant will stand firm for him. I will establish his offspring forever and his throne as the days of the heavens. If his children forsake my law and do not walk according to my rules, if they violate my statutes and do not keep my commandments, then I will punish their transgression with the rod and their iniquity with stripes, but I will not remove from him my steadfast love or be false to my faithfulness. I will not violate my covenant or alter the word that went forth from my lips. Once for all I have sworn by my holiness; I will not lie to David. His offspring shall endure forever, his throne as long as the sun before me. Like the moon it shall be established forever, a faithful witness in the skies.” Selah But now you have cast off and rejected; you are full of wrath against your anointed.