Joy in Forgiveness of Israel’s Sins
1 Praise theLord!
# Oh, give thanks to theLord, forHeisgood!
For His mercyenduresforever.
2 Who can utter the mighty acts of theLord?
Who can declare all His praise?
3 Blessedarethose who keep justice,
# Andhe whodoes righteousness atall times!
4 Remember me, OLord, with the favorYouhavetowardYour people.
Oh, visit me with Your salvation,
5 That I may see the benefit of Your chosen ones,
That I may rejoice in the gladness of Your nation,
That I may glory with Your inheritance.
6 We have sinned with our fathers,
We have committed iniquity,
We have done wickedly.
7 Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Your wonders;
They did not remember the multitude of Your mercies,
# But rebelled by the sea—the Red Sea.
8 Nevertheless He saved them for His name’s sake,
# That He might make His mighty power known.
9 He rebuked the Red Sea also, and it dried up;
# SoHe led them through the depths,
As through the wilderness.
10 Hesaved them from the hand of him who hatedthem,
And redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.
11 The waters covered their enemies;
There was not one of them left.
12 Then they believed His words;
They sang His praise.
13 They soon forgot His works;
They did not wait for His counsel,
14 But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness,
And tested God in the desert.
15 And He gave them their request,
# Butsent leanness into their soul.
16 Whenthey envied Moses in the camp,
AndAaron the saint of theLord,
17 The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan,
And covered the faction of Abiram.
18 A fire was kindled in their company;
The flame burned up the wicked.
19 They made a calf in Horeb,
And worshiped the molded image.
20 Thusthey changed their glory
Into the image of an ox that eats grass.
21 They forgot God their Savior,
Who had done great things in Egypt,
22 Wondrous works in the land of Ham,
Awesome things by the Red Sea.
23 Therefore He said that He would destroy them,
# Had not Moses His chosen onestood before Him in the breach,
To turn away His wrath, lest He destroythem.
24 Then they despisedthe pleasant land;
# Theydid not believe His word,
25 But complained in their tents,
Anddid not heed the voice of theLord.
26 Therefore He raised His handinanoathagainst them,
# To overthrow them in the wilderness,
27 To overthrow their descendants among the nations,
And to scatter them in the lands.
28 They joined themselves also to Baal of Peor,
And ate sacrifices made to the dead.
29 Thus they provokedHimto anger with their deeds,
And the plague broke out among them.
30 Then Phinehas stood up and intervened,
And the plague was stopped.
31 And that was accounted to himfor righteousness
To all generations forevermore.
32 They angeredHimalso at the waters of strife,
# So that it went ill with Moses on account of them;
33 Because they rebelled against His Spirit,
So that he spoke rashly with his lips.
34 They did not destroy the peoples,
# Concerning whom theLordhad commanded them,
35 But they mingled with the Gentiles
And learned their works;
36 They served their idols,
# Which became a snare to them.
37 They even sacrificed their sons
# And their daughters todemons,
38 And shed innocent blood,
The blood of their sons and daughters,
Whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan;
# Andthe land was polluted with blood.
39 Thus they weredefiled by their own works,
# Andplayed the harlot by their own deeds.
40 Thereforethe wrath of theLordwas kindled against His people,
# So that He abhorredHis own inheritance.
41 AndHe gave them into the hand of the Gentiles,
And those who hated them ruled over them.
42 Their enemies also oppressed them,
And they were brought into subjection under their hand.
43 Many times He delivered them;
But they rebelled in their counsel,
And were brought low for their iniquity.
44 Nevertheless He regarded their affliction,
# WhenHe heard their cry;
45 And for their sake He remembered His covenant,
# Andrelentedaccording to the multitude of His mercies.
46 He also made them to be pitied
By all those who carried them away captive.
47 Save us, OLordour God,
And gather us from among the Gentiles,
To give thanks to Your holy name,
To triumph in Your praise.
48 BlessedbetheLordGod of Israel
From everlasting to everlasting!
And let all the people say, “Amen!”
Praise theLord!