Bible Reading Plan

¹ By the rivers of Babylon—
there we sat down and wept
when we remembered Zion.^(a)
2 There we hung up our lyres
on the poplar trees,^(b)
3 for our captors there asked us for songs,
and our tormentors, for rejoicing:
"Sing us one of the songs of Zion."^(c)

⁴ How can we sing the Lord 's song
on foreign soil?^(d)
5 If I forget you, Jerusalem,
may my right hand forget its skill.^(e)
6 May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth
if I do not remember you,
if I do not exalt Jerusalem as my greatest joy!^(f)

⁷ Remember, Lord , what the Edomites said
that day^[a] at Jerusalem:
"Destroy it! Destroy it
down to its foundations!"^(g)
8 Daughter Babylon, doomed to destruction,
happy is the one who pays you back
what you have done to us.^(h)
9 Happy is he who takes your little ones
and dashes them against the rocks.⁽ⁱ⁾

¹ I will give You thanks with all my heart;^(a)
I will sing Your praise before the heavenly beings.^[a](b)
2 I will bow down toward Your holy temple
and give thanks to Your name
for Your constant love and truth.
You have exalted Your name
and Your promise above everything else.^(c)
3 On the day I called, You answered me;
You increased strength within me.^[b](d)

⁴ All the kings on earth will give You thanks, Lord ,
when they hear what You have promised.^[c](e)
5 They will sing of the Lord 's ways,
for the Lord 's glory is great.^(f)
6 Though the Lord is exalted,
He takes note of the humble;
but He knows the haughty from a distance.^(g)

⁷ If I walk into the thick of danger,
You will preserve my life
from the anger of my enemies.^(h)
You will extend Your hand;
Your right hand will save me.^(i)
8 The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me.^(j)
Lord , Your love is eternal;
do not abandon the work of Your hands.^(k)

¹  Lord , You have searched me and known me.^(a)
2 You know when I sit down and when I stand up;
You understand my thoughts from far away.^(b)
3 You observe my travels and my rest;
You are aware of all my ways.^(c)
4 Before a word is on my tongue,
You know all about it, Lord .^(d)
5 You have encircled me;
You have placed Your hand on me.^(e)
6 This extraordinary knowledge is beyond me.
It is lofty; I am unable to reach it.^(f)

⁷ Where can I go to escape Your Spirit?
Where can I flee from Your presence?^(g)
8 If I go up to heaven, You are there;^(h)
if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there.^(i)
9 If I live at the eastern horizon
or settle at the western limits,^[a]
10 even there Your hand will lead me;
Your right hand will hold on to me.^(j)
11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me,
and the light around me will be night"^(k)—
¹² even the darkness is not dark to You.
The night shines like the day;
darkness and light are alike to You.^(l)

¹³ For it was You who created my inward parts;^[b]
You knit me together in my mother's womb.^(m)
14 I will praise You
because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made.^[c][d]
Your works are wonderful,
and I know this very well.^(n)
15 My bones were not hidden from You
when I was made in secret,
when I was formed in the depths of the earth.^(o)
16 Your eyes saw me when I was formless;
all my days were written in Your book and planned
before a single one of them began.^(p)

¹⁷ God, how difficult^[e] Your thoughts are
for me to comprehend;
how vast their sum is!
¹⁸ If I counted them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand;^(q)
when I wake up,^[f] I am still with You.^(r)

¹⁹ God, if only You would kill the wicked—
you bloodthirsty men, stay away from me^(s)—
²⁰ who invoke You deceitfully.
Your enemies swear by You falsely.^(t)
21  Lord , don't I hate those who hate You,
and detest those who rebel against You?
²² I hate them with extreme hatred;
I consider them my enemies.^(u)

²³ Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my concerns.^(v)
24 See if there is any offensive^[g] way in me;
lead me in the everlasting way.^(w)

¹ Rescue me, Lord , from evil men.
Keep me safe from violent men^(a)
2 who plan evil in their hearts.
They stir up wars all day long.^(b)
3 They make their tongues
as sharp as a snake's bite;
viper's venom is under their lips.^(c) Selah

⁴ Protect me, Lord ,
from the clutches of the wicked.^(d)
Keep me safe from violent men
who plan to make me stumble.^[a](e)
5 The proud hide a trap with ropes for me;
they spread a net along the path
and set snares for me.^(f) Selah

⁶ I say to the Lord , "You are my God."
Listen, Lord , to my cry for help.^(g)
7 Lord God , my strong Savior,
You shield my head on the day of battle.^(h)
8  Lord , do not grant the desires of the wicked;
do not let them achieve their goals.
Otherwise, they will become proud.⁽ⁱ⁾ Selah

⁹ When those who surround me rise up,^[b]
may the trouble their lips cause overwhelm them.^(j)
10 Let hot coals fall on them.
Let them be thrown into the fire,
into the abyss, never again to rise.^(k)
11 Do not let a slanderer stay in the land.
Let evil relentlessly^[c] hunt down a violent man.^(l)

¹² I^[d] know that the Lord upholds
the just cause of the poor,
justice for the needy.^(m)
13 Surely the righteous will praise Your name;
the upright will live in Your presence.⁽ⁿ⁾

¹  Lord , I call on You; hurry to help me.
Listen to my voice when I call on You.^(a)
2 May my prayer be set before You as incense,^(b)
the raising of my hands as the evening offering.^(c)

³  Lord , set up a guard for my mouth;
keep watch at the door of my lips.^(d)
4 Do not let my heart turn to any evil thing
or perform wicked acts
with men who commit sin.
Do not let me feast on their delicacies.^(e)
5 Let the righteous one strike me—
it is an act of faithful love;
let him rebuke me—
it is oil for my head;
let me^[a] not refuse it.^(f)
Even now my prayer is against
the evil acts of the wicked.^[b](g)
6 When their rulers^[c] will be thrown off
the sides of a cliff,
the people^[d] will listen to my words,
for they are pleasing.^(h)

⁷ As when one plows and breaks up the soil,
turning up rocks,
so our^[e] bones have been scattered
at the mouth of Sheol.⁽ⁱ⁾

⁸ But my eyes look to You, Lord God .
I seek refuge in You; do not let me die.^[f](j)
9 Protect me from^[g] the trap they have set for me,
and from the snares of evildoers.^(k)
10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets,
while I pass by safely.^(l)

¹ I cry aloud to the Lord ;^(b)
I plead aloud to the Lord for mercy.^(c)
2 I pour out my complaint before Him;
I reveal my trouble to Him.^(d)
3 Although my spirit is weak within me,
You know my way.^(e)

Along this path I travel
they have hidden a trap for me.^(f)
4 Look to the right and see:^[a]
no one stands up for me;
there is no refuge for me;
no one cares about me.^(g)

⁵ I cry to You, Lord ;
I say, "You are my shelter,
my portion in the land of the living."^(h)
6 Listen to my cry,
for I am very weak.⁽ⁱ⁾
Rescue me from those who pursue me,
for they are too strong for me.^(j)
7 Free me from prison
so that I can praise Your name.
The righteous will gather around me
because You deal generously with me.^(k)

¹  Lord , hear my prayer.
In Your faithfulness listen to my plea,
and in Your righteousness answer me.^(a)
2 Do not bring Your servant into judgment,^(b)
for no one alive is righteous in Your sight.^(c)

³ For the enemy has pursued me,
crushing me to the ground,
making me live in darkness
like those long dead.^(d)
4 My spirit is weak within me;
my heart is overcome with dismay.^(e)

⁵ I remember the days of old;
I meditate on all You have done;
I reflect on the work of Your hands.^(f)
6 I spread out my hands to You;
I am like parched land before You.^(g) Selah

⁷ Answer me quickly, Lord ;
my spirit fails.^(h)
Don't hide Your face from me,
or I will be like those
going down to the Pit.^(i)
8 Let me experience
Your faithful love in the morning,
for I trust in You.^(j)
Reveal to me the way I should go
because I long for You.^(k)
9 Rescue me from my enemies, Lord ;
I come to You for protection.^[a](l)
10 Teach me to do Your will,
for You are my God.^(m)
May Your gracious Spirit
lead me on level ground.⁽ⁿ⁾

¹¹ Because of Your name, Yahweh,
let me live.
In Your righteousness deliver me from trouble,^(o)
12 and in Your faithful love destroy my enemies.
Wipe out all those who attack me,
for I am Your servant.^(p)

¹ May the Lord , my rock, be praised,^(a)
who trains my hands for battle
and my fingers for warfare.^(b)
2 He is my faithful love and my fortress,
my stronghold and my deliverer.
He is my shield,^(c) and I take refuge in Him;^(d)
He subdues my people^[a] under me.^(e)

³  Lord , what is man, that You care for him,
the son of man, that You think of him?^(f)
4 Man is like a breath;
his days are like a passing shadow.^(g)

⁵  Lord , part Your heavens and come down.^(h)
Touch the mountains, and they will smoke.^(i)
6 Flash Your lightning and scatter the foe;^[b]
shoot Your arrows and rout them.^(j)
7 Reach down^[c] from heaven;^(k)
rescue me from deep water, and set me free
from the grasp of foreigners^(l)
8 whose mouths speak lies,
whose right hands are deceptive.^(m)

⁹ God, I will sing a new song to You;
I will play on a ten-stringed harp for You⁽ⁿ⁾—
¹⁰ the One who gives victory to kings,
who frees His servant David
from the deadly sword.^(o)
11 Set me free and rescue me
from the grasp of foreigners^(p)
whose mouths speak lies,
whose right hands are deceptive.^(q)

¹² Then our sons will be like plants
nurtured in their youth,
our daughters, like corner pillars
that are carved in the palace style.^(r)
13 Our storehouses will be full,
supplying all kinds of produce;^(s)
our flocks will increase by thousands
and tens of thousands in our open fields.^(t)
14 Our cattle will be well fed.^[d]
There will be no breach in the walls,
no going into captivity,^[e]
and no cry of lament in our public squares.^(u)
15 Happy are the people with such blessings.
Happy are the people whose God is Yahweh.^(v)

¹ I^[a] exalt You, my God the King,
and praise Your name forever and ever.^(a)
2 I will praise You every day;
I will honor Your name forever and ever.^(b)

³ Yahweh is great and is highly praised;^(c)
His greatness is unsearchable.^(d)
4 One generation will declare Your works to the next
and will proclaim Your mighty acts.^(e)
5 I^[b] will speak of Your splendor and glorious majesty
and^[c] Your wonderful works.^(f)
6 They will proclaim the power of Your awe-inspiring acts,
and I will declare Your greatness.^[d](g)
7 They will give a testimony of Your great goodness
and will joyfully sing of Your righteousness.^(h)

⁸ The Lord is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and great in faithful love.^(i)
9 The Lord is good to everyone;^(j)
His compassion rests on all He has made.^(k)
10 All You have made will thank You, Lord ;
the^[e] godly will praise You.^(l)
11 They will speak of the glory of Your kingdom
and will declare Your might,^(m)
12 informing all people of Your mighty acts
and of the glorious splendor of Your^[f] kingdom.^(n)
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom;
Your rule is for all generations.^(o)
The Lord is faithful in all His words
and gracious in all His actions.^[g](p)

¹⁴ The Lord helps all who fall;
He raises up all who are oppressed.^[h](q)
15 All eyes look to You,
and You give them their food at the proper time.^(r)
16 You open Your hand
and satisfy the desire of every living thing.^(s)

¹⁷ The Lord is righteous in all His ways
and gracious in all His acts.^(t)
18 The Lord is near all who call out to Him,
all who call out to Him with integrity.^(u)
19 He fulfills the desires of those who fear Him;
He hears their cry for help and saves them.^(v)
20 The Lord guards all those who love Him,
but He destroys all the wicked.^(w)
21 My mouth will declare Yahweh's praise;
let every living thing
praise His holy name forever and ever.^(x)

¹ Hallelujah!
My soul, praise the Lord .^(a)
2 I will praise the Lord all my life;
I will sing to my God as long as I live.^(b)

³ Do not trust in nobles,
in man, who cannot save.^(c)
4 When his breath^[a] leaves him,
he returns to the ground;
on that day his plans die.^(d)

⁵ Happy is the one whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord his God,^(e)
6 the Maker of heaven and earth,
the sea and everything in them.^(f)
He remains faithful forever,^(g)
7 executing justice for the exploited
and giving food to the hungry.^(h)
The Lord frees prisoners.^(i)
8 The Lord opens the eyes of the blind.^(j)
The Lord raises up those who are oppressed.^[b](k)
The Lord loves the righteous.^(l)
9 The Lord protects foreigners
and helps the fatherless and the widow,^(m)
but He frustrates the ways of the wicked.⁽ⁿ⁾

¹⁰ The Lord reigns forever;
Zion, your God reigns for all generations.^(o)
Hallelujah!