{To the chief Musician. A Psalm of David, the servant of Jehovah, who spoke to Jehovah the words of this song in the day that Jehovah had delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies and out of the hand of Saul. And he said,} I will love thee, O Jehovah, my strength.

For had my father and my mother forsaken me, then had Jehovah taken me up.

Unless I had believed to see the goodness of Jehovah in the land of the living ...!

I behaved myself as though he had been a friend, a brother to me; I bowed down in sadness, as one that mourneth for a mother.

If we had forgotten the name of our God, and stretched out our hands to a strange god,

{To the chief Musician. A Psalm of David; when Nathan the prophet came to him, after he had gone in to Bath-sheba.} Be gracious unto me, O God, according to thy loving-kindness; according to the abundance of thy tender mercies, blot out my transgressions.

And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away, and be at rest;

Had I regarded iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not hear.

But as for me, my feet were almost gone, my steps had well nigh slipped;

And forgot his doings, and his marvellous works which he had shewn them.

In the sight of their fathers had he done wonders, in the land of Egypt, the field of Zoan.

Though he had commanded the clouds from above, and had opened the doors of the heavens,

And had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them the corn of the heavens.

And he forsook the tabernacle at Shiloh, the tent where he had dwelt among men,

Oh that my people had hearkened unto me, that Israel had walked in my ways!

For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God, than dwell in the tents of wickedness.

If Jehovah had not been my help, my soul had almost dwelt in silence.

He sent Moses his servant, and Aaron whom he had chosen:

Egypt rejoiced at their departure; for the fear of them had fallen upon them.

They forgot God their Saviour, who had done great things in Egypt,

And he said that he would destroy them, had not Moses, his chosen, stood before him in the breach, to turn away his fury, lest he should destroy them.

And he caused them to find compassion of all those that had carried them captives.

Because they had rebelled against the words of God, and had despised the counsel of the Most High; ...

This I have had, because I have observed thy precepts.

They had almost consumed me upon the earth; but as for me, I forsook not thy precepts.

Unless thy law had been my delight, I should then have perished in mine affliction.

{A Song of degrees. Of David.} If it had not been Jehovah who was for us oh let Israel say --

If it had not been Jehovah who was for us, when men rose up against us,

Then they had swallowed us up alive, when their anger was kindled against us;

Then the waters had overwhelmed us, a torrent had gone over our soul;

Then the proud waters had gone over our soul.