Book Five
Let the Redeemed of the Lord Say So
1 gOh give thanks to the Lord, hfor he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever!
2 Let ithe redeemed of the Lord say so,
whom he has jredeemed from trouble1
3 and kgathered in from the lands,
from the east and from the west,
from the north and from the south.
4 Some lwandered in desert wastes,
finding no way mto a city to dwell in;
5 hungry and thirsty,
their soul nfainted within them.
6 Then they ocried to the Lord in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
7 He led them by pa straight way
till they reached ma city to dwell in.
8 qLet them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
9 For he rsatisfies the longing soul,
sand the hungry soul he fills with good things.
10 tSome sat in darkness and in uthe shadow of death,
prisoners in vaffliction and in irons,
11 for they whad rebelled against the words of God,
and xspurned the counsel of the Most High.
12 So he bowed their hearts down with hard labor;
they fell down, ywith none to help.
13 zThen they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
14 He brought them out of adarkness and the shadow of death,
and bburst their bonds apart.
15 cLet them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
16 For he dshatters the doors of bronze
and cuts in two the bars of iron.
17 Some were efools through their sinful ways,
and because of their iniquities suffered affliction;
18 fthey loathed any kind of food,
and they gdrew near to hthe gates of death.
19 iThen they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
20 He jsent out his word and khealed them,
and ldelivered them from their destruction.
21 mLet them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
22 And let them noffer sacrifices of thanksgiving,
23 Some qwent down to the sea in ships,
doing business on the great waters;
24 they saw the deeds of the Lord,
his wondrous works in the deep.
25 For he rcommanded and sraised the stormy wind,
which lifted up the waves of the sea.
26 They mounted up to heaven; they went down to the depths;
their courage tmelted away in their evil plight;
27 they reeled and ustaggered like drunken men
and vwere at their wits’ end.2
28 wThen they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
29 He xmade the storm be still,
and the waves of the sea were hushed.
30 Then they were glad that the waters3 were quiet,
and he brought them to their desired haven.
31 yLet them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
32 Let them zextol him in athe congregation of the people,
and praise him in the assembly of the elders.
33 He bturns rivers into a desert,
springs of water into thirsty ground,
34 ca fruitful land into a salty waste,
because of the evil of its inhabitants.
35 He dturns a desert into pools of water,
ea parched land into springs of water.
36 And there he lets the hungry dwell,
and they establish fa city to live in;
37 they sow fields and plant vineyards
and get a fruitful yield.
38 gBy his blessing they multiply greatly,
and he does not let their livestock diminish.
39 When they are diminished and brought low
through oppression, evil, and sorrow,
40 hhe pours contempt on princes
and imakes them wander jin trackless wastes;
41 but khe raises up the needy out of affliction
and lmakes their families like flocks.
42 mThe upright see it and are glad,
and nall wickedness shuts its mouth.
43 oWhoever is wise, let him attend to these things;
let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord.
Restore Our Fortunes, O Lord
A Song of mAscents.
1 When the Lord srestored the fortunes of Zion,
we were like those who tdream.
2 Then our umouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then they said among the nations,
v“The Lord has done great things for them.”
3 The Lord has done great things for us;
we are glad.
4 Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
like streams in the Negeb!
5 wThose who sow in tears
shall reap with shouts of joy!
6 He who goes out weeping,
bearing the seed for sowing,
shall come home with shouts of joy,
bringing his sheaves with him.
The Angel and the Little Scroll
1 Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, wrapped in a cloud, with ya rainbow over his head, and zhis face was like the sun, and ahis legs like pillars of fire. 2 bHe had a little scroll open in his hand. And he set his right foot on the sea, and his left foot on the land, 3 and called out with a loud voice, clike a lion roaring. When he called out, the seven thunders sounded. 4 And when the seven thunders had sounded, I was about to write, but I heard a voice from heaven saying, d“Seal up what the seven thunders have said, and do not write it down.” 5 And the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land eraised his right hand to heaven 6 and swore by fhim who lives forever and ever, gwho created heaven and what is in it, the earth and what is in it, and the sea and what is in it, that there would be no more delay, 7 but that hin the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled, ijust as he announced to his servants the prophets.
8 Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me again, saying, “Go, take the scroll that is open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.” 9 So I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll. And he said to me, j“Take and keat it; it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.” 10 And I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel and ate it. It was sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it my stomach was made bitter. 11 And I was told, l“You must again prophesy about many peoples and nations and languages and kings.”
