Psalms

Chapter 81

Sing for Joy to God Our Strength

For the choirmaster. According to Gittith. [a] Of Asaph.

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1 Sing for joy to God our strength;

make a joyful noise to the God of Jacob.

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2 Lift up a song, strike the tambourine,

play the sweet-sounding harp and lyre.

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3 Sound the ram’s horn at the New Moon,

and at the full moon on the day of our Feast.

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4 For this is a statute for Israel,

an ordinance of the God of Jacob.

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5 He ordained it as a testimony for Joseph [b]

when he went out over the land of Egypt,

where I heard an unfamiliar language:

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6 “I relieved his shoulder of the burden;

his hands were freed from the basket.

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7 You called out in distress, and I rescued you;

I answered you from the cloud of thunder;

I tested you at the waters of Meribah. [c]

Selah

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8 Hear, O My people, and I will warn you:

O Israel, if only you would listen to Me!

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9 There must be no strange god among you,

nor shall you bow to a foreign god.

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10 I am the LORD your God,

who brought you up out of Egypt.

Open wide your mouth,

and I will fill it.

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11 But My people would not listen to Me,

and Israel would not obey Me.

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12 So I gave them up to their stubborn hearts

to follow their own devices.

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13 If only My people would listen to Me,

if Israel would follow My ways,

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14 how soon I would subdue their enemies

and turn My hand against their foes!

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15 Those who hate the LORD would feign obedience,

and their doom would last forever.

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16 But I would feed you the finest wheat;

with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”

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Footnotes