The Singing Sufferer (Christ the Choir Master)

1For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. How long, O LORD? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? 2How long must I wrestle in my soul, with sorrow in my heart each day? How long will my enemy dominate me? 3Consider me and respond, O LORD my God. Give light to my eyes, lest I sleep in death, 4lest my enemy say, “I have overcome him,” and my foes rejoice when I fall. 5But I have trusted in Your loving devotion; my heart will rejoice in Your salvation. 6I will sing to the LORD, for He has been good to me.

1For the choirmaster. To the tune of "The Doe of the Dawn." A Psalm of David. My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Why are You so far from saving me, so far from my words of groaning? 2I cry out by day, O my God, but You do not answer, and by night, but I have no rest. 3Yet You are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel. 4In You our fathers trusted; they trusted and You delivered them. 5They cried out to You and were set free; they trusted in You and were not disappointed. 6But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by men and despised by the people. 7All who see me mock me; they sneer and shake their heads: 8“He trusts in the LORD, let the LORD deliver him; let the LORD rescue him, since He delights in him.” 9Yet You brought me forth from the womb; You made me secure at my mother’s breast. 10From birth I was cast upon You; from my mother’s womb You have been my God. 11Be not far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help. 12Many bulls surround me; strong bulls of Bashan encircle me. 13They open their jaws against me like lions that roar and maul. 14I am poured out like water, and all my bones are disjointed. My heart is like wax; it melts away within me. 15My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. You lay me in the dust of death. 16For dogs surround me; a band of evil men encircles me; they have pierced my hands and feet. 17I can count all my bones; they stare and gloat over me. 18They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing. 19But You, O LORD, be not far off; O my Strength, come quickly to help me. 20Deliver my soul from the sword, my precious life from the power of wild dogs. 21Save me from the mouth of the lion; at the horns of the wild oxen You have answered me!

22I will proclaim Your name to my brothers; I will praise You in the assembly. 23You who fear the LORD, praise Him! All descendants of Jacob, honor Him! All offspring of Israel, revere Him! 24For He has not despised or detested the torment of the afflicted. He has not hidden His face from him, but has attended to his cry for help. 25My praise for You resounds in the great assembly; I will fulfill my vows before those who fear You. 26The poor will eat and be satisfied; those who seek the LORD will praise Him. May your hearts live forever! 27All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD. All the families of the nations will bow down before Him. 28For dominion belongs to the LORD and He rules over the nations. 29All the rich of the earth will feast and worship; all who go down to the dust will kneel before Him—even those unable to preserve their lives. 30Posterity will serve Him; they will declare the Lord to a new generation. 31They will come and proclaim His righteousness to a people yet unborn—all that He has done.

1For the choirmaster. To the tune of “Lilies.” Of David. Save me, O God, for the waters are up to my neck. 2I have sunk into the miry depths, where there is no footing; I have drifted into deep waters, where the flood engulfs me. 3I am weary from my crying; my throat is parched. My eyes fail, looking for my God. 4Those who hate me without cause outnumber the hairs of my head; many are those who would destroy me—my enemies for no reason. Though I did not steal, I must repay. 5You know my folly, O God, and my guilt is not hidden from You. 6May those who hope in You not be ashamed through me, O Lord GOD of Hosts; may those who seek You not be dishonored through me, O God of Israel. 7For I have endured scorn for Your sake, and shame has covered my face. 8I have become a stranger to my brothers and a foreigner to my mother’s sons, 9because zeal for Your house has consumed me, and the insults of those who insult You have fallen on me. 10I wept and fasted, but it brought me reproach. 11I made sackcloth my clothing, and I was sport to them. 12Those who sit at the gate mock me, and I am the song of drunkards. 13But my prayer to You, O LORD, is for a time of favor. In Your abundant loving devotion, O God, answer me with Your sure salvation. 14Rescue me from the mire and do not let me sink; deliver me from my foes and out of the deep waters. 15Do not let the floods engulf me or the depths swallow me up; let not the Pit close its mouth over me. 16Answer me, O LORD, for Your loving devotion is good; turn to me in keeping with Your great compassion. 17Hide not Your face from Your servant, for I am in distress. Answer me quickly! 18Draw near to my soul and redeem me; ransom me because of my foes. 19You know my reproach, my shame and disgrace. All my adversaries are before You. 20Insults have broken my heart, and I am in despair. I looked for sympathy, but there was none, for comforters, but I found no one. 21They poisoned my food with gall and gave me vinegar to quench my thirst. 22May their table become a snare; may it be a retribution and a trap. 23May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see, and their backs be bent forever. 24Pour out Your wrath upon them, and let Your burning anger overtake them. 25May their place be deserted; let there be no one to dwell in their tents. 26For they persecute the one You struck and recount the pain of those You wounded. 27Add iniquity to their iniquity; let them not share in Your righteousness. 28May they be blotted out of the Book of Life and not listed with the righteous. 29But I am in pain and distress; let Your salvation protect me, O God. 30I will praise God’s name in song and exalt Him with thanksgiving. 31And this will please the LORD more than an ox, more than a bull with horns and hooves. 32The humble will see and rejoice. You who seek God, let your hearts be revived! 33For the LORD listens to the needy and does not despise His captive people. 34Let heaven and earth praise Him, the seas and everything that moves in them. 35For God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah, that they may dwell there and possess it. 36The descendants of His servants will inherit it, and those who love His name will settle in it.

1From inside the fish, Jonah prayed to the LORD his God, 2saying: "In my distress I called to the LORD, and He answered me. From the belly of Sheol I called for help, and You heard my voice. 3For You cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the current swirled about me; all Your breakers and waves swept over me. 4At this, I said, 'I have been banished from Your sight; yet I will look once more toward Your holy temple.' 5The waters engulfed me to take my life; the watery depths closed around me; the seaweed wrapped around my head. 6To the roots of the mountains I descended; the earth beneath me barred me in forever! But You raised my life from the pit, O LORD my God! 7As my life was fading away, I remembered the LORD. My prayer went up to You, to Your holy temple. 8Those who cling to worthless idols forsake His loving devotion. 9But I, with the voice of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to You. I will fulfill what I have vowed. Salvation is from the LORD!"

9And they sang a new song: "Worthy are You to take the scroll and open its seals, because You were slain, and by Your blood You purchased for God those from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. 10You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign upon the earth." 11Then I looked, and I heard the voices of many angels and living creatures and elders encircling the throne, and their number was myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands. 12In a loud voice they were saying: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing!” 13And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying: “To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power forever and ever!” 14And the four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped.