Psalm 81

God’s Goodness and Israel’s Waywardness.

¹Sing for joy to God our strength;

Shout joyfully to the God of Jacob.

²Raise a song, strike the tambourine,

The sweet sounding lyre with the harp.

³Blow the trumpet at the new moon,

At the full moon, on our feast day.

⁴For it is a statute for Israel,

An ordinance of the God of Jacob.

⁵He established it as a testimony in Joseph

When he went throughout the land of Egypt.

I heard a language I did not know:

⁶¶“I relieved his shoulder of the burden,[#81:6 Lit removed his shoulder from]

His hands were freed from the basket.

⁷“You called in trouble and I rescued you;

I answered you in the hiding place of thunder;

I put you to the test at the waters of Meribah. Selah

⁸“Hear, My people, and I will admonish you;

Israel, if you would listen to Me!

⁹“There shall be no strange god among you;

Nor shall you worship a foreign god.

¹⁰“I, the Lord , am your God,

Who brought you up from the land of Egypt;

Open your mouth wide and I will fill it.

¹¹¶“But My people did not listen to My voice,

And Israel did not obey Me.

¹²“So I gave them over to the stubbornness of their heart,[#81:12 Lit him]

To walk by their own plans.

¹³“Oh that My people would listen to Me,

That Israel would walk in My ways!

¹⁴“I would quickly subdue their enemies

And turn My hand against their adversaries.

¹⁵“Those who hate the Lord would pretend to obey Him,

And their time of punishment would be forever.

¹⁶“But I would feed you with the finest of the wheat,[#81:16 Lit He would feed him; #81:16 Lit fat]

And with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”