God Speaks
143 A psalm of David.
1 Hear my prayer, O Lord;
listen to my plea!
Answer me because you are faithful and righteous.
2 Don’t put your servant on trial,
for no one is innocent before you.
3 My enemy has chased me.
He has knocked me to the ground
and forces me to live in darkness like those in the grave.
4 I am losing all hope;
I am paralyzed with fear.
5 I remember the days of old.
I ponder all your great works
and think about what you have done.
6 I lift my hands to you in prayer.
I thirst for you as parched land thirsts for rain. Interlude
7 Come quickly, Lord, and answer me,
for my depression deepens.
Don’t turn away from me,
or I will die.
8 Let me hear of your unfailing love each morning,
for I am trusting you.
Show me where to walk,
for I give myself to you.
9 Rescue me from my enemies, Lord;
I run to you to hide me.
10 Teach me to do your will,
for you are my God.
May your gracious Spirit lead me forward
on a firm footing.
11 For the glory of your name, O Lord, preserve my life.
Because of your faithfulness, bring me out of this distress.
12 In your unfailing love, silence all my enemies
and destroy all my foes,
for I am your servant.
144 A psalm of David.
1 Praise the Lord, who is my rock.
He trains my hands for war
and gives my fingers skill for battle.
2 He is my loving ally and my fortress,
my tower of safety, my rescuer.
He is my shield, and I take refuge in him.
He makes the nations submit to me.
3 O Lord, what are human beings that you should notice them,
mere mortals that you should think about them?
4 For they are like a breath of air;
their days are like a passing shadow.
5 Open the heavens, Lord, and come down.
Touch the mountains so they billow smoke.
6 Hurl your lightning bolts and scatter your enemies!
Shoot your arrows and confuse them!
7 Reach down from heaven and rescue me;
rescue me from deep waters,
from the power of my enemies.
8 Their mouths are full of lies;
they swear to tell the truth, but they lie instead.
9 I will sing a new song to you, O God!
I will sing your praises with a ten-stringed harp.
10 For you grant victory to kings!
You rescued your servant David from the fatal sword.
11 Save me!
Rescue me from the power of my enemies.
Their mouths are full of lies;
they swear to tell the truth, but they lie instead.
12 May our sons flourish in their youth
like well-nurtured plants.
May our daughters be like graceful pillars,
carved to beautify a palace.
13 May our barns be filled
with crops of every kind.
May the flocks in our fields multiply by the thousands,
even tens of thousands,
14 and may our oxen be loaded down with produce.
May there be no enemy breaking through our walls,
no going into captivity,
no cries of alarm in our town squares.
15 Yes, joyful are those who live like this!
Joyful indeed are those whose God is the Lord.
145 A psalm of praise of David.
1 I will exalt you, my God and King,
and praise your name forever and ever.
2 I will praise you every day;
yes, I will praise you forever.
3 Great is the Lord! He is most worthy of praise!
No one can measure his greatness.
4 Let each generation tell its children of your mighty acts;
let them proclaim your power.
5 I will meditate on your majestic, glorious splendor
and your wonderful miracles.
6 Your awe-inspiring deeds will be on every tongue;
I will proclaim your greatness.
7 Everyone will share the story of your wonderful goodness;
they will sing with joy about your righteousness.
8 The Lord is merciful and compassionate,
slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.
9 The Lord is good to everyone.
He showers compassion on all his creation.
10 All of your works will thank you, Lord,
and your faithful followers will praise you.
11 They will speak of the glory of your kingdom;
they will give examples of your power.
12 They will tell about your mighty deeds
and about the majesty and glory of your reign.
13 For your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom.
You rule throughout all generations.
The Lord always keeps his promises;
he is gracious in all he does.
14 The Lord helps the fallen
and lifts those bent beneath their loads.
15 The eyes of all look to you in hope;
you give them their food as they need it.
16 When you open your hand,
you satisfy the hunger and thirst of every living thing.
17 The Lord is righteous in everything he does;
he is filled with kindness.
18 The Lord is close to all who call on him,
yes, to all who call on him in truth.
19 He grants the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cries for help and rescues them.
20 The Lord protects all those who love him,
but he destroys the wicked.
21 I will praise the Lord,
and may everyone on earth bless his holy name
forever and ever.
Source: New Living Translation: BibleGateway.com
We Respond
Reflection: Consider the following questions regarding each of Psalms 143-145:
1. What does this psalm tell me about God?
2. What does this psalm tell me about the human beings He created?
Here is one possible answer to each of these questions. Ask the Holy Spirit if there are any others for you personally to ponder.
Psalm 143
1. God is faithful and righteous. In fact, He is the source of all true faithfulness and righteousness.
2. No human being can stand innocent before the LORD God, except Jesus Christ, God the Son.
Psalm 144
1. God is the one who grants people safety and security, longevity, victory, posterity, prosperity, and joy.
2. People need to look to the LORD God for all of the above and live as His servants. He is not our servant. We are His.
Psalm 145
1. Great is the LORD God! He is most worthy of praise! No one can measure His greatness.
2. People are to pass on to future generations the history of all that God has done.
Prayer:
3. How might I pray regarding Psalms 143-145?
Hear my prayer, O LORD; listen to my plea! Answer me, please, out of Your faithfulness and righteousness. No one is innocent before You. Please rescue me from my enemies, for they are too powerful for me but not for You. I am paralyzed with fear of them, but I know that I can count on You. For the glory of Your name, O LORD, preserve my life. Because of Your faithfulness, bring me out of my distress. Praise to You, O LORD, for You are my loving ally and my fortress of protection even in the midst of my struggles. Reach down from heaven and rescue Your servants. Rescue us from the deep water, from the power of our enemies. Their mouths are full of lies; they swear to tell the truth, but they lie instead. Please grant to Your faithful servants safety and security, longevity, victory, posterity, prosperity, and joy. Let each generation tell its children of Your mighty acts; let them proclaim Your power. I will meditate on Your majestic splendor and Your wonderful miracles. You, O LORD, always keep Your promises; You are gracious in all You do. May Your holy name be praised forevermore. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)
4. What action does the LORD want me to take in response to Psalms 143-145?
- I will both cry out to God in prayer and listen attentively to His answers.
- I will join with others (at church) in singing praise to God.
- I will memorize and meditate on Psalm 145:8 “The LORD is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.” NLT
- I will make time to tell my children and grandchildren what God has done in the past–in my life and in the lives of others.
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.