26 At that time, people will sing this song in Judah:
We have a strong city, where we are safe.
The Lord has made it safe,
like strong walls that protect us all round. [ a ]
2 Open the gates of the city,
so that the righteous nation can come in.
They are the people who continue to be faithful.
3 Lord , you keep those people safe
who continue to trust in you.
You give them peace in their minds,
because they believe in you.
4 Trust in the Lord now and for ever!
The Almighty Lord will always be our strong Rock.
5 He brings down low the proud people who live in high places.
He destroys their cities.
He knocks down their cities
so that they fall to the ground and become dust.
6 The poor people and the helpless people
will walk all over it.
7 Righteous people walk on a path that is flat. You make their path straight, Lord .
8 Yes, Lord , as we follow the path of your justice, we wait for you to help us. We really want people to know that you are great. We want them to praise your name.
9 During the night, I think about you a lot. When morning arrives, I want to be near to you in my spirit. When you come to judge people on the earth, then people will understand your justice.
10 If you are kind to wicked people, they will never learn to do what is right. They continue to do wrong things, even in a land where people are honest. They do not see that you are great, Lord .
11 Lord , you are ready to punish them, but they do not realize that. Make them see that you love your own people. Then they will become ashamed. In your anger, punish them with fire, as your enemies deserve.
12 Lord , you will give us peace. Everything that we have done, you have done on our behalf.
13 Lord , our God, other lords have ruled over us. But you are the only one that we worship.
14 Those other lords are dead. They will not live again. Their spirits will not rise up again. You punished them and you destroyed them. Nobody remembers them any more.
15 Lord , you have made our nation larger. You have made our nation larger and you have shown how great you are. You have made all the borders of our land grow bigger.
16 Lord , when your people had trouble, they came to you for help. When you punished them, they turned to you and they prayed.
17 Because of your punishment, Lord , we had much pain. We were like a woman who is giving birth and she cries out with pain. 18 Yes, it seemed like we were pregnant and ready to give birth. But we could only give birth to wind! We could not do anything to make the land safe. We have no descendants who will bring new life to the world.
19 But Lord , your people who have died will live again. Their bodies will rise up from their graves. You people who live in the ground, wake up! Shout because you are happy. You bring new life to the earth, like dew that comes in the morning. Dead people will come up from the earth and they will live again.
20 My people, go into your homes. Shut the doors and hide yourselves for a short time. Wait there until the Lord is not angry any more. 21 Look! Now the Lord is coming from the place where he lives. He is coming to punish the people who live on the earth for their sins. The earth will clearly show the blood that murderers poured out on it. Murderers will no longer be able to hide the people that they have killed.
26 At that time people will sing this song in Judah:
We have a strong city with strong walls and defenses.
But God gives us our salvation. [ a ]
2 Open the gates for the good people to enter.
They are the God’s faithful followers.
3 God, you give true peace
to people who depend on you,
to those who trust in you.
4 So trust the Lord always,
because in the Lord Yah [ b ] you have a place of safety forever.
5 But he will destroy the proud city
and punish those who live there.
He will throw that high city down to the ground.
It will fall into the dust.
6 Then poor and humble people will walk on those ruins.
7 Honesty is the path good people follow.
They follow the path that is straight and true.
And God, you make that way smooth
and easy to follow.
8 But, Lord , we are waiting for your way of justice.
We want to honor you and your name.
9 At night my soul longs to be with you,
and the spirit in me wants to be with you at the dawn of every new day.
When your way of justice comes to the world,
people will learn the right way of living.
10 Evil people will not learn to do good,
even if you show them only kindness.
They will still do wrong, even if they live in a good world.
They never see the Lord ’s greatness.
11 Lord , your arm is raised to punish them,
but they don’t see it.
Show them how strong your love [ c ] is for your people.
Then those who are evil will be ashamed.
Yes, your fire will destroy your enemies.
12 Lord , you have succeeded in doing everything we tried to do,
so give us peace.
13 Lord , you are our God,
but in the past, we followed other lords.
We belonged to other masters, [ d ]
but now we want people to remember only one name—yours.
14 Those dead lords will not come to life.
Those ghosts will not rise from death.
You decided to destroy them,
and you destroyed everything that makes us think about them.
15 Lord , you have helped the nation you love.
You made our nation grow
and brought honor to yourself. [ e ]
16 Lord , people remember you
when they are in trouble.
So because of your punishment,
we called out to you.
17 Lord , because of you we were in pain,
like a woman giving birth,
who struggles and cries out when it is time.
18 But we struggled in pain for nothing.
We gave birth only to wind.
We did nothing to save the land.
No one was born to live in the world.
19 But the Lord says,
“Your people have died,
but they will live again.
The bodies of my people
will rise from death.
Dead people in the ground,
stand and be happy!
The dew covering you is like
the dew sparkling in the light of a new day.
It shows that a new time is coming,
when the earth will give birth to the dead who are in it.”
20 My people, go into your rooms
and lock your doors.
Hide in there for a short time
until God’s anger is finished.
21 Look! The Lord is coming out from his place [ f ]
to judge the people of the world for the bad things they have done.
The earth will reveal the blood that has been spilled on it.
It will no longer hide the proof of those murders.
26 In that day shall this song be sung in the land of Judah; We have a strong city; salvation will God appoint for walls and bulwarks.
2 Open ye the gates, that the righteous nation which keepeth the truth may enter in.
3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.
4 Trust ye in the Lord for ever: for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength:
5 For he bringeth down them that dwell on high; the lofty city, he layeth it low; he layeth it low, even to the ground; he bringeth it even to the dust.
6 The foot shall tread it down, even the feet of the poor, and the steps of the needy.
7 The way of the just is uprightness: thou, most upright, dost weigh the path of the just.
8 Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O Lord , have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
9 With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.
10 Let favour be shewed to the wicked, yet will he not learn righteousness: in the land of uprightness will he deal unjustly, and will not behold the majesty of the Lord .
11 Lord , when thy hand is lifted up, they will not see: but they shall see, and be ashamed for their envy at the people; yea, the fire of thine enemies shall devour them.
12 Lord , thou wilt ordain peace for us: for thou also hast wrought all our works in us.
13 O Lord our God, other lords beside thee have had dominion over us: but by thee only will we make mention of thy name.
14 They are dead, they shall not live; they are deceased, they shall not rise: therefore hast thou visited and destroyed them, and made all their memory to perish.
15 Thou hast increased the nation, O Lord , thou hast increased the nation: thou art glorified: thou hadst removed it far unto all the ends of the earth.
16 Lord , in trouble have they visited thee, they poured out a prayer when thy chastening was upon them.
17 Like as a woman with child, that draweth near the time of her delivery, is in pain, and crieth out in her pangs; so have we been in thy sight, O Lord .
18 We have been with child, we have been in pain, we have as it were brought forth wind; we have not wrought any deliverance in the earth; neither have the inhabitants of the world fallen.
19 Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead.
20 Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast.
21 For, behold, the Lord cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.
26 ( A ) On that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah:
“We have a ( B ) strong city;
He sets up walls and ramparts for [ a ] ( C ) security.
2 Open the ( D ) gates, that the ( E ) righteous nation may enter,
The one that [ b ] remains faithful.
3 The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect ( F ) peace,
Because he trusts in You.
4 ( G ) Trust in the Lord forever,
For in [ c ] God the Lord , we have an everlasting ( H ) Rock.
5 For He has brought low those who dwell on high, the ( I ) unassailable city;
( J ) He lays it low, He lays it low to the ground, He casts it to the dust.
6 ( K ) The foot will trample it,
The feet of the ( L ) poor, the steps of the helpless.”
7 The ( M ) way of the righteous is smooth;
O Upright One, ( N ) make the path of the righteous level.
8 Indeed, while following the way of ( O ) Your judgments, Lord ,
We have waited for You eagerly;
( P ) Your name, and ( Q ) remembering You, is the desire of our souls.
9 ( R ) At night [ d ] my soul longs for You,
Indeed, [ e ] my spirit within me ( S ) seeks You diligently;
For when the earth [ f ] experiences Your judgments,
The inhabitants of the world ( T ) learn righteousness.
10 Though the wicked person is shown compassion,
He does not ( U ) learn righteousness;
He ( V ) deals unjustly in the land of uprightness,
And does not perceive the majesty of the Lord .
11 Lord , Your hand is lifted up, yet they ( W ) do not see it.
[ g ] They see ( X ) Your zeal for the people and are put to shame;
Indeed, [ h ] ( Y ) fire will devour Your enemies.
12 Lord , You will establish ( Z ) peace for us,
Since You have also performed for us all our works.
13 Lord , our God, ( AA ) other masters besides You have ruled us;
But through You alone we [ i ] ( AB ) confess Your name.
14 ( AC ) The dead will not live, the [ j ] departed spirits will not rise;
Therefore You have ( AD ) punished and destroyed them,
And You have eliminated all remembrance of them.
15 ( AE ) You have increased the nation, Lord ,
You have increased the nation, You are glorified;
You have ( AF ) extended all the borders of the land.
16 Lord , they sought You ( AG ) in distress;
They [ k ] could only whisper a prayer,
Your discipline was upon them.
17 ( AH ) As the pregnant woman approaches the time to give birth,
She writhes and cries out in her labor pains;
This is how we were before You, Lord .
18 We were pregnant, we writhed in labor ,
We ( AI ) gave birth, as it seems, only to wind.
We could not accomplish deliverance for the earth,
Nor were ( AJ ) inhabitants of the world [ l ] born.
19 Your ( AK ) dead will live;
[ m ] Their corpses will rise.
You who lie in the dust, ( AL ) awake and shout for joy,
For your dew is as the dew of the [ n ] dawn,
And the earth will [ o ] give birth to the [ p ] departed spirits.
20 Come, my people, ( AM ) enter your rooms
And close your doors behind you;
Hide for a little [ q ] ( AN ) while
Until ( AO ) indignation [ r ] runs its course.
21 For behold, the Lord is about to ( AP ) come out from His place
To ( AQ ) punish the inhabitants of the earth for their wrongdoing;
And the earth will ( AR ) reveal her bloodshed
And will no longer cover her slain.
26 In that day ( A ) this song will be sung ( B ) in the land of Judah:
We have a strong city; ( C )
God makes salvation
its walls ( D ) and ramparts. ( E )
2 Open the gates ( F )
that the righteous ( G ) nation may enter,
the nation that keeps faith.
3 You will keep in perfect peace ( H )
those whose minds are steadfast,
because they trust ( I ) in you.
4 Trust ( J ) in the Lord forever, ( K )
for the Lord , the Lord himself, is the Rock ( L ) eternal.
5 He humbles those who dwell on high,
he lays the lofty city low;
he levels it to the ground ( M )
and casts it down to the dust. ( N )
6 Feet trample ( O ) it down—
the feet of the oppressed, ( P )
the footsteps of the poor. ( Q )
7 The path of the righteous is level; ( R )
you, the Upright One, ( S ) make the way of the righteous smooth. ( T )
8 Yes, Lord , walking in the way of your laws, [ a ] ( U )
we wait ( V ) for you;
your name ( W ) and renown
are the desire of our hearts.
9 My soul yearns for you in the night; ( X )
in the morning my spirit longs ( Y ) for you.
When your judgments ( Z ) come upon the earth,
the people of the world learn righteousness. ( AA )
10 But when grace is shown to the wicked, ( AB )
they do not learn righteousness;
even in a land of uprightness they go on doing evil ( AC )
and do not regard ( AD ) the majesty of the Lord .
11 Lord , your hand is lifted high, ( AE )
but they do not see ( AF ) it.
Let them see your zeal ( AG ) for your people and be put to shame; ( AH )
let the fire ( AI ) reserved for your enemies consume them.
12 Lord , you establish peace ( AJ ) for us;
all that we have accomplished you have done ( AK ) for us.
13 Lord our God, other lords ( AL ) besides you have ruled over us,
but your name ( AM ) alone do we honor. ( AN )
14 They are now dead, ( AO ) they live no more;
their spirits ( AP ) do not rise.
You punished them and brought them to ruin; ( AQ )
you wiped out all memory of them. ( AR )
15 You have enlarged the nation, Lord ;
you have enlarged the nation. ( AS )
You have gained glory for yourself;
you have extended all the borders ( AT ) of the land.
16 Lord , they came to you in their distress; ( AU )
when you disciplined ( AV ) them,
they could barely whisper ( AW ) a prayer. [ b ]
17 As a pregnant woman about to give birth ( AX )
writhes and cries out in her pain,
so were we in your presence, Lord .
18 We were with child, we writhed in labor,
but we gave birth ( AY ) to wind.
We have not brought salvation ( AZ ) to the earth,
and the people of the world have not come to life. ( BA )
19 But your dead ( BB ) will live, Lord ;
their bodies will rise—
let those who dwell in the dust ( BC )
wake up and shout for joy—
your dew ( BD ) is like the dew of the morning;
the earth will give birth to her dead. ( BE )
20 Go, my people, enter your rooms
and shut the doors ( BF ) behind you;
hide ( BG ) yourselves for a little while
until his wrath ( BH ) has passed by. ( BI )
21 See, the Lord is coming ( BJ ) out of his dwelling ( BK )
to punish ( BL ) the people of the earth for their sins.
The earth will disclose the blood ( BM ) shed on it;
the earth will conceal its slain no longer.
