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73 Truly God is good to Israel, even to such as are of a clean heart.

² But as for me, my feet were almost gone; my steps had well nigh slipped.

³ For I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

⁴ For there are no bands in their death: but their strength is firm.

⁵ They are not in trouble as other men; neither are they plagued like other men.

⁶ Therefore pride compasseth them about as a chain; violence covereth them as a garment.

⁷ Their eyes stand out with fatness: they have more than heart could wish.

⁸ They are corrupt, and speak wickedly concerning oppression: they speak loftily.

⁹ They set their mouth against the heavens, and their tongue walketh through the earth.

¹⁰ Therefore his people return hither: and waters of a full cup are wrung out to them.

¹¹ And they say, How doth God know? and is there knowledge in the most High?

¹² Behold, these are the ungodly, who prosper in the world; they increase in riches.

¹³ Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency.

¹⁴ For all the day long have I been plagued, and chastened every morning.

¹⁵ If I say, I will speak thus; behold, I should offend against the generation of thy children.

¹⁶ When I thought to know this, it was too painful for me;

¹⁷ Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end.

¹⁸ Surely thou didst set them in slippery places: thou castedst them down into destruction.

¹⁹ How are they brought into desolation, as in a moment! they are utterly consumed with terrors.

²⁰ As a dream when one awaketh; so, O Lord, when thou awakest, thou shalt despise their image.

²¹ Thus my heart was grieved, and I was pricked in my reins.

²² So foolish was I, and ignorant: I was as a beast before thee.

²³ Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast holden me by my right hand.

²⁴ Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory.

²⁵ Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee.

²⁶ My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.

²⁷ For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish: thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee.

²⁸ But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord God , that I may declare all thy works.

Book 3

(Psalms 73-89)

Asaph’s song of praise.

73 God is so good to Israel,
to those whose hearts are pure.
² But I almost slipped and lost my balance.
I almost fell into sin.
³ I saw that wicked people were successful,
and I became jealous of those proud people.
⁴ They are healthy.
They don’t have to struggle to survive. ^{[ a ]}
⁵ They don’t suffer like the rest of us.
They don’t have troubles like other people.
⁶ So they are proud and hateful.
This is as easy to see as the jewels and fancy clothes they wear.
⁷ If they see something they like, they go and take it.
They do whatever they want.
⁸ They make fun of others and say cruel things about them.
In their pride they make plans to hurt people.
⁹ They think they are gods!
They think they are the rulers of the earth.
¹⁰ ^{[ b ]} Even God’s people turn to them
and do what they say.
¹¹ Those evil people say, “God does not know what we are doing!
God Most High does not know!”

¹² Those proud people are wicked,
but they are rich and getting richer.
¹³ Clearly, then, I gain nothing by keeping my thoughts pure!
What good is it to keep myself from sin?
¹⁴ God, I suffer all day long,
and you punish me every morning.

¹⁵ I wanted to tell others these things,
but that would have made me a traitor to your people.
¹⁶ I tried hard to understand all this,
but it was too hard for me.
¹⁷ But then, God, I went to your Temple,
and I understood what will happen to the wicked.
¹⁸ Clearly, you have put them in danger.
You make it easy for them to fall and be destroyed.
¹⁹ Trouble can come suddenly,
and they will be ruined.
Terrible things can happen to them,
and they will be finished.
²⁰ Then they will be like a dream
that we forget when we wake up.
You will make them disappear
like the monsters in our dreams.

^21-22 I was so stupid.
I thought about such people and became upset.
God, I was upset and angry with you!
I acted like a senseless animal.
²³ But I am always with you.
You hold my hand.
²⁴ You lead me and give me good advice,
and later you will lead me to glory. ^{[ c ]}
²⁵ In heaven, God, I have only you.
And if I am with you, what on earth could I want?
²⁶ Maybe my mind ^{[ d ]} and body will become weak,
but God is my source of strength. ^{[ e ]}
He is mine forever!
²⁷ God, people who leave you will be lost.
You will destroy all who are not faithful to you.
²⁸ As for me, all I need is to be close to God.
I have made the Lord God my place of safety.
And, God, I will tell about all that you have done.

Footnotes

Psalm 73:4 Literally, “They have no bonds to their death.”
Psalm 73:10 The Hebrew text here is hard to understand.
Psalm 73:24 lead me to glory Or “receive me in honor.”
Psalm 73:26 mind Literally, “heart.”
Psalm 73:26 my … strength Literally, “the Rock of my heart.”

Book III

The end of the wicked contrasted with that of the righteous.

A Psalm of Asaph.

^{[ a ]} 73 Surely God is good to Israel,
Even to such as are pure in heart.
² But as for me, my feet were almost gone;
My steps had well nigh slipped.
³ For I was envious at the ^{[ b ]} arrogant,
When I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
⁴ For there are no pangs in their death;
But their strength is firm.
⁵ They are not ^{[ c ]} in trouble as other men;
Neither are they plagued like other men.
⁶ Therefore pride is as a chain about their neck;
Violence covereth them as a garment.
⁷ Their eyes stand out with fatness:
^{[ d ]} They have more than heart could wish.
⁸ They scoff, and in wickedness utter oppression:
They speak ^{[ e ]} loftily.
⁹ They have set their mouth ^{[ f ]} in the heavens,
And their tongue walketh through the earth.
¹⁰ Therefore ^{[ g ]} his people return hither:
And waters of a full cup are drained by them.
¹¹ And they say, How doth God know?
And is there knowledge in the Most High?
¹² Behold, these are the wicked;
And, being alway at ease, they increase in riches.
¹³ Surely in vain have I cleansed my heart,
And washed my hands in innocency;
¹⁴ For all the day long have I been plagued,
And ^{[ h ]} chastened every morning.
¹⁵ If I had said, I will speak thus;
Behold, I had dealt treacherously with the generation of thy children.
¹⁶ When I thought how I might know this,
It was ^{[ i ]} too painful for me;
¹⁷ Until I went into the sanctuary of God,
And considered their latter end.
¹⁸ Surely thou settest them in slippery places:
Thou castest them down to ^{[ j ]} destruction.
¹⁹ How are they become a desolation in a moment!
They are utterly consumed with terrors.
²⁰ As a dream when one awaketh,
So, O Lord, ^{[ k ]} when thou awakest, thou wilt despise their image.
²¹ For my soul ^{[ l ]} was grieved,
And I was pricked in my ^{[ m ]} heart:
²² So brutish ^{[ n ]} was I, and ignorant;
I was as a beast ^{[ o ]} before thee.
²³ Nevertheless I am continually with thee:
Thou hast holden my right hand.
²⁴ Thou wilt guide me with thy counsel,
And afterward receive me ^{[ p ]} to glory.
²⁵ Whom have I in heaven but thee ?
And there is none upon earth that I desire ^{[ q ]} besides thee.
²⁶ My flesh and my heart faileth;
But God is the ^{[ r ]} strength of my heart and my portion for ever.
²⁷ For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish:
Thou hast destroyed all them that play the harlot, departing from thee.
²⁸ But it is good for me to draw near unto God:
I have made the Lord Jehovah my refuge,
That I may tell of all thy works.

Footnotes

Psalm 73:1 Or, Only good is God
Psalm 73:3 Or, fools
Psalm 73:5 Hebrew in the trouble of men .
Psalm 73:7 Or, The imaginations of their heart overflow
Psalm 73:8 Or, from on high
Psalm 73:9 Or, against
Psalm 73:10 Another reading is, he will bring back his people .
Psalm 73:14 Hebrew my chastisement was.
Psalm 73:16 Hebrew labor in mine eyes .
Psalm 73:18 Hebrew ruins .
Psalm 73:20 Or, in the city
Psalm 73:21 Hebrew was in a ferment .
Psalm 73:21 Hebrew reins .
Psalm 73:22 Or, am
Psalm 73:22 Hebrew with thee .
Psalm 73:24 Or, with
Psalm 73:25 Or, with thee
Psalm 73:26 Hebrew rock .

BOOK 3

A Psalm by Asaph.

73 Surely God ^{[ a ]} is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart.
² But as for me, my feet were almost gone.
My steps had nearly slipped.
³ For I was envious of the arrogant,
when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
⁴ For there are no struggles in their death,
but their strength is firm.
⁵ They are free from burdens of men,
neither are they plagued like other men.
⁶ Therefore pride is like a chain around their neck.
Violence covers them like a garment.
⁷ Their eyes bulge with fat.
Their minds pass the limits of conceit.
⁸ They scoff and speak with malice.
In arrogance, they threaten oppression.
⁹ They have set their mouth in the heavens.
Their tongue walks through the earth.
¹⁰ Therefore their people return to them,
and they drink up waters of abundance.
¹¹ They say, “How does God know?
Is there knowledge in the Most High?”
¹² Behold, these are the wicked.
Being always at ease, they increase in riches.
¹³ Surely I have cleansed my heart in vain,
and washed my hands in innocence,
¹⁴ For all day long I have been plagued,
and punished every morning.
¹⁵ If I had said, “I will speak thus”;
behold, I would have betrayed the generation of your children.
¹⁶ When I tried to understand this,
it was too painful for me,
¹⁷ until I entered God’s sanctuary,
and considered their latter end.
¹⁸ Surely you set them in slippery places.
You throw them down to destruction.
¹⁹ How they are suddenly destroyed!
They are completely swept away with terrors.
²⁰ As a dream when one wakes up,
so, Lord, ^{[ b ]} when you awake, you will despise their fantasies.
²¹ For my soul was grieved.
I was embittered in my heart.
²² I was so senseless and ignorant.
I was a brute beast before you.
²³ Nevertheless, I am continually with you.
You have held my right hand.
²⁴ You will guide me with your counsel,
and afterward receive me to glory.
²⁵ Whom do I have in heaven?
There is no one on earth whom I desire besides you.
²⁶ My flesh and my heart fails,
but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
²⁷ For, behold, those who are far from you shall perish.
You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to you.
²⁸ But it is good for me to come close to God.
I have made the Lord Yahweh ^{[ c ]} my refuge,
that I may tell of all your works.

Footnotes

73:1 The Hebrew word rendered “God” is “אֱלֹהִ֑ים” (Elohim).
73:20 The word translated “Lord” is “Adonai.”
73:28 “Yahweh” is God’s proper Name, sometimes rendered “LORD” (all caps) in other translations.

73 A Psalm of Asaph. Only -- good to Israel [is] God, to the clean of heart. And I -- as a little thing, My feet have been turned aside,

² As nothing, have my steps slipped, For I have been envious of the boastful,

³ The peace of the wicked I see, That there are no bands at their death,

⁴ And their might [is] firm.

⁵ In the misery of mortals they are not, And with common men they are not plagued.

⁶ Therefore hath pride encircled them, Violence covereth them as a dress.

⁷ Their eye hath come out from fat. The imaginations of the heart transgressed;

⁸ They do corruptly, And they speak in the wickedness of oppression, From on high they speak.

⁹ They have set in the heavens their mouth, And their tongue walketh in the earth.

¹⁰ Therefore do His people return hither, And waters of fulness are wrung out to them.

¹¹ And they have said, `How hath God known? And is there knowledge in the Most High?'

¹² Lo, these [are] the wicked and easy ones of the age, They have increased strength.

¹³ Only -- a vain thing! I have purified my heart, And I wash in innocency my hands,

¹⁴ And I am plagued all the day, And my reproof [is] every morning.

¹⁵ If I have said, `I recount thus,' Lo, a generation of Thy sons I have deceived.

¹⁶ And I think to know this, Perverseness it [is] in mine eyes,

¹⁷ Till I come in to the sanctuaries of God, I attend to their latter end.

¹⁸ Only, in slippery places Thou dost set them, Thou hast caused them to fall to desolations.

¹⁹ How have they become a desolation as in a moment, They have been ended -- consumed from terrors.

²⁰ As a dream from awakening, O Lord, In awaking, their image Thou despisest.

²¹ For my heart doth show itself violent, And my reins prick themselves,

²² And I am brutish, and do not know. A beast I have been with Thee.

²³ And I [am] continually with Thee, Thou hast laid hold on my right hand.

²⁴ With Thy counsel Thou dost lead me, And after honour dost receive me.

²⁵ Whom have I in the heavens? And with Thee none I have desired in earth.

²⁶ Consumed hath been my flesh and my heart, The rock of my heart and my portion [is] God to the age.

²⁷ For, lo, those far from Thee do perish, Thou hast cut off every one, Who is going a whoring from Thee.

²⁸ And I -- nearness of God to me [is] good, I have placed in the Lord Jehovah my refuge, To recount all Thy works!

73 Understanding for Asaph. O God, why hast thou cast us off unto the end: why is thy wrath enkindled against the sheep of thy pasture?

² Remember thy congregation, which thou hast possessed from the beginning. The sceptre of thy inheritance which thou hast redeemed: mount Sion in which thou hast dwelt.

³ Lift up thy hands against their pride unto the end; see what things the enemy hath done wickedly in the sanctuary.

⁴ And they that hate thee have made their boasts, in the midst of thy solemnity. They have set up their ensigns for signs,

⁵ And they knew not both in the going out and on the highest top. As with axes in a wood of trees,

⁶ They have cut down at once the gates thereof, with axe and hatchet they have brought it down.

⁷ They have set fire to thy sanctuary: they have defiled the dwelling place of thy name on the earth.

⁸ They said in their heart, the whole kindred of them together: Let us abolish all the festival days of God from the land.

⁹ Our signs we have not seen, there is now no prophet: and he will know us no more.

¹⁰ How long, O God, shall the enemy reproach: is the adversary to provoke thy name for ever?

¹¹ Why dost thou turn away thy hand: and thy right hand out of the midst of thy bosom for ever?

¹² But God is our king before ages: he hath wrought salvation in the midst of the earth.

¹³ Thou by thy strength didst make the sea firm: thou didst crush the heads of the dragons in the waters.

¹⁴ Thou hast broken the heads of the dragon: thou hast given him to be meat for the people of the Ethiopians.

¹⁵ Thou hast broken up the fountains and the torrents: thou hast dried up the Ethan rivers.

¹⁶ Thine is the day, and thine is the night: thou hast made the morning light and the sun.

¹⁷ Thou hast made all the borders of the earth: the summer and the spring were formed by thee.

¹⁸ Remember this, the enemy hath reproached the Lord: and a foolish people hath provoked thy name.

¹⁹ Deliver not up to beasts the souls that confess to thee: and forget not to the end the souls of thy poor.

²⁰ Have regard to thy covenant: for they that are the obscure of the earth have been filled with dwellings of iniquity.

²¹ Let not the humble be turned away with confusion: the poor and needy shall praise thy name.

²² Arise, O God, judge thy own cause: remember thy reproaches with which the foolish man hath reproached thee all the day.

²³ Forget not the voices of thy enemies: the pride of them that hate thee ascendeth continually.

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Table of Contents

Book 3

(Psalms 73-89)

Asaph’s song of praise.

Footnotes

Book III

The end of the wicked contrasted with that of the righteous.

A Psalm of Asaph.

Footnotes

BOOK 3

A Psalm by Asaph.

Footnotes

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BibleStudyIt Psalm 73

Psalm 73's Chapter Tabs Scroll past these tabs to continue or click on one of them to navigate out of this webpage.

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Your Private Notes

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Book 3

(Psalms 73-89)

Asaph’s song of praise.

Footnotes

Book III

The end of the wicked contrasted with that of the righteous.

A Psalm of Asaph.

Footnotes

BOOK 3

A Psalm by Asaph.

Footnotes

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Psalm 73's Chapter Tabs
Scroll past these tabs to continue or click on one of them to navigate out of this webpage.