Psalm 71

Prayer of an Old Man for Rescue.

71 In You, Lord, I have taken refuge;
Let me never be put to shame.
2 In Your righteousness rescue me and save me;
Extend Your ear to me and help me.
3 Be to me a rock of dwelling to which I may continually come;
You have given the commandment to save me,
For You are my rock and my fortress.
4 Save me, my God, from the hand of the wicked,
From the [a]grasp of the wrongdoer and the ruthless,
5 For You are my hope;
Lord [b]God, You are my confidence from my youth.
6 I have leaned on you since my birth;
You are He who took me from my mother’s womb;
My praise is continually [c]of You.

7 I have become a marvel to many,
For You are my strong refuge.
8 My mouth is filled with Your praise
And with Your glory all day long.
9 Do not cast me away at the time of my old age;
Do not abandon me when my strength fails.
10 For my enemies have spoken [d]against me;
And those who watch for my [e]life have consulted together,
11 Saying, “God has abandoned him;
Pursue and seize him, for there is no one to save him.”

12 God, do not be far from me;
My God, hurry to my aid!
13 May those who are enemies of my soul be put to shame and consumed;
May they be covered with disgrace and dishonor, who seek [f]to injure me.
14 But as for me, I will wait continually,
And will [g]praise You yet more and more.
15 My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness
And of Your salvation all day long;
For I do not know the art of writing.
16 I will come with the mighty deeds of the Lord [h]God;
I will make mention of Your righteousness, Yours alone.

17 God, You have taught me from my youth,
And I still declare Your wondrous deeds.
18 And even when I am old and gray, God, do not abandon me,
Until I declare Your [i]strength to this generation,
Your power to all who are to come.
19 [j]For Your righteousness, God, reaches to the [k]heavens,
You who have done great things;
God, who is like You?
20 You who have shown [l]me many troubles and distresses
Will revive [m]me again,
And will bring [n]me up again from the depths of the earth.
21 May You increase my greatness
And turn to comfort me.

22 I will also praise You with [o]a harp,
And Your [p]truth, my God;
I will sing praises to You with the lyre,
Holy One of Israel.
23 My lips will shout for joy when I sing praises to You;
And my soul, which You have redeemed.
24 My tongue also will tell of Your righteousness all day long;
For they are put to shame, for they are humiliated who seek [q]my harm.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 71:4 Lit palm
  2. Psalm 71:5 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  3. Psalm 71:6 Lit in
  4. Psalm 71:10 Lit with reference to
  5. Psalm 71:10 Lit soul
  6. Psalm 71:13 Lit my injury
  7. Psalm 71:14 Lit add upon all Your praise
  8. Psalm 71:16 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  9. Psalm 71:18 Lit arm
  10. Psalm 71:19 Or And
  11. Psalm 71:19 Lit height
  12. Psalm 71:20 Another reading is us
  13. Psalm 71:20 Another reading is us
  14. Psalm 71:20 Another reading is us
  15. Psalm 71:22 Lit an instrument of a harp
  16. Psalm 71:22 Or faithfulness
  17. Psalm 71:24 Or to injure me