The Psalms
Psalm 74
[A Maskil of Asaph.] O God, why hast Thou rejected [us] forever? Why does Thine anger smoke against the sheep of Thy pasture?
Remember Thy congregation, which Thou hast purchased of old, Which Thou hast redeemed to be the tribe of Thine inheritance; [And] this Mount Zion, where Thou hast dwelt.
Turn Thy footsteps toward the perpetual ruins; The enemy has damaged everything within the sanctuary.
Thine adversaries have roared in the midst of Thy meeting place; They have set up their own standards for signs.
It seems as if one had lifted up [His] axe in a forest of trees.
And now all its carved work They smash with hatchet and hammers.
They have burned Thy sanctuary to the ground; They have defiled the dwelling place of Thy name.
They said in their heart, "Let us completely subdue them." They have burned all the meeting places of God in the land.
We do not see our signs; There is no longer any prophet, Nor is there any among us who knows how long.
How long, O God, will the adversary revile, [And] the enemy spurn Thy name forever?
Why dost Thou withdraw Thy hand, even Thy right hand? From within Thy bosom, destroy [them]!
Yet God is my king from of old, Who works deeds of deliverance in the midst of the earth.
Thou didst divide the sea by Thy strength; Thou didst break the heads of the sea monsters in the waters.
Thou didst crush the heads of Leviathan; Thou didst give him as food for the creatures of the wilderness.
Thou didst break open springs and torrents; Thou didst dry up ever-flowing streams.
Thine is the day, Thine also is the night; Thou hast prepared the light and the sun.
Thou hast established all the boundaries of the earth; Thou hast made summer and winter.
Remember this, O Lord, that the enemy has reviled; And a foolish people has spurned Thy name.
Do not deliver the soul of Thy turtledove to the wild beast; Do not forget the life of Thine afflicted forever.
Consider the covenant; For the dark places of the land are full of the habitations of violence.
Let not the oppressed return dishonored; Let the afflicted and needy praise Thy name.
Do arise, O God, [and] plead Thine own cause; Remember how the foolish man reproaches Thee all day long.
Do not forget the voice of Thine adversaries, The uproar of those who rise against Thee which ascends continually.
