Hope in God in the Midst of Despair

¹ For the music director. A maskil of the sons of Korah.¹ As a deer longs for streams of water, so my soul longs for you, O God.

1. The Hebrew Bible counts the superscription as the first verse of the psalm; the English verse number is reduced by one

² My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?¹

1. Some Hebrew manuscripts and versions read “and see the face of God?”

³ My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”

⁴ These I remember and I pour out my soul within me: that I would go with the multitude; I led them in procession to the house¹ of God, with a voice of rejoicing and thanksgiving, a crowd celebrating a festival.

1. Or “temple”

⁵ Why are you ⌞in despair⌟,¹ O my soul, and disturbed within me? Hope in God, because I will again praise him, for the salvation of his presence.

1. Literally “bowed down”

⁶ O my God, within me my soul is ⌞in despair⌟;¹ therefore I remember you from the land of Jordan and the heights of Hermon, from the mountain of Mizar.

1. Literally “bowed down”

⁷ Deep is calling to deep at¹ the thunder of your waterfalls. All your breakers and your waves have passed over me.

1. Or “to”

⁸ By day Yahweh commands his loyal love, and in the night his song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life.

⁹ I say to God, my rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why must I walk about mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?”

¹⁰ As with a shattering in my bones my oppressors taunt me, while they say to me ⌞all day⌟,¹ “Where is your God?”

1. Literally “all the day”

¹¹ Why are you ⌞in despair⌟,¹ O my soul? And why are you disturbed within me? Hope in God, because I shall again praise him, ⌞my salvation⌟² and my God.

1. Literally “bowed down”
2. Literally “the salvation of my face”