¹{An instruction. Of Asaph.} Give ear, O my people, to my law; incline your ears to the words of my mouth.

¹משכיל לאסף האזינה עמי תורתי הטו אזנכם לאמרי פי׃

²I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter riddles from of old,

²אפתחה במשל פי אביעה חידות מני קדם׃

³Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us:

³אשר שמענו ונדעם ואבותינו ספרו לנו׃

⁴We will not hide [them] from their sons, shewing forth to the generation to come the praises of Jehovah, and his strength, and his marvellous works which he hath done.

⁴לא נכחד מבניהם לדור אחרון מספרים תהלות יהוה ועזוזו ונפלאותיו אשר עשה׃

⁵For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children;

⁵ויקם עדות ביעקב ותורה שם בישראל אשר צוה את אבותינו להודיעם לבניהם׃

⁶That the generation to come might know [them], the children that should be born; that they might rise up and tell [them] to their children,

⁶למען ידעו דור אחרון בנים יולדו יקמו ויספרו לבניהם׃

⁷And that they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of ùGod, but observe his commandments;

⁷וישימו באלהים כסלם ולא ישכחו מעללי אל ומצותיו ינצרו׃

⁸And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that prepared not their heart, and whose spirit was not stedfast with ùGod.

⁸ולא יהיו כאבותם דור סורר ומרה דור לא הכין לבו ולא נאמנה את אל רוחו׃

⁹The sons of Ephraim, armed bowmen, turned back in the day of battle.

⁹בני אפרים נושקי רומי קשת הפכו ביום קרב׃

¹⁰They kept not the covenant of God, and refused to walk in his law;

¹⁰לא שמרו ברית אלהים ובתורתו מאנו ללכת׃

¹¹And forgot his doings, and his marvellous works which he had shewn them.

¹¹וישכחו עלילותיו ונפלאותיו אשר הראם׃

¹²In the sight of their fathers had he done wonders, in the land of Egypt, the field of Zoan.

¹²נגד אבותם עשה פלא בארץ מצרים שדה צען׃

¹³He clave the sea, and caused them to pass through; and made the waters to stand as a heap;

¹³בקע ים ויעבירם ויצב מים כמו נד׃

¹⁴And he led them with a cloud in the daytime, and all the night with the light of fire.

¹⁴וינחם בענן יומם וכל הלילה באור אש׃

¹⁵He clave rocks in the wilderness, and gave [them] drink as out of the depths, abundantly;

¹⁵יבקע צרים במדבר וישק כתהמות רבה׃

¹⁶And he brought streams out of the rock, and caused waters to run down like rivers.

¹⁶ויוצא נוזלים מסלע ויורד כנהרות מים׃

¹⁷Yet they still went on sinning against him, provoking the Most High in the desert;

¹⁷ויוסיפו עוד לחטא לו למרות עליון בציה׃

¹⁸And they tempted ùGod in their heart, by asking meat for their lust;

¹⁸וינסו אל בלבבם לשאל אכל לנפשם׃

¹⁹And they spoke against God: they said, Is ùGod able to prepare a table in the wilderness?

¹⁹וידברו באלהים אמרו היוכל אל לערך שלחן במדבר׃

²⁰Behold, he smote the rock, and waters gushed out, and streams overflowed; is he able to give bread also, or provide flesh for his people?

²⁰הן הכה צור ויזובו מים ונחלים ישטפו הגם לחם יוכל תת אם יכין שאר לעמו׃

²¹Therefore Jehovah heard, and was wroth; and fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also went up against Israel:

²¹לכן שמע יהוה ויתעבר ואש נשקה ביעקב וגם אף עלה בישראל׃

²²Because they believed not in God, and confided not in his salvation;

²²כי לא האמינו באלהים ולא בטחו בישועתו׃

²³Though he had commanded the clouds from above, and had opened the doors of the heavens,

²³ויצו שחקים ממעל ודלתי שמים פתח׃

²⁴And had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them the corn of the heavens.

²⁴וימטר עליהם מן לאכל ודגן שמים נתן למו׃

²⁵Man did eat the bread of the mighty; he sent them provision to the full.

²⁵לחם אבירים אכל איש צידה שלח להם לשבע׃

²⁶He caused the east wind to rise in the heavens, and by his strength he brought the south wind;

²⁶יסע קדים בשמים וינהג בעזו תימן׃

²⁷And he rained flesh upon them as dust, and feathered fowl as the sand of the seas,

²⁷וימטר עליהם כעפר שאר וכחול ימים עוף כנף׃

²⁸And he let it fall in the midst of their camp, round about their habitations:

²⁸ויפל בקרב מחנהו סביב למשכנתיו׃

²⁹And they did eat, and were well filled; for that they lusted after, he brought to them.

²⁹ויאכלו וישבעו מאד ותאותם יבא להם׃

³⁰They were not alienated from their lust, their meat was yet in their mouths,

³⁰לא זרו מתאותם עוד אכלם בפיהם׃

³¹When the anger of God went up against them; and he slew the fattest of them, and smote down the chosen men of Israel.

³¹ואף אלהים עלה בהם ויהרג במשמניהם ובחורי ישראל הכריע׃

³²For all this, they sinned still, and believed not in his marvellous works;

³²בכל זאת חטאו עוד ולא האמינו בנפלאותיו׃

³³And he consumed their days in vanity, and their years in terror.

³³ויכל בהבל ימיהם ושנותם בבהלה׃

³⁴When he slew them, then they sought him, and returned and sought early after ùGod;

³⁴אם הרגם ודרשוהו ושבו ושחרו אל׃

³⁵And they remembered that God was their rock, and ùGod, the Most High, their redeemer.

³⁵ויזכרו כי אלהים צורם ואל עליון גאלם׃

³⁶But they flattered him with their mouth, and lied unto him with their tongue;

³⁶ויפתוהו בפיהם ובלשונם יכזבו לו׃

³⁷For their heart was not firm toward him, neither were they stedfast in his covenant.

³⁷ולבם לא נכון עמו ולא נאמנו בבריתו׃

³⁸But he was merciful: he forgave the iniquity, and destroyed [them] not; but many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his fury:

³⁸והוא רחום יכפר עון ולא ישחית והרבה להשיב אפו ולא יעיר כל חמתו׃

³⁹And he remembered that they were flesh, a breath that passeth away and cometh not again.

³⁹ויזכר כי בשר המה רוח הולך ולא ישוב׃

⁴⁰How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness, and grieve him in the desert!

⁴⁰כמה ימרוהו במדבר יעציבוהו בישימון׃

⁴¹And they turned again and tempted ùGod, and grieved the Holy One of Israel.

⁴¹וישובו וינסו אל וקדוש ישראל התוו׃

⁴²They remembered not his hand, the day when he delivered them from the oppressor,

⁴²לא זכרו את ידו יום אשר פדם מני צר׃

⁴³How he set his signs in Egypt, and his miracles in the field of Zoan;

⁴³אשר שם במצרים אתותיו ומופתיו בשדה צען׃

⁴⁴And turned their rivers into blood, and their streams, that they could not drink;

⁴⁴ויהפך לדם יאריהם ונזליהם בל ישתיון׃

⁴⁵He sent dog-flies among them, which devoured them, and frogs, which destroyed them;

⁴⁵ישלח בהם ערב ויאכלם וצפרדע ותשחיתם׃

⁴⁶And he gave their increase unto the caterpillar, and their labour unto the locust;

⁴⁶ויתן לחסיל יבולם ויגיעם לארבה׃

⁴⁷He killed their vines with hail, and their sycamore trees with hail-stones;

⁴⁷יהרג בברד גפנם ושקמותם בחנמל׃

⁴⁸And he delivered up their cattle to the hail, and their flocks to thunderbolts.

⁴⁸ויסגר לברד בעירם ומקניהם לרשפים׃

⁴⁹He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and distress, -- a mission of angels of woes.

⁴⁹ישלח בם חרון אפו עברה וזעם וצרה משלחת מלאכי רעים׃

⁵⁰He made a way for his anger; he spared not their soul from death, but gave their life over to the pestilence;

⁵⁰יפלס נתיב לאפו לא חשך ממות נפשם וחיתם לדבר הסגיר׃

⁵¹And he smote all the firstborn in Egypt, the first-fruits of their vigour in the tents of Ham.

⁵¹ויך כל בכור במצרים ראשית אונים באהלי חם׃

⁵²And he made his own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock;

⁵²ויסע כצאן עמו וינהגם כעדר במדבר׃

⁵³And he led them safely, so that they were without fear; and the sea covered their enemies.

⁵³וינחם לבטח ולא פחדו ואת אויביהם כסה הים׃

⁵⁴And he brought them to his holy border, this mountain, which his right hand purchased;

⁵⁴ויביאם אל גבול קדשו הר זה קנתה ימינו׃

⁵⁵And he drove out the nations before them, and allotted them for an inheritance by line, and made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents.

⁵⁵ויגרש מפניהם גוים ויפילם בחבל נחלה וישכן באהליהם שבטי ישראל׃

⁵⁶But they tempted and provoked God, the Most High, and kept not his testimonies,

⁵⁶וינסו וימרו את אלהים עליון ועדותיו לא שמרו׃

⁵⁷And they drew back and dealt treacherously like their fathers: they turned like a deceitful bow.

⁵⁷ויסגו ויבגדו כאבותם נהפכו כקשת רמיה׃

⁵⁸And they provoked him to anger with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their graven images.

⁵⁸ויכעיסוהו בבמותם ובפסיליהם יקניאוהו׃

⁵⁹God heard, and was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel:

⁵⁹שמע אלהים ויתעבר וימאס מאד בישראל׃

⁶⁰And he forsook the tabernacle at Shiloh, the tent where he had dwelt among men,

⁶⁰ויטש משכן שלו אהל שכן באדם׃

⁶¹And gave his strength into captivity, and his glory into the hand of the oppressor;

⁶¹ויתן לשבי עזו ותפארתו ביד צר׃

⁶²And delivered up his people unto the sword, and was very wroth with his inheritance:

⁶²ויסגר לחרב עמו ובנחלתו התעבר׃

⁶³The fire consumed their young men, and their maidens were not praised in [nuptial] song;

⁶³בחוריו אכלה אש ובתולתיו לא הוללו׃

⁶⁴Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows made no lamentation.

⁶⁴כהניו בחרב נפלו ואלמנתיו לא תבכינה׃

⁶⁵Then the Lord awoke as one out of sleep, like a mighty man that shouteth aloud by reason of wine;

⁶⁵ויקץ כישן אדני כגבור מתרונן מיין׃

⁶⁶And he smote his adversaries in the hinder part, and put them to everlasting reproach.

⁶⁶ויך צריו אחור חרפת עולם נתן למו׃

⁶⁷And he rejected the tent of Joseph, and chose not the tribe of Ephraim,

⁶⁷וימאס באהל יוסף ובשבט אפרים לא בחר׃

⁶⁸But chose the tribe of Judah, the mount Zion which he loved;

⁶⁸ויבחר את שבט יהודה את הר ציון אשר אהב׃

⁶⁹And he built his sanctuary like the heights, like the earth which he hath founded for ever.

⁶⁹ויבן כמו רמים מקדשו כארץ יסדה לעולם׃

⁷⁰And he chose David his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds:

⁷⁰ויבחר בדוד עבדו ויקחהו ממכלאת צאן׃

⁷¹From following the suckling-ewes, he brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance.

⁷¹מאחר עלות הביאו לרעות ביעקב עמו ובישראל נחלתו׃

⁷²And he fed them according to the integrity of his heart, and led them by the skilfulness of his hands.

⁷²וירעם כתם לבבו ובתבונות כפיו ינחם׃