MAY 1

 

Praise be to God! Praise to the great Judge of the earth.

For the director of music. to the tune of "Do Not Destroy." A psalm of Asaph. A song.

 

We give thanks to you, O God,

we give thanks, for your Name is near; men tell of your wonderful deeds.

 

You say, "I choose the appointed time;

it is I who judge uprightly. When the earth and all its people quake,

it is I who hold its pillars firm. Selah To the arrogant I say, 'Boast no more/

and to the wicked, 'Do not lift up your horns. Do not lift your horns against heaven;

do not speak with outstretched neck.'"

 

No one from the east or the west

or from the desert can exalt a man. But it is God who judges:

He brings one down, he exalts another. In the hand of the lord is a cup

full of foaming wine mixed with spices; he pours it out, and all the wicked of the earth

drink it down to its very dregs.

 

As for me, I will declare this forever;

I will sing praise to the God of Jacob. I will cut off the horns of all the wicked,

but the horns of the righteous will be lifted up.

 

Praise for God's majesty and holiness. Psa. 93

 

The lord reigns, he is robed in majesty;

the lord is robed in majesty

and is armed with strength. The world is firmly established;

it cannot be moved. Your throne was established long ago;

you are from all eternity.

 

The seas have lifted up, O lord,

the seas have lifted up their voice;

the seas have lifted up their pounding waves. Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea—

the lord on high is mighty.

 

Your statutes stand firm;

holiness adorns your house for endless days, O lord.

 

Praise for God's discipline of man and nations. Psa. 94

O lord, the God who avenges,

O God who avenges, shine forth. Rise up, O Judge of the earth;

pay back to the proud what they deserve. How long will the wicked, O lord,

how long will the wicked be jubilant?

 

They pour out arrogant words;

all the evildoers are full of boasting. They crush your people, O lord;

they oppress your inheritance. They slay the widow and the alien;

they murder the fatherless. They say, "The lord does not see;

the God of Jacob pays no heed."

 

Take heed, you senseless ones among the people;

you fools, when will you become wise? Does he who implanted the ear not hear?

Does he who formed the eye not see? Does he who disciplines nations not punish?

Does he who teaches man lack knowledge? The lord knows the thoughts of man; he knows that they are futile.

 

Blessed is the man you discipline, O lord,

the man you teach from your law; you grant him relief from days of trouble,

till a pit is dug for the wicked. For the lord will not reject his people;

he will never forsake his inheritance. Judgment will again be founded on righteousness,

and all the upright in heart will follow it.

 

Who will rise up for me against the wicked?

Who will take a stand for me against evildoers? Unless the lord had given me help,

I would soon have dwelt in the silence of death. When I said, "My foot is slipping,"

your love, O lord, supported me. When anxiety was great within me,

your consolation brought joy to my soul.

 

Can a corrupt throne be allied with you

one that brings on misery by its decrees? They band together against the righteous

and condemn the innocent to death. But the lord has become my fortress,

and my God the rock in whom I take refuge. He will repay them for their sins

and destroy them for their wickedness;

the lord our God will destroy them.

 

Rejoicing because of God's righteousness and justice. Psa. 97        

 

The lord reigns, let the earth be glad; let the distant shores rejoice.

Clouds and thick darkness surround him;

righteousness and justice are the foundation of his

throne. Fire goes before him

and consumes his foes on every side. His lightning lights up the world;

the earth sees and trembles. The mountains melt like wax before the lord,

before the Lord of all the earth. The heavens proclaim his righteousness,

and all the peoples see his glory.

 

All who worship images are put to shame, those who boast in idols— worship him, all you gods!

 

Zion hears and rejoices

and the villages of Judah are glad

For you, O lord, are the Most High over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods.

 

Let those who love the lord hate evil,

for he guards the lives of his faithful ones

and delivers them from the hand of the wicked. Light is shed upon the righteous

and joy on the upright in heart. Rejoice in the lord, you who are righteous,

and praise his holy name.

 

 

A song of praise for the salvation of the Lord. Psa. 98

A psalm.

Sing to the lord a new song,

for he has done marvelous things; his right hand and his holy arm

have worked salvation for him. The lord has made his salvation known

and revealed his righteousness to the nations. He has remembered his love

and his faithfulness to the house of Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen

the salvation of our God.

 

Shout for joy to the lord, all the earth,

burst into jubilant song with music; make music to the lord with the harp,

with the harp and the sound of singing, with trumpets and the blast of the ram's horn—

shout for joy before the lord, the King.

 

Let the sea resound, and everything in it,

the world, and all who live in it. Let the rivers clap their hands,

let the mountains sing together for joy; let them sing before the lord,

for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness

and the peoples with equity.

 

 

Exaltation of the God who is holy and just. Psa. 99

The lord reigns,

let the nations tremble; he sits enthroned between the cherubim,

let the earth shake. Great is the lord in Zion;

he is exalted over all the nations. Let them praise your great and awesome name—

he is holy.

 

The King is mighty, he loves justice—

you have established equity; in Jacob you have done

what is just and right.

Exalt the lord our God

and worship at his footstool; he is holy.

 

Moses and Aaron were among his priests,

Samuel was among those who called on his name;

they called on the lord and he answered them.

He spoke to them from the pillar of cloud;

they kept his statutes and the decrees he gave them.

 

O lord our God,

you answered them; you were to Israel3 a forgiving God,

though you punished their misdeeds.' Exalt the lord our God

and worship at his holy mountain,

for the lord our God is holy.

 

Joy of being children of a loving and faithful God. Psa. 100      

A psalm. For giving thanks.

 

Shout for joy to the lord, all the earth.

Worship the lord with gladness;

come before him with joyful songs. Know that the lord is God.

It is he who made us, and we are his";

we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

 

Enter his gates with thanksgiving

and his courts with praise;

give thanks to him and praise his name.

For the lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.