Project 119: Psalm 71 & Psalm 72
| Project 119 | Amy Hirsch
Morning: Psalm 71
Forsake Me Not When My Strength Is Spent
1 In you, O LORD, do I take refuge;
let me never be put to shame!
2 In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me;
incline your ear to me, and save me!
3 Be to me a rock of refuge,
to which I may continually come;
you have given the command to save me,
for you are my rock and my fortress.
4 Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked,
from the grasp of the unjust and cruel man.
5 For you, O Lord, are my hope,
my trust, O LORD, from my youth.
6 Upon you I have leaned from before my birth;
you are he who took me from my mother’s womb.
My praise is continually of you.
7 I have been as a portent to many,
but you are my strong refuge.
8 My mouth is filled with your praise,
and with your glory all the day.
9 Do not cast me off in the time of old age;
forsake me not when my strength is spent.
10 For my enemies speak concerning me;
those who watch for my life consult together
11 and say, “God has forsaken him;
pursue and seize him,
for there is none to deliver him.”
12 O God, be not far from me;
O my God, make haste to help me!
13 May my accusers be put to shame and consumed;
with scorn and disgrace may they be covered
who seek my hurt.
14 But I will hope continually
and will praise you yet more and more.
15 My mouth will tell of your righteous acts,
of your deeds of salvation all the day,
for their number is past my knowledge.
16 With the mighty deeds of the Lord GOD I will come;
I will remind them of your righteousness, yours alone.
17 O God, from my youth you have taught me,
and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds.
18 So even to old age and gray hairs,
O God, do not forsake me,
until I proclaim your might to another generation,
your power to all those to come.
19 Your righteousness, O God,
reaches the high heavens.
You who have done great things,
O God, who is like you?
20 You who have made me see many troubles and calamities
will revive me again;
from the depths of the earth
you will bring me up again.
21 You will increase my greatness
and comfort me again.
22 I will also praise you with the harp
for your faithfulness, O my God;
I will sing praises to you with the lyre,
O Holy One of Israel.
23 My lips will shout for joy,
when I sing praises to you;
my soul also, which you have redeemed.
24 And my tongue will talk of your righteous help all the day long,
for they have been put to shame and disappointed
who sought to do me hurt.
Lord,
I praise You because You are a refuge for those who trust in You. You are the strong rock on which I have continually built my life, the fortress where I find protection. In my times of distress, You have bent down and listened to me. I ask that You would do that again, Father - that You would deliver me from those who are wicked, those who profess that You have forsaken me, those who have ill will against me and seek to hurt me.
In the midst of trial and tribulation, I remember Your faithfulness. You are the God who brought me into being, who took me from my mother’s womb. You hold all of my days in Your hands. My mouth declares Your righteous acts; they are so many, I cannot count them all! You have been so faithful to me throughout the years. I will always hope in You and I will praise you more and more.
Father, we trust that, just as you were faithful yesterday, you will be faithful today. You were good and gracious to me in the days of my youth; I will trust You as my days increase; even as I age and lose strength. I will trust You,
no matter what tomorrow holds. Forgive me for when I doubt and place my faith in my own strength and abilities. You alone are God and You alone are able to deliver us from evil. Yes, You do allow us to see troubles and calamities, but I am convinced even in the strife that You are always watching over me, and that You promise to use these difficulties for Your glory.
I praise You for the saints You have put in my life who are testimonies of such righteous living; their wisdom is indicated not by graying hair or wrinkles but by their faithful witness to You. Thank You for the mentors You have
given me - those on earth and those who have gone on to be with You. Thank You for the ways they have stretched and encouraged me. Thank You for the ways they faithfully poured into me by teaching me Your word and showing me what it means to live as Your servant. Thank You for their gentle rebukes, their kind encouragements, and their fierce love.
Father, would You give me such opportunities to disciple the generation that will come after me? Would You give me relationships where I can mentor and encourage others in their faith, in the same ways that I have been mentored and encouraged? Give me chances to share about Your righteousness and goodness, to proclaim to Your children the many ways You have been faithful to me!
Lord, I praise You because You are a God who never leaves and never forsakes me - who knitted me together in my mother’s womb and who will walk beside me until the end of my days when You bring me home. Thank You for your kindness and grace to me. Amen.
Evening: Psalm 72
Give the King Your Justice
Of Solomon.
1 Give the king your justice, O God,
and your righteousness to the royal son!
2 May he judge your people with righteousness,
and your poor with justice!
3 Let the mountains bear prosperity for the people,
and the hills, in righteousness!
4 May he defend the cause of the poor of the people,
give deliverance to the children of the needy,
and crush the oppressor!
5 May they fear you while the sun endures,
and as long as the moon, throughout all generations!
6 May he be like rain that falls on the mown grass,
like showers that water the earth!
7 In his days may the righteous flourish,
and peace abound, till the moon be no more!
8 May he have dominion from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth!
9 May desert tribes bow down before him,
and his enemies lick the dust!
10 May the kings of Tarshish and of the coastlands
render him tribute;
may the kings of Sheba and Seba
bring gifts!
11 May all kings fall down before him,
all nations serve him!
12 For he delivers the needy when he calls,
the poor and him who has no helper.
13 He has pity on the weak and the needy,
and saves the lives of the needy.
14 From oppression and violence he redeems their life,
and precious is their blood in his sight.
15 Long may he live;
may gold of Sheba be given to him!
May prayer be made for him continually,
and blessings invoked for him all the day!
16 May there be abundance of grain in the land;
on the tops of the mountains may it wave;
may its fruit be like Lebanon;
and may people blossom in the cities
like the grass of the field!
17 May his name endure forever,
his fame continue as long as the sun!
May people be blessed in him,
all nations call him blessed!
18 Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel,
who alone does wondrous things.
19 Blessed be his glorious name forever;
may the whole earth be filled with his glory!
Amen and Amen!
20 The prayers of David, the son of Jesse, are ended.