For the music director; by David, a psalm, a song. God springs into action! ²  His enemies scatter; his adversaries ³  run from him. ⁴ 

Even before the mountains came into existence, ¹  or you brought the world into being, ²  you were the eternal God. ³ 

If I tried to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. Even if I finished counting them, I would still have to contend with you. ¹ 

The first to state his case ¹  seems ²  right, until his opponent ³  begins to ⁴  cross-examine him. ⁵ 

The Beloved to Her Lover: Make haste, my beloved! Be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of spices.

Look, the sovereign Lord who commands armies ¹  is about to remove from Jerusalem ²  and Judah every source of security, including ³  all the food and water, ⁴ 

Those who get up early to drink beer are as good as dead, ¹  those who keep drinking long after dark until they are intoxicated with wine. ² 

At that time five cities ¹  in the land of Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the Lord who commands armies. One will be called the City of the Sun. ² 

In a year’s time ¹  you carefree ones will shake with fear, for the grape ²  harvest will fail, and the fruit harvest will not arrive.

Look, my earlier predictive oracles have come to pass; ¹  now I announce new events. Before they begin to occur, I reveal them to you.” ² 

“Look, I am about to do something new. Now it begins to happen! ¹  Do you not recognize ²  it? Yes, I will make a road in the desert and paths ³  in the wilderness.

Listen to me, O Jacob, Israel, whom I summoned! I am the one; I am present at the very beginning and at the very end. ¹ 

For this is what the sovereign Lord says: “In the beginning my people went to live temporarily in Egypt; Assyria oppressed them for no good reason.

(just as many were horrified by the sight of you) ¹  he was so disfigured ²  he no longer looked like a man; ³ 

You must ¹  actively help the hungry and feed the oppressed. ²  Then your light will dispel the darkness, ³  and your darkness will be transformed into noonday. ⁴ 

You have brought all this on yourself, Israel, ¹  by deserting the Lord your God when he was leading you along the right path. ² 

You must be truthful, honest and upright when you take an oath saying, ‘As surely as the Lord lives!’ ¹  If you do, ²  the nations will pray to be as blessed by him as you are and will make him the object of their boasting.” ³ 

Yes, ¹  the Lord has this to say to the people of Judah and Jerusalem: “Like a farmer breaking up hard unplowed ground, you must break your rebellious will and make a new beginning; just as a farmer must clear away thorns lest the seed is wasted, you must get rid of the sin that is ruining your lives. ² 

I said, “Indeed, ¹  let them come quickly and sing a song of mourning for us. Let them wail loudly until tears stream from our own eyes and our eyelids overflow with water.

But correct the way you have been living and do what is right. ¹  Obey the Lord your God. If you do, the Lord will forgo destroying you as he threatened he would. ²