Dieva laipnība un Israēla pretestība
1 Āsāfa psalms .
Ieklausies, mana tauta, manā bauslībā!
Sniedziet ausi, ka dzirdat, ko saku!
2 Atvēršu līdzībām muti,
stāstīšu mīklas no senseniem laikiem,
3 ko esam dzirdējuši un turam prātā,
kā mūsu tēvi mums stāstījuši.
4 Mēs neslēpsim no viņu dēliem,
izstāstīsim nākamai audzei
Kunga slavu un viņa varu,
un brīnumus, ko viņš darījis.
5 Viņš noteica liecību Jēkabā
un bauslību nolika Israēlam,
un pavēlēja mūsu tēviem,
lai tie māca to saviem dēliem,
6 lai zina nākamā audze –
dēli, kas vēl tikai dzims,
lai aug un izstāsta saviem dēliem –
7 ka tie paļaujas uz Dievu
un neaizmirst Dieva darbus,
un ievēro viņa baušļus,
8 lai nav tādi kā viņu tēvi –
spītnieku un dumpinieku audze,
audze ar gļēvām sirdīm,
kuras gars nebija uzticīgs Dievam.
9 Efraima dēli, bruņotie loka šāvēji,
apcirtās bēgt sadursmes dienā –
10 tie lauza derību ar Dievu,
viņa bauslībā atteicās staigāt
11 un aizmirsa viņa darbus
un brīnumus, ko viņš tiem rādījis.
12 Viņu tēvu priekšā viņš darīja brīnumu
Ēģiptes zemē, Coanas laukā –
13 viņš šķēla jūru un izlaida tos cauri,
uzmetis ūdeņus kā gubu,
14 un veda tos dienā mākonim līdzi
un visu nakti uguns gaismā,
15 un šķēla klintis tuksnesī,
un dzirdīja kā no dzīles – papilnam,
16 un izdzina strūklas no klints,
un ūdeņiem lika tecēt kā upēm.
17 Bet atkal tie grēkoja pret viņu,
izkaltušā zemē dumpojās pret Visuaugsto,
18 tīšām tie pārbaudīja Dievu –
tie prasīja ēst, kas tiem kāro,
19 tie izrunājās pret Dievu, tie teica:
vai jaudās Dievs klāt tuksnesī galdu?
20 Viņš sita gan klinti, un šļācās ūdens
un straumes vēlās;
vai arī maizi viņš jaudās dot,
vai sagādās gaļu savai tautai? –
21 Kad Kungs to dzirdēja, viņš noskaitās,
un uguns iedegās pret Jēkabu,
un dusmas sacēlās pret Israēlu,
22 jo tie neticēja Dievam
un nepaļāvās, ka viņš tos izglābs!
23 Tad viņš pavēlēja mākoņiem augšā
un debesu durvis atdarīja,
24 viņš lika līt pār tiem mannai, ko ēst,
un debesu labību deva tiem.
25 Cilvēks ēda maizi, ko tik varenie ēd, –
viņš barību sūtīja tiem papilnam,
26 viņš izdzina austreni debesīs,
viņa spēks izlaida dienvidvēju,
27 viņš lika gaļai kā pīšļiem birt
un spārnotiem putniem kā jūras smiltīm.
28 Viņš lika tiem krist viņu nometnē
ap viņu mitekļiem,
29 viņi ēda un pieēdās ļoti –
ko tie kāroja, viņš tiem deva!
30 Pirms tie atrāvās no sava kāruma –
vēl ēdiens tiem mutē –,
31 Dieva dusmas cēlās pret tiem,
un viņš kāva brangākos no tiem,
Israēla jaunekļus gāza zemē.
32 Vienalga, tie grēkoja vēl,
tie nenoticēja viņa brīnumiem!
33 Viņš lika to dienām pazust dvesmā
un to gadiem – baismā!
34 Kad viņš tos kāva, tie sāka alkt viņa –
tie atgriezās un meklēja Dievu,
35 tie atcerējās, ka Dievs – viņu klints,
ka Dievs, Visuaugstais, viņu izpircējs.
36 Bet tie vīla viņu savām mutēm,
un savām mēlēm tie meloja viņam,
37 to sirdis nebija viņam drošas,
tie nebija uzticīgi viņa derībai,
38 bet viņš, līdzcietīgais, piedeva pārkāpumu
un neizpostīja.
Cik reižu viņš savaldīja savas dusmas
un nedeva vaļu visam naidam!
39 Viņš atcerējās, ka tie ir miesa –
vējš, kas aizskrien un neatgriežas!
40 Cik dumpojās tie pret viņu tuksnesī,
sāpināja viņu tukšatnē!
41 Jau atkal tie pārbaudīja Dievu,
Israēla svēto tie apšaubīja,
42 tie neatcerējās viņa roku,
kas reiz tos atpirka no naidnieka,
43 kad viņš rādīja Ēģiptē savas zīmes
un savas mīklas Coanas laukā.
44 Viņš pārvērta asinīs turienes teces,
ka no savām straumēm tie nedabū dzert,
45 tiem uzlaida spietu, kas tos ēda,
un vardes, kas tos izpostīja,
46 atdeva spradžiem viņu ražu
un viņu pūliņus siseņiem,
47 ar krusu nokāva viņu vīnadēstus
un viņu vīģu kokus ar salnu,
48 nodeva krusai viņu lopus
un viņu ganāmpulkus zibeņiem,
49 uzlaida tiem savu dusmu svelmi –
naidu, niknumu un postu –
ļaunuma vēstnešu pulku,
50 sataisīja ceļu savām dusmām,
neaiztaupīja tos nāvei,
viņu dzīvības sadzina mērim,
51 kāva visus pirmdzimtos Ēģiptē –
vīrišķības pirmziedu Hāma teltīs!
52 Viņš dzina kā avis savu tautu,
veda to tuksnesī kā ganāmpulku,
53 vadīja tos droši, un tie nebijās,
bet to naidniekus pārklāja jūra.
54 Viņš ieveda tos savās svētajās robežās,
pie kalna, ko guva viņa labā roka,
55 viņš izdzina tautas to priekšā,
ar mērauklu nomērīja tiem viņu daļu,
teltīs nometināja Israēla ciltis.
56 Bet tie pārbaudīja visaugsto Dievu
un dumpojās pret viņu,
viņa liecības neņēma vērā –
57 tie novērsās, pievīla kā viņu tēvi,
tie atspruka kā vaļīgs loks!
58 Tie dusmoja viņu ar savām augstienēm,
ar saviem elkiem tie viņu kaitināja –
59 izdzirda Dievs un apskaitās,
un pavisam atmeta Israēlu!
60 Viņš pameta savu mājokli Šīlo –
telti, kur viņš mita cilvēku vidū,
61 viņš atdeva gūstā savu spēku
un savu godību naidnieka rokā,
62 viņš sadzina zobenam savu tautu,
uz savu mantojumu viņš saniknojās.
63 To jaunekļus aprija uguns,
to jaunavām nebija kāzu dziesmu,
64 to priesteri krita no šķēpa,
to atraitnēm nebija raudu dziesmu.
65 Un modās Kungs kā no miega,
kā spēkavīrs klaigādams vīna skurbumā,
66 savu naidnieku pakaļas viņš sita trumiem –
mūžīgu negodu viņš uzkrāva tiem!
67 Viņš atmeta Jāzepa telti
un Efraima cilti neizraudzījās –
68 viņš izraudzījās Jūdas cilti,
Ciānas kalnu, kuru viņš mīl,
69 viņš cēla sev svētnīcu – kā debesis augstu,
kā zeme, ko viņš uz mūžiem dibinājis,
70 viņš izvēlējās Dāvidu sev par kalpu
un ņēma to no avju aplokiem,
71 no avju takām viņš to atveda
ganīt Jēkabu, viņa tautu,
un Israēlu, viņa mantojumu,
72 tas viņus ganīja ar krietnu sirdi
un ar prasmīgu roku vadīja viņus.
God and His People
1 Listen, my people, to my teaching,
and pay attention to what I say.
2 I am going to use wise sayings
and explain mysteries from the past,
3 things we have heard and known,
things that our ancestors told us.
4 We will not keep them from our children;
we will tell the next generation
about the Lord's power and his great deeds
and the wonderful things he has done.
5 He gave laws to the people of Israel
and commandments to the descendants of Jacob.
He instructed our ancestors
to teach his laws to their children,
6 so that the next generation might learn them
and in turn should tell their children.
7 In this way they also will put their trust in God
and not forget what he has done,
but always obey his commandments.
8 They will not be like their ancestors,
a rebellious and disobedient people,
whose trust in God was never firm
and who did not remain faithful to him.
9 The Ephraimites, armed with bows and arrows,
ran away on the day of battle.
10 They did not keep their covenant with God;
they refused to obey his law.
11 They forgot what he had done,
the miracles they had seen him perform.
12 While their ancestors watched, God performed miracles
in the plain of Zoan in the land of Egypt.
13 He divided the sea and took them through it;
he made the waters stand like walls.
14 By day he led them with a cloud
and all night long with the light of a fire.
15 He split rocks open in the desert
and gave them water from the depths.
16 He caused a stream to come out of the rock
and made water flow like a river.
17 But they continued to sin against God,
and in the desert they rebelled against the Most High.
18 They deliberately put God to the test
by demanding the food they wanted.
19 They spoke against God and said,
“Can God supply food in the desert?
20 It is true that he struck the rock,
and water flowed out in a torrent;
but can he also provide us with bread
and give his people meat?”
21 And so the Lord was angry when he heard them;
he attacked his people with fire,
and his anger against them grew,
22 because they had no faith in him
and did not believe that he would save them.
23 But he spoke to the sky above
and commanded its doors to open;
24 he gave them grain from heaven,
by sending down manna for them to eat.
25 So they ate the food of angels,
and God gave them all they wanted.
26 He also caused the east wind to blow,
and by his power he stirred up the south wind;
27 and to his people he sent down birds,
as many as the grains of sand on the shore;
28 they fell in the middle of the camp
all around the tents.
29 So the people ate and were satisfied;
God gave them what they wanted.
30 But they had not yet satisfied their craving
and were still eating,
31 when God became angry with them
and killed their strongest men,
the best young men of Israel.
32 In spite of all this the people kept sinning;
in spite of his miracles they did not trust him.
33 So he ended their days like a breath
and their lives with sudden disaster.
34 Whenever he killed some of them,
the rest would turn to him;
they would repent and pray earnestly to him.
35 They remembered that God was their protector,
that the Almighty came to their aid.
36 But their words were all lies;
nothing they said was sincere.
37 They were not loyal to him;
they were not faithful to their covenant with him.
38 But God was merciful to his people.
He forgave their sin
and did not destroy them.
Many times he held back his anger
and restrained his fury.
39 He remembered that they were only mortal beings,
like a wind that blows by and is gone.
40 How often they rebelled against him in the desert;
how many times they made him sad!
41 Again and again they put God to the test
and brought pain to the Holy God of Israel.
42 They forgot his great power
and the day when he saved them from their enemies
43 and performed his mighty acts and miracles
in the plain of Zoan in the land of Egypt.
44 He turned the rivers into blood,
and the Egyptians had no water to drink.
45 He sent flies among them, that tormented them,
and frogs that ruined their land.
46 He sent locusts to eat their crops
and to destroy their fields.
47 He killed their grapevines with hail
and their fig trees with frost.
48 He killed their cattle with hail
and their flocks with lightning.
49 He caused them great distress
by pouring out his anger and fierce rage,
which came as messengers of death.
50 He did not restrain his anger
or spare their lives,
but killed them with a plague.
51 He killed the first-born sons
of all the families of Egypt.
52 Then he led his people out like a shepherd
and guided them through the desert.
53 He led them safely, and they were not afraid;
but the sea came rolling over their enemies.
54 He brought them to his holy land,
to the mountains which he himself conquered.
55 He drove out the inhabitants as his people advanced;
he divided their land among the tribes of Israel
and gave their homes to his people.
56 But they rebelled against Almighty God
and put him to the test.
They did not obey his commandments,
57 but were rebellious and disloyal like their ancestors,
unreliable as a crooked arrow.
58 They angered him with their heathen places of worship,
and with their idols they made him furious.
59 God was angry when he saw it,
so he rejected his people completely.
60 He abandoned his tent in Shiloh,
the home where he had lived among us.
61 He allowed our enemies to capture the Covenant Box,
the symbol of his power and glory.
62 He was angry with his own people
and let them be killed by their enemies.
63 Young men were killed in war,
and young women had no one to marry.
64 Priests died by violence,
and their widows were not allowed to mourn.
65 At last the Lord woke up as though from sleep;
he was like a strong man excited by wine.
66 He drove his enemies back
in lasting and shameful defeat.
67 But he rejected the descendants of Joseph;
he did not select the tribe of Ephraim.
68 Instead he chose the tribe of Judah
and Mount Zion, which he dearly loves.
69 There he built his Temple
like his home in heaven;
he made it firm like the earth itself,
secure for all time.
70 He chose his servant David;
he took him from the pastures,
71 where he looked after his flocks,
and he made him king of Israel,
the shepherd of the people of God.
72 David took care of them with unselfish devotion
and led them with skill.
