1  Oh ^kgive thanks to the Lord, for he is good,

for his steadfast love endures forever!

2  Let ^lthe redeemed of the Lord say so,

whom he has ^mredeemed from trouble¹

3  and ⁿgathered in from the lands,

from the east and from the west,

from the north and from the south.

4  Some ^owandered in desert wastes,

finding no way to a city to dwell in;

5  hungry and thirsty,

their soul fainted within them.

6  ^pThen they cried to the Lord in their trouble,

and he delivered them from their distress.

7  He led them by a straight way

till they reached a city to dwell in.

8  ^qLet them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,

for his wondrous works to the children of man!

9  For he ^rsatisfies the longing soul,

and ^sthe hungry soul he fills with good things.

10  Some ^tsat in ^udarkness and in the shadow of death,

prisoners in affliction and in irons,

11  for they had rebelled against the words of God,

and spurned the ^vcounsel of the Most High.

12  So he bowed their hearts down with hard labor;

they fell down, with ^wnone to help.

13  Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,

and he delivered them from their distress.

14  He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death,

and burst their bonds apart.

15  Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,

for his wondrous works to the children of man!

16  For he ^xshatters the doors of bronze

and cuts in two the bars of iron.

17  Some were fools through their sinful ways,

and because of their iniquities suffered affliction;

18  they ^yloathed any kind of food,

and they drew near to the gates of death.

19  Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,

and he delivered them from their distress.

20  He sent out his word and healed them,

and delivered them from their destruction.

21  Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,

for his wondrous works to the children of man!

22  And let them offer ^zsacrifices of thanksgiving,

and ^atell of his deeds in songs of joy!

23  Some went down to the sea in ships,

doing business on the great waters;

24  they saw the deeds of the Lord,

his wondrous works in the deep.

25  For ^bhe commanded and raised the stormy wind,

which lifted up the waves of the sea.

26  They mounted up to heaven; they went down to the depths;

^ctheir courage melted away in their evil plight;

27  they reeled and staggered like drunken men

and were at their wits’ end.²

28  Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,

and he delivered them from their distress.

29  ^dHe made the ^estorm be still,

and the waves of the sea were hushed.

30  Then they were glad that the waters³ were quiet,

and he brought them to their desired haven.

31  Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,

for his wondrous works to the children of man!

32  Let them extol him in the congregation of the people,

and praise him in the assembly of the elders.

2  ^t“Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?

3  ^uDress for action¹ like a man;

I will question you, and you make it known to me.

4  “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?

Tell me, if you have understanding.

5  Who determined its ^vmeasurements—surely you know!

Or who stretched the line upon it?

6  On what were its bases sunk,

or who laid its cornerstone,

7  when the morning stars sang together

and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

8  “Or ^wwho shut in the sea with doors

when it burst out from the womb,

9  when I made clouds its garment

and thick darkness its swaddling band,

10  and ^xprescribed limits for it

and set bars and doors,

11  and said, ^y‘Thus far shall you come, and no farther,

and ^zhere shall your proud waves be stayed’?

12  “Have you ^acommanded the morning since your days began,

and caused the dawn to know its place,

13  that it might take hold of the skirts of the earth,

and the wicked be shaken out of it?

14  It is changed like clay under the seal,

and its features stand out like a garment.

15  From the wicked their ^blight is withheld,

and their uplifted arm is ^cbroken.

16  “Have you entered into the springs of the sea,

or walked in the recesses of the deep?

17  Have the gates of death been revealed to you,

or have you seen the gates of deep darkness?

18  Have you comprehended the expanse of the earth?

Declare, if you know all this.

19  “Where is the way to the dwelling of light,

and where is the place of darkness,

20  that you may take it to its territory

and that you may discern the paths to its home?

21  You know, for ^dyou were born then,

and the number of your days is great!

22  “Have you entered the ^estorehouses of the snow,

or have you seen the storehouses of the hail,

23  which I have reserved for the time of trouble,

for the day of battle and war?

24  What is the way to the place where the light is distributed,

or where the east wind is scattered upon the earth?

25  “Who has cleft a channel for the torrents of rain

and a ^fway for the thunderbolt,

26  to bring rain on a land where no man is,

on the desert in which there is no man,

27  to satisfy the waste and desolate land,

and to make the ground sprout with grass?

28  “Has the rain a father,

or who has begotten the drops of dew?

29  From whose womb did the ^gice come forth,

and who has given birth to the ^hfrost of heaven?

30  The waters become hard like stone,

and the face of the deep is frozen.

31  “Can you bind the chains of ⁱthe Pleiades

or loose the cords of Orion?

32  Can you lead forth the Mazzaroth² in their season,

or can you guide the Bear with its children?

33  Do you know the ^jordinances of the heavens?

Can you establish their rule on the earth?

34  “Can you lift up your voice to the clouds,

that ^ka flood of waters may cover you?

35  Can you send forth lightnings, that they may go

and say to you, ‘Here we are’?

36  Who has put wisdom ^lin the inward parts³

or given ^munderstanding to the mind?⁴

37  Who can number the clouds by wisdom?

Or who can tilt the waterskins of the heavens,

38  when the dust runs into a mass

and the clods stick fast together?

39  “Can you hunt the prey ⁿfor the lion,

or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,

40  when they crouch in their dens

or lie in wait in their thicket?

41  ^oWho provides for the raven its prey,

when its young ones cry to God for help,

and wander about for lack of food?

2  “I know that ⁿyou can do all things,

and that ^ono purpose of yours can be thwarted.

3  ^p‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’

Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,

things ^qtoo wonderful for me, which I did not know.

4  ‘Hear, and I will speak;

^rI will question you, and you make it known to me.’

5  ^sI had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,

but now ^tmy eye sees you;

6  therefore ^uI despise myself,

and repent in¹ dust and ashes.”