Psalm 106 | New International Version

1 Praise the Lord.* Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures for ever. 2 Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the Lord or fully declare his praise? 3 Blessed are those who act justly, who always do what is right. 4 Remember me, Lord, when you show favour to your people, come to my aid when you save them, 5 that I may enjoy the prosperity of your chosen ones, that I may share in the joy of your nation and join your inheritance in giving praise. 6 We have sinned, even as our ancestors did; we have done wrong and acted wickedly. 7 When our ancestors were in Egypt, they gave no thought to your miracles; they did not remember your many kindnesses, and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea.* 8 Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, to make his mighty power known. 9 He rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up; he led them through the depths as through a desert. 10 He saved them from the hand of the foe; from the hand of the enemy he redeemed them. 11 The waters covered their adversaries; not one of them survived. 12 Then they believed his promises and sang his praise. 13 But they soon forgot what he had done and did not wait for his plan to unfold. 14 In the desert they gave in to their craving; in the wilderness they put God to the test. 15 So he gave them what they asked for, but sent a wasting disease among them. 16 In the camp they grew envious of Moses and of Aaron, who was consecrated to the Lord. 17 The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan; it buried the company of Abiram. 18 Fire blazed among their followers; a flame consumed the wicked. 19 At Horeb they made a calf and worshipped an idol cast from metal. 20 They exchanged their glorious God for an image of a bull, which eats grass. 21 They forgot the God who saved them, who had done great things in Egypt, 22 miracles in the land of Ham and awesome deeds by the Red Sea. 23 So he said he would destroy them – had not Moses, his chosen one, stood in the breach before him to keep his wrath from destroying them. 24 Then they despised the pleasant land; they did not believe his promise. 25 They grumbled in their tents and did not obey the Lord. 26 So he swore to them with uplifted hand that he would make them fall in the wilderness, 27 make their descendants fall among the nations and scatter them throughout the lands. 28 They yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor and ate sacrifices offered to lifeless gods; 29 they aroused the Lord’s anger by their wicked deeds, and a plague broke out among them. 30 But Phinehas stood up and intervened, and the plague was checked. 31 This was credited to him as righteousness for endless generations to come. 32 By the waters of Meribah they angered the Lord, and trouble came to Moses because of them; 33 for they rebelled against the Spirit of God, and rash words came from Moses’ lips.* 34 They did not destroy the peoples as the Lord had commanded them, 35 but they mingled with the nations and adopted their customs. 36 They worshipped their idols, which became a snare to them. 37 They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to false gods. 38 They shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, and the land was desecrated by their blood. 39 They defiled themselves by what they did; by their deeds they prostituted themselves. 40 Therefore the Lord was angry with his people and abhorred his inheritance. 41 He gave them into the hands of the nations, and their foes ruled over them. 42 Their enemies oppressed them and subjected them to their power. 43 Many times he delivered them, but they were bent on rebellion and they wasted away in their sin. 44 Yet he took note of their distress when he heard their cry; 45 for their sake he remembered his covenant and out of his great love he relented. 46 He caused all who held them captive to show them mercy. 47 Save us, Lord our God, and gather us from the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise. 48 Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Let all the people say, ‘Amen!’ Praise the Lord.

New International Reader’s Version

1 Praise the LORD. Give thanks to the LORD, because he is good. His faithful love continues for ever. 2 Who can speak enough about the mighty acts of the LORD? Who can praise him as much as he should be praised? 3 Blessed are those who always do what is fair. Blessed are those who keep doing what is right. 4 LORD, remember me when you bless your people. Help me when you save them. 5 Then I will enjoy the good things you give your chosen ones. I will be joyful together with your people. I will join them when they praise you. 6 We have sinned, just as our people of long ago did. We too have done what is evil and wrong. 7 When our people were in Egypt, they forgot about the LORD’s miracles. They didn’t remember his many kind acts. At the Red Sea they refused to obey him. 8 But he saved them for the honour of his name. He did it to make his mighty power known. 9 He ordered the Red Sea to dry up, and it did. He led his people through it as if it were a desert. 10 He saved them from the power of their enemies. He set them free from their control. 11 The waters covered their enemies. Not one of them escaped alive. 12 Then his people believed his promises and sang praise to him. 13 But they soon forgot what he had done. They didn’t wait for what he had planned to happen. 14 In the desert they longed for food. In that dry and empty land they tested God. 15 So he gave them what they asked for. But he also sent a disease that killed many of them. 16 In their camp some of them became jealous of Moses and Aaron. Aaron had been set apart to serve the LORD. 17 The ground opened up and swallowed Dathan. It buried Abiram and his followers. 18 Fire blazed among all of them. Flames destroyed those evil people. 19 At Mount Horeb they made a metal statue of a bull calf. They worshipped that statue of a god. 20 They traded their glorious God for a statue of a bull that eats grass. 21 They forgot the God who saved them. They forgot the God who had done great things in Egypt. 22 They forgot the miracles he did in the land of Ham. They forgot the wonderful things he did by the Red Sea. 23 So he said he would destroy them. But Moses, his chosen one, stood up for them. He kept God’s anger from destroying them. 24 Later on, they refused to enter the pleasant land of Canaan. They didn’t believe God’s promise. 25 In their tents they told the LORD how unhappy they were. They didn’t obey him. 26 So he lifted up his hand and promised that he would make them die in the desert. 27 He promised he would scatter their children’s children among the nations. He would make them die in other lands. 28 They joined in worshipping the Baal that was worshipped at Peor. They ate food that had been offered to gods that aren’t even alive. 29 Their evil ways made the LORD angry. So a plague broke out among them. 30 But Phinehas stood up and took action. Then the plague stopped. 31 What Phinehas did made him right with the LORD. It will be remembered for all time to come. 32 By the waters of Meribah the LORD’s people made him angry. Moses got in trouble because of them. 33 They refused to obey the Spirit of God. So Moses spoke without thinking. 34 They didn’t destroy the nations in Canaan as the LORD had commanded them. 35 Instead, they mixed with those nations and adopted their ways. 36 They worshipped statues of their gods. That became a trap for them. 37 They sacrificed their sons and daughters as offerings to false gods. 38 They killed those who weren’t guilty of doing anything wrong. They killed their own sons and daughters. They sacrificed them as offerings to statues of the gods of Canaan. The land became ‘unclean’ because of the blood of their children. 39 The people made themselves impure by what they had done. They weren’t faithful to the LORD. 40 So the LORD became angry with his people. He turned away from his own children. 41 He handed them over to the nations. Their enemies ruled over them. 42 Their enemies treated them badly and kept them under their power. 43 Many times the LORD saved them. But they refused to obey him. So he destroyed them because of their sins. 44 Yet he heard them when they cried out. He paid special attention to their suffering. 45 Because they were his people, he remembered his covenant. Because of his great love, he felt sorry for them. 46 He made all those who held them as prisoners have mercy on them. 47 LORD our God, save us. Bring us back from among the nations. Then we will give thanks to you, because your name is holy. We will celebrate by praising you. 48 Give praise to the LORD, the God of Israel, for ever and ever. Let all the people say, ‘Amen!’ Praise the LORD.

Psalm 106 | New International Version New International Reader’s Version