Psalms 63
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O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;
2 To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.
3 Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.
4 Thus will I bless thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.
5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:
6 When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.
7 Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.
8 My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me.
9 But those that seek my soul, to destroy it, shall go into the lower parts of the earth.
10 They shall fall by the sword: they shall be a portion for foxes.
11 But the king shall rejoice in God; every one that sweareth by him shall glory: but the mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped.
Public Domain KJV text from Wordproject.org
Psalm 63:1-11
My Soul Thirsts for You
A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah.
1O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
2So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
beholding your power and glory.
3Because your steadfast love is better than life,
my lips will praise you.
4So I will bless you as long as I live;
in your name I will lift up my hands.
5My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,
and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,
6when I remember you upon my bed,
and meditate on you in the watches of the night;
7for you have been my help,
and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.
8My soul clings to you;
your right hand upholds me.
9But those who seek to destroy my life
shall go down into the depths of the earth;
10they shall be given over to the power of the sword;
they shall be a portion for jackals.
11But the king shall rejoice in God;
all who swear by him shall exult,
for the mouths of liars will be stopped.
ESV Bible text displayed through the American Bible Society's Global Bible Widget
Psalm 63:1-11
Psalm 63
A psalm of David. When he was in the Desert of Judah.
1You, God, are my God,
earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you,
my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land
where there is no water.
2I have seen you in the sanctuary
and beheld your power and your glory.
3Because your love is better than life,
my lips will glorify you.
4I will praise you as long as I live,
and in your name I will lift up my hands.
5I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods;
with singing lips my mouth will praise you.
6On my bed I remember you;
I think of you through the watches of the night.
7Because you are my help,
I sing in the shadow of your wings.
8I cling to you;
your right hand upholds me.
9Those who want to kill me will be destroyed;
they will go down to the depths of the earth.
10They will be given over to the sword
and become food for jackals.
11But the king will rejoice in God;
all who swear by God will glory in him,
while the mouths of liars will be silenced.
NIV Bible text displayed through the American Bible Society's Global Bible Widget
Commentary
I am one of those people who will spontaneously burst forth into song at seemingly random times. But really, those times are not so random. I was raised in a family that had musical responses suited for all sorts of occasions and occurrences. My mother had a special song she sang to me every time I cried or was upset. We had another song for lamenting about cold weather. There were yet other songs for getting ready to leave the house or to complete some task. Some musical retorts were inspired by songs from movies or radio but all of them were incorporated to be almost automatic.
Once I gave my life to Christ and began reading the Bible I discovered that God’s people had an entire book of far superior musical responses, the book of Psalms. There is something in there for every occasion. The Psalms let me know that I am not alone in facing a variety of circumstances and that God will see me through all of them. Have you incorporated any of them as a way to automatically turn to God? Try singing, “O God, thou art my God: early will I seek thee.” Psalm 63:1.
Karen D. Lifshay
Hermiston Church Chorister, Oregon USA (as of this writing)
