(A Sabbath psalm to be sung expectantly.)
The most beautiful thing is
Giving thanks to Yahweh;
Singing of your beauty, Greatest God;
Wondering each morning
How we’ll see your love throughout the coming day;
Remembering each night
How we saw your faithfulness during the day gone by;
Taking it all in and composing songs
On a happy guitar,
On an passionate piano,
On a soulful saxophone.
You are such an amazing worker, Yahweh.
I love the exquisite beauty
Of your workmanship.
All your work is so creative, Yahweh.
I’m in sheer wonder
At the thoughtfulness behind it all.
Your mind itself is beautiful!
How stupid of people to miss out on this,
How foolish to see the creation
And miss out on the Creator.
The wicked seem to grow faster than grass.
When they do their underhanded work,
They always seem to succeed.
But they’re really killing themselves.
You, Yahweh, are above us all
And always will be.
Look down and see your enemies, Yahweh.
Look down and see them falling to ruin,
Their underhanded work falling to pieces.
But you’ve made me strong as a stallion.
You anointed me with richly scented oil.
My eyes have seen the future failure of my haters.
My ears have heard the drumming of their doom.
But this future also is coming:
The right-living will grow like oasis-watered palm trees.
They’ll grow tall and straight like Lebanon cedars.
It’s in Yahweh’s own home
They’ll be planted.
It’s in his courtyard
They’ll grow green and strong.
They’ll be trees that bear fruit forever,
Full of vigor,
Full of life,
Signs of how good and right is Yahweh’s character,
How solid,
How unsullied by anything wrong at all.