רַנְּנוּ צַדִּיקִים בַּה'; לַיְשָׁרִים נָאוָה תְהִלָּה

Rejoice in the Lord, righteous ones; it is comely for the upright to offer praise.

הוֹדוּ לַה' בְּכִנּוֹר בְּנֵבֶל עָשׂוֹר זַמְּרוּ לוֹ

Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre; sing praises to Him with a ten-stringed harp.

שִׁירוּ לוֹ שִׁיר חָדָשׁ הֵיטִיבוּ נַגֵּן בִּתְרוּעָה

Sing Him a new song. It is a greater tribute to God to sing new songs and praises than it is to repeat tributes that have been sung before. Play beautifully with loud sound. The word terua, translated as “loud sound,” usually refers to music made with a trumpet or horn.

כִּי יָשָׁר דְּבַר ה' וְכָל מַעֲשֵׂהוּ בֶּאֱמוּנָה

And this is the song they should sing: For the word of the Lord is upright, all His deeds faithfully wrought. God’s deeds are characterized as “upright” and “faithful,” and these are also attributes He seeks in the world.

אֹהֵב צְדָקָה וּמִשְׁפָּט חֶסֶד ה' מָלְאָה הָאָרֶץ

He loves righteousness and justice; the Lord’s kindness fills the world. The entire world is an expression of God’s beneficence and generosity. From this we can learn that God values these qualities in us as well.

בִּדְבַר ה' שָׁמַיִם נַעֲשׂוּ וּבְרוּחַ פִּיו כָּל צְבָאָם

By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; by the breath of His mouth, all their hosts.

כֹּנֵס כַּנֵּד מֵי הַיָּם נֹתֵן בְּאוֹצָרוֹת תְּהוֹמוֹת

He heaps together the waters of the sea, storing in vaults the waters of the deep. God has designated special places for the concentrations of water found beneath the earth.

יִירְאוּ מֵה' כָּל הָאָרֶץ מִמֶּנּוּ יָגוּרוּ כָּל יֹשְׁבֵי תֵבֵל

Let the entire world be in awe of the Lord; let all earth’s inhabitants fear Him as they contemplate His immense power in creation.

כִּי הוּא אָמַר וַיֶּהִי הוּא צִוָּה וַיַּעֲמֹד

For He spoke and it was done. The world’s creation was accomplished through God’s mere utterance. He commanded, and it, referring to everything created in the world, took form.

ה' הֵפִיר עֲצַת גּוֹיִם הֵנִיא מַחְשְׁבוֹת עַמִּים

God’s power manifests itself in creation in general, but particularly in His interaction with humanity: The Lord overturns the counsel of nations, annuls the schemes of peoples.

עֲצַת ה' לְעוֹלָם תַּעֲמֹד מַחְשְׁבוֹת לִבּוֹ לְדֹר וָדֹר

In contrast to the futility of man’s grand designs: The Lord’s counsel endures forever; the plans of His heart remain for all generations.

אַשְׁרֵי הַגּוֹי אֲשֶׁר ה' אֱלֹהָיו; הָעָם בָּחַר לְנַחֲלָה לוֹ

But God not only created the world; He also chose a particular people to be His: Happy is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom He chose as His possession.

מִשָּׁמַיִם הִבִּיט ה' רָאָה אֶת כָּל בְּנֵי הָאָדָם

The Lord looks from heaven; He sees all mankind.

מִמְּכוֹן שִׁבְתּוֹ הִשְׁגִּיחַ אֶל כָּל יֹשְׁבֵי הָאָרֶץ

From His dwelling place in the heavens, He observes all the inhabitants of the earth,

הַיֹּצֵר יַחַד לִבָּם הַמֵּבִין אֶל כָּל מַעֲשֵׂיהֶם

He who fashions all their hearts, and who consequently understands all their deeds.

אֵין הַמֶּלֶךְ נוֹשָׁע בְּרָב חָיִל גִּבּוֹר לֹא יִנָּצֵל בְּרָב כֹּחַ

Since God observes and controls everything, it follows that all outcomes are determined by Him: The king is not saved by the fact that he has a mighty army at his disposal, and the warrior is not rescued by virtue of his great strength.

שֶׁקֶר הַסּוּס לִתְשׁוּעָה וּבְרֹב חֵילוֹ לֹא יְמַלֵּט

In ancient times, armies relied on horses and chariots both for defense and for attack. But a horse is false hope for victory if God does not will it, and even in its great power, it cannot offer escape.

הִנֵּה עֵין ה' אֶל יְרֵאָיו לַמְיַחֲלִים לְחַסְדּוֹ

If not on horses and chariots, on what can one rely? Truly, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who await His kindness

לְהַצִּיל מִמָּוֶת נַפְשָׁם וּלְחַיּוֹתָם בָּרָעָב

to deliver them from death in battle, to sustain them in famine.

נַפְשֵׁנוּ חִכְּתָה לַה' עֶזְרֵנוּ וּמָגִנֵּנוּ הוּא

Our soul longs for the Lord; He is our help and our shield.

כִּי בוֹ יִשְׂמַח לִבֵּנוּ כִּי בְשֵׁם קָדְשׁוֹ בָטָחְנוּ

For our heart rejoices in Him, for we trust in His holy name that He will come to our aid.

יְהִי חַסְדְּךָ ה' עָלֵינוּ כַּאֲשֶׁר יִחַלְנוּ לָךְ

The psalm ends with a request: Let Your kindness, Lord, be upon us, as we have put our hope in You.