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Psalms 90

1

Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.

2

Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.

3

Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return, ye children of men.

4

For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night.

5

Thou carriest them away as with a flood; they are as a sleep: in the morning they are like grass which groweth up.

6

In the morning it flourisheth, and groweth up; in the evening it is cut down, and withereth.

7

For we are consumed by thine anger, and by thy wrath are we troubled.

8

Thou hast set our iniquities before thee, our secret sins in the light of thy countenance.

9

For all our days are passed away in thy wrath: we spend our years as a tale that is told.

10

The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.

11

Who knoweth the power of thine anger? even according to thy fear, so is thy wrath.

12

So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.

13

Return, O Lord, how long? and let it repent thee concerning thy servants.

14

O satisfy us early with thy mercy; that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.

15

Make us glad according to the days wherein thou hast afflicted us, and the years wherein we have seen evil.

16

Let thy work appear unto thy servants, and thy glory unto their children.

17

And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.

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Psalms 90

Psalm 90 is a meditation establishing theology of human mortality contrasted with God's eternal nature at Book IV's beginning, exemplifying the theological concerns of Book 3. The psalmist employs vivid imagery and direct address to God, establishing the intimate dialogue between worshiper and the divine that characterizes the psalmic tradition. The theological assertions center on God's character as both judge and redeemer, creating a comprehensive vision of divine justice and mercy integrated with human experience. The psalm reflects on both personal circumstance and communal identity, suggesting that individual faith finds validation through shared experience with the covenant community. The liturgical context indicates this psalm's function in worship where personal piety integrates with communal celebration of God's acts and attributes. The concluding movement typically affirms confidence in God's faithfulness, exemplifying the psalmic pattern of transformation through prayer and remembrance of divine acts throughout history.

Psalms 90:1

Psalm 90, attributed to Moses, opens with an affirmation of God's eternal nature: "Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations." The characterization of God as dwelling place—a place of refuge and habitation—establishes the intimate security of the covenant relationship. The span "in all generations" emphasizes the continuity of divine shelter across time.

Psalms 90:2

God's eternality is contrasted with creation: "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God." The cosmic perspective establishes that God's existence precedes and transcends all creation. The repetition of temporal infinity (everlasting to everlasting) emphasizes the incomparable span of God's being.

Psalms 90:3

Human mortality is introduced: "You turn mortals back to dust, and say, 'Turn back, children of Adam.'" The divine decree transforms humans back to their material origin (dust). The address "children of Adam" invokes humanity's common ancestor and suggests the universality of the mortality decree.

Psalms 90:4

The divine perspective on time: "For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past, or like a watch in the night." The compression of a millennium into a single day or night watch establishes the vast difference between divine and human temporal experience. What seems long to mortals is instantaneous from God's perspective.

Psalms 90:5

The swiftness of human life: "You sweep them away; they are like a dream, like grass that is renewed in the morning." The metaphor of grass—growing in morning light and withered by evening—becomes the paradigm for human brevity. Life is transient like a dream.

Psalms 90:6

The day's cycle mirrors mortality: "in the morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it fades and withers." The daily cycle of grass growth and death becomes a microcosm of human life. The repetition emphasizes the inevitability of decline.

Psalms 90:7

God's judgment underlies mortality: "For we are consumed by your anger; by your wrath we are overwhelmed." The brevity of human life is presented not as natural process but as consequence of divine wrath. Human transience becomes linked to divine judgment.

Psalms 90:8

God's knowledge of sin: "You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your countenance." The exposure of all human wrongdoing—both public transgressions and hidden sins—before God's face becomes the foundation for mortality. No secret escapes divine scrutiny.

Psalms 90:9

The days are consumed: "For all our days pass away under your wrath; our years come to an end like a sigh." The entire lifespan is lived under divine judgment. The comparison of years ending to a sigh suggests something quickly spoken and finished.

Psalms 90:10

The measure of human years: "The days of our life are seventy years, or perhaps eighty, if we are strong; even then their span is only toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away." The psalm provides a statistical observation of human lifespan while emphasizing that even the maximum years are characterized by hardship and quickly pass. The image of flying away suggests sudden departure.

Psalms 90:11

Fear of divine wrath: "Who considers the power of your anger? Your wrath is as great as the fear that is due to you." The incomprehensibility of God's wrath becomes parallel to the fear God deserves. Those who truly fear God understand the severity of divine judgment.

Psalms 90:12

A petition for wisdom: "So teach us to count our days that we may gain a wise heart." The request for divine instruction in mortality becomes the turning point. Awareness of the brevity and limitation of human days is understood as the foundation for wisdom.

Psalms 90:13

The prayer for compassion: "Turn back, O LORD! How long? Have compassion on your servants!" The plea for God to turn from wrath toward compassion becomes urgent. The question "how long?" expresses that the period of wrath has extended long enough.

Psalms 90:14

The request for steadfast love: "Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, so that we may rejoice and be glad all our days." The petition for hesed to meet the people in the morning (the new day, a new beginning) becomes the condition for renewed joy. The satisfaction of divine love counteracts the emptiness of mortality.

Psalms 90:15

The prayer for restoration: "Make us glad as many days as you have afflicted us, and as many years as we have seen evil." The petition for gladness proportional to past suffering establishes a principle of recompense. The years of evil should be matched by years of blessing.

Psalms 90:16

The revelation of God's work: "Let your work be manifest to your servants, and your glorious power to their children." The plea for the visible manifestation of God's works becomes the foundation for faith. Future generations should witness God's glory.

Psalms 90:17

The final prayer: "Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and prosper for us the work of our hands—O prosper the work of our hands!" The petition for divine favor on human work becomes the ultimate prayer. The repetition emphasizes the importance of this request.