18 Psalms from The Compline Psalter — Lyrics and Notes

Psalm 33:1-11

¹ Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous; * it is good for the just to sing praises.
² Praise the Lord with the harp; * play to him upon the psaltery and lyre.
³ Sing for him a new song; * sound a fanfare with all your skill upon the trumpet.
⁴ For the word of the Lord is right, * and all his works are sure.
⁵ He loves righteousness and justice; * the loving-kindness of the Lord fills the whole earth.
⁶ By the word of the Lord were the heavens made, * by the breath of his mouth all the heavenly hosts.
⁷ He gathers up the waters of the ocean as in a water-skin * and stores up the depths of the sea.
⁸ Let all the earth fear the Lord; * let all who dwell in the world stand in awe of him.
⁹ For he spoke, and it came to pass; * he commanded, and it stood fast.
¹⁰ The Lord brings the will of the nations to naught; * he thwarts the designs of the peoples.
¹¹ But the Lord’s will stands fast for ever, * and the designs of his heart from age to age.

Psalm 33:12-22

¹² Happy is the nation whose God is the Lord! * happy the people he has chosen to be his own!
¹³ The Lord looks down from heaven, * and beholds all the people in the world.
¹⁴ From where he sits enthroned he turns his gaze * on all who dwell on the earth.
¹⁵ He fashions all the hearts of them * and understands all their works.
¹⁶ There is no king that can be saved by a mighty army; * a strong man is not delivered by his great strength.
¹⁷ The horse is a vain hope for deliverance; * for all its strength it cannot save.
¹⁸ Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon those who fear him, * on those who wait upon his love,
¹⁹ To pluck their lives from death, * and to feed them in time of famine.
²⁰ Our soul waits for the Lord; * he is our help and our shield.
²¹ Indeed, our heart rejoices in him, * for in his holy Name we put our trust.
²² Let your loving-kindness, O Lord, be upon us, * as we have put our trust in you.

Psalm 65

¹ You are to be praised, O God, in Zion; * to you shall vows be performed in Jerusalem.
² To you that hear prayer shall all flesh come, * because of their transgressions.
³ Our sins are stronger than we are, * but you will blot them out.
⁴ Happy are they whom you choose and draw to your courts to dwell there! * they will be satisfied by the beauty of your house, by the holiness of your temple.
⁵ Awesome things will you show us in your righteousness, O God of our salvation, * O Hope of all the ends of the earth and of the seas that are far away.
⁶ You make fast the mountains by your power; * they are girded about with might.
⁷ You still the roaring of the seas, * the roaring of their waves, and the clamor of the peoples.
⁸ Those who dwell at the ends of the earth will tremble at your marvelous signs; * you make the dawn and the dusk to sing for joy.
⁹ You visit the earth and water it abundantly; you make it very plenteous; * the river of God is full of water.
¹⁰ You prepare the grain, * for so you provide for the earth.
¹¹ You drench the furrows and smooth out the ridges; * with heavy rain you soften the ground and bless its increase.
¹² You crown the year with your goodness, * and your paths overflow with plenty.
¹³ May the fields of the wilderness be rich for grazing, * and the hills be clothed with joy.
¹⁴ May the meadows cover themselves with flocks, and the valleys cloak themselves with grain; * let them shout for joy and sing.

Psalm 98

¹ Sing to the Lord a new song, * for he has done marvelous things.
² With his right hand and his holy arm * has he won for himself the victory.
³ The Lord has made known his victory; * his righteousness has he openly shown in
the sight of the nations.
⁴ He remembers his mercy and faithfulness to the house of Israel, * and all the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.
⁵ Shout with joy to the Lord, all you lands; * lift up your voice, rejoice, and sing.
⁶ Sing to the Lord with the harp, * with the harp and the voice of song.
⁷ With trumpets and the sound of the horn * shout with joy before the King, the Lord.
⁸ Let the sea make a noise and all that is in it, * the lands and those who dwell therein.
⁹ Let the rivers clap their hands, * and let the hills ring out with joy before the Lord, when he comes to judge the earth.
¹⁰In righteousness shall he judge the world * and the peoples with equity.

Psalm 111

¹ Hallelujah! I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart, * in the assembly of the upright, in the congregation.
² Great are the deeds of the Lord! * they are studied by all who delight in them.
³ His work is full of majesty and splendor, * and his righteousness endures for ever.
⁴ He makes his marvelous works to be remembered; * the Lord is gracious and full of compassion.
⁵ He gives food to those who fear him; * he is ever mindful of his covenant.
⁶ He has shown his people the power of his works * in giving them the lands of the nations.
⁷ The works of his hands are faithfulness and justice; * all his commandments are sure.
⁸ They stand fast for ever and ever, * because they are done in truth and equity.
⁹ He sent redemption to his people; he commanded his covenant for ever; * holy and awesome is his Name.
¹⁰The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; * those who act accordingly have a good understanding; his praise endures for ever.

Psalm 145

¹ I will exalt you, O God my King, * and bless your Name for ever and ever.
² Every day will I bless you * and praise your Name for ever and ever.
³ Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised; * there is no end to his greatness.
⁴ One generation shall praise your works to another * and shall declare your power.
⁵ I will ponder the glorious splendor of your majesty * and all your marvelous works.
⁶ They shall speak of the might of your wondrous acts, * and I will tell of your greatness.
⁷ They shall publish the remembrance of your great goodness; * they shall sing of your righteous deeds.
⁸ The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, * slow to anger and of great kindness.
⁹ The Lord is loving to everyone * and his compassion is over all his works.
¹⁰All your works praise you, O Lord, * and your faithful servants bless you.
¹¹ They make known the glory of your kingdom * and speak of your power;
¹² That the peoples may know of your power * and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
¹³ Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom; * your dominion endures throughout all ages.
¹⁴ The Lord is faithful in all his words * and merciful in all his deeds.
¹⁵ The Lord upholds all those who fall; * he lifts up those who are bowed down.
¹⁶ The eyes of all wait upon you, O Lord, * and you give them their food in due season.
¹⁷ You open wide your hand * and satisfy the needs of every living creature.
¹⁸ The Lord is righteous in all his ways * and loving in all his works.
¹⁹ The Lord is near to those who call upon him, * to all who call upon him faithfully.
²⁰ He fulfills the desire of those who fear him; * he hears their cry and helps them.
²¹ The Lord preserves all those who love him, * but he destroys all the wicked.
²² My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord; * let all flesh bless his holy Name for ever and ever.

Psalm 148

¹ Hallelujah! Praise the Lord from the heavens; * praise him in the heights.
² Praise him, all you angels of his; * praise him, all his host.
³ Praise him, sun and moon; * praise him, all you shining stars.
⁴ Praise him, heaven of heavens, * and you waters above the heavens.
⁵ Let them praise the Name of the Lord; * for he commanded, and they were created.
⁶ He made them stand fast for ever and ever; * he gave them a law which shall not pass away.
⁷ Praise the Lord from the earth, * you sea-monsters and all deeps;
⁸ Fire and hail, snow and fog, * tempestuous wind, doing his will;
⁹ Mountains and all hills, * fruit trees and all cedars;
¹⁰Wild beasts and all cattle, * creeping things and winged birds;
¹¹ Kings of the earth and all peoples, * princes and all rulers of the world;
¹² Young men and maidens, * old and young together.
¹³ Let them praise the Name of the Lord, * for his Name only is exalted, his splendor is over earth and heaven.
¹⁴ He has raised up strength for his people and praise for all his loyal servants, * the children of Israel, a people who are near him. Hallelujah!

Psalm 13

¹ How long, O Lord? will you forget me for ever? * how long will you hide your face from me?
² How long shall I have perplexity in my mind, and grief in my heart, day after day? * how long shall my enemy triumph over me?
³ Look upon me and answer me, O Lord my God; * give light to my eyes, lest I sleep in death;
⁴ Lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,” * and my foes rejoice that I have fallen.
⁵ But I put my trust in your mercy; * my heart is joyful because of your saving help.
⁶ I will sing to the Lord, for he has dealt with me richly; * I will praise the Name of the Lord Most High.

Psalm 22:22-30

²²Praise the Lord, you that fear him; * stand in awe of him, O offspring of Israel; all you of Jacob’s line, give glory.
²³For he does not despise nor abhor the poor in their poverty; neither does he hide his face from them; * but when they cry to him he hears them.
²⁴My praise is of him in the great assembly; * I will perform my vows in the presence of those who
worship him.
²⁵The poor shall eat and be satisfied, and those who seek the Lord shall praise him: * “May your heart live for ever!”
²⁶All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, * and all the families of the nations shall bow before him.
²⁷For kingship belongs to the Lord; * he rules over the nations.
²⁸To him alone all who sleep in the earth bow down in worship; * all who go down to the dust fall before him.
²⁹My soul shall live for him; my descendants shall serve him; * they shall be known as the Lord’s for ever.
³⁰They shall come and make known to a people yet unborn * the saving deeds that he has done.

Psalm 57

¹ Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful, for I have taken refuge in you; * in the shadow of your wings will I take refuge until this time of trouble has gone by.
² I will call upon the Most High God, * the God who maintains my cause.
³ He will send from heaven and save me; * he will confound those who trample upon me;
⁴ I lie in the midst of lions that devour the people; * their teeth are spears and arrows, their tongue a sharp sword.
⁵ They have laid a net for my feet, and I am bowed low; * they have dug a pit before me, but have fallen into it themselves.
⁶ Exalt yourself above the heavens, O God, * and your glory over all the earth.
⁷ My heart is firmly fixed, O God, my heart is fixed; * I will sing and make melody.
⁸ Wake up, my spirit; awake, lute and harp; * I myself will waken the dawn.
⁹ I will confess you among the peoples, O Lord; * I will sing praise to you among the nations.
¹⁰ For your loving-kindness is greater than the heavens, * and your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
¹¹ Exalt yourself above the heavens, O God, * and your glory over all the earth.

Psalm 70

¹ Be pleased, O God, to deliver me; * O Lord, make haste to help me.
² Let those who seek my life be ashamed and altogether dismayed; * let those who take pleasure in my misfortune draw back and be disgraced.
³ Let those who say to me “Aha!” and gloat over me turn back, * because they are ashamed.
⁴ Let all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; * let those who love your salvation say for ever, “Great is the Lord!”
⁵ But as for me, I am poor and needy; * come to me speedily, O God.
⁶ You are my helper and my deliverer; * O Lord, do not tarry.

Psalm 32

¹ Happy are they whose transgressions are forgiven, * and whose sin is put away!
² Happy are they to whom the Lord imputes no guilt, * and in whose spirit there is no guile!
³ While I held my tongue, my bones withered away, * because of my groaning all day long.
⁴ For your hand was heavy upon me day and night; * my moisture was dried up as in the heat of summer.
⁵ Then I acknowledged my sin to you, * and did not conceal my guilt.
⁶ I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.” * Then you forgave me the guilt of my sin.
⁷ Therefore all the faithful will make their prayers to you in time of trouble; * when the great waters overflow, they shall not reach them.
⁸ You are my hiding-place; you preserve me from trouble; * you surround me with shouts of deliverance.
⁹ “I will instruct you and teach you in the way that you should go; * I will guide you with my eye.
¹⁰Do not be like horse or mule, which have no understanding; * who must be fitted with bit and bridle, or else they will not stay near you.”
¹¹ Great are the tribulations of the wicked; * but mercy embraces those who trust in the Lord.
¹² Be glad, you righteous, and rejoice in the Lord; * shout for joy, all who are true of heart.

Psalm 130

¹ Out of the depths have I called to you, O Lord; Lord, hear my voice; * let your ears consider well the voice of my supplication.
² If you, Lord, were to note what is done amiss, * O Lord, who could stand?
³ For there is forgiveness with you; * therefore you shall be feared.
⁴ I wait for the Lord; my soul waits for him; * in his word is my hope.
⁵ My soul waits for the Lord, more than watchmen for the morning, * more than watchmen for the morning.
⁶ O Israel, wait for the Lord, * for with the Lord there is mercy;
⁷ With him there is plenteous redemption, * and he shall redeem Israel from all their sins.

Psalm 15 (Setting I)

¹Lord, who may dwell in your tabernacle? * who may abide upon your holy hill?
²Whoever leads a blameless life and does what is right, * who speaks the truth from his heart.
³There is no guile upon his tongue; he does no evil to his friend; * he does not heap contempt upon his neighbor.
⁴ In his sight the wicked is rejected, * but he honors those who fear the Lord.
⁵ He has sworn to do no wrong * and does not take back his word.
⁶He does not give his money in hope of gain, * nor does he take a bribe against the innocent.
⁷Whoever does these things * shall never be overthrown.

Psalm 66:1-11

¹ Be joyful in God, all you lands; * sing the glory of his Name; sing the glory of his praise.
² Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! * because of your great strength your enemies
cringe before you.
³ All the earth bows down before you, * sings to you, sings out your Name.”
⁴ Come now and see the works of God, * how wonderful he is in his doing toward all people.
⁵ He turned the sea into dry land, so that they went through the water on foot, * and there we rejoiced in him.
⁶ In his might he rules for ever; his eyes keep watch over the nations; * let no rebel rise up against him.
⁷ Bless our God, you peoples; * make the voice of his praise to be heard;
⁸ Who holds our souls in life, * and will not allow our feet to slip.
⁹ For you, O God, have proved us; * you have tried us just as silver is tried.
¹⁰ You brought us into the snare; * you laid heavy burdens upon our backs.
¹¹ You let enemies ride over our heads; we went through fire and water; * but you brought us out into a place of refreshment.

Psalm 115

¹ Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your Name give glory; * because of your love and because of your faithfulness.
² Why should the heathen say, * “Where then is their God?”
³ Our God is in heaven; * whatever he wills to do he does.
⁴ Their idols are silver and gold, * the work of human hands.
⁵ They have mouths, but they cannot speak; * eyes have they, but they cannot see;
⁶ They have ears, but they cannot hear; * noses, but they cannot smell;
⁷ They have hands, but they cannot feel; feet, but they cannot walk; * they make no sound with their throat.
⁸ Those who make them are like them, * and so are all who put their trust in them.
⁹ O Israel, trust in the Lord; * he is their help and their shield.
¹⁰O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord; * he is their help and their shield.
¹¹ You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord; * he is their help and their shield.
¹² The Lord has been mindful of us, and he will bless us; * he will bless the house of Israel; he will bless the house of Aaron;
¹³ He will bless those who fear the Lord, * both small and great together.
¹⁴ May the Lord increase you more and more, * you and your children after you.
¹⁵ May you be blessed by the Lord, * the maker of heaven and earth.
¹⁶ The heaven of heavens is the Lords, * but he entrusted the earth to its peoples.
¹⁷ The dead do not praise the Lord, * nor all those who go down into silence;
¹⁸ But we will bless the Lord, * from this time forth for evermore. Hallelujah!

Psalm 126

¹ When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, * then were we like those who dream.
² Then was our mouth filled with laughter, * and our tongue with shouts of joy.
³ Then they said among the nations, * “The Lord has done great things for them.”
⁴ The Lord has done great things for us, * and we are glad indeed.
⁵ Restore our fortunes, O Lord, * like the watercourses of the Negev.
⁶ Those who sowed with tears * will reap with songs of joy.
⁷ Those who go out weeping, carrying the seed, * will come again with joy, shouldering their sheaves.

Psalm 91 (Setting I)

¹ He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High, * abides under the shadow of the Almighty.
² He shall say to the Lord, “You are my refuge and my stronghold, * my God in whom I put my trust.”
³ He shall deliver you from the snare of the hunter * and from the deadly pestilence.
⁴ He shall cover you with his pinions, and you shall find refuge under his wings; * his faithfulness shall be a shield and buckler.
⁵ You shall not be afraid of any terror by night, * nor of the arrow that flies by day;
⁶ Of the plague that stalks in the darkness, * nor of the sickness that lays waste at mid-day.
⁷ A thousand shall fall at your side and ten thousand at your right hand, * but it shall not come near you.
⁸ Your eyes have only to behold * to see the reward of the wicked.
⁹ Because you have made the Lord your refuge, * and the Most High your habitation,
¹⁰There shall no evil happen to you, * neither shall any plague come near your dwelling.
¹¹ For he shall give his angels charge over you, * to keep you in all your ways.
¹² They shall bear you in their hands, * lest you dash your foot against a stone.
¹³ You shall tread upon the lion and adder; * you shall trample the young lion and the serpent under your feet.
¹⁴ Because he is bound to me in love, therefore will I deliver him; * I will protect him, because he knows my Name.
¹⁵ He shall call upon me, and I will answer him; * I am with him in trouble; I will rescue him and bring him to honor.
¹⁶ With long life will I satisfy him, * and show him my salvation.

Copyright Acknowledgements

Text taken from the Book of Common Prayer, 1979.

Notes on the music by Jason Anderson.

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