Psalm 89

A prayer for the mercy of God: recounting the shortness and miseries of the days of man.

Does this psalm differ from what you were expecting? Don't be confused. There are two systems for arranging the psalms: the Septuagint and the Masoretic. We use the Septuagint system here. In the Masoretic system, which is used in most modern Bible translations, this psalm is called Psalm 90, and the previous psalm is known as Psalm 89.

English (Douay-Rheims)

1 A prayer of Moses the man of God.

Lord, thou hast been our refuge from generation to generation.
2 Before the mountains were made, or the earth and the world was formed; from eternity and to eternity thou art God.
3 Turn not man away to be brought low: and thou hast said: Be converted, O ye sons of men. Turn not man away, etc... Suffer him not quite to perish from thee, since thou art pleased to call upon him to be converted to thee.
4 For a thousand years in thy sight are as yesterday, which is past. And as a watch in the night, 5 Things that are counted nothing, shall their years be.
6 In the morning man shall grow up like grass; in the morning he shall flourish and pass away: in the evening he shall fall, grow dry, and wither.
7 For in thy wrath we have fainted away: and are troubled in thy indignation.
8 Thou hast set our iniquities before thy eyes: our life in the light of thy countenance.
9 For all our days are spent; and in thy wrath we have fainted away. Our years shall be considered as a spider: As a spider... As frail and weak as a spider's web; and miserable withal, whilst like a spider we spend our bowels in weaving webs to catch flies.
10 The days of our years in them are threescore and ten years. But if in the strong they be fourscore years: and what is more of them is labour and sorrow. For mildness is come upon us: and we shall be corrected. Mildness is come upon us, etc... God's mildness corrects us; inasmuch as he deals kindly with us, in shortening the days of this miserable life; and so weaning our affections from all its transitory enjoyments, and teaching us true wisdom.
11 Who knoweth the power of thy anger, and for thy fear 12 Can number thy wrath? So make thy right hand known: and men learned in heart, in wisdom.
13 Return, O Lord, how long? and be entreated in favour of thy servants.
14 We are filled in the morning with thy mercy: and we have rejoiced, and are delighted all our days.
15 We have rejoiced for the days in which thou hast humbled us: for the years in which we have seen evils.
16 Look upon thy servants and upon their works: and direct their children.
17 And let the brightness of the Lord our God be upon us: and direct thou the works of our hands over us; yea, the work of our hands do thou direct.

Old Testament first published 1609 by the English College at Douay
New Testament first published 1582 by the English College at Rheims
Revised and Annotated 1749 by Bishop Richard Challoner
Imprimatur. +James Cardinal Gibbons, Archbishop of Baltimore, September 1, 1899

Latin (Clementine Vulgate)

1 Oratio Moysi, hominis Dei.

Domine, refugium factus es nobis
a generatione in generationem.
2 Priusquam montes fierent,
aut formaretur terra et orbis,
a sæculo et usque in sæculum tu es, Deus.
3 Ne avertas hominem in humilitatem:
et dixisti: Convertimini, filii hominum.
4 Quoniam mille anni ante oculos tuos
tamquam dies hesterna quæ præteriit:
et custodia in nocte 5 quæ pro nihilo habentur,
eorum anni erunt.
6 Mane sicut herba transeat;
mane floreat, et transeat;
vespere decidat, induret, et arescat.
7 Quia defecimus in ira tua,
et in furore tuo turbati sumus.
8 Posuisti iniquitates nostras in conspectu tuo;
sæculum nostrum in illuminatione vultus tui.
9 Quoniam omnes dies nostri defecerunt,
et in ira tua defecimus.
Anni nostri sicut aranea meditabuntur;
10 dies annorum nostrorum in ipsis septuaginta anni.
Si autem in potentatibus octoginta anni,
et amplius eorum labor et dolor;
quoniam supervenit mansuetudo, et corripiemur.
11 Quis novit potestatem iræ tuæ,
et præ timore tuo iram tuam 12 dinumerare?
Dexteram tuam sic notam fac,
et eruditos corde in sapientia.
13 Convertere, Domine; usquequo?
et deprecabilis esto super servos tuos.
14 Repleti sumus mane misericordia tua;
et exsultavimus, et delectati sumus omnibus diebus nostris.
15 Lætati sumus pro diebus quibus nos humiliasti;
annis quibus vidimus mala.
16 Respice in servos tuos et in opera tua,
et dirige filios eorum.
17 Et sit splendor Domini Dei nostri super nos,
et opera manuum nostrarum dirige super nos,
et opus manuum nostrarum dirige.

Transcribed as part of the Clementine Vulgate Project
Please notify the original transcriber (little.mouth@soon.com) of any errors in this Latin edition