Psalm 78:1-72 NET

[1] Pay attention, my people, to my instruction. Listen to the words I speak. [2] I will sing a song that imparts wisdom; I will make insightful observations about the past. [3] What we have heard and learned-that which our ancestors have told us- [4] we will not hide from their descendants. We will tell the next generation about the LORD's praiseworthy acts, about his strength and the amazing things he has done. [5] He established a rule in Jacob; he set up a law in Israel. He commanded our ancestors to make his deeds known to their descendants, [6] so that the next generation, children yet to be born, might know about them. They will grow up and tell their descendants about them. [7] Then they will place their confidence in God. They will not forget the works of God, and they will obey his commands. [8] Then they will not be like their ancestors, who were a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that was not committed and faithful to God. [9] The Ephraimites were armed with bows, but they retreated in the day of battle. [10] They did not keep their covenant with God, and they refused to obey his law. [11] They forgot what he had done, the amazing things he had shown them. [12] He did amazing things in the sight of their ancestors, in the land of Egypt, in the region of Zoan. [13] He divided the sea and led them across it; he made the water stand in a heap. [14] He led them with a cloud by day, and with the light of a fire all night long. [15] He broke open rocks in the wilderness, and gave them enough water to fill the depths of the sea. [16] He caused streams to flow from the rock, and made the water flow like rivers. [17] Yet they continued to sin against him, and rebelled against the Most High in the desert. [18] They willfully challenged God by asking for food to satisfy their appetite. [19] They insulted God, saying, "Is God really able to give us food in the wilderness? [20] Yes, he struck a rock and water flowed out; streams gushed forth. But can he also give us food? Will he provide meat for his people?" [21] When the LORD heard this, he was furious. A fire broke out against Jacob, and his anger flared up against Israel, [22] because they did not have faith in God, and did not trust his ability to deliver them. [23] He gave a command to the clouds above, and opened the doors in the sky. [24] He rained down manna for them to eat; he gave them the grain of heaven. [25] Man ate the food of the mighty ones. He sent them more than enough to eat. [26] He brought the east wind through the sky, and by his strength led forth the south wind. [27] He rained down meat on them like dust, birds as numerous as the sand on the seashores. [28] He caused them to fall right in the middle of their camp, all around their homes. [29] They ate until they were beyond full; he gave them what they desired. [30] They were not yet filled up; their food was still in their mouths, [31] when the anger of God flared up against them. He killed some of the strongest of them; he brought the young men of Israel to their knees. [32] Despite all this, they continued to sin, and did not trust him to do amazing things. [33] So he caused them to die unsatisfied and filled with terror. [34] When he struck them down, they sought his favor; they turned back and longed for God. [35] They remembered that God was their protector, and that God Most High was their deliverer. [36] But they deceived him with their words, and lied to him. [37] They were not really committed to him, and they were unfaithful to his covenant. [38] Yet he is compassionate. He forgives sin and does not destroy. He often holds back his anger, and does not stir up his fury. [39] He remembered that they were made of flesh, and were like a wind that blows past and does not return. [40] How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness, and insulted him in the wastelands. [41] They again challenged God, and offended the Holy One of Israel. [42] They did not remember what he had done, how he delivered them from the enemy, [43] when he performed his awesome deeds in Egypt, and his acts of judgment in the region of Zoan. [44] He turned their rivers into blood, and they could not drink from their streams. [45] He sent swarms of biting insects against them, as well as frogs that overran their land. [46] He gave their crops to the grasshopper, the fruit of their labor to the locust. [47] He destroyed their vines with hail, and their sycamore-fig trees with driving rain. [48] He rained hail down on their cattle, and hurled lightning bolts down on their livestock. [49] His raging anger lashed out against them. He sent fury, rage, and trouble as messengers who bring disaster. [50] He sent his anger in full force. He did not spare them from death; he handed their lives over to destruction. [51] He struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, the firstfruits of their reproductive power in the tents of Ham. [52] Yet he brought out his people like sheep; he led them through the wilderness like a flock. [53] He guided them safely along, and they were not afraid; but the sea covered their enemies. [54] He brought them to the border of his holy land, to this mountainous land that his right hand acquired. [55] He drove the nations out from before them; he assigned them their tribal allotments and allowed the tribes of Israel to settle down. [56] Yet they challenged and defied God Most High, and did not obey his commands. [57] They were unfaithful and acted as treacherously as their ancestors; they were as unreliable as a malfunctioning bow. [58] They made him angry with their pagan shrines, and made him jealous with their idols. [59] God heard and was angry; he completely rejected Israel. [60] He abandoned the sanctuary at Shiloh, the tent where he lived among men. [61] He allowed the symbol of his strong presence to be captured; he gave the symbol of his splendor into the hand of the enemy. [62] He delivered his people over to the sword, and was angry with his chosen nation. [63] Fire consumed their young men, and their virgins remained unmarried. [64] Their priests fell by the sword, but their widows did not weep. [65] But then the Lord awoke from his sleep; he was like a warrior in a drunken rage. [66] He drove his enemies back; he made them a permanent target for insults. [67] He rejected the tent of Joseph; he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim. [68] He chose the tribe of Judah and Mount Zion, which he loves. [69] He made his sanctuary as enduring as the heavens above, as secure as the earth, which he established permanently. [70] He chose David, his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds. [71] He took him away from following the mother sheep, and made him the shepherd of Jacob, his people, and of Israel, his chosen nation. [72] David cared for them with pure motives; he led them with skill.