Shadow of my hand

Listen to me,
you who pursue righteousness,
and who seek the Lord:
Look to the rock from which you were cut
and to the quarry from which you were hewn;
look to Abraham, your father,
and to Sarah, who gave you birth.
When I called him he was but one,
and I blessed him and made him many.
The Lord will surely comfort Zion and will look with compassion on all her ruins;
he will make her deserts like Eden,
her wastelands like the garden of the Lord.
Joy and gladness will be found in her,
thanksgiving and the sound of singing.

Awake, awake!
Clothe yourself with strength.
The ransomed of the Lord will return.
They will enter Zion with singing;
everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Gladness and joy will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

Who are you that you fear mortal men -
that you live in constant terror every day
because of the wrath of the oppressor,
who is bent on destruction?
For I am the Lord your God,
who churns up the sea so that its waves roar -
the Lord Almighty is his name.
I have put my words in your mouth
and covered you with the shadow of my hand -
I who set the heavens in place,
who laid the foundations of the earth,
and who say to Zion,
"You are my people."


*my version of Psalm 51*