In Praise of the Creator
1 Praise the Lord, my soul!
O Lord, my God, how great you are!
You are clothed with majesty and glory;
2 you cover yourself with light.
You have spread out the heavens like a tent
3 and built your home on the waters above.
You use the clouds as your chariot
and ride on the wings of the wind.
4 You use the winds as your messengers
and flashes of lightning as your servants.
5 You have set the earth firmly on its foundations,
and it will never be moved.
6 You placed the ocean over it like a robe,
and the water covered the mountains.
7 When you rebuked the waters, they fled;
they rushed away when they heard your shout of command.
8 They flowed over the mountains and into the valleys,
to the place you had made for them.
9 You set a boundary they can never pass,
to keep them from covering the earth again.
10 You make springs flow in the valleys,
and rivers run between the hills.
11 They provide water for the wild animals;
there the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 In the trees near by,
the birds make their nests and sing.
13 From the sky you send rain on the hills,
and the earth is filled with your blessings.
14 You make grass grow for the cattle
and plants for us to use,
so that we can grow our crops
15 and produce wine to make us happy,
olive oil to make us cheerful,
and bread to give us strength.
16 The cedars of Lebanon get plenty of rain—
the Lord's own trees, which he planted.
17 There the birds build their nests;
the storks nest in the fir trees.
18 The wild goats live in the high mountains,
and the rock badgers hide in the cliffs.
19 You created the moon to mark the months;
the sun knows the time to set.
20 You made the night, and in the darkness
all the wild animals come out.
21 The young lions roar while they hunt,
looking for the food that God provides.
22 When the sun rises, they go back
and lie down in their dens.
23 Then people go out to do their work
and keep working until evening.
24 Lord, you have made so many things!
How wisely you made them all!
The earth is filled with your creatures.
25 There is the ocean, large and wide,
where countless creatures live,
large and small alike.
26 The ships sail on it, and in it plays Leviathan,
that sea monster which you made.
27 All of them depend on you
to give them food when they need it.
28 You give it to them, and they eat it;
you provide food, and they are satisfied.
29 When you turn away, they are afraid;
when you take away your breath, they die
and go back to the dust from which they came.
30 But when you give them breath, they are created;
you give new life to the earth.
31 May the glory of the Lord last forever!
May the Lord be happy with what he has made!
32 He looks at the earth, and it trembles;
he touches the mountains, and they pour out smoke.
33 I will sing to the Lord all my life;
as long as I live I will sing praises to my God.
34 May he be pleased with my song,
for my gladness comes from him.
35 May sinners be destroyed from the earth;
may the wicked be no more.
Praise the Lord, my soul!
Praise the Lord!
Ndzimu mbumbi
1 Kudza Yahwe, iwe meya yangu.
Imwi Yahwe Ndzimu wangu, mu nkulu kwazo.
Makaambadziwa kutetiwa ne bushe,
2 Makazwifukidza nge tjedza se tjiambalo.
Imwi munobambula kudzimu se nshasha we saile.
3 Imwi munomisa phanda dze mbako dzenyu mu vula,
imwi munothama makole kara yenyu ye bushe,
imwi motatha mapapilo e phepo,
4 mothama phepo batumwa benyu,
moto ne nthuto bashingili benyu.
5 Mobiga shango mu thiwa dzayo,
kuti ndizo isitongofa yazunguziwa.
6 Moifukidza nge madziba e gungwa se tjiambalo,
vula yakabe ilimile pezhugwi kwe matombo.
7 Amutjemela banotizha,
mu nsindo we kudadamula kwenyu bakatizha.
8 Matombo akamilika,
mikuku ikawungila pathu pamakailaulila.
9 Makabiga n'gathu kuti ndizo basitongopinda,
kuti ndizo basitongofukidza shango kakale.
10 Mowungisila misenya mu mikuku,
inowunga pakati kwe matuthu,
11 inong'wisa phuka imwe ne imwe,
mbizi dze shango dzozwidusa nyota.
12 Pawunde nayo nyuni dzobaka mashaka,
dzomba dzili pakati kwe thabi dze miti.
13 Kudwa mu bugalo gwenyu gu pezhugwi modilidzila matombo,
shango inogutshiwa nge zwizwalo zwe nshingo wenyu.
14 Momedzela ng'ombe bushwa,
ne miti kuti ishingisiwe nge nthu,
nekuti aduse zojiwa mu mavu,
15 ne nkumbi kushathisa moyo we nthu,
ne mafuta anothama kuti buso gugwe gupenye,
ne zojiwa zwinogadza nthu moyo.
16 Miti ya Yahwe inodilidzigwa kwazo,
misida ye Lebanoni yabakadzwala.
17 Nyuni dzobaka mashaka adzo muili,
hwondo inobaka shaka layo mu miti isina mihwa.
18 Matombo malefu anogala ngululu,
shongwe i dizhilo le mbila.
19 Makathama kuti mwedzi ulakidze misi ye gole,
zhuba loziba tjibaka tjalo tjongina.
20 Mothama zhalima, kukabe busiku,
lubaka gwe phuka dze shango dziyenda mulili.
21 Shumbana dzobombela tjadzingabulaya,
dzishaka zojiwa zwadzo mu Ndzimu.
22 Ha zhuba libhuda, dzonobgwata
dzinolala mu mazwimba adzo.
23 Nthu unoyenda ku nshingo uwe,
enoshinga kudza kube madekwana.
24 Zwakawanda seni zwithu zwamakathama, imwi Yahwe!
Makazwithama zose nge butjenjedu,
shango izhele zwitjili zwenyu.
25 Ndiyeno i gungwa, bukulu kakale gwakaashama,
guna zwitjili zwinonyewula zwe bunji gusingabalike,
zwitjili zose zwitukununu ne zwikulu kulu.
26 Zwikepe zoyenda muguli,
ne zhithu le gungwa linoyi Livatani lamakabumba kuti lizanile muguli.
27 Zose izwezwi zwakalinga kumuli
kuti muzwipe zojiwa mu tjibaka tjakalingisana.
28 Amuzwipa, zotjinunga, amufumbatunula
tjiazha tjenyu, zogutshiwa nge zwithu zwakanaka.
29 Amusumbika buso gwenyu, zotja, amushomola
meya yazo zofa, zwibe zwibgwilila
mu hwuluba pazwakadwa.
30 Amudusa meya yenyu, muituma zobumbika,
kakale mothama mbumbiko ye shango ikabe tshwa.
31 Dzene gudzo la Yahwe lingama nge kusingapele,
dzene Yahwe bangashathila mishingo yabo.
32 Ibo banolinga shango ikatetema,
banokutha matombo kathungayila bhulubusi.
33 Ndowombila Yahwe mu butjilo gwangu gose,
ndowomba ndikudza Ndzimu wangu anditjatjila.
34 Dzene kukumbula kwangu kungabashathisa,
ngobe ndowoshatha ndili muna Yahwe.
35 Batjinyi ngabalobesiwe mu shango,
ne babi basitjafe babepo.
Kudza Yahwe, iwe meya yangu.
Kudza Yahwe!