Down there beyond the river,
I chose your father Abraham,
and from an impotent old man
I multiplied your descendants.
Far be it from us to forsake
our God
who has worked marvels for us
before our very eyes.
A people enslaved
I rescued from Egypt
and with a mighty hand
I opened the Red Sea.
Far be it from us to forsake…
For years in the desert
I fed you with manna
and upon eagles’ wings
I took you beyond the mountains.
Far be it from us to forsake…
I gave you a land,
cities you did not build,
vineyards you did not plant,
springs of living water.
Far be it from us to forsake…

All you works of the Lord
O bless the Lord!
To him…
be highest glory and praise for evermore!
Angels of the Lord *
Heavens of the Lord
All waters above the heavens *
All armies of the Lord*
Sun and moon
Stars of heaven *
Showers and rain
All breezes and winds *
Fire and heat *
Cold and heat *
Showers and dew *
Frosts and cold *
Ice and snow *
Night and day
Darkness and light *
Lightning and clouds
O let the earth bless the Lord – to him…
be highest glory and praise for evermore!
Mountains and hills
All plants of the earth
Fountains and springs *
Rivers and seas *
Sea-monsters and all that moves in the waters *
Every bird in the sky *
Wild beasts and tame *
Children of men *
O Israel, bless the Lord – to him…
be highest glory and praise for evermore.
Priests of the Lord *
Servants of the Lord *
Spirits and souls of the just *
Holy and humble of heart *
Ananias, Azarias, Mizael *
To him…
be highest glory and praise for evermore.
Let us praise the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
To you be highest glory and praise for ever!
May you be blessed, O Lord, in the heavens.
To you be highest glory and praise for ever!
O bless the Lord.

Praise the Lord from the heavens:
praise him!
Praise him in the heights:
praise him!
Praise him, all his angels,
praise him, all his hosts.
Praise him, sun and moon,
praise him, all you shining stars.
Praise him, you highest of heavens,
and you waters above the heavens.
Let them praise the Name of the Lord,
for he commanded and they were created.
He has established them for ever,
he’s set a law that will never pass away.
Praise the Lord from the earth,
you sea-monsters and all the depths.
Fire and hail, snow and mist,
stormy winds that obey his Word.
Mountains and every hill,
fruit trees and every cedar.
Beasts, wild and tame,
reptiles and flying birds.
Kings of the earth and all peoples,
princes and rulers of the earth.
Young men and maidens,
old men together with children.
Let them praise the Name of the Lord,
for his Name alone is exalted,
his glory above heaven and earth,
he has raised up his people.
Let all his faithful praise the Lord,
Israel, the people that He loves.
Praise him!

Let us sing to the Lord,
let us sing to the Lord.
He’s covered himself in glory,
in glory, in glory.
He has thrown into the sea
horse and rider.
My strength and my song
is the Lord.
He is my salvation,
he’s my God;
I will extol him.
He has thrown into the sea
horse and rider,
horse and rider.
The Lord is a warrior,
The Lord is his name;
Pharaoh’s chariots
and his hosts
he cast into the sea.
He has thrown into the sea…
My strength and my song…
Your right hand, O Lord,
glorious in power,
your right hand, O Lord,
shattered the enemy,
shattered the enemy.
He has thrown into the sea…
The enemy said:
"I will give chase and overtake,
I shall draw my sword,
I’ll share out the spoils,
my hand will destroy them.”
He has thrown into the sea…
One breath of yours you blew
and the sea closed over them,
they sank like lead
in the mighty waters,
in the waters of death.
He has thrown into the sea…
Who is like you among the gods,
who is like you, O Lord,
majestic in holiness,
terrible in deeds,
worker of wonders?
He has thrown into the sea…
You have guided this people
which you have rescued;
with strength you have led them,
with strength and love
to your Holy House.
He has thrown into the sea…
You have brought them in and planted them
on the mountain of your promise
where you, O Lord, reign;
you reign eternally,
you reign forever.
He has thrown into the sea…

When Israel came out of Egypt,
the house of Jacob from a foreign nation,
Judah became his sanctuary,
Israel his dominion.
Judah became his sanctuary,
Israel his dominion.
The sea fled at the sight,
and the Jordan turned back,
the mountains skipped like rams,
the hills like lambs.
Why, sea, do you flee,
and you, Jordan, turn back,
and you, mountains, skip like rams,
and you, hills, like lambs?
Tremble, earth, tremble
before God who is passing,
before the God of Jacob
who draws out water from the rock!
When Israel came out of Egypt,
the house of Jacob from a foreign nation;
Judah became his sanctuary,
Israel his dominion.
Judah became his sanctuary,
Israel his dominion.
The sea fled at the sight,
and the Jordan turned back,
the mountains skipped like rams,
the hills like lambs.
Why, sea, do you flee,
and you, Jordan, turn back,
and you, mountains, skip like rams,
and you, hills, like lambs?
Tremble, earth, tremble
before God who is passing,
before the God of Jacob
who draws out water from the rock!

To the Lord belongs the earth.
To the Lord belongs the earth.
And everything that is in it.
And everything that is in it.
The world and all its peoples.
Gates, lift up your heads.
Raise your arches,
raise them higher,
let the King of glory enter,
the King of glory.
Who shall climb the mountain of the Lord?
Who shall enter his Holy Place?
He whose hands are clean
and whose heart is pure.
He whose hands are clean
and whose heart is pure,
who does not turn his soul to vanity,
to vanity.
And we are his Church,
And we are his Church,
that today is coming to your presence,
that today is coming to your presence,
that is seeking your face, O God of Jacob,
O God of Jacob.
Gates, lift up your heads…
Who is this King of Glory?
Who is this King of Glory?
The Lord, the strong and the mighty,
The Lord, the strong and the mighty,
the Lord, mighty in battle,
mighty in battle.
He is the Lord of hosts,
He is the Lord of hosts,
He is the King, the King of Glory,
the King of Glory.
Gates, lift up your heads…

I lift up my eyes to the mountains:
from where will my help come?
My help comes from the Lord
who made heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot stumble,
your keeper does not sleep;
he does not sleep nor slumber,
the guardian of Israel.
I lift up my eyes…
The Lord is your guard and your shade,
he stands at your right hand;
by day the sun shall not smite you,
nor the moon by night.
I lift up my eyes…
The Lord keeps you from all evil,
he guards your life.
The Lord watches over you,
he guards your going and coming.
The Lord watches over you,
now and forever.
I lift up my eyes…
My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.

Come, ring out our joy to the Lord,
let us acclaim the rock
of our salvation!
Let us come before him
and give him thanks,
let us acclaim him
with songs of joy!
Because a mighty God is the Lord,
a great king above all other gods;
in his hands are the depths of the earth,
the heights of the mountains are his;
to him belongs the sea for he made it,
and the dry land shaped by his hands.
Come, ring out our joy to the Lord…
Come, let us bow low before him
and kneel before the God who made us;
he is the one who guides us in the desert.
Let us listen today to his voice;
let us not harden our hearts
as our fathers did before us.
Come, ring out our joy to the Lord…
In the desert your fathers tested me,
even though they had seen my deeds.
For forty years I was wearied
of that wicked generation;
then I took an oath in my anger:
"Never shall they enter my rest."
Come, ring out our joy to the Lord…

Why do the nations conspire,
why do the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth rise in revolt,
and princes plot together
against the Lord and against his Messiah:
"Let us break their fetters of iron,
let us throw off the ropes that bind us,"
but the One who’s in heaven is laughing,
from on high the Lord derides them.
He speaks to them in his anger,
he frightens them with his fury:
"I have anointed him my sovereign
on Zion my holy mountain,
on Zion my holy mountain,
I have anointed him my sovereign
on Zion my holy mountain,
on Zion my holy mountain."
I will proclaim the decree of the Lord,
he has told me: "You are my son,
today I have begotten you.
Ask me, and to you I will give all the nations,
and the ends of the earth for your heritage.
You will break them with a sceptre of iron,
like vessels of clay you will shatter them."
"I have anointed him my sovereign…
And now, you kings, be wise,
learn wisdom, rulers of the earth;
serve the Lord, our God, with fear,
and rejoice with trembling;
lest he grow angry
and you lose your way,
for his anger is quick to blaze.
Happy the man who takes refuge in him.
"I have anointed him my sovereign…

From Aram, Balak made me come,
the King of Moab,
from the Eastern Mountains:
"Come, curse Jacob for me,
come, prophesy against Israel."
How shall I curse if God does not let me?
How shall I prophesy if God does not want it?
From the top of these crags I see them,
from the top of this peak I observe them:
this is a people different from all nations!
How beautiful are your tents,
how beautiful, O Israel!
How beautiful are your tents,
how beautiful, O Israel!
La la la la…
Who shall count your multitudes?
Jacob, O Jacob,
Jacob, O Jacob?
How beautiful are your tents…
"But what are you doing?
You are blessing them!
Come see from another place,
maybe from there God will curse them."
"Listen, son of Zippor,
hear me, King Balak.
God is not a man
who speaks and then repents.
A star is rising from Jacob;
I hear acclamations for a King,
God, God is his father:
he crouches like a lion,
he lies down like a lioness,
no one will make him rise."
How beautiful are your tents…
"Let my death be
like the death of your Just One,
let my life be where he is."
How beautiful are your tents...

If in the Lord I have taken my refuge,
how can you say to me, how can you say to me:
flee like a bird to the mountain,
flee like a bird to the mountain?
I know that the wicked bend the bow,
and fit their arrows on the string,
to shoot in darkness the upright of heart,
but when the foundations quake,
what can the just man do?,
what can the just man do?
The Lord, the Lord is in his holy temple;
the Lord has his throne in heaven,
his eyes look upon the world,
his gaze searches every man.
The Lord tests the just,
but the Lord tests the wicked as well,
the Lord does not love violence,
the Lord does not love violence.
If in the Lord I have taken my refuge…

The Lord announces good news,
the messengers are an immense army,
the enemy kings flee, flee,
the woman of the house divides the spoils.
And while you are sleeping,
sleeping among the sheepfolds,
the wings of the dove
are covered with silver,
its feathers with gleaming gold.
And with her the snow falls
upon the mountain
upon the Dark Mountain.
The Lord announces good news…
Sing hymns to the Lord,
sing hymns to the Lord.
The Lord rides the heavens,
he rides the ancient heavens.
Behold! His voice thunders,
his voice,
his mighty voice, thunders.
The Lord announces good news…

I love you Lord, you are my rock,
you are my liberator, you are my God,
I love you, I love you, O Lord.
The waves of death were surrounding me,
I was frightened by the roarings of Belial,
I was entangled in the bonds of Sheol,
I was caught in the fetters of death.
I called to the Lord in my anguish,
to my God, to my God I cried out.
From his temple he heard my voice,
my cry came to his ear
and the earth quaked and shook,
the foundations of the mountains trembled,
for he lowered the heavens and came down.
And the bed of the sea appeared,
the foundations of the world were laid bare,
for he stretched out his hand and caught me,
he raised me from the depths of the waters.
I love you Lord…
The waves of death…

"Go and tell my brothers
to go, to go to Galilee."
"Go and tell my brothers
to go, to go to Galilee."
"And there they will see me,
and there they will see me."
And the disciples went to Galilee,
to the mountain that Jesus had pointed out to them.
When they saw him they worshipped him
and Jesus said to them:
"I have been given all authority
in heaven and on earth.
Go therefore and make disciples
of all nations,
baptising them in the name of the Father,
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to put into practice
all that I have commanded you.
Behold, I am with you,
behold, I am with you,
everyday."
"Behold, I am with you,
behold, I am with you,
everyday."
"Go and tell my brothers…
"Behold, I am with you…
"To the end of time,
to the end of time. "
"Go and tell my brothers…
"Behold, I am with you…

When Israel gathers the assembly,
when the people offer themselves as volunteers:
Bless the Lord, bless the Lord,
bless the Lord, to the Lord I want to sing.
Awake, Deborah,
awake, Deborah,
strike up the song!
Awake, Deborah,
awake, Deborah,
arise Barak!
In the days of Shamgar, son of Anath,
in the days of Jael,
there were no caravans,
no one could walk the streets,
since Israel had gone after other gods
and war was at the gates.
No warrior could be found in Israel,
not one lance could be found among ten thousand men.
Bless the Lord…
When you came out of Seir, O Lord my God,
when you advanced over the fields of Edom,
the earth trembled, heaven shook,
the clouds dissolved into water,
before you the mountains melted,
before you, O God of Israel.
From heaven above the stars came out to fight.
From heaven above the stars came out to fight.
From heaven above they fought against Sisera.
From heaven above they fought against Sisera.
The Kishon torrent, the sacred torrent swept them away.
Bless the Lord…

Even if I speak with the eloquence of angels:
if I have no love, I am nothing!
Even if I have the gift of prophecy
and understand all the mysteries;
even if I have faith in its fullness
and I am able to move mountains:
if I have no love, I am nothing!
Even if I give away all my goods to the poor
and hand over my body to be burned:
if I have no love, I am nothing!
Because love, love, love,
is patient, is kind,
is not envious, is not boastful,
is not conceited,
is never rude;
does not seek its own interest,
does not get angry.
Does not take offence,
is not resentful,
takes no pleasure in injustice,
but rejoices in the truth.
Love believes everything,
excuses everything,
is always hoping:
endures everything,
endures everything.
Because love,
love,
because love:
is God, is God, is God.

Come from Lebanon, my bride,
come from Lebanon, come.
You will have for a crown the mountains,
the high crests of Hermon.
You have ravished, ravished my heart,
O my sister, my bride.
Come from Lebanon, my bride,
come from Lebanon, come!
I have searched for the love of my heart,
I searched but I didn’t find it;
I have found the love of my heart,
I’ve embraced him and I’ll not let him go.
I belong to my beloved,
and his whole desire is for me.
Come let us go out into the fields,
let us lodge in the villages.
Let’s go out at dawn to the vineyards,
let us pick the grapes.
I belong to my beloved,
and his whole desire is for me.
I have searched for the love of my heart…
Get up quickly, get up my beloved,
come away my dove.
Winter time has already passed,
the voice of the turtle dove is heard.
The flowers appear again on the earth,
the rain is over and gone.
Get up quickly, get up my beloved,
come away my dove.
I have searched for the love of my heart…
Set me as a seal upon your heart,
as a seal upon your arm.
For love is as strong as death,
love no flood can drown.
To give for it all the wealth of the house
would be to despise it.
Set me as a seal upon your heart,
as a seal upon your arm.
I have searched for the love of my heart…

You who dwell in the gardens,
where my companions are listening,
let me hear your voice,
let me hear your voice.
Flee, my beloved,
like a gazelle,
like a young stag,
on the sweet scented mountains.
I am in his eyes
as one who has found peace,
my vineyard is here in front of me,
my vineyard is here in front of me,
Flee, my beloved,
like a gazelle,
like a young stag,
on the sweet scented mountains.
You who dwell in the gardens…
The Church through Baptism has been introduced into the gardens of the Kingdom "where the
companions are listening."
There, as she has been made mother and teacher of all nations because of the experience of
love she has received and because of the suffering, the joys, the failures, the recoveries and – we
could say – because of the history of salvation that the Song of Songs expresses, the Church is
invited by the Bridegroom to let her voice be heard in a final yearning.
The Church answers with an eschatological paschal cry: what she has come to know and
experienced of the Bridegroom makes her desire to flee with him in a final exodus "to the sweet
scented mountains," which is Heaven, forever free.

The voice of my beloved: Behold! Here he comes,
leaping on the mountains, skipping on the hills.
My beloved is like a gazelle,
like a young deer,
my beloved is like a gazelle.
Behold! He stands behind our wall
and looks in at the window, he peers through the lattice.
Now my beloved speaks and says to me:
"Arise, my beloved!
Arise my love, arise and come!"
"Arise, my beloved,
Arise my love, arise and come!"
Look, winter has already passed,
the rains are over, they have gone away,
the flowers have appeared on the earth,
the time for singing has come again
and the voice of the turtle dove has returned,
the fig-tree has blossomed with first fruits
and the grape vine gives off its scent.
"Arise, my beloved…
O my dove in the cleft of the rock,
in the hiding places of the cliffs,
let me hear your voice,
let me hear your voice.
Chase away the foxes, the little foxes
who spoil the vineyard.
For our vineyard is in blossom!
For our vineyard is in blossom!
My beloved is for me,
and I am for him.
Before the breeze blows
and the shadows of death grow longer,
return, return, return!
Return, return, return!

Her foundations are on the holy mountains:
the Lord loves the gates of Zion
more than all Jacob's dwellings;
Of you are told glorious things,
City of God!
I will remember Rahab and Babylon,
Palestine, Tyre and Ethiopia,
when someone is born in them,
men say: 'There, this man was born.'
But of Zion, all say 'Mother!'
For all were born in her.
For all were born in her.
The Lord himself has founded her!
The Lord himself has founded her!
Mother, Mother, city of God!
The Lord writes in the book of the peoples:
'This man was born in her;'
and while dancing they will sing:
'In you are all my fountains.'
And while dancing, while dancing they will sing:
And while dancing, while dancing they will sing:
'all my fountains are in you.'
'All my fountains are in you.'
'Mother, Mother, city of God!'
For all…
And while dancing…