Funeral Psalm Options

Psalm may be sung or recited (choose one):

Psalm 23

Response: The Lord is my shepherd, there is nothing I shall want.

The Lord is my shepherd;
there is nothing I shall want.
Fresh and green are the pastures
where he gives me repose.
Near restful waters he leads me
to revive my drooping spirit.

He guides me along the right path;
He is true to his name.
If I should walk in the valley of darkness
no evil would I fear.
You are there with your crook and your staff;
with these you give me comfort.

You have prepared a banquet for me
in the sight of my foes.
My head you have anointed with oil;
my cup is overflowing.

Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me
all the days of my life.
In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell
for ever and ever.

Psalm 25

Response: To you, O Lord, I lift my soul.

Remember that your compassion, O Lord,
And your kindness are from of old.
In your kindness remember me,
Because of your goodness, O Lord.

Relieve the troubles of my heart;
And bring me out of my distress.
Put an end to my affliction and my suffering:
And take away all my sins.

Preserve my life and rescue me;
Let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in you.
Let integrity and uprightness preserve me,
Because I wait for you, O Lord.

Psalm 27

Response: The Lord is my light and my salvation.

The Lord is my light and my help;
whom shall I fear?
the Lord is the stronghold of my life;
before whom shall I shrink?

There is one thing I ask of the Lord,
for this I long,
to live in the house of the Lord,
all the days of my life,
to savor the sweetness of the Lord,
to behold his temple.

O Lord, hear my voice when I call;
have mercy and answer.
It is your face, O Lord that I seek;
hide not your face.

I am sure I shall see the Lord’s goodness
in the land of the living.
Hope in him, hold firm and take heart.
Hope in the Lord!

Psalm 42

Response: My soul is thirsting for the living God; when shall I see him face to face?

Like the deer that yearns
For running streams,
So my soul is yearning
For you, my God.

My soul is thirsting for God,
The God of my life;
When can I enter and see
The face of God?

O send forth your light and your truth;
let these be my guide.
Let them bring me to your holy mountain
to the place where you dwell.

And I will come to the altar of God,
the God of my joy.
My redeemer, I will thank you on the harp,
O God, my God.

Why are you cast down, my soul,
why groan within me?
Hope in God; I will praise him still,
my savior and my God.

Psalm 63

Response: My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.

O God, you are my God whom I seek;
For you my flesh pines and my soul thirsts
Like the earth, parched, lifeless and without water.

Thus have I gazed toward you in the sanctuary
To see your power and your glory
For your kindness is a greater good than life;
My lips shall glorify you.

Thus will I bless you while live;
Lifting up my hands, I will call upon your name.
As with the riches of a banquet shall my soul be satisfied,
And with exultant lips my mouth shall praise you.

You are my help,
And in the shadow of your wings I shout for joy,
My soul clings fast to you;
Your right hand upholds me.

Psalm 116

Response: I will walk in the presence of the Lord in the land of the living.

Gracious is the Lord and just;
Yes, our God is merciful.
I will walk in the presence of the Lord in the land of the living.

The Lord keeps the little ones;
I was brought low and God saved me.

I believed, even when I said,
“I am greatly afflicted”;
I said in my alarm,
“No man is dependable”.

Precious in the eyes of the Lord
Is the death of his faithful ones.
O Lord, I am your servant,
You have loosed my bonds.

Psalm 103

Response: The Lord is kind and merciful.

The Lord is compassion and love,
Slow to anger and rich in mercy.
He does not treat us according to our sins
Nor repay us according to our faults.

As a father has compassion on his sons,
The Lord has pity on those who fear him;
For he knows of what we are made,
He remembers that we are dust.

As for man, his days are like grass;
He flowers like the flower of the field;
The wind blows and he is gone
And his place never sees him again.

But the kindness of the Lord is from eternity
To eternity toward those who fear him.
And his justice toward children’s children
Among those who keep his covenant
And remember to fulfill his precepts.

Psalm 122

Response: I rejoiced when I heard them say: let us go to the house of the Lord.

I rejoiced because they said to me,
“We will go up to the house of the Lord”.
And now we have set foot within your gates, O Jerusalem.

To it the tribes go up,
The tribes of the Lord.
According to the decrees for Israel
To give thanks to the name of the Lord.
In it are set up judgment seats,
Seats for the house of David.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!
May those who love you prosper!
May peace be within your walls,
Prosperity in your buildings.

Because of my relatives and friends
I will say, “Peace be within you!”
Because of the house of the Lord, our God,
I will pray for your good.

Psalm 130

Response: Out of the depths, I cry to you, Lord.

Out of the depths, I cry to you, O Lord,
Lord hear my voice!
O let your ears be attentive
To the voice of my pleading.

If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities,
Lord, who can stand?
But with you is found forgiveness:
That you may be revered.

I trust in the Lord;
My soul trusts in his word
My soul waits for the Lord
More than the sentinels wait for the dawn

More than the sentinels wait for the dawn, let Israel wait for the Lord,
For with the Lord is kindness
And with the Lord is plenteous redemption.

Psalm 143

O Lord, hear my prayer;
Hearken to my pleading in your faithfulness;
In your justice answer me.
And enter not into judgment with your servant,
For before you n living man is just.

I remember the days of old;
I meditate on all your doings;
The works of your hands I ponder.
I stretch out my hands to you;
My soul thirsts for you like parched land.

Hasten to answer me, O Lord;
For my spirit fails me.
At dawn let me hear of your mercy,
For in you I trust.

Teach me to do your will,
For you are my God.
May your good spirit guide me
On level ground.