¹⁸ Moreover, the Lord ^(A)made it known to me and I knew it;
Then You showed me their deeds.
¹⁹ But I was like a gentle ^(B)lamb led to the slaughter;
And I did not know that they had ^(C)devised plots against me, saying,
“Let’s destroy the tree with its ^[a]fruit,
And ^(D)let’s cut him off from the ^(E)land of the living,
So that his ^(F)name will no longer be remembered.”
²⁰ But, Lord of armies, who ^(G)judges righteously,
Who ^(H)puts the ^[b]feelings and the heart to the test,
Let me see Your vengeance on them,
For to You I have ^[c]committed my cause.

12 ^(A)Righteous are You, Lord, when I plead my case with You;
Nevertheless I would ^(B)discuss matters of justice with You:
Why has the ^(C)way of the wicked prospered?
Why are all those who ^(D)deal in treachery at ease?
² You have ^(E)planted them, they have also taken root;
They grow, they have also produced fruit.
You are ^(F)near ^[a]to their lips
But far from their ^[b]mind.
³ But You ^(G)know me, Lord;
You see me
And ^(H)examine my heart’s attitude toward You.
Drag them off like sheep for the slaughter,
And ^[c]set them apart for a ^(I)day of slaughter!
⁴ How long is the ^(J)land to mourn,
And the ^(K)vegetation of the ^[d]countryside to dry up?
Due to the ^(L)wickedness of those who live in it,
^(M)Animals and birds have been snatched away,
Because people have said, “He will not see our final ^(N)end.”

⁷ Lord, You persuaded me and I let myself be persuaded;
You have ^(A)overcome me and prevailed.
I have become a ^(B)laughingstock all day long;
Everyone ^(C)mocks me.
⁸ For each time I speak, I cry aloud;
I ^(D)proclaim violence and destruction,
Because for me the ^(E)word of the Lord has ^[a]resulted
In taunting and derision all day long.
⁹ But if I say, “I will not ^(F)remember Him
Nor speak anymore in His name,”
Then in ^(G)my heart it becomes like a burning fire
Shut up in my bones;
And I am tired of holding it in,
And ^(H)I cannot endure it.
¹⁰ For ^(I)I have heard the whispering of many,
“^(J)Terror on every side!
^(K)Denounce him; let’s denounce him!”
^[b]All my ^(L)trusted friends,
Watching for my fall, say:
“Perhaps he will be persuaded, so that we may ^(M)prevail against him
And take our revenge on him.”
¹¹ But the ^(N)Lord is with me like a powerful champion;
Therefore my ^(O)persecutors will stumble and not prevail.
They will be put to great shame because they have ^[c]failed,
An ^(P)everlasting disgrace that will not be forgotten.
¹² Yet, Lord of armies, who ^(Q)tests the righteous,
Who sees the ^[d]mind and the heart;
Let me ^(R)see Your vengeance on them,
For ^(S)to You I have disclosed my cause.
^13 (T)Sing to the Lord, praise the Lord!
For He has ^(U)saved the soul of the needy one
From the hand of evildoers.