The Lord Implored to Defend the Psalmist against the Wicked.

A [a]Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the Lord [b]concerning Cush, a Benjaminite.

O Lord my God, (A)in You I have taken refuge;
Save me from all those who pursue me, and (B)rescue me,
Or he will tear [c]my soul (C)like a lion,
Dragging me away, while there is no one to rescue me.

O Lord my God, if I have done this,
If there is (D)injustice in my hands,
If I have (E)done evil to [d]my friend,
Or have (F)plundered [e]my enemy for no reason,
Let the enemy pursue [f]my soul and overtake [g]it;
And let him trample my life to the ground
And lay my glory in the dust. Selah

(G)Arise, Lord, in Your anger;
(H)Raise Yourself against (I)the rage of my enemies,
And (J)stir Yourself [h]for me; You have ordered judgment.
Let the assembly of the (K)peoples encompass You,
And return on high over it.
The Lord (L)judges the peoples;
[i](M)Vindicate me, Lord, according to my righteousness and my integrity that is in me.
Please let (N)the evil of the wicked come to an end, but (O)establish the righteous;
For the righteous God (P)puts hearts and [j]minds to the test.
10 My (Q)shield is [k]with God,
Who (R)saves the upright in heart.
11 God is a (S)righteous judge,
And a God who (T)shows indignation every day.

12 If one (U)does not repent, He will (V)sharpen His sword;
He has (W)bent His bow and taken aim.
13 He has also prepared deadly weapons for Himself;
He makes His (X)arrows fiery shafts.
14 Behold, an evil person is pregnant with injustice,
And he (Y)conceives harm and gives birth to lies.
15 He has dug a pit and hollowed it out,
And has (Z)fallen into the hole which he made.
16 His (AA)harm will return on his own head,
And his (AB)violence will descend on the top of his own head.

17 I will give thanks to the Lord (AC)according to His righteousness
And will (AD)sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High.

The Lords Glory and Mankind’s Dignity.

For the music director; on the Gittith. A Psalm of David.

Lord, our Lord,
How majestic is Your name in all the earth,
You who have [l](AE)displayed Your splendor above the heavens!
(AF)From the mouths of infants and nursing babies You have established [m](AG)strength
Because of Your enemies,
To do away with (AH)the enemy and the revengeful.

When I [n](AI)consider (AJ)Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The (AK)moon and the stars, which You have set in place;
(AL)What is man that You think of him,
And a son of man that You are concerned about him?
Yet You have made him a (AM)little lower than [o]God,
And (AN)You crown him with (AO)glory and majesty!
You have him (AP)rule over the works of Your hands;
You have (AQ)put everything under his feet,
All sheep and oxen,
And also the animals of the field,
The birds of the sky, and the fish of the sea,
Whatever passes through the paths of the seas.

(AR)Lord, our Lord,
How majestic is Your name in all the earth!

Thanksgiving for God’s Justice.

For the music director; on [p]Muth-labben. A Psalm of David.

I will give thanks to the Lord with all (AS)my heart;
I will (AT)tell of all Your [q]wonders.
I will rejoice and be (AU)jubilant in You;
I will (AV)sing praise to Your name, O (AW)Most High.

When my enemies turn back,
They stumble and (AX)perish before You.
For You have (AY)maintained [r]my just cause;
You have sat on the throne [s](AZ)judging righteously.
You have (BA)rebuked the nations, You have eliminated the wicked;
You have (BB)wiped out their name forever and ever.
[t]The enemy has come to an end in everlasting ruins,
And You have uprooted the cities;
The very (BC)memory of them has perished.

But the (BD)Lord [u]sits as King forever;
He has established His (BE)throne for judgment,
And He will (BF)judge the world in righteousness;
He will execute judgment for the peoples fairly.
[v]The Lord will also be a (BG)stronghold for the oppressed,
A stronghold in times of trouble;
10 And [w]those who (BH)know Your name will put their trust in You,
For You, Lord, have not (BI)abandoned those who seek You.

11 Sing praises to the Lord, who (BJ)dwells in Zion;
(BK)Declare His deeds among the peoples.
12 For (BL)He who [x]requires blood remembers them;
He does not forget (BM)the cry of the needy.
13 Be gracious to me, Lord;
See my oppression from those (BN)who hate me,
You who (BO)lift me up from the gates of death,
14 So that I may tell of (BP)all Your praises,
That in the gates of the daughter of Zion
I may (BQ)rejoice in Your [y]salvation.
15 The nations have sunk down (BR)into the pit which they have made;
In the (BS)net which they hid, their own foot has been caught.
16 The Lord has (BT)made Himself known;
He has (BU)executed judgment.
A wicked one is ensnared in the work of his own hands. [z]Higgaion Selah

17 The wicked will [aa](BV)return to [ab]Sheol,
All the nations who (BW)forget God.
18 For the (BX)needy will not always be forgotten,
Nor the (BY)hope of the afflicted perish forever.
19 (BZ)Arise, Lord, do not let mankind prevail;
Let the nations be (CA)judged before You.
20 Put them (CB)in fear, Lord;
Let the nations know that they are (CC)merely human. Selah

A Prayer for the Overthrow of the Wicked.

10 Why (CD)do You stand far away, Lord?
Why (CE)do You hide [ac]Yourself in times of trouble?
In (CF)arrogance the wicked hotly pursue the needy;
[ad]Let them be (CG)caught in the plots which they have devised.

For the wicked (CH)boasts of his (CI)soul’s desire,
And [ae]the greedy person curses and (CJ)shows disrespect to the Lord.
The wicked, [af]in his haughtiness, (CK)does not seek Him.
(CL)There is no God in all his schemes.

His ways (CM)succeed at all times;
Yet Your judgments are on high, (CN)out of his sight;
As for all his enemies, he snorts at them.
He says to himself, “(CO)I will not be moved;
[ag]Throughout the generations (CP)I will not be in adversity.”
His (CQ)mouth is full of cursing, deceit, and (CR)oppression;
(CS)Under his tongue is harm and injustice.
He sits in the (CT)lurking places of the villages;
He (CU)kills the innocent in the secret places;
His eyes [ah]surreptitiously watch for the [ai](CV)unfortunate.
He lurks in secret like (CW)a lion in his [aj]lair;
He (CX)lurks to catch (CY)the needy;
He catches the needy when he pulls him into his (CZ)net.
10 Then he crushes the needy one, who cowers;
And [ak]unfortunate people fall by his mighty power.
11 He (DA)says to himself, “God has forgotten;
He has hidden His face; He will never see it.”

12 Arise, Lord; God, (DB)lift up Your hand.
(DC)Do not forget the humble.
13 Why has the wicked (DD)treated God disrespectfully?
He has said to himself, “[al]You will not require an account.”
14 You have seen it, for You have looked at (DE)harm and provocation to [am]take it into Your hand.
The [an](DF)unfortunate commits himself to You;
You have been the (DG)helper of the orphan.
15 (DH)Break the arm of the wicked and the evildoer,
[ao](DI)Seek out his wickedness until You find none.

16 The Lord is (DJ)King forever and ever;
(DK)Nations have perished from His land.
17 Lord, You have heard the (DL)desire of the humble;
You will (DM)strengthen their heart, (DN)You will make Your ear attentive
18 To [ap]vindicate the (DO)orphan and the (DP)oppressed,
So that mankind, which is of the earth, will no longer cause (DQ)terror.

The Lord, a Refuge and Defense.

For the music director. A Psalm of David.

11 In the Lord I (DR)take refuge;
How can you say to my soul, “Flee as a bird to your (DS)mountain?
For, behold, the wicked (DT)bend the bow,
They have [aq](DU)set their arrow on the string
To (DV)shoot in darkness at the upright in heart.
If the (DW)foundations are destroyed,
What can the righteous do?”

The Lord is in His (DX)holy temple; the [ar]Lords (DY)throne is in heaven;
His (DZ)eyes see, His eyelids test the sons of mankind.
The Lord (EA)tests the righteous and (EB)the wicked,
And His soul hates one who loves violence.
He will (EC)rain [as]coals of fire upon the wicked,
(ED)And brimstone and (EE)burning wind will be the portion of (EF)their cup.
For the Lord is (EG)righteous, (EH)He loves [at]righteousness;
The upright will (EI)see His face.

God, a Helper against the Treacherous.

For the music director; [au]upon an eight-stringed lyre. A Psalm of David.

12 Help, Lord, for (EJ)the godly person has come to an end,
For the faithful have disappeared from the sons of mankind.
They (EK)speak [av]lies to one another;
They speak with [aw](EL)flattering lips and a double heart.
May the Lord cut off all [ax]flattering lips,
The tongue that (EM)speaks great things;
Who (EN)have said, “With our tongue we will prevail;
Our lips are [ay]our own; who is lord over us?”
“Because of the (EO)devastation of the poor, because of the groaning of the needy,
Now (EP)I will arise,” says the Lord; “I will (EQ)put him in the safety for which he longs.”

The (ER)words of the Lord are pure words;
Like silver (ES)refined in a furnace on the ground, filtered seven times.
You, Lord, will keep them;
You will (ET)protect him from this generation forever.
The (EU)wicked strut about on every side
When [az](EV)vileness is exalted among the sons of mankind.

Prayer for Help in Trouble.

For the music director. A Psalm of David.

13 How long, Lord? Will You (EW)forget me forever?
How long (EX)will You hide Your face from me?
How long am I to (EY)feel anxious in my soul,
With (EZ)grief in my heart all the day?
How long will my enemy be exalted over me?

(FA)Consider and answer me, O Lord my God;
(FB)Enlighten my eyes, or I will (FC)sleep the sleep of death,
And my enemy will (FD)say, “I have overcome him,”
And (FE)my adversaries will rejoice when I am shaken.

But I have (FF)trusted in Your faithfulness;
My heart shall (FG)rejoice in Your salvation.
I will (FH)sing to the Lord,
Because He has (FI)looked after me.

Foolishness and Wickedness of People.

For the music director. A Psalm of David.

14 The fool has (FJ)said in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, they have committed detestable acts;
There is (FK)no one who does good.
The Lord has (FL)looked down from heaven upon the sons of mankind
To see if there are any who [ba](FM)understand,
Who (FN)seek God.
They have all (FO)turned aside, together they are corrupt;
There is (FP)no one who does good, not even one.

Do all the workers of injustice (FQ)not know,
Who (FR)devour my people as they eat bread,
And (FS)do not call upon the Lord?
There they are in great dread,
For God is with a (FT)righteous generation.
You would put to shame the plan of the poor,
But the Lord is his (FU)refuge.

Oh, that (FV)the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion!
When the Lord (FW)restores the fortunes of His people,
Jacob will rejoice, Israel will be glad.

Description of a Citizen of Zion.

A Psalm of David.

15 Lord, who may reside (FX)in Your tent?
Who may settle on Your (FY)holy hill?
One who (FZ)walks with integrity, practices righteousness,
And (GA)speaks truth in his heart.
He (GB)does not slander [bb]with his tongue,
Nor (GC)do evil to his neighbor,
Nor (GD)bring shame on his friend;
A despicable person is despised in his eyes,
But he (GE)honors those who fear the Lord;
He (GF)takes an oath to his own detriment, and does not change;
He (GG)does not [bc]lend his money [bd]at interest,
Nor (GH)does he take a bribe against the innocent.
(GI)One who does these things will never be shaken.

The Lord, the Psalmist’s Portion in Life and Salvation in Death.

A [be]Mikhtam of David.

16 (GJ)Protect me, God, for (GK)I take refuge in You.
[bf]I said to the Lord, “You are [bg]my Lord;
I (GL)have nothing good besides You.”
As for the [bh](GM)saints who are on the earth,
[bi]They are the majestic ones; (GN)all my delight is in them.
[bj]The (GO)pains of those who have acquired another god will be multiplied;
I will not pour out their drink offerings of (GP)blood,
Nor will I (GQ)take their names upon my lips.

The Lord is the (GR)portion of my inheritance and my (GS)cup;
You support my (GT)lot.
The measuring (GU)lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
Indeed, my inheritance is (GV)beautiful to me.

I will bless the Lord who has (GW)advised me;
Indeed, my [bk](GX)mind instructs me in the night.
(GY)I have (GZ)set the Lord continually before me;
Because He is (HA)at my right hand, (HB)I will not be shaken.
Therefore (HC)my heart is glad and (HD)my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will (HE)dwell securely.
10 For You (HF)will not abandon my soul to [bl]Sheol;
You will not [bm](HG)allow Your [bn]Holy One to [bo]undergo decay.
11 You will make known to me (HH)the way of life;
In (HI)Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are (HJ)pleasures forever.

Prayer for Protection against Oppressors.

A Prayer of David.

17 Hear a (HK)just cause, Lord, (HL)give Your attention to my cry;
(HM)Listen to my prayer, which is not from (HN)deceitful lips.
Let (HO)my [bp]judgment come forth from Your presence;
Let Your eyes look with (HP)integrity.
You have (HQ)put my heart to the test;
You have visited me by night;
You have (HR)sifted me and (HS)You find [bq]nothing;
My (HT)intent is that my mouth will not offend.
As for the works of mankind, (HU)by the word of Your lips
I have kept from the (HV)ways of the violent.
My (HW)steps have held to Your [br]paths.
My (HX)feet have not slipped.

I have (HY)called upon You, for You will answer me, God;
(HZ)Incline Your ear to me, hear my speech.
(IA)Show Your wonderful faithfulness,
(IB)Savior of those who take refuge [bs]at Your right hand
From those who rise up against them.
Keep me as [bt]the (IC)apple of the eye;
Hide me (ID)in the shadow of Your wings
From the (IE)wicked who deal violently with me,
My (IF)deadly enemies who surround me.
10 They have (IG)closed their [bu]unfeeling hearts,
With their mouths they (IH)speak proudly.
11 They have now (II)surrounded us in our steps;
They set their eyes (IJ)to cast us down to the ground.
12 He is (IK)like a lion that is eager to tear,
And as a young lion (IL)lurking in secret places.

13 (IM)Arise, Lord, confront him, (IN)make him bow down;
(IO)Save my soul from the wicked with (IP)Your sword,
14 From people by (IQ)Your hand, Lord,
From people [bv]of the world, (IR)whose portion is in this life,
And whose belly You (IS)fill with Your treasure;
They are satisfied with children,
And leave their abundance to their babies.
15 As for me, I shall (IT)behold Your face in righteousness;
(IU)I shall be satisfied with Your (IV)likeness when I awake.

The Lord Praised for Rescuing David.

For the music director. A Psalm of David, the servant of the Lord, [bw]who spoke to the Lord the words of this song on the day that the Lord rescued him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. And he said,

18 “I love You, Lord, (IW)my strength.”
The Lord is (IX)my rock and (IY)my fortress and my (IZ)savior,
My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge;
My (JA)shield and the (JB)horn of my salvation, my (JC)stronghold.
I call upon the Lord, who is (JD)worthy to be praised,
And I am (JE)saved from my enemies.

The (JF)ropes of death encompassed me,
And the (JG)torrents of [bx]destruction [by]terrified me.
The (JH)ropes of [bz]Sheol surrounded me;
The snares of death confronted me.
In my (JI)distress I called upon the Lord,
And cried to my God for help;
He heard my voice (JJ)from His temple,
And my (JK)cry for help before Him came into His ears.

Then the (JL)earth shook and quaked;
And the (JM)foundations of the mountains were trembling
And were shaken, because He was angry.
Smoke went up [ca]out of His nostrils,
And (JN)fire from His mouth was devouring;
Coals burned from it.
He also (JO)bowed the heavens down low, and came down
With thick (JP)darkness under His feet.
10 He rode on a (JQ)cherub and flew;
And He sped on the (JR)wings of the wind.
11 He made (JS)darkness His hiding place, (JT)His [cb]canopy around Him,
Darkness of waters, thick clouds.
12 From the (JU)brightness before Him passed His thick clouds,
Hailstones and (JV)coals of fire.
13 The Lord also (JW)thundered in the heavens,
And the Most High uttered His voice,
Hailstones and coals of fire.
14 He (JX)sent out His arrows, and scattered them,
And lightning flashes in abundance, and [cc]routed them.
15 Then the (JY)channels of water appeared,
And the foundations of the world were exposed
By Your (JZ)rebuke, Lord,
At the blast of the (KA)breath of Your nostrils.

16 He (KB)sent from on high, He took me;
He drew me out of (KC)many waters.
17 He (KD)saved me from my strong enemy,
And from those who hated me, for they were (KE)too mighty for me.
18 They confronted me in (KF)the day of my disaster,
But (KG)the Lord was my support.
19 He also brought me out into an (KH)open place;
He rescued me, because (KI)He delighted in me.

20 The Lord has (KJ)rewarded me according to my righteousness;
According to the (KK)cleanness of my hands He has repaid me.
21 For I have (KL)kept the ways of the Lord,
And have (KM)not acted wickedly against my God.
22 For all (KN)His judgments were before me,
And I did not put away His (KO)statutes from me.
23 I was also [cd](KP)blameless with Him,
And I (KQ)kept myself from my wrongdoing.
24 Therefore the Lord has (KR)repaid me according to my righteousness,
According to the cleanness of my hands in His eyes.

25 With (KS)the faithful You show Yourself faithful;
With the [ce]blameless (KT)You prove Yourself blameless;
26 With the pure You show Yourself (KU)pure,
And with the crooked (KV)You show Yourself [cf]astute.
27 For You (KW)save an afflicted people,
But You humiliate (KX)haughty eyes.
28 For You (KY)light my lamp;
The Lord my God (KZ)illumines my darkness.
29 For by You I can (LA)run at a [cg]troop of warriors;
And by my God I can (LB)leap over a wall.

30 As for God, His way is [ch](LC)blameless;
The (LD)word of the Lord is refined;
He is a (LE)shield to all who take refuge in Him.
31 For (LF)who is God, but the Lord?
And who is a (LG)rock, except our God,
32 The God who (LH)encircles me with strength,
And [ci]makes my way [cj](LI)blameless?
33 He (LJ)makes my feet like deer’s feet,
And (LK)sets me up on my high places.
34 He (LL)trains my hands for battle,
So that my arms can (LM)bend a bow of bronze.
35 You have also given me (LN)the shield of Your salvation,
And Your (LO)right hand upholds me;
And (LP)Your [ck]gentleness makes me great.
36 You (LQ)enlarge my steps under me,
And my [cl](LR)feet have not slipped.

37 I (LS)pursued my enemies and overtook them,
And I did not turn back (LT)until they were consumed.
38 I shattered them, so that they were (LU)not able to rise;
They fell (LV)under my feet.
39 For You have (LW)encircled me with strength for battle;
You have forced those who rose up against me (LX)to bow down under me.
40 You have also made my enemies (LY)turn their backs to me,
And I [cm](LZ)destroyed those who hated me.
41 They cried for help, but there was (MA)no one to save,
They cried to the Lord, but (MB)He did not answer them.
42 Then I beat them fine like the (MC)dust before the wind;
I emptied them out like the mud of the streets.

43 You have rescued me from the (MD)contentions of the people;
You have placed me as (ME)head of the nations;
A (MF)people whom I have not known serve me.
44 As soon as they hear, they obey me;
Foreigners (MG)pretend to obey me.
45 Foreigners (MH)lose heart,
And (MI)come trembling out of their [cn]fortresses.

46 The Lord (MJ)lives, and blessed be (MK)my rock;
And exalted be (ML)the God of my salvation,
47 The God who (MM)executes vengeance for me,
And (MN)subdues peoples under me.
48 He (MO)rescues me from my enemies;
You indeed (MP)lift me above those who rise up against me;
You rescue me from a (MQ)violent man.
49 Therefore I will (MR)give thanks to You among the nations, Lord,
And I will (MS)sing praises to Your name.
50 He gives great [co](MT)salvation to His king,
And shows faithfulness to (MU)His anointed,
To David and (MV)his [cp]descendants forever.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 7 Title I.e., Dithyrambic rhythm; or wild, passionate song
  2. Psalm 7 Title Or concerning the words of
  3. Psalm 7:2 Or me
  4. Psalm 7:4 Lit him who was at peace with me
  5. Psalm 7:4 Or him who for no reason was my enemy,
  6. Psalm 7:5 Or me
  7. Psalm 7:5 Or me
  8. Psalm 7:6 One ancient version reads O my God
  9. Psalm 7:8 Lit Judge
  10. Psalm 7:9 Lit kidneys, figurative for inner man
  11. Psalm 7:10 Lit upon
  12. Psalm 8:1 Lit put
  13. Psalm 8:2 Or a strength
  14. Psalm 8:3 Or see
  15. Psalm 8:5 LXX angels
  16. Psalm 9 Title Meaning of the Heb uncertain
  17. Psalm 9:1 Or miracles
  18. Psalm 9:4 Lit my right and my cause
  19. Psalm 9:4 Or a righteous Judge
  20. Psalm 9:6 Or O enemy, desolations are finished forever; And their cities You have uprooted
  21. Psalm 9:7 Or remains forever
  22. Psalm 9:9 Or Let the Lord also be
  23. Psalm 9:10 Or let those...name put
  24. Psalm 9:12 I.e., avenges bloodshed
  25. Psalm 9:14 Or deliverance
  26. Psalm 9:16 Perhaps, resounding music or meditation
  27. Psalm 9:17 Or turn
  28. Psalm 9:17 I.e., the netherworld
  29. Psalm 10:1 Or Your eyes
  30. Psalm 10:2 Or They will be caught
  31. Psalm 10:3 Or blesses the greedy man
  32. Psalm 10:4 Lit the height of his nose
  33. Psalm 10:6 Lit To
  34. Psalm 10:8 Lit lie in wait
  35. Psalm 10:8 Or poor
  36. Psalm 10:9 Or thicket
  37. Psalm 10:10 Or unhappy
  38. Psalm 10:13 I.e., as though God will ignore it
  39. Psalm 10:14 Lit put, give
  40. Psalm 10:14 Or poor
  41. Psalm 10:15 Or May You seek
  42. Psalm 10:18 Lit judge
  43. Psalm 11:2 Or fixed
  44. Psalm 11:4 Lit Lord, His throne
  45. Psalm 11:6 As in a Gr version; MT snares; Fire and
  46. Psalm 11:7 Or righteous deeds
  47. Psalm 12 Title Or according to a lower octave (Heb Sheminith)
  48. Psalm 12:2 Lit worthless speech
  49. Psalm 12:2 Lit a smooth lip
  50. Psalm 12:3 Lit a smooth lip
  51. Psalm 12:4 Lit with us
  52. Psalm 12:8 Or worthlessness
  53. Psalm 14:2 Or act wisely
  54. Psalm 15:3 Lit according to
  55. Psalm 15:5 Lit give
  56. Psalm 15:5 I.e., to a fellow Israelite
  57. Psalm 16 Title Possibly Epigrammatic Poem or Atonement Psalm
  58. Psalm 16:2 Or O my soul, you said
  59. Psalm 16:2 Or the Lord
  60. Psalm 16:3 Lit holy ones; i.e., God’s people
  61. Psalm 16:3 Lit They, even the
  62. Psalm 16:4 Lit Their pains, they who acquired
  63. Psalm 16:7 Lit kidneys, figurative for inner man
  64. Psalm 16:10 I.e., the netherworld
  65. Psalm 16:10 Lit give
  66. Psalm 16:10 Or godly one
  67. Psalm 16:10 Or see corruption; or the pit
  68. Psalm 17:2 I.e., vindication
  69. Psalm 17:3 Or no shameful act in me; My mouth
  70. Psalm 17:5 Lit tracks
  71. Psalm 17:7 Or from those who rise up...at Your right hand
  72. Psalm 17:8 Lit the pupil, the daughter of the eye
  73. Psalm 17:10 Lit fat
  74. Psalm 17:14 Or whose portion in life is of the world
  75. Psalm 18 Title 2 Sam 22:1-51
  76. Psalm 18:4 Or ungodliness; Heb Belial
  77. Psalm 18:4 Or were assailing; or terrifying
  78. Psalm 18:5 I.e., the netherworld
  79. Psalm 18:8 Or in His wrath
  80. Psalm 18:11 Or pavilion
  81. Psalm 18:14 Lit confused
  82. Psalm 18:23 Lit complete; or having integrity; or perfect
  83. Psalm 18:25 See note v 23
  84. Psalm 18:26 Lit twisted
  85. Psalm 18:29 Or wall
  86. Psalm 18:30 Or perfect
  87. Psalm 18:32 Or has made
  88. Psalm 18:32 Lit complete; or having integrity
  89. Psalm 18:35 Or condescension
  90. Psalm 18:36 Lit ankles
  91. Psalm 18:40 Or silenced
  92. Psalm 18:45 Or prisons
  93. Psalm 18:50 I.e., victories; lit salvations
  94. Psalm 18:50 Lit seed

Psalm 7

Plea for Help against Persecutors

A Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the Lord concerning Cush, a Benjaminite.

O Lord my God, in you I take refuge;
    save me from all my pursuers, and deliver me,(A)
or like a lion they will tear me apart;
    they will drag me away, with no one to rescue.(B)

O Lord my God, if I have done this,
    if there is wrong in my hands,(C)
if I have repaid my ally with harm
    or plundered my foe without cause,(D)
then let the enemy pursue and overtake me,
    trample my life to the ground,
    and lay my soul in the dust. Selah

Rise up, O Lord, in your anger;
    lift yourself up against the fury of my enemies;
    awake, O my God;[a] you have appointed a judgment.(E)
Let the assembly of the peoples be gathered around you,
    and over it take your seat[b] on high.(F)
The Lord judges the peoples;
    judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness
    and according to the integrity that is in me.(G)

O let the evil of the wicked come to an end,
    but establish the righteous,
you who test the minds and hearts,
    O righteous God.(H)
10 God is my shield,
    who saves the upright in heart.(I)
11 God is a righteous judge
    and a God who has indignation every day.(J)

12 If one does not repent, God[c] will whet his sword;
    he has bent and strung his bow;(K)
13 he has prepared his deadly weapons,
    making his arrows fiery shafts.(L)
14 See how they conceive evil
    and are pregnant with mischief
    and bring forth lies.(M)
15 They make a pit, digging it out,
    and fall into the hole that they have made.(N)
16 Their mischief returns upon their own heads,
    and on their own heads their violence descends.(O)

17 I will give to the Lord the thanks due to his righteousness
    and sing praise to the name of the Lord, the Most High.(P)

Psalm 8

Divine Majesty and Human Dignity

To the leader: according to The Gittith. A Psalm of David.

O Lord, our Sovereign,
    how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory above the heavens.(Q)
    Out of the mouths of babes and infants
you have founded a bulwark because of your foes,
    to silence the enemy and the avenger.(R)

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
    the moon and the stars that you have established;(S)
what are humans that you are mindful of them,
    mortals[d] that you care for them?(T)

Yet you have made them a little lower than God[e]
    and crowned them with glory and honor.(U)
You have given them dominion over the works of your hands;
    you have put all things under their feet,(V)
all sheep and oxen,
    and also the beasts of the field,
the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea,
    whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

O Lord, our Sovereign,
    how majestic is your name in all the earth!(W)

Psalm 9

God’s Power and Justice

To the leader: according to Muth-labben. A Psalm of David.

[f]I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart;
    I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.(X)
I will be glad and exult in you;
    I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.(Y)

When my enemies turned back,
    they stumbled and perished before you.(Z)
For you have maintained my just cause;
    you have sat on the throne giving righteous judgment.(AA)

You have rebuked the nations; you have destroyed the wicked;
    you have blotted out their name forever and ever.(AB)
The enemies have vanished in everlasting ruins;
    their cities you have rooted out;
    the very memory of them has perished.(AC)

But the Lord sits enthroned forever;
    he has established his throne for judgment.(AD)
He judges the world with righteousness;
    he judges the peoples with equity.(AE)

The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed,
    a stronghold in times of trouble.(AF)
10 And those who know your name put their trust in you,
    for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.(AG)

11 Sing praises to the Lord, who dwells in Zion.
    Declare his deeds among the peoples.(AH)
12 For he who avenges blood is mindful of them;
    he does not forget the cry of the afflicted.(AI)

13 Be gracious to me, O Lord.
    See what I suffer from those who hate me;
    you are the one who lifts me up from the gates of death,(AJ)
14 so that I may recount all your praises
    and, in the gates of daughter Zion,
    rejoice in your deliverance.(AK)

15 The nations have sunk in the pit that they made;
    in the net that they hid has their own foot been caught.(AL)
16 The Lord has made himself known; he has executed judgment;
    the wicked are snared in the work of their own hands. Higgaion. Selah(AM)

17 The wicked shall depart to Sheol,
    all the nations that forget God.(AN)

18 For the needy shall not always be forgotten,
    nor the hope of the poor perish forever.(AO)

19 Rise up, O Lord! Do not let mortals prevail;
    let the nations be judged before you.(AP)
20 Put them in fear, O Lord;
    let the nations know that they are only human. Selah(AQ)

Psalm 10

Prayer for Deliverance from Enemies

[g]Why, O Lord, do you stand far off?
    Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
In arrogance the wicked persecute the poor—
    let them be caught in the schemes they have devised.(AR)

For the wicked boast of the desires of their heart;
    those greedy for gain curse and renounce the Lord.(AS)
In the pride of their countenance the wicked say, “God will not seek it out”;
    all their thoughts are, “There is no God.”(AT)

Their ways prosper at all times;
    your judgments are on high, out of their sight;
    as for their foes, they scoff at them.
They think in their heart, “We shall not be moved;
    throughout all generations we shall not meet adversity.”(AU)

Their mouths are filled with cursing and deceit and oppression;
    under their tongues are mischief and iniquity.(AV)
They sit in ambush in the villages;
    in hiding places they murder the innocent.

Their eyes stealthily watch for the helpless;(AW)
    they lurk in secret like a lion in its den;
they lurk that they may seize the poor;
    they seize the poor and drag them off in their net.(AX)

10 They stoop, they crouch,
    and the helpless fall by their might.
11 They think in their heart, “God has forgotten;
    he has hidden his face; he will never see it.”(AY)

12 Rise up, O Lord; O God, lift up your hand;
    do not forget the oppressed.(AZ)
13 Why do the wicked renounce God
    and say in their hearts, “You will not call us to account”?

14 But you do see! Indeed, you note trouble and grief,
    that you may take it into your hands;
the helpless commit themselves to you;
    you have been the helper of the orphan.(BA)

15 Break the arm of the wicked and evildoers;
    seek out their wickedness until you find none.(BB)
16 The Lord is king forever and ever;
    the nations shall perish from his land.(BC)

17 O Lord, you will hear the desire of the meek;
    you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear(BD)
18 to do justice for the orphan and the oppressed,
    so that those from earth may strike terror no more.[h](BE)

Psalm 11

Song of Trust in God

To the leader. Of David.

In the Lord I take refuge; how can you say to me,
    “Flee like a bird to the mountains,[i](BF)
for look, the wicked bend the bow,
    they have fitted their arrow to the string,
    to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart.(BG)
If the foundations are destroyed,
    what can the righteous do?”(BH)

The Lord is in his holy temple;
    the Lord’s throne is in heaven.
    His eyes behold; his gaze examines humankind.(BI)
The Lord tests the righteous and the wicked,
    and his soul hates the lover of violence.(BJ)
On the wicked he will rain coals of fire and sulfur;
    a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.(BK)
For the Lord is righteous;
he loves righteous deeds;
    the upright shall behold his face.(BL)

Psalm 12

Plea for Help in Evil Times

To the leader: according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.

Help, O Lord, for there is no longer anyone who is godly;
    the faithful have disappeared from humankind.(BM)
They utter lies to each other;
    with flattering lips and a deceitful heart they speak.(BN)

May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
    the tongue that makes great boasts,(BO)
those who say, “With our tongues we will prevail;
    our lips are our own—who is our master?”

“Because the poor are despoiled, because the needy groan,
    I will now rise up,” says the Lord;
    “I will place them in the safety for which they long.”(BP)
The promises of the Lord are promises that are pure,
    silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
    purified seven times.(BQ)

You, O Lord, will protect us;
    you will guard us from this generation forever.(BR)
On every side the wicked prowl,
    as vileness is exalted among humankind.(BS)

Psalm 13

Prayer for Deliverance from Enemies

To the leader. A Psalm of David.

How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?
    How long will you hide your face from me?(BT)
How long must I bear pain[j] in my soul
    and have sorrow in my heart all day long?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?(BU)

Consider and answer me, O Lord my God!
    Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep the sleep of death,(BV)
and my enemy will say, “I have prevailed”;
    my foes will rejoice because I am shaken.(BW)

But I trusted in your steadfast love;
    my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.(BX)
I will sing to the Lord
    because he has dealt bountifully with me.(BY)

Psalm 14

Denunciation of Godlessness

To the leader. Of David.

Fools say in their hearts, “There is no God.”
    They are corrupt; they do abominable deeds;
    there is no one who does good.(BZ)

The Lord looks down from heaven on humankind
    to see if there are any who are wise,
    who seek after God.(CA)

They have all gone astray; they are all alike perverse;
    there is no one who does good,
    no, not one.(CB)

Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers
    who eat up my people as they eat bread
    and do not call upon the Lord?(CC)

There they shall be in great terror,
    for God is with the company of the righteous.(CD)
You would confound the plans of the poor,
    but the Lord is their refuge.(CE)

O that deliverance for Israel would come from Zion!
    When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people,
    Jacob will rejoice; Israel will be glad.(CF)

Psalm 15

Who Shall Abide in God’s Sanctuary?

A Psalm of David.

O Lord, who may abide in your tent?
    Who may dwell on your holy hill?(CG)

Those who walk blamelessly and do what is right
    and speak the truth from their heart;(CH)
who do not slander with their tongue
    and do no evil to their friends
    nor heap shame upon their neighbors;(CI)
in whose eyes the wicked are despised
    but who honor those who fear the Lord;
who stand by their oath even to their hurt;(CJ)
who do not lend money at interest
    and do not take a bribe against the innocent.

Those who do these things shall never be moved.(CK)

Psalm 16

Song of Trust and Security in God

A Miktam of David.

Protect me, O God, for in you I take refuge.(CL)
I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
    I have no good apart from you.”[k]

As for the holy ones in the land, they are the noble ones
    in whom is all my delight.(CM)

Those who choose another god multiply their sorrows;[l]
    their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out
    or take their names upon my lips.(CN)

The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;
    you hold my lot.(CO)
The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
    I have a goodly heritage.(CP)

I bless the Lord, who gives me counsel;
    in the night also my heart instructs me.(CQ)
I keep the Lord always before me;
    because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.(CR)

Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices;
    my body also rests secure.(CS)
10 For you do not give me up to Sheol
    or let your faithful one see the Pit.(CT)

11 You show me the path of life.
    In your presence there is fullness of joy;
    in your right hand are pleasures forevermore.(CU)

Psalm 17

Prayer for Deliverance from Persecutors

A Prayer of David.

Hear a just cause, O Lord; attend to my cry;
    give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit.
From you let my vindication come;
    let your eyes see the right.

If you try my heart, if you visit me by night,
    if you test me, you will find no wickedness in me;
    my mouth does not transgress.(CV)
As for what others do, by the word of your lips
    I have avoided the ways of the violent.(CW)
My steps have held fast to your paths;
    my feet have not slipped.(CX)

I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;
    incline your ear to me; hear my words.(CY)
Wondrously show your steadfast love,
    O savior of those who seek refuge
    from their adversaries at your right hand.(CZ)

Guard me as the apple of the eye;
    hide me in the shadow of your wings,(DA)
from the wicked who despoil me,
    my deadly enemies who surround me.
10 They close their hearts to pity;
    with their mouths they speak arrogantly.(DB)
11 They flush me out;[m] now they surround me;
    they set their eyes to cast me to the ground.
12 They are like a lion eager to tear,
    like a young lion lurking in ambush.(DC)

13 Rise up, O Lord, confront them, overthrow them!
    By your sword deliver my life from the wicked,(DD)
14 from mortals—by your hand, O Lord
    from mortals whose portion in life is in this world.
May their bellies be filled with what you have stored up for them;
    may their children have more than enough;
    may they leave something over to their little ones.(DE)

15 As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness;
    when I awake I shall be satisfied, beholding your likeness.(DF)

Psalm 18

Royal Thanksgiving for Victory

To the leader. A Psalm of David the servant of the Lord, who addressed the words of this song to the Lord on the day when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said:

I love you, O Lord, my strength.
The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer,
    my God, my rock in whom I take refuge,
    my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.(DG)
I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,
    so I shall be saved from my enemies.(DH)

The cords of death encompassed me;
    the torrents of perdition assailed me;(DI)
the cords of Sheol entangled me;
    the snares of death confronted me.(DJ)

In my distress I called upon the Lord;
    to my God I cried for help.
From his temple he heard my voice,
    and my cry to him reached his ears.(DK)

Then the earth reeled and rocked;
    the foundations also of the mountains trembled
    and reeled because he was angry.(DL)
Smoke went up from his nostrils
    and devouring fire from his mouth;
    glowing coals flamed forth from him.
He bowed the heavens and came down;
    thick darkness was under his feet.(DM)
10 He rode on a cherub and flew;
    he came swiftly upon the wings of the wind.(DN)
11 He made darkness his covering around him,
    his canopy thick clouds dark with water.(DO)
12 Out of the brightness before him
    there broke through his clouds
    hailstones and coals of fire.(DP)
13 The Lord also thundered in the heavens,
    and the Most High uttered his voice.[n](DQ)
14 And he sent out his arrows and scattered them;
    he flashed forth lightnings and routed them.(DR)
15 Then the channels of the sea were seen,
    and the foundations of the world were laid bare
at your rebuke, O Lord,
    at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.(DS)

16 He reached down from on high; he took me;
    he drew me out of mighty waters.(DT)
17 He delivered me from my strong enemy
    and from those who hated me,
    for they were too mighty for me.(DU)
18 They confronted me in the day of my calamity,
    but the Lord was my support.
19 He brought me out into a broad place;
    he delivered me because he delighted in me.(DV)

20 The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness;
    according to the cleanness of my hands he recompensed me.(DW)
21 For I have kept the ways of the Lord
    and have not wickedly departed from my God.(DX)
22 For all his ordinances were before me,
    and his statutes I did not put away from me.(DY)
23 I was blameless before him,
    and I kept myself from guilt.
24 Therefore the Lord has recompensed me according to my righteousness,
    according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.(DZ)

25 With the loyal you show yourself loyal;
    with the blameless you show yourself blameless;(EA)
26 with the pure you show yourself pure;
    and with the crooked you show yourself shrewd.(EB)
27 For you deliver a humble people,
    but the haughty eyes you bring down.(EC)
28 It is you who light my lamp;
    the Lord, my God, lights up my darkness.(ED)
29 By you I can outrun a troop,
    and by my God I can leap over a wall.(EE)
30 This God—his way is perfect;
    the promise of the Lord proves true;
    he is a shield for all who take refuge in him.(EF)

31 For who is God except the Lord?
    And who is a rock besides our God?(EG)
32 The God who has girded me with strength
    and made my way safe.[o]
33 He made my feet like the feet of a deer
    and set me secure on the heights.(EH)
34 He trains my hands for war,
    so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.(EI)
35 You have given me the shield of your salvation,
    and your right hand has supported me;
    your help[p] has made me great.
36 You gave me a wide place for my steps under me,
    and my feet did not slip.
37 I pursued my enemies and overtook them
    and did not turn back until they were consumed.(EJ)
38 I struck them down so that they were unable to rise;
    they fell under my feet.(EK)
39 For you girded me with strength for the battle;
    you made my assailants sink under me.(EL)
40 You made my enemies turn their backs to me,
    and those who hated me I destroyed.(EM)
41 They cried for help, but there was no one to save them;
    they cried to the Lord, but he did not answer them.(EN)
42 I beat them fine, like dust before the wind;
    I cast them out like the mire of the streets.(EO)

43 You delivered me from strife with the peoples;[q]
    you made me head of the nations;
    people whom I had not known served me.(EP)
44 As soon as they heard of me, they obeyed me;
    foreigners came cringing to me.
45 Foreigners lost heart
    and came trembling out of their strongholds.(EQ)

46 The Lord lives! Blessed be my rock,
    and exalted be the God of my salvation,(ER)
47 the God who gave me vengeance
    and subdued peoples under me,(ES)
48 who delivered me from my enemies;
    indeed, you exalted me above my adversaries;
    you delivered me from the violent.(ET)

49 For this I will extol you, O Lord, among the nations
    and sing praises to your name.(EU)
50 Great triumphs he gives to his king
    and shows steadfast love to his anointed,
    to David and his descendants forever.(EV)

Footnotes

  1. 7.6 Or awake for me
  2. 7.7 Cn: Heb return
  3. 7.12 Heb he
  4. 8.4 Heb son of man
  5. 8.5 Or than the divine beings or angels
  6. 9.1 Psalms 9–10 were originally one psalm, as in the Greek and Latin traditions. In Hebrew, Psalms 9–10 formed an acrostic.
  7. 10.1 Psalms 9–10 were originally one psalm, as in the Greek and Latin traditions. In Hebrew, Psalms 9–10 formed an acrostic.
  8. 10.18 Meaning of Heb uncertain
  9. 11.1 Gk Syr Jerome Tg: Heb flee to your mountain, O bird
  10. 13.2 Syr: Heb hold counsels
  11. 16.2 Jerome Tg: Meaning of Heb uncertain
  12. 16.4 Cn: Meaning of Heb uncertain
  13. 17.11 Q ms Gk: MT Our steps
  14. 18.13 Gk: Heb adds hailstones and coals of fire
  15. 18.32 Meaning of Heb uncertain
  16. 18.35 Or gentleness
  17. 18.43 Gk Tg: Heb people

The psalm of David which he sung to the Lord for the words of Chusi the son of Jemini. [2 Kings 16.]

O Lord my God, in thee have I put my trust: save me from all them that persecute me, and deliver me.

Lest at any time he seize upon my soul like a lion, while there is no one to redeem me, nor to save.

O Lord my God, if I have done this thing, if there be iniquity in my hands:

If I have rendered to them that repaid me evils, let me deservedly fall empty before my enemies.

Let the enemy pursue my soul, and take it, and tread down my life on the earth, and bring down my glory to the dust.

Rise up, O Lord, in thy anger: and be thou exalted in the borders of my enemies. And arise, O Lord my God, in the precept which thou hast commanded:

And a congregation of people shall surround thee. And for their sakes return thou on high.

The Lord judgeth the people. Judge me, O Lord, according to my justice, and according to my innocence in me.

10 The wickedness of sinners shall be brought to nought: and thou shalt direct the just: the searcher of hearts and reins is God.

11 Just is my help from the Lord: who saveth the upright of heart.

12 God is a just judge, strong and patient: is he angry every day?

13 Except you will be converted, he will brandish his sword: he hath bent his bow and made it ready.

14 And in it he hath prepared the instruments of death, he hath made ready his arrows for them that burn.

15 Behold he hath been in labour with injustice; he hath conceived sorrow, and brought forth iniquity.

16 He hath opened a pit and dug it; and he is fallen into the hole he made.

17 His sorrow shall be turned on his own head: and his iniquity shall comedown upon his crown.

18 I will give glory to the Lord according to his justice: and will sing to the name of the Lord the most high.

Unto the end, for the presses: a psalm of David.

O Lord our Lord, how admirable is thy name in the whole earth! For thy magnificence is elevated above the heavens.

Out of the mouth of infants and of sucklings thou hast perfected praise, because of thy enemies, that thou mayst destroy the enemy and the avenger.

For I will behold thy heavens, the works of thy fingers: the moon and the stars which thou hast founded.

What is man that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man that thou visitest him?

Thou hast made him a little less than the angels, thou hast crowned him with glory and honour:

And hast set him over the works of thy hands.

Thou hast subjected all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen: moreover the beasts also of the fields.

The birds of the air, and the fishes of the sea, that pass through the paths of the sea.

10 O Lord our Lord, how admirable is thy name in all the earth!

Unto the end, for the hidden things of the Son. A psalm for David.

I will give praise to thee, O Lord, with my whole heart: I will relate all thy wonders.

I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing to thy name, O thou most high.

When my enemy shall be turned back: they shall be weakened and perish before thy face.

For thou hast maintained my judgment and my cause: thou hast sat on the throne, who judgest justice.

Thou hast rebuked the Gentiles, and the wicked one hath perished: thou hast blotted out their name for ever and ever.

The swords of the enemy have failed unto the end: and their cities thou hast destroyed. Their memory hath perished with a noise.

But the Lord remaineth for ever. He hath prepared his throne in judgment:

And he shall judge the world in equity, he shall judge the people in justice.

10 And the Lord is become a refuge for the poor: a helper in due time in tribulation.

11 And let them trust in thee who know thy name: for thou hast not forsaken them that seek thee, O Lord.

12 Sing ye to the Lord, who dwelleth in Sion: declare his ways among the Gentiles:

13 For requiring their blood he hath remembered the: he hath not forgotten the cry of the poor.

14 Have mercy on me, O Lord: see my humiliation which I suffer from my enemies.

15 Thou that liftest me up from the gates of death, that I may declare all thy praises in the gates of the daughter of Sion.

16 I will rejoice in thy salvation: the Gentiles have stuck fast in the destruction which they have prepared. Their foot hath been taken in the very snare which they hid.

17 The Lord shall be known when he executeth judgments: the sinner hath been caught in the works of his own hands.

18 The wicked shall be turned into hell, all the nations that forget God.

19 For the poor man shall not be forgotten to the end: the patience of the poor shall not perish for ever.

20 Arise, O Lord, let not man be strengthened: let the Gentiles be judged in thy sight.

21 Appoint, O Lord, a lawgiver over them: that the Gentiles may know themselves to be but men.

22 Why, O Lord, hast thou retired afar off? why dost thou slight us in our wants, in the time of trouble?

23 Whilst the wicked man is proud, the poor is set on fire: they are caught in the counsels which they devise.

24 For the sinner is praised in the desires of his soul: and the unjust man is blessed.

25 The sinner hath provoked the Lord according to the multitude of his wrath he will not seek him:

26 God is not before his eyes: his ways are filthy at all times. Thy judgments are removed from his sight: he shall rule over all his enemies.

27 For he hath said in his heart: I shall not be moved from generation to generation, and shall be without evil.

28 His mouth is full of cursing, and of bitterness, and of deceit: under his tongue are labour and sorrow.

29 He sitteth in ambush with the rich in private places, that he may kill the innocent.

30 His eyes are upon the poor man: He lieth in wait in secret like a lion in his den. He lieth in ambush that he may catch the poor man: to catch the poor, whilst he draweth him to him.

31 In his net he will bring him down, he will crouch and fall, when he shall have power over the poor.

32 For he hath said in his heart: God hath forgotten, he hath turned away his face not to see to the end.

33 Arise, O Lord God, let thy hand be exalted: forget not the poor.

34 Wherefore hath the wicked provoked God? for he hath said in his heart: He will not require it.

35 Thou seest it, for thou considerest labour and sorrow: that thou mayst deliver them into thy hands. To thee is the poor man left: thou wilt be a helper to the orphan.

36 Break thou the arm of the sinner and of the malignant: his sin shall be sought, and shall not be found.

37 The Lord shall reign to eternity, yea, for ever and ever: ye Gentiles shall perish from his land.

38 The Lord hath heard the desire of the poor: thy ear hath heard the preparation of their heart.

39 To judge for the fatherless and for the humble, that man may no more presume to magnify himself upon earth.

10 Unto the end. A psalm for David.

In the Lord I put my trust: how then do you say to my soul: Get thee away from hence to the mountain like a sparrow?

For, lo, the wicked have bent their bow; they have prepared their arrows in the quiver; to shoot in the dark the upright of heart.

For they have destroyed the things which thou hast made: but what has the just man done?

The Lord is in his holy temple, the Lord's throne is in heaven. His eyes look on the poor man: his eyelids examine the sons of men.

The Lord trieth the just and the wicked: but he that loveth iniquity hateth his own soul.

He shall rain snares upon sinners: fire and brimstone and storms of winds shall be the portion of their cup.

For the Lord is just, and hath loved justice: his countenance hath beheld righteousness.

11 Unto the end; for the octave, a psalm for David.

Save me, O Lord, for there is now no saint: truths are decayed from among the children of men.

They have spoken vain things every one to his neighbour: with deceitful lips, and with a double heart have they spoken.

May the Lord destroy all deceitful lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things.

Who have said: We will magnify our tongue; our lips are our own; who is Lord over us?

By reason of the misery of the needy, and the groans of the poor, now will I arise, saith the Lord. I win set him in safety; I will deal confidently in his regard.

The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried by the fire, purged from the earth refined seven times.

Thou, O Lord, wilt preserve us: and keep us from this generation for ever.

The wicked walk round about: according to thy highness, thou hast multiplied the children of men.

12 Unto the end, a psalm for David. How long, O Lord, wilt thou forget me unto the end? how long dost thou turn away thy face from me?

How long shall I take counsels in my soul, sorrow in my heart all the day?

How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?

Consider, and hear me, O Lord my God. Enlighten my eyes that I never sleep in death:

Lest at any time my enemy say: I have prevailed against him. They that trouble me will rejoice when I am moved:

But I have trusted in thy mercy. My heart shall rejoice in thy salvation: I will sing to the Lord, who giveth me good things: yea I will sing to the name of the Lord the most high.

13 Unto the end, a psalm for David. The fool hath said in his heart: There is no God, They are corrupt, and are become abominable in their ways: there is none that doth good, no not one.

The Lord hath looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there be any that understand and seek God.

They are all gone aside, they are become unprofitable together: there is none that doth good, no not one. Their throat is an open sepulchre: with their tongues they acted deceitfully; the poison of asps is under their lips. Their mouth is full of cursing and bitterness; their feet are swift to shed blood. Destruction and unhappiness in their ways: and the way of peace they have not known: there is no fear of God before their eyes.

Shall not all they know that work iniquity, who devour my people as they eat bread?

They have not called upon the Lord: there have they trembled for fear, where there was no fear.

For the Lord is in the just generation: you have confounded the counsel of the poor man, but the Lord is his hope.

Who shall give out of Sion the salvation of Israel? when the Lord shall have turned away the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice and Israel shall be glad.

14 A psalm of David. Lord, who shall dwell in thy tabernacle? or who shall rest in thy holy hill?

He that walketh without blemish, and worketh justice:

He that speaketh truth in his heart, who hath not used deceit in his tongue: Nor hath done evil to his neighbour: nor taken up a reproach against his neighbours.

In his sight the malignant is brought to nothing: but he glorifieth them that fear the Lord. He that sweareth to his neighbour, and deceiveth not;

He that hath not put out his money to usury, nor taken bribes against the innocent: He that doth these things shall not be moved for ever.

15 The inscription of a title to David himself. Preserve me, O Lord, for I have put trust in thee.

I have said to the Lord, thou art my God, for thou hast no need of my goods.

To the saints, who are in his land, he hath made wonderful all my desires in them.

Their infirmities were multiplied: afterwards they made haste. I will not gather together their meetings for blood offerings: nor will I be mindful of their names by my lips.

The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and of my cup: it is thou that wilt restore my inheritance to me.

The lines are fallen unto me in goodly places: for my inheritance is goodly to me.

I will bless the Lord, who hath given me understanding: moreover my reins also have corrected me even till night.

I set the Lord always in my sight: for he is at my right hand, that I be not moved.

Therefore my heart hath been glad, and my tongue hath rejoiced: moreover my flesh also shall rest in hope.

10 Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; nor wilt then give thy holy one to see corruption.

11 Thou hast made known to me the ways of life, thou shalt fill me with joy with thy countenance: at thy right hand are delights even to the end.

16 The prayer of David. Hear, O Lord, my justice: attend to my supplication. Give ear unto my prayer, which proceedeth not from deceitful lips.

Let my judgment come forth from thy countenance: let thy eyes behold the things that are equitable.

Thou hast proved my heart, and visited it by night, thou hast tried me by fire: and iniquity hath not been found in me.

That my mouth may not speak the works of men: for the sake of the words of thy lips, I have kept hard ways.

Perfect thou my goings in thy paths: that my footsteps be not moved.

I have cried to thee, for thou, O God, hast heard me: O incline thy ear unto me, and hear my words.

shew forth thy wonderful mercies; thou who savest them that trust in thee.

From them that resist thy right hand keep me, as the apple of thy eye. Protect me under the shadow of thy wings.

From the face of the wicked who have afflicted me. My enemies have surrounded my soul:

10 They have shut up their fat: their mouth hath spoken proudly.

11 They have cast me forth and now they have surrounded me: they have set their eyes bowing down to the earth.

12 They have taken me, as a lion prepared for the prey; and as a young lion dwelling in secret places.

13 Arise, O Lord, disappoint him and supplant him; deliver my soul from the wicked one: thy sword

14 From the enemies of thy hand. O Lord, divide them from the few of the earth in their life: their belly is filled from thy hidden stores. They are full of children: and they have left to their little ones the rest of their substance.

15 But as for me, I will appear before thy sight in justice: I shall be satisfied when thy glory shall appear.

17 Unto the end, for David the servant of the Lord, who spoke to the Lord the words of this canticle, in the day that the Lord delivered him from the hands of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. [2 Kings 22.]

I will love thee, O Lord, my strength:

The Lord is my firmament, my refuge, and my deliverer. My God is my helper, and in him will I put my trust. My protector and the horn of my salvation, and my support.

Praising I will call upon the Lord: and I shall be saved from my enemies.

The sorrows of death surrounded me: and the torrents of iniquity troubled me.

The sorrows of hell encompassed me: and the snares of death prevented me.

In my affliction I called upon the Lord, and I cried to my God: And he heard my voice from his holy temple: and my cry before him came into his ears.

The earth shook and trembled: the foundations of the mountains were troubled and were moved, because he was angry with them.

There went up a smoke in his wrath: and a fire flamed from his face: coals were kindled by it.

10 He bowed the heavens, and came down: and darkness was under his feet.

11 And he ascended upon the cherubim, and he flew; he flew upon the wings of the winds.

12 And he made darkness his covert, his pavilion round about him: dark waters in the clouds of the air.

13 At the brightness that was before him the clouds passed, hail and coals of fire.

14 And the Lord thundered from heaven, and the highest gave his voice: hail and coals of fire.

15 And he sent forth his arrows, and he scattered them: he multiplied lightnings, and troubled them.

16 Then the fountains of waters appeared, and the foundations of the world were discovered: At thy rebuke, O Lord, at the blast of the spirit of thy wrath.

17 He sent from on high, and took me: and received me out of many waters.

18 He delivered me from my strongest enemies, and from them that hated me: for they were too strong for me.

19 They prevented me in the day of my affliction: and the Lord became my protector.

20 And he brought me forth into a large place: he saved me, because he was well pleased with me.

21 And the Lord will reward me according to my justice; and will repay me according to the cleanness of my hands:

22 Because I have kept the ways of the Lord; and have not done wickedly against my God.

23 For till his judgments are in my sight: and his justices I have not put away from me.

24 And I shall be spotless with him: and shall keep myself from my iniquity.

25 And the Lord will reward me according to my justice; and according to the cleanness of my hands before his eyes.

26 With the holy, thou wilt be holy; and with the innocent man thou wilt be innocent.

27 And with the elect thou wilt be elect: and with the perverse thou wilt be perverted.

28 For thou wilt save the humble people; but wilt bring down the eyes of the proud.

29 For thou lightest my lamp, O Lord: O my God enlighten my darkness.

30 For by thee I shall be delivered from temptation; and through my God I shall go over a wall.

31 As for my God, his way is undefiled: the words of the Lord are fire tried: he is the protector of all that trust in him.

32 For who is God but the Lord? or who is God but our God?

33 God who hath girt me with strength; and made my way blameless.

34 Who hath made my feet like the feet of harts: and who setteth me upon high places.

35 Who teacheth my hands to war: and thou hast made my arms like a brazen bow.

36 And thou hast given me the protection of thy salvation: and thy right hand hath held me up: And thy discipline hath corrected me unto the end: and thy discipline, the same shall teach me.

37 Thou hast enlarged my steps under me; and my feet are not weakened.

38 I will pursue after my enemies, and overtake them: and I will not turn again till they are consumed.

39 I will break them, and they shall not be able to stand: they shall fall under my feet.

40 And thou hast girded me with strength unto battle; and hast subdued under me them that rose up against me.

41 And thou hast made my enemies turn their back upon me, and hast destroyed them that hated me.

42 They cried, but there was none to save them, to the Lord: but he heard them not.

43 And I shall beat them as small as the dust before the wind; I shall bring them to nought, like the dirt in the streets.

44 Thou wilt deliver me from the contradictions of the people: thou wilt make me head of the Gentiles.

45 A people, which I knew not, hath served me: at the hearing of the ear they have obeyed me.

46 The children that are strangers have lied to me, strange children have faded away, and have halted from their paths.

47 The Lord liveth, and blessed be my God, and let the God of my salvation be exalted:

48 O God, who avengest me, and subduest the people under me, my deliverer from my enemies.

49 And thou wilt lift me up above them that rise up against me: from the unjust man thou wilt deliver me.

50 Therefore will I give glory to thee, O Lord, among the nations, and I will sing a psalm to thy name.

51 Giving great deliverance to his king, and shewing mercy to David his anointed: and to his seed for ever.

18 Unto the end. A psalm for David.

The heavens shew forth the glory of God, and the firmament declareth the work of his hands.

Day to day uttereth speech, and night to night sheweth knowledge.

There are no speeches nor languages, where their voices are not heard.

Their sound hath gone forth into all the earth: and their words unto the ends of the world.

He hath set his tabernacle in the sun: and he, as a bridegroom coming out of his bride chamber, Hath rejoiced as a giant to run the way:

His going out is from the end of heaven, And his circuit even to the end thereof: and there is no one that can hide himself from his heat.

The law of the Lord is unspotted, converting souls: the testimony of the Lord is faithful, giving wisdom to little ones.

The justices of the Lord are right, rejoicing hearts: the commandment of the Lord is lightsome, enlightening the eyes.

10 The fear of the Lord is holy, enduring for ever and ever: the judgments of the Lord are true, justified in themselves.

11 More to be desired than gold and many precious stones: and sweeter than honey and the honeycomb.

12 For thy servant keepeth them, and in keeping them there is a great reward.

13 Who can understand sins? from my secret ones cleanse me, O Lord:

14 And from those of others spare thy servant. If they shall have no dominion over me, then shall I be without spot: and I shall be cleansed from the greatest sin.

15 And the words of my mouth shall be such as may please: and the meditation of my heart always in thy sight. O Lord, my helper, and my redeemer.

1-2 God! God! I am running to you for dear life;
    the chase is wild.
If they catch me, I’m finished:
    ripped to shreds by foes fierce as lions,
    dragged into the forest and left
    unlooked for, unremembered.

3-5 God, if I’ve done what they say—
    betrayed my friends,
    ripped off my enemies—
If my hands are really that dirty,
    let them get me, walk all over me,
    leave me flat on my face in the dirt.

6-8 Stand up, God; pit your holy fury
    against my furious enemies.
Wake up, God. My accusers have packed
    the courtroom; it’s judgment time.
Take your place on the bench, reach for your gavel,
    throw out the false charges against me.
I’m ready, confident in your verdict:
    “Innocent.”

9-11 Close the book on Evil, God,
    but publish your mandate for us.
You get us ready for life:
    you probe for our soft spots,
    you knock off our rough edges.
And I’m feeling so fit, so safe:
    made right, kept right.
God in solemn honor does things right,
    but his nerves are sandpapered raw.

11-13 Nobody gets by with anything.
    God is already in action—
Sword honed on his whetstone,
    bow strung, arrow on the string,
Lethal weapons in hand,
    each arrow a flaming missile.

14 Look at that guy!
    He had sex with sin,
    he’s pregnant with evil.
Oh, look! He’s having
    the baby—a Lie-Baby!

15-16 See that man shoveling day after day,
    digging, then concealing, his man-trap
    down that lonely stretch of road?
Go back and look again—you’ll see him in it headfirst,
    legs waving in the breeze.
That’s what happens:
    mischief backfires;
    violence boomerangs.

17 I’m thanking God, who makes things right.
I’m singing the fame of heaven-high God.
God, brilliant Lord,
    yours is a household name.

Nursing infants gurgle choruses about you;
    toddlers shout the songs
That drown out enemy talk,
    and silence atheist babble.

3-4 I look up at your macro-skies, dark and enormous,
    your handmade sky-jewelry,
Moon and stars mounted in their settings.
    Then I look at my micro-self and wonder,
Why do you bother with us?
    Why take a second look our way?

5-8 Yet we’ve so narrowly missed being gods,
    bright with Eden’s dawn light.
You put us in charge of your handcrafted world,
    repeated to us your Genesis-charge,
Made us stewards of sheep and cattle,
    even animals out in the wild,
Birds flying and fish swimming,
    whales singing in the ocean deeps.

God, brilliant Lord,
    your name echoes around the world.
1-2 I’m thanking you, God, from a full heart,
    I’m writing the book on your wonders.
I’m whistling, laughing, and jumping for joy;
    I’m singing your song, High God.

3-4 The day my enemies turned tail and ran,
    they stumbled on you and fell on their faces.
You took over and set everything right;
    when I needed you, you were there, taking charge.

5-6 You blow the whistle on godless nations;
    you throw dirty players out of the game,
    wipe their names right off the roster.
Enemies disappear from the sidelines,
    their reputation trashed,
    their names erased from the halls of fame.

7-8 God holds the high center,
    he sees and sets the world’s mess right.
He decides what is right for us earthlings,
    gives people their just deserts.

9-10 God’s a safe-house for the battered,
    a sanctuary during bad times.
The moment you arrive, you relax;
    you’re never sorry you knocked.

11-12 Sing your songs to Zion-dwelling God,
    tell his stories to everyone you meet:
How he tracks down killers
    yet keeps his eye on us,
    registers every whimper and moan.

13-14 Be kind to me, God;
    I’ve been kicked around long enough.
Once you’ve pulled me back
    from the gates of death,
I’ll write the book on Hallelujahs;
    on the corner of Main and First
    I’ll hold a street meeting;
I’ll be the song leader; we’ll fill the air
    with salvation songs.

15-16 They’re trapped, those godless countries,
    in the very snares they set,
Their feet all tangled
    in the net they spread.
They have no excuse;
    the way God works is well-known.
The shrewd machinery made by the wicked
    has maimed their own hands.

17-20 The wicked bought a one-way
    ticket to hell.
No longer will the poor be nameless—
    no more humiliation for the humble.
Up, God! Aren’t you fed up with their empty strutting?
    Expose these grand pretensions!
Shake them up, God!
    Show them how silly they look.
10 1-2 God, are you avoiding me?
    Where are you when I need you?
Full of hot air, the wicked
    are hot on the trail of the poor.
Trip them up, tangle them up
    in their fine-tuned plots.

3-4 The wicked are windbags,
    the swindlers have foul breath.
The wicked snub God,
    their noses stuck high in the air.
Their graffiti are scrawled on the walls:
    “Catch us if you can!” “God is dead.”

5-6 They care nothing for what you think;
    if you get in their way, they blow you off.
They live (they think) a charmed life:
    “We can’t go wrong. This is our lucky year!”

7-8 They carry a mouthful of spells,
    their tongues spit venom like adders.
They hide behind ordinary people,
    then pounce on their victims.

They mark the luckless,
    then wait like a hunter in a blind;
When the poor wretch wanders too close,
    they stab him in the back.

10-11 The hapless fool is kicked to the ground,
    the unlucky victim is brutally axed.
He thinks God has dumped him,
    he’s sure that God is indifferent to his plight.

12-13 Time to get up, God—get moving.
    The luckless think they’re Godforsaken.
They wonder why the wicked scorn God
    and get away with it,
Why the wicked are so cocksure
    they’ll never come up for audit.

14 But you know all about it—
    the contempt, the abuse.
I dare to believe that the luckless
    will get lucky someday in you.
You won’t let them down:
    orphans won’t be orphans forever.

15-16 Break the wicked right arms,
    break all the evil left arms.
Search and destroy
    every sign of crime.
God’s grace and order wins;
    godlessness loses.

17-18 The victim’s faint pulse picks up;
    the hearts of the hopeless pump red blood
    as you put your ear to their lips.
Orphans get parents,
    the homeless get homes.
The reign of terror is over,
    the rule of the gang lords is ended.
11 1-3 I’ve already run for dear life
    straight to the arms of God.
So why would I run away now
    when you say,

“Run to the mountains; the evil
    bows are bent, the wicked arrows
Aimed to shoot under cover of darkness
    at every heart open to God.
The bottom’s dropped out of the country;
    good people don’t have a chance”?

4-6 But God hasn’t moved to the mountains;
    his holy address hasn’t changed.
He’s in charge, as always, his eyes
    taking everything in, his eyelids
Unblinking, examining Adam’s flesh and blood
    inside and out, not missing a thing.
He tests the good and the bad alike;
    if anyone cheats, God’s outraged.
Fail the test and you’re out,
    out in a hail of firestones,
Drinking from a canteen
    filled with hot desert wind.

God’s business is putting things right;
    he loves getting the lines straight,
Setting us straight. Once we’re standing tall,
    we can look him straight in the eye.
12 1-2 Quick, God, I need your helping hand!
The last decent person just went down,
All the friends I depended on gone.
Everyone talks in lie language;
Lies slide off their oily lips.
They doubletalk with forked tongues.

3-4 Slice their lips off their faces! Pull
The braggart tongues from their mouths!
I’m tired of hearing, “We can talk anyone into anything!
Our lips manage the world.”

Into the hovels of the poor,
Into the dark streets where the homeless groan, God speaks:
“I’ve had enough; I’m on my way
To heal the ache in the heart of the wretched.”

6-8 God’s words are pure words,
Pure silver words refined seven times
In the fires of his word-kiln,
Pure on earth as well as in heaven.
God, keep us safe from their lies,
From the wicked who stalk us with lies,
From the wicked who collect honors
For their wonderful lies.
13 1-2 Long enough, God
    you’ve ignored me long enough.
I’ve looked at the back of your head
    long enough. Long enough
I’ve carried this ton of trouble,
    lived with a stomach full of pain.
Long enough my arrogant enemies
    have looked down their noses at me.

3-4 Take a good look at me, God, my God;
    I want to look life in the eye,
So no enemy can get the best of me
    or laugh when I fall on my face.

5-6 I’ve thrown myself headlong into your arms—
    I’m celebrating your rescue.
I’m singing at the top of my lungs,
    I’m so full of answered prayers.
14 Bilious and bloated, they gas,
    “God is gone.”
Their words are poison gas,
    fouling the air; they poison
Rivers and skies;
    thistles are their cash crop.

God sticks his head out of heaven.
    He looks around.
He’s looking for someone not stupid—
    one man, even, God-expectant,
    just one God-ready woman.

He comes up empty. A string
    of zeros. Useless, unshepherded
Sheep, taking turns pretending
    to be Shepherd.
The ninety and nine
    follow their fellow.

Don’t they know anything,
    all these predators?
Don’t they know
    they can’t get away with this—
Treating people like a fast-food meal
    over which they’re too busy to pray?

5-6 Night is coming for them, and nightmares,
    for God takes the side of victims.
Do you think you can mess
    with the dreams of the poor?
You can’t, for God
    makes their dreams come true.

Is there anyone around to save Israel?
    Yes. God is around; God turns life around.
Turned-around Jacob skips rope,
    turned-around Israel sings laughter.
15 God, who gets invited
    to dinner at your place?
How do we get on your guest list?

“Walk straight,
    act right,
        tell the truth.

3-4 “Don’t hurt your friend,
    don’t blame your neighbor;
        despise the despicable.

“Keep your word even when it costs you,
    make an honest living,
        never take a bribe.

“You’ll never get
blacklisted
if you live like this.”
16 1-2 Keep me safe, O God,
    I’ve run for dear life to you.
I say to God, “Be my Lord!”
    Without you, nothing makes sense.

And these God-chosen lives all around—
    what splendid friends they make!

Don’t just go shopping for a god.
    Gods are not for sale.
I swear I’ll never treat god-names
    like brand-names.

5-6 My choice is you, God, first and only.
    And now I find I’m your choice!
You set me up with a house and yard.
    And then you made me your heir!

7-8 The wise counsel God gives when I’m awake
    is confirmed by my sleeping heart.
Day and night I’ll stick with God;
    I’ve got a good thing going and I’m not letting go.

9-10 I’m happy from the inside out,
    and from the outside in, I’m firmly formed.
You canceled my ticket to hell—
    that’s not my destination!

11 Now you’ve got my feet on the life path,
    all radiant from the shining of your face.
Ever since you took my hand,
    I’m on the right way.
17 1-2 Listen while I build my case, God,
    the most honest prayer you’ll ever hear.
Show the world I’m innocent—
    in your heart you know I am.

Go ahead, examine me from inside out,
    surprise me in the middle of the night—
You’ll find I’m just what I say I am.
    My words don’t run loose.

4-5 I’m not trying to get my way
    in the world’s way.
I’m trying to get your way,
    your Word’s way.
I’m staying on your trail;
    I’m putting one foot
In front of the other.
    I’m not giving up.

6-7 I call to you, God, because I’m sure of an answer.
    So—answer! bend your ear! listen sharp!
Paint grace-graffiti on the fences;
    take in your frightened children who
Are running from the neighborhood bullies
    straight to you.

8-9 Keep your eye on me;
    hide me under your cool wing feathers
From the wicked who are out to get me,
    from mortal enemies closing in.

10-14 Their hearts are hard as nails,
    their mouths blast hot air.
They are after me, nipping my heels,
    determined to bring me down,
Lions ready to rip me apart,
    young lions poised to pounce.
Up, God: beard them! break them!
    By your sword, free me from their clutches;
Barehanded, God, break these mortals,
    these flat-earth people who can’t think beyond today.

I’d like to see their bellies
    swollen with famine food,
The weeds they’ve sown
    harvested and baked into famine bread,
With second helpings for their children
    and crusts for their babies to chew on.

15 And me? I plan on looking
    you full in the face. When I get up,
I’ll see your full stature
    and live heaven on earth.
18 1-2 I love you, God
    you make me strong.
God is bedrock under my feet,
    the castle in which I live,
    my rescuing knight.
My God—the high crag
    where I run for dear life,
    hiding behind the boulders,
    safe in the granite hideout.

I sing to God, the Praise-Lofty,
    and find myself safe and saved.

4-5 The hangman’s noose was tight at my throat;
    devil waters rushed over me.
Hell’s ropes cinched me tight;
    death traps barred every exit.

A hostile world! I call to God,
    I cry to God to help me.
From his palace he hears my call;
    my cry brings me right into his presence—
    a private audience!

7-15 Earth wobbles and lurches;
    huge mountains shake like leaves,
Quake like aspen leaves
    because of his rage.
His nostrils flare, bellowing smoke;
    his mouth spits fire.
Tongues of fire dart in and out;
    he lowers the sky.
He steps down;
    under his feet an abyss opens up.
He’s riding a winged creature,
    swift on wind-wings.
Now he’s wrapped himself
    in a trenchcoat of black-cloud darkness.
But his cloud-brightness bursts through,
    spraying hailstones and fireballs.
Then God thundered out of heaven;
    the High God gave a great shout,
    spraying hailstones and fireballs.
God shoots his arrows—pandemonium!
    He hurls his lightnings—a rout!
The secret sources of ocean are exposed,
    the hidden depths of earth lie uncovered
The moment you roar in protest,
    let loose your hurricane anger.

16-19 But me he caught—reached all the way
    from sky to sea; he pulled me out
Of that ocean of hate, that enemy chaos,
    the void in which I was drowning.
They hit me when I was down,
    but God stuck by me.
He stood me up on a wide-open field;
    I stood there saved—surprised to be loved!

20-24 God made my life complete
    when I placed all the pieces before him.
When I got my act together,
    he gave me a fresh start.
Now I’m alert to God’s ways;
    I don’t take God for granted.
Every day I review the ways he works;
    I try not to miss a trick.
I feel put back together,
    and I’m watching my step.
God rewrote the text of my life
    when I opened the book of my heart to his eyes.

25-27 The good people taste your goodness,
The whole people taste your health,
The true people taste your truth,
The bad ones can’t figure you out.
You take the side of the down-and-out,
But the stuck-up you take down a notch.

28-29 Suddenly, God, you floodlight my life;
    I’m blazing with glory, God’s glory!
I smash the bands of marauders,
    I vault the highest fences.

30 What a God! His road
    stretches straight and smooth.
Every God-direction is road-tested.
    Everyone who runs toward him
Makes it.

31-42 Is there any god like God?
    Are we not at bedrock?
Is not this the God who armed me,
    then aimed me in the right direction?
Now I run like a deer;
    I’m king of the mountain.
He shows me how to fight;
    I can bend a bronze bow!
You protect me with salvation-armor;
    you hold me up with a firm hand,
    caress me with your gentle ways.
You cleared the ground under me
    so my footing was firm.
When I chased my enemies I caught them;
    I didn’t let go till they were dead men.
I nailed them; they were down for good;
    then I walked all over them.
You armed me well for this fight,
    you smashed the upstarts.
You made my enemies turn tail,
    and I wiped out the haters.
They cried “uncle”
    but Uncle didn’t come;
They yelled for God
    and got no for an answer.
I ground them to dust; they gusted in the wind.
    I threw them out, like garbage in the gutter.

43-45 You rescued me from a squabbling people;
    you made me a leader of nations.
People I’d never heard of served me;
    the moment they got wind of me they listened.
The foreign devils gave up; they came
    on their bellies, crawling from their hideouts.

46-48 Live, God! Blessings from my Rock,
    my free and freeing God, towering!
This God set things right for me
    and shut up the people who talked back.
He rescued me from enemy anger,
    he pulled me from the grip of upstarts,
He saved me from the bullies.

49-50 That’s why I’m thanking you, God,
    all over the world.
That’s why I’m singing songs
    that rhyme your name.
God’s king takes the trophy;
    God’s chosen is beloved.
I mean David and all his children—
    always.