Our city is strong!
    We are surrounded by the walls of God’s salvation.
² Open the gates to all who are righteous;
    allow the faithful to enter.
³ You will keep in perfect peace
    all who trust in you,
    all whose thoughts are fixed on you!
⁴ Trust in the Lord always,
    for the Lord God is the eternal Rock.
⁵ He humbles the proud
    and brings down the arrogant city.
    He brings it down to the dust.
⁶ The poor and oppressed trample it underfoot,
    and the needy walk all over it.

⁷ But for those who are righteous,
    the way is not steep and rough.
You are a God who does what is right,
    and you smooth out the path ahead of them.
⁸ Lord, we show our trust in you by obeying your laws;
    our heart’s desire is to glorify your name.
⁹ In the night I search for you;
    in the morning^[a] I earnestly seek you.
For only when you come to judge the earth
    will people learn what is right.
¹⁰ Your kindness to the wicked
    does not make them do good.
Although others do right, the wicked keep doing wrong
    and take no notice of the Lord’s majesty.
¹¹ O Lord, they pay no attention to your upraised fist.
    Show them your eagerness to defend your people.
Then they will be ashamed.
    Let your fire consume your enemies.

¹² Lord, you will grant us peace;
    all we have accomplished is really from you.
¹³ O Lord our God, others have ruled us,
    but you alone are the one we worship.
¹⁴ Those we served before are dead and gone.
    Their departed spirits will never return!
You attacked them and destroyed them,
    and they are long forgotten.
¹⁵ O Lord, you have made our nation great;
    yes, you have made us great.
You have extended our borders,
    and we give you the glory!

¹⁶ Lord, in distress we searched for you.
    We prayed beneath the burden of your discipline.
¹⁷ Just as a pregnant woman
    writhes and cries out in pain as she gives birth,
    so were we in your presence, Lord.
¹⁸ We, too, writhe in agony,
    but nothing comes of our suffering.
We have not given salvation to the earth,
    nor brought life into the world.
¹⁹ But those who die in the Lord will live;
    their bodies will rise again!
Those who sleep in the earth
    will rise up and sing for joy!
For your life-giving light will fall like dew
    on your people in the place of the dead!

² It is God’s privilege to conceal things
    and the king’s privilege to discover them.

³ No one can comprehend the height of heaven, the depth of the earth,
    or all that goes on in the king’s mind!

⁴ Remove the impurities from silver,
    and the sterling will be ready for the silversmith.
⁵ Remove the wicked from the king’s court,
    and his reign will be made secure by justice.

⁶ Don’t demand an audience with the king
    or push for a place among the great.
⁷ It’s better to wait for an invitation to the head table
    than to be sent away in public disgrace.

Just because you’ve seen something,
⁸     don’t be in a hurry to go to court.
For what will you do in the end
    if your neighbor deals you a shameful defeat?

⁹ When arguing with your neighbor,
    don’t betray another person’s secret.
¹⁰ Others may accuse you of gossip,
    and you will never regain your good reputation.

¹¹ Timely advice is lovely,
    like golden apples in a silver basket.

¹² To one who listens, valid criticism
    is like a gold earring or other gold jewelry.

¹³ Trustworthy messengers refresh like snow in summer.
    They revive the spirit of their employer.

¹⁴ A person who promises a gift but doesn’t give it
    is like clouds and wind that bring no rain.

¹⁵ Patience can persuade a prince,
    and soft speech can break bones.

¹⁶ Do you like honey?
    Don’t eat too much, or it will make you sick!

¹⁷ Don’t visit your neighbors too often,
    or you will wear out your welcome.

¹⁸ Telling lies about others
    is as harmful as hitting them with an ax,
wounding them with a sword,
    or shooting them with a sharp arrow.

¹⁹ Putting confidence in an unreliable person in times of trouble
    is like chewing with a broken tooth or walking on a lame foot.

²⁰ Singing cheerful songs to a person with a heavy heart
    is like taking someone’s coat in cold weather
    or pouring vinegar in a wound.^[a]

²¹ If your enemies are hungry, give them food to eat.
    If they are thirsty, give them water to drink.
²² You will heap burning coals of shame on their heads,
    and the Lord will reward you.

²³ As surely as a north wind brings rain,
    so a gossiping tongue causes anger!

²⁴ It’s better to live alone in the corner of an attic
    than with a quarrelsome wife in a lovely home.

²⁵ Good news from far away
    is like cold water to the thirsty.

²⁶ If the godly give in to the wicked,
    it’s like polluting a fountain or muddying a spring.

²⁷ It’s not good to eat too much honey,
    and it’s not good to seek honors for yourself.

²⁸ A person without self-control
    is like a city with broken-down walls.

¹ Listen to my prayer, O God.
    Do not ignore my cry for help!
² Please listen and answer me,
    for I am overwhelmed by my troubles.
³ My enemies shout at me,
    making loud and wicked threats.
They bring trouble on me
    and angrily hunt me down.

⁴ My heart pounds in my chest.
    The terror of death assaults me.
⁵ Fear and trembling overwhelm me,
    and I can’t stop shaking.
⁶ Oh, that I had wings like a dove;
    then I would fly away and rest!
⁷ I would fly far away
    to the quiet of the wilderness. Interlude
⁸ How quickly I would escape—
    far from this wild storm of hatred.

⁹ Confuse them, Lord, and frustrate their plans,
    for I see violence and conflict in the city.
¹⁰ Its walls are patrolled day and night against invaders,
    but the real danger is wickedness within the city.
¹¹ Everything is falling apart;
    threats and cheating are rampant in the streets.

¹² It is not an enemy who taunts me—
    I could bear that.
It is not my foes who so arrogantly insult me—
    I could have hidden from them.
¹³ Instead, it is you—my equal,
    my companion and close friend.
¹⁴ What good fellowship we once enjoyed
    as we walked together to the house of God.

¹⁵ Let death stalk my enemies;
    let the grave^[b] swallow them alive,
    for evil makes its home within them.

¹⁶ But I will call on God,
    and the Lord will rescue me.
¹⁷ Morning, noon, and night
    I cry out in my distress,
    and the Lord hears my voice.
¹⁸ He ransoms me and keeps me safe
    from the battle waged against me,
    though many still oppose me.
¹⁹ God, who has ruled forever,
    will hear me and humble them. Interlude
For my enemies refuse to change their ways;
    they do not fear God.

²⁰ As for my companion, he betrayed his friends;
    he broke his promises.
²¹ His words are as smooth as butter,
    but in his heart is war.
His words are as soothing as lotion,
    but underneath are daggers!

²² Give your burdens to the Lord,
    and he will take care of you.
    He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.

²³ But you, O God, will send the wicked
    down to the pit of destruction.
Murderers and liars will die young,
    but I am trusting you to save me.