Psalm 27-28 New American Standard Bible

A Psalm of Fearless Trust in God.

A Psalm of David.

27 The Lord is my ^(A)light and my ^(B)salvation;
Whom should I fear?
The Lord is the ^[a]^(C)defense of my life;
^(D)Whom should I dread?
²When evildoers came upon me to ^(E)devour my flesh,
My adversaries and my enemies, they ^(F)stumbled and fell.
³If an ^(G)army encamps against me,
My heart will not fear;
If war arises against me,
In spite of this I am ^(H)confident.

⁴^(I)One thing I have asked from the Lord, that I shall seek:
That I may ^(J)dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
To behold ^(K)the ^[b]beauty of the Lord
And to ^[c]^(L)meditate in His temple.
⁵For on the ^(M)day of trouble He will ^(N)conceal me in His ^[d]tabernacle;
He will ^(O)hide me in the secret place of His tent;
He will ^(P)lift me up on a rock.
⁶And now ^(Q)my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me,
And I will offer ^(R)sacrifices in His tent ^[e]with shouts of joy;
I will ^(S)sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.

⁷^(T)Hear, Lord, when I cry with my voice,
And be gracious to me and ^(U)answer me.
⁸When You said, “^(V)Seek My face,” my heart said to You,
“^(W)I shall seek Your face, Lord.”
⁹^(X)Do not hide Your face from me,
Do not turn Your servant away in ^(Y)anger;
You have been ^(Z)my help;
^(AA)Do not abandon me nor ^(AB)forsake me,
God of my salvation!
¹⁰^[f]For my father and ^(AC)my mother have forsaken me,
But ^(AD)the Lord will take me up.

¹¹^(AE)Teach me Your way, Lord,
And lead me on a ^(AF)level path
Because of my enemies.
¹²Do not turn me over to the ^[g]^(AG)desire of my enemies,
For ^(AH)false witnesses have risen against me,
And the violent ^(AI)witness.
¹³I certainly believed that I would see the ^(AJ)goodness of the Lord
In the ^(AK)land of the living.
¹⁴^(AL)Wait for the Lord;
Be ^(AM)strong and let your heart take courage;
Yes, wait for the Lord.

A Prayer for Help, and Praise for Its Answer.

A Psalm of David.

28 To You, Lord, I call;
My ^(AN)rock, do not be deaf to me,
For if You ^(AO)are silent to me,
I will become like those who ^(AP)go down to the pit.
²Hear the ^(AQ)sound of my pleadings when I cry to You for help,
When I ^(AR)raise my hands ^(AS)toward ^[h]Your holy ^(AT)sanctuary.
³^(AU)Do not drag me away with the wicked
And with those who practice injustice,
Who ^(AV)speak peace with their neighbors,
While evil is in their hearts.
⁴Give back to them ^(AW)according to their work and according to the evil of their practices;
Give back to them according to the work of their hands;
Repay them what is due them.
⁵Because they ^(AX)do not regard the works of the Lord
Nor the deeds of His hands,
He will tear them down and not build them up.

⁶Blessed be the Lord,
Because He ^(AY)has heard the sound of my pleading.
⁷The Lord is my ^(AZ)strength and my ^(BA)shield;
My heart ^(BB)trusts in Him, and I am helped;
Therefore ^(BC)my heart triumphs,
And with ^(BD)my song I shall thank Him.
⁸The Lord is ^[i]their ^(BE)strength,
And He is a refuge of ^(BF)salvation to His anointed.
⁹^(BG)Save Your people and bless ^(BH)Your inheritance;
Be their ^(BI)shepherd also, and ^(BJ)carry them forever.