¹⁰ Lord, have mercy on me.
    Make me well again, so I can pay them back!

⁶ They say,^[a] “Get an evil person to turn against him.
    Send an accuser to bring him to trial.
⁷ When his case comes up for judgment,
    let him be pronounced guilty.
    Count his prayers as sins.
⁸ Let his years be few;
    let someone else take his position.
⁹ May his children become fatherless,
    and his wife a widow.
¹⁰ May his children wander as beggars
    and be driven from^[b] their ruined homes.
¹¹ May creditors seize his entire estate,
    and strangers take all he has earned.
¹² Let no one be kind to him;
    let no one pity his fatherless children.
¹³ May all his offspring die.
    May his family name be blotted out in the next generation.
¹⁴ May the Lord never forget the sins of his fathers;
    may his mother’s sins never be erased from the record.
¹⁵ May the Lord always remember these sins,
    and may his name disappear from human memory.
¹⁶ For he refused all kindness to others;
    he persecuted the poor and needy,
    and he hounded the brokenhearted to death.
¹⁷ He loved to curse others;
    now you curse him.
He never blessed others;
    now don’t you bless him.
¹⁸ Cursing is as natural to him as his clothing,
    or the water he drinks,
    or the rich food he eats.
¹⁹ Now may his curses return and cling to him like clothing;
    may they be tied around him like a belt.”

²⁰ May those curses become the Lord’s punishment
    for my accusers who speak evil of me.
²¹ But deal well with me, O Sovereign Lord,
    for the sake of your own reputation!
Rescue me
    because you are so faithful and good.

²² Let the bountiful table set before them become a snare
    and their prosperity become a trap.^[a]
23 Let their eyes go blind so they cannot see,
    and make their bodies shake continually.^[b]
24 Pour out your fury on them;
    consume them with your burning anger.
²⁵ Let their homes become desolate
    and their tents be deserted.
²⁶ To the one you have punished, they add insult to injury;
    they add to the pain of those you have hurt.
²⁷ Pile their sins up high,
    and don’t let them go free.
²⁸ Erase their names from the Book of Life;
    don’t let them be counted among the righteous.

¹ Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy!
    I look to you for protection.
I will hide beneath the shadow of your wings
    until the danger passes by.

⁸ You will capture all your enemies.
    Your strong right hand will seize all who hate you.
⁹ You will throw them in a flaming furnace
    when you appear.
The Lord will consume them in his anger;
    fire will devour them.
¹⁰ You will wipe their children from the face of the earth;
    they will never have descendants.

³⁷ I chased my enemies and caught them;
    I did not stop until they were conquered.
³⁸ I struck them down so they could not get up;
    they fell beneath my feet.
³⁹ You have armed me with strength for the battle;
    you have subdued my enemies under my feet.
⁴⁰ You placed my foot on their necks.
    I have destroyed all who hated me.
⁴¹ They called for help, but no one came to their rescue.
    They even cried to the Lord, but he refused to answer.
⁴² I ground them as fine as dust in the wind.
    I swept them into the gutter like dirt.

³ But you, O Lord, are a shield around me;
    you are my glory, the one who holds my head high.