Psalm 1-20

English Standard Version

³ He is like ^(I)a tree
    planted by ^(J)streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
    and its ^(K)leaf does not wither.
^(L)In all that he does, he prospers.
⁴ The wicked are not so,
    but are like ^(M)chaff that the wind drives away.

⁵ Therefore the wicked ^(N)will not stand in the judgment,
    nor sinners in ^(O)the congregation of the righteous;
⁶ for the Lord ^(P)knows ^(Q)the way of the righteous,
    but the way of the wicked will perish.

⁴ He who ^(V)sits in the heavens ^(W)laughs;
    the Lord holds them in derision.
⁵ Then he will speak to them in his ^(X)wrath,
    and terrify them in his fury, saying,
⁶ “As for me, I have ^(Y)set my King
    on ^(Z)Zion, my ^(AA)holy hill.”

⁷ I will tell of the decree:
The Lord said to me, ^(AB)“You are my Son;
    today I have begotten you.
⁸ Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,
    and ^(AC)the ends of the earth your possession.
⁹ You shall ^(AD)break^[d] them with ^(AE)a rod of iron
    and dash them in pieces like ^(AF)a potter's vessel.”

¹⁰ Now therefore, O kings, be wise;
    be warned, O rulers of the earth.
^11 (AG)Serve the Lord with ^(AH)fear,
    and ^(AI)rejoice with ^(AJ)trembling.
^12 (AK)Kiss ^(AL)the Son,
    lest he be angry, and you perish in the way,
    for his ^(AM)wrath is quickly kindled.
^(AN)Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

³ But you, O Lord, are ^(AS)a shield ^(AT)about me,
    my glory, and ^(AU)the lifter of my head.
⁴ I ^(AV)cried aloud to the Lord,
    and he ^(AW)answered me from his ^(AX)holy hill. Selah

⁵ I ^(AY)lay down and slept;
    I woke again, for the Lord sustained me.
⁶ I ^(AZ)will not be afraid of many thousands of people
    who have ^(BA)set themselves against me all around.

^7 (BB)Arise, O Lord!
    Save me, O my God!
For you ^(BC)strike all my enemies on the cheek;
    you ^(BD)break the teeth of the wicked.

^8 (BE)Salvation belongs to the Lord;
    your blessing be on your people! Selah

² O men,^[f] how long shall my honor be turned into shame?
    How long will you love vain words and seek after ^(BJ)lies? Selah
³ But know that the Lord has ^(BK)set apart ^(BL)the godly for himself;
    the Lord hears when I call to him.

^4 (BM)Be angry,^[g] and do not sin;
    ^(BN)ponder in your own hearts ^(BO)on your beds, and be silent. Selah
⁵ Offer ^(BP)right sacrifices,
    and put your ^(BQ)trust in the Lord.

⁶ There are many who say, “Who will show us some good?
    ^(BR)Lift up ^(BS)the light of your face upon us, O Lord!”
⁷ You have put ^(BT)more joy in my heart
    than they have when their grain and wine abound.

⁸ In peace I will both ^(BU)lie down and sleep;
    for you alone, O Lord, make me ^(BV)dwell in safety.

⁴ For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
    evil may not dwell with you.
⁵ The ^(CB)boastful shall not ^(CC)stand before your eyes;
    you ^(CD)hate all evildoers.
⁶ You destroy those who speak ^(CE)lies;
    the Lord abhors ^(CF)the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.

⁷ But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,
    will enter your house.
I will ^(CG)bow down ^(CH)toward your ^(CI)holy temple
    in the fear of you.
^8 (CJ)Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness
    because of my enemies;
    ^(CK)make your way straight before me.

⁹ For there is no truth in their mouth;
    their inmost self is ^(CL)destruction;
^(CM)their throat is ^(CN)an open grave;
    they ^(CO)flatter with their tongue.
^10 (CP)Make them bear their guilt, O God;
    let them ^(CQ)fall by their own counsels;
because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out,
    for they have rebelled against you.

¹¹ But let all who ^(CR)take refuge in you ^(CS)rejoice;
    let them ever sing for joy,
and spread your protection over them,
    that those who love your name may ^(CT)exult in you.
¹² For you ^(CU)bless the righteous, O Lord;
    you ^(CV)cover him with favor as with ^(CW)a shield.

⁴ Turn, O Lord, deliver my life;
    save me for the sake of your steadfast love.
⁵ For in ^(DE)death there is no remembrance of you;
    in Sheol who will give you praise?

⁶ I am ^(DF)weary with my ^(DG)moaning;
    every night I flood my bed with tears;
    I drench my couch with my weeping.
⁷ My ^(DH)eye wastes away because of grief;
    it grows weak because of all my foes.

^8 (DI)Depart from me, all you ^(DJ)workers of evil,
    for the Lord ^(DK)has heard the sound of my weeping.
⁹ The Lord has heard my ^(DL)plea;
    the Lord accepts my prayer.
¹⁰ All my enemies shall be ashamed and greatly troubled;
    they shall ^(DM)turn back and be put to shame in a moment.

³ O Lord my God, ^(DS)if I have done this,
    if there is ^(DT)wrong in my hands,
⁴ if I have repaid ^(DU)my friend^[k] with evil
    or ^(DV)plundered my enemy without cause,
⁵ let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it,
    and let him ^(DW)trample my life to the ground
    and lay my glory in the dust. Selah

^6 (DX)Arise, O Lord, in your anger;
    ^(DY)lift yourself up against the fury of my enemies;
    ^(DZ)awake for me; you have appointed a judgment.
⁷ Let the assembly of the peoples be gathered about you;
    over it return on high.

⁸ The Lord ^(EA)judges the peoples;
    ^(EB)judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness
    and according to the integrity that is in me.
⁹ Oh, let the evil of the wicked come to an end,
    and may you establish the righteous—
you who ^(EC)test ^(ED)the minds and hearts,^[l]
    O righteous God!
¹⁰ My shield is ^(EE)with God,
    who saves ^(EF)the upright in heart.
¹¹ God is ^(EG)a righteous judge,
    and a God who feels ^(EH)indignation every day.

¹² If a man^[m] does not repent, God^[n] will ^(EI)whet his sword;
    he has ^(EJ)bent and ^(EK)readied his bow;
¹³ he has prepared for him his deadly weapons,
    making his ^(EL)arrows ^(EM)fiery shafts.
¹⁴ Behold, the wicked man ^(EN)conceives evil
    and is ^(EO)pregnant with mischief
    and gives birth to lies.
¹⁵ He makes ^(EP)a pit, digging it out,
    and falls into the hole that he has made.
¹⁶ His ^(EQ)mischief returns upon his own head,
    and on his own skull his violence descends.

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

³ When I ^(EY)look at your heavens, the work of your ^(EZ)fingers,
    the moon and the stars, ^(FA)which you have set in place,
^4 (FB)what is man that you are ^(FC)mindful of him,
    and ^(FD)the son of man that you ^(FE)care for him?

⁵ Yet you have made him a little lower than ^(FF)the heavenly beings^[p]
    and crowned him with ^(FG)glory and honor.
⁶ You have given him ^(FH)dominion over the works of your hands;
    ^(FI)you have put all things under his feet,
⁷ all sheep and oxen,
    and also the beasts of the field,
⁸ the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea,
    whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

⁹ O Lord, our Lord,
    how majestic is your name in all the earth!

³ When my enemies turn back,
    they stumble and perish before^[s] your presence.
⁴ For you have ^(FN)maintained my just cause;
    you have ^(FO)sat on the throne, giving righteous judgment.

⁵ You have ^(FP)rebuked the nations; you have made the wicked perish;
    you have ^(FQ)blotted out their name forever and ever.
⁶ The enemy came to an end in everlasting ruins;
    their cities you rooted out;
    the very memory of them has perished.

⁷ But the Lord sits enthroned forever;
    he has established his throne for justice,
⁸ and he ^(FR)judges the world with righteousness;
    he ^(FS)judges the peoples with uprightness.

⁹ The Lord is ^(FT)a stronghold for ^(FU)the oppressed,
    a stronghold in ^(FV)times of trouble.
¹⁰ And those who ^(FW)know your name put their trust in you,
    for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.

¹¹ Sing praises to the Lord, who ^(FX)sits enthroned in Zion!
    Tell among the peoples his ^(FY)deeds!
¹² For he who ^(FZ)avenges blood is mindful of them;
    he ^(GA)does not forget the cry of the afflicted.

^13 (GB)Be gracious to me, O Lord!
    See my affliction from those who hate me,
    O you who lift me up from ^(GC)the gates of death,
¹⁴ that I may recount all your praises,
    that in the gates of ^(GD)the daughter of Zion
    I may ^(GE)rejoice in your salvation.

¹⁵ The nations have sunk in ^(GF)the pit that they made;
    in ^(GG)the net that they hid, their own foot has been caught.
¹⁶ The Lord has made himself ^(GH)known; he has executed judgment;
    the wicked are snared in the work of their own hands. Higgaion.^[t] Selah

¹⁷ The wicked shall ^(GI)return to Sheol,
    all the nations that ^(GJ)forget God.

¹⁸ For the needy shall not always be forgotten,
    and ^(GK)the hope of the poor shall not perish forever.

^19 (GL)Arise, O Lord! Let not ^(GM)man prevail;
    let the nations be judged before you!
²⁰ Put them in fear, O Lord!
    Let the nations know that they are but ^(GN)men! Selah

² In arrogance the wicked hotly pursue the poor;
    let them ^(GR)be caught in the schemes that they have devised.
³ For the wicked ^(GS)boasts of the desires of his soul,
    and the one greedy for gain ^(GT)curses^[u] and ^(GU)renounces the Lord.
⁴ In the pride of his face^[v] the wicked does not ^(GV)seek him;^[w]
    all his thoughts are, ^(GW)“There is no God.”
⁵ His ways prosper at all times;
    your judgments are on high, ^(GX)out of his sight;
    as for all his foes, he ^(GY)puffs at them.
⁶ He ^(GZ)says in his heart, “I shall not be moved;
    throughout all generations I ^(HA)shall not meet adversity.”
^7 (HB)His mouth is filled with cursing and ^(HC)deceit and ^(HD)oppression;
    ^(HE)under his tongue are ^(HF)mischief and ^(HG)iniquity.
⁸ He sits in ambush in the villages;
    in ^(HH)hiding places he murders the innocent.
His eyes stealthily watch for the helpless;
⁹     he lurks in ambush like ^(HI)a lion in his ^(HJ)thicket;
he ^(HK)lurks that he may seize the poor;
    he seizes the poor when he draws him into his ^(HL)net.
¹⁰ The helpless are crushed, sink down,
    and fall by his might.
¹¹ He says in his heart, “God has forgotten,
    he has ^(HM)hidden his face, he ^(HN)will never see it.”

^12 (HO)Arise, O Lord; O God, ^(HP)lift up your hand;
    ^(HQ)forget not the afflicted.
¹³ Why does the wicked ^(HR)renounce God
    and say in his heart, “You will not ^(HS)call to account”?
¹⁴ But you do see, for you ^(HT)note mischief and vexation,
    that you may take it into your hands;
to you the helpless ^(HU)commits himself;
    you have been ^(HV)the helper of the fatherless.
^15 (HW)Break the arm of the wicked and evildoer;
    ^(HX)call his wickedness to account till you find none.

^16 (HY)The Lord is king forever and ever;
    the ^(HZ)nations perish from his land.
¹⁷ O Lord, you hear the desire of the afflicted;
    you will ^(IA)strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear
¹⁸ to ^(IB)do justice to the fatherless and ^(IC)the oppressed,
    so that ^(ID)man who is of the earth may strike terror no more.

^4 (II)The Lord is in his holy temple;
    the Lord's ^(IJ)throne is in heaven;
    his eyes see, his eyelids ^(IK)test the children of man.
⁵ The Lord ^(IL)tests the righteous,
    but ^(IM)his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.
⁶ Let him rain coals on the wicked;
    ^(IN)fire and sulfur and a scorching wind shall be ^(IO)the portion of their cup.
⁷ For the Lord is righteous;
he ^(IP)loves righteous deeds;
    ^(IQ)the upright shall behold his face.

³ May the Lord cut off all ^(IV)flattering lips,
    the tongue that makes ^(IW)great boasts,
⁴ those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
    our lips are with us; who is master over us?”

⁵ “Because ^(IX)the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
    ^(IY)I will now arise,” says the Lord;
    “I will place him in the ^(IZ)safety for which he longs.”
^6 (JA)The words of the Lord are pure words,
    like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
    purified seven times.

⁷ You, O Lord, will keep them;
    you will guard us^[z] from this generation forever.
⁸ On every side the wicked prowl,
    as vileness is exalted among the children of man.

^3 (JF)Consider and answer me, O Lord my God;
    ^(JG)light up my eyes, lest ^(JH)I sleep the sleep of death,
^4 (JI)lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,”
    lest my foes rejoice because I am ^(JJ)shaken.

⁵ But I have ^(JK)trusted in your steadfast love;
    my heart shall ^(JL)rejoice in your salvation.
⁶ I will sing to the Lord,
    because he has dealt bountifully with me.

² The Lord ^(JR)looks down from heaven on the children of man,
    to see if there are any who understand,^[aa]
    who ^(JS)seek after God.

³ They have all turned aside; together they have become ^(JT)corrupt;
    there is none who does good,
    not even one.

⁴ Have they no ^(JU)knowledge, all the evildoers
    who ^(JV)eat up my people as they eat bread
    and ^(JW)do not call upon the Lord?

⁵ There they are in great terror,
    for God is with ^(JX)the generation of the righteous.
⁶ You would shame the plans of the poor,
    but^[ab] the Lord is his ^(JY)refuge.

⁷ Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
    When the Lord ^(JZ)restores the fortunes of his people,
    let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.

² He who ^(KD)walks blamelessly and ^(KE)does what is right
    and ^(KF)speaks truth in his heart;
³ who ^(KG)does not slander with his tongue
    and does no evil to his neighbor,
    nor ^(KH)takes up a reproach against his friend;
^4 (KI)in whose eyes a vile person is despised,
    but who honors those who fear the Lord;
who ^(KJ)swears to his own hurt and does not change;
⁵ who ^(KK)does not put out his money at interest
    and ^(KL)does not take a bribe against the innocent.
He who does these things shall never be ^(KM)moved.

³ As for ^(KQ)the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones,
    in whom is all my delight.^[ad]

⁴ The sorrows of those who run after^[ae] another god shall multiply;
    their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out
    or ^(KR)take their names on my lips.

⁵ The Lord is ^(KS)my chosen portion and my ^(KT)cup;
    you hold my ^(KU)lot.
^6 (KV)The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
    indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.

⁷ I bless the Lord who ^(KW)gives me counsel;
    in ^(KX)the night also my ^(KY)heart instructs me.^[af]
8 (KZ)I have ^(LA)set the Lord always before me;
    because he is at my ^(LB)right hand, I shall not be ^(LC)shaken.

⁹ Therefore my heart is glad, and my ^(LD)whole being^[ag] rejoices;
    my flesh also dwells secure.
¹⁰ For you will not abandon my soul to ^(LE)Sheol,
    ^(LF)or let your ^(LG)holy one see ^(LH)corruption.^[ah]

¹¹ You make known to me ^(LI)the path of life;
    in your presence there is ^(LJ)fullness of joy;
    at your right hand are ^(LK)pleasures forevermore.

³ You have ^(LO)tried my heart, you have ^(LP)visited me by ^(LQ)night,
    you have ^(LR)tested me, and you will find nothing;
    I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress.
⁴ With regard to the works of man, by the word of your lips
    I have avoided the ways of the violent.
⁵ My steps have ^(LS)held fast to your paths;
    my feet have not slipped.

⁶ I ^(LT)call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;
    ^(LU)incline your ear to me; hear my words.
^7 (LV)Wondrously show^[ai] your steadfast love,
    O Savior of those who seek refuge
    from ^(LW)their adversaries at your right hand.

⁸ Keep me as ^(LX)the apple of your eye;
    hide me in ^(LY)the shadow of your wings,
⁹ from the wicked who do me violence,
    my deadly enemies who ^(LZ)surround me.

^10 (MA)They close their hearts to pity;
    with their mouths they ^(MB)speak arrogantly.
¹¹ They have now surrounded our ^(MC)steps;
    they set their eyes to ^(MD)cast us to the ground.
¹² He is like a lion eager to tear,
    as a young lion ^(ME)lurking in ambush.

¹³ Arise, O Lord! Confront him, subdue him!
    Deliver my soul from the wicked by your sword,
¹⁴ from men by your hand, O Lord,
    from ^(MF)men of the world whose ^(MG)portion is in this life.^[aj]
You fill their womb with treasure;^[ak]
    they are satisfied with ^(MH)children,
    and they leave their abundance to their infants.

¹⁵ As for me, I shall ^(MI)behold your face in righteousness;
    when I ^(MJ)awake, I shall be ^(MK)satisfied with your likeness.

^4 (MW)The cords of death encompassed me;
    ^(MX)the torrents of destruction assailed me;^[al]
5 (MY)the cords of Sheol entangled me;
    the snares of death confronted me.

^6 (MZ)In my distress I called upon the Lord;
    to my God I cried for help.
From his ^(NA)temple he heard my voice,
    and my cry to him reached his ears.

⁷ Then the earth ^(NB)reeled and rocked;
    the foundations also of the mountains trembled
    and quaked, because he was angry.
⁸ Smoke went up from his nostrils,^[am]
    and devouring ^(NC)fire from his mouth;
    glowing coals flamed forth from him.
⁹ He ^(ND)bowed the heavens and ^(NE)came down;
    ^(NF)thick darkness was under his feet.
¹⁰ He rode on a cherub and flew;
    he came swiftly on ^(NG)the wings of the wind.
¹¹ He made darkness his covering, his ^(NH)canopy around him,
    thick clouds ^(NI)dark with water.
¹² Out of the brightness before him
    ^(NJ)hailstones and coals of fire broke through his clouds.

¹³ The Lord also ^(NK)thundered in the heavens,
    and the Most High uttered his ^(NL)voice,
    hailstones and coals of fire.
¹⁴ And he sent out his ^(NM)arrows and scattered them;
    he flashed forth lightnings and ^(NN)routed them.
¹⁵ Then ^(NO)the channels of the sea were seen,
    and the foundations of the world were laid bare
at your ^(NP)rebuke, O Lord,
    at the blast of ^(NQ)the breath of your nostrils.

¹⁶ He ^(NR)sent from on high, he took me;
    he ^(NS)drew me out of ^(NT)many waters.
¹⁷ He rescued me from my strong enemy
    and from those who hated me,
    for they were ^(NU)too mighty for me.
¹⁸ They confronted me in the day of my calamity,
    but the Lord was my support.
¹⁹ He brought me out into ^(NV)a broad place;
    he rescued me, because he ^(NW)delighted in me.

²⁰ The Lord dealt with me ^(NX)according to my righteousness;
    according to ^(NY)the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me.
²¹ For I have ^(NZ)kept the ways of the Lord,
    and have not wickedly departed from my God.
²² For ^(OA)all his rules^[an] were before me,
    and his statutes I did not put away from me.
²³ I was ^(OB)blameless before him,
    and I kept myself from my guilt.
²⁴ So the Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness,
    according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.

²⁵ With ^(OC)the merciful you show yourself merciful;
    with the blameless man you show yourself blameless;
²⁶ with the purified you show yourself pure;
    and with ^(OD)the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous.
²⁷ For you save ^(OE)a humble people,
    but ^(OF)the haughty eyes you bring down.
²⁸ For it is you who light my ^(OG)lamp;
    the Lord my God lightens my darkness.
²⁹ For by you I can run against a troop,
    and by my God I can ^(OH)leap over ^(OI)a wall.
³⁰ This God—his way is ^(OJ)perfect;^[ao]
    the word of the Lord ^(OK)proves true;
    he is ^(OL)a shield for all those who ^(OM)take refuge in him.

³¹ For ^(ON)who is God, but the Lord?
    And who is ^(OO)a rock, except our God?—
³² the God who ^(OP)equipped me with strength
    and made my way ^(OQ)blameless.
³³ He made my feet like the feet of a ^(OR)deer
    and set me secure on ^(OS)the heights.
³⁴ He ^(OT)trains my hands for war,
    so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
³⁵ You have given me the shield of your salvation,
    and your right hand ^(OU)supported me,
    and your ^(OV)gentleness made me great.
³⁶ You ^(OW)gave 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 till they were consumed.
³⁸ I thrust them through, so that they were not able to rise;
    they fell under my feet.
³⁹ For you equipped me with strength for the battle;
    you made those who rise against me sink under me.
⁴⁰ You made my enemies ^(OX)turn their backs to me,^[ap]
    and those who hated me I destroyed.
^41 (OY)They cried for help, but there was none to save;
    they cried to the Lord, but he did not answer them.
⁴² I beat them fine as ^(OZ)dust before the wind;
    I cast them out like ^(PA)the mire of the streets.

⁴³ You delivered me from ^(PB)strife with the people;
    you made me ^(PC)the head of the nations;
    ^(PD)people whom I had not known served me.
⁴⁴ As soon as they heard of me they obeyed me;
    ^(PE)foreigners ^(PF)came cringing to me.
^45 (PG)Foreigners lost heart
    and ^(PH)came trembling out of their fortresses.

⁴⁶ The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock,
    and exalted be the God of my salvation—
⁴⁷ the God who gave me vengeance
    and ^(PI)subdued peoples under me,
⁴⁸ who rescued me from my enemies;
    yes, you ^(PJ)exalted me above those who rose against me;
    you delivered me from ^(PK)the man of violence.

^49 (PL)For this I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations,
    and ^(PM)sing to your name.
⁵⁰ Great ^(PN)salvation he brings to his king,
    and shows steadfast love to his ^(PO)anointed,
    to ^(PP)David and his offspring forever.

^7 (PW)The law of the Lord is perfect,^{[as]
    (PX)}reviving the soul;
^(PY)the testimony of the Lord is ^(PZ)sure,
    ^(QA)making wise ^(QB)the simple;
^8 (QC)the precepts of the Lord are right,
    rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is ^(QD)pure,
    ^(QE)enlightening the eyes;
⁹ the fear of the Lord is clean,
    enduring forever;
the rules^[at] of the Lord are ^(QF)true,
    and righteous altogether.
¹⁰ More to be desired are they than ^(QG)gold,
    even much ^(QH)fine gold;
^(QI)sweeter also than honey
    and drippings of ^(QJ)the honeycomb.
¹¹ Moreover, by them is your servant warned;
    ^(QK)in keeping them there is great reward.

^12 (QL)Who can discern his errors?
    ^(QM)Declare me innocent from ^(QN)hidden faults.
^13 (QO)Keep back your servant also from ^(QP)presumptuous sins;
    let them not have ^(QQ)dominion over me!
Then I shall be blameless,
    and innocent of great transgression.

¹⁴ Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
    be acceptable in your sight,
    O Lord, my ^(QR)rock and my ^(QS)redeemer.

⁴ May he ^(QZ)grant you your heart's desire
    and fulfill all your plans!
⁵ May we shout for joy over ^(RA)your salvation,
    and in the name of our God set up our ^(RB)banners!
May the Lord fulfill all your petitions!

⁶ Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed;
    he will answer him from his holy heaven
    with ^(RC)the saving might of his right hand.
⁷ Some trust in ^(RD)chariots and some in ^(RE)horses,
    ^(RF)but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.