Psalm 35-38

The Voice

⁴ Shame and dishonor those ruthless enemies
    who wish to end my life.
Turn back those who conspire against me,
    defeated and humiliated!
⁵ Let them be separated from the righteous as chaff is separated from the grain,
    blown by the wind,
    driven far, far away by the Eternal’s messenger.
⁶ Make their way unsure and dangerously dark,
    a gauntlet of gloom
    chased through the darkness by the Eternal’s messenger.

⁷ For no reason at all, they set a trap for me—a net, a snare—
    then, without cause, they disguised a pit to capture my soul—another cowardly snare.
⁸ May they be surprised by their own destruction.
May they become tangled in their own net
    and fall into the pit which they, themselves, dug.

⁹ When that day comes, my soul will celebrate the Eternal
    and be glad in His salvation.
¹⁰ Every fiber of my being^[a] will shout,
    “Eternal One, there is none like You!
You save the poor
    from those who try to overpower them
    and rescue the weak and the needy from those who steal from them.”

¹¹ False witnesses step forward;
    they ask me strange questions for which I have no answers.
¹² When I do good to them, they do evil to me,
    bringing misery to my soul.
¹³ When they were sick,
    I mourned for them and wore sackcloth;
I chose to humble myself by fasting.
    But my prayers came back unanswered.
¹⁴ So I mourned more deeply as if I grieved for my brother or friend;
    I went around bowed down by sorrow, dressed in black,
    as if I were weeping for my mother.
¹⁵ But when I stumbled, they gathered together
    and celebrated my fall with joy;
People attacked me when I wasn’t expecting it;
    they slandered me with no end.
¹⁶ Like godless mockers at a festival,^[b]
    their words tore at me.

¹⁷ Lord, how long will You do nothing but watch?
    Save me from their evil assaults, plots, and plunder;
    rescue my life from these hungry beasts, these ruthless lions!
¹⁸ Then I will praise You and thank You at the great gathering,
    in the company of the entire congregation.

¹⁹ Do not allow my enemies to boast at my expense,
    for they despise me without any cause—^[c]
    yet they wink at me—malicious, taunting winks.
²⁰ Their words have no ring of peace.
    They plan evil rumors and incriminations
    against those who live peacefully in the land.
²¹ They speak lying accusations against me;
    they say, “Aha! Aha! We know what you’ve been up to.
    We’ve seen it with our own eyes!”

²² You have seen what’s happening, Eternal One; don’t remain silent!
    Lord, do not stay far away from me!
²³ Wake up; come to my defense!
    Fight for me, my Lord and my God!
²⁴ Pass Your judgment, Eternal One, my True God;
    do it by the standards of Your righteousness.
    Do not allow my enemies to boast over me.
²⁵ Do not allow them to gloat over me,
    “Aha, we have won! We got what we wanted!”
Do not allow them to brag,
    “We chewed him up and spit him out.”

²⁶ Shame and confuse those who celebrate my suffering;
    may those who exalt themselves above me be covered with shame—
    wrapped in a cloak of dishonor!

²⁷ As for those who desire my vindication,
    may they be joyful and glad.
    May they forever say,
“The Eternal is indeed great!
    He takes pleasure when good things happen to His servant!”
²⁸ That’s why I will speak of Your righteousness
    and sing praises to You all day long.

⁵ Your love, O Eternal One, towers high into the heavens.
    Even the skies are lower than Your faithfulness.
⁶ Your justice is like the majestic mountains.
    Your judgments are as deep as the oceans, and yet in Your greatness,
    You, O Eternal, offer life for every person and animal.

⁷ Your strong love, O True God, is precious.
    All people run for shelter under the shadow of Your wings.
⁸ In Your house, they eat and are full at Your table.
    They drink from the river of Your overflowing kindness.
⁹ You have the fountain of life that quenches our thirst.
    Your light has opened our eyes and awakened our souls.

¹⁰ May Your love continue to grow deeply in the lives of all who know You.
    May Your salvation reach every heart committed to do right.
¹¹ Give me shelter from prideful feet that hunt me down
    and wicked hands that push me from Your path.
¹² It is there, far away from You, that the wicked will be forced down,
    face to the earth, never again returning to their feet.

³ Believe in the Eternal, and do what is good—
    live in the land He provides; roam, and rest in God’s faithfulness.
⁴ Take great joy in the Eternal!
    His gifts are coming, and they are all your heart desires!

⁵ Commit your path to the Eternal; let Him direct you.
    Put your confidence in Him, and He will follow through with you.
⁶ He will spread out righteousness for you
    as a sunrise spreads radiance over the land;
    He will deliver justice for you into the light of the high sun.

⁷ Be still. Be patient. Expect the Eternal to arrive and set things right.
    Don’t get upset when you see the worldly ones rising up the ladder.
    Don’t be bothered by those who are anchored in wicked ways.

⁸ So turn from anger. Don’t rage,
    and don’t worry—these ways frame the doorway to evil.
⁹ Besides, those who act from evil motives will be cut off from the land;
    but those who wait, hoping in the Eternal, will enjoy its riches.

¹⁰ You’ll see . . . the wicked won’t know what hit them;
    you’ll blink, and they’ll be gone;
    you’ll go out looking for them, but you won’t find them.
¹¹ But the humble-hearted will inherit the land;
    they will take pleasure in its peace and enjoy its abundance.

¹² How that wicked man devises evil against God’s righteous ones!
    He grits his teeth, consumed by hate for the upright.
¹³ But oh, how the Lord laughs at him!
    He knows the wicked man will get his; the day is coming.

¹⁴ The wicked unsheathe their swords, pull taut their bows;
    the poor and needy are their victims,
    and evil is on the prowl to kill those with integrity, God’s beloved.
¹⁵ But their swords will bend back to pierce their own hearts—
    yes, their bows will snap in two.

¹⁶ The righteous are better off with the little God blessed them with
    than living under the curse of the wealth of the wicked.
¹⁷ Their time is short, their arms will be broken,
    but the Eternal will hold His righteous children high.

¹⁸ All their days are measured and known by the Eternal;
    their inheritance is kept safe forever.
¹⁹ When calamity comes, they will escape with their dignity.
    When famine invades the nations, they will be fed to their fill.

²⁰ But immoral ones will find their lives cut short;
    they’ll vanish as quickly as wildflowers in the fields.
Yes, enemies of the Eternal will vanish
    like smoke into the cool night air.

²¹ Evil people borrow and never repay their debts,
    while the good give generously from their hearts.
²² For God’s blessed children will inherit the land,
    but those cursed by Him stand to gain nothing.

²³ If you are right with God, He strengthens you for the journey;
    the Eternal will be pleased with your life.
²⁴ And even though you trip up, you will not fall on your face
    because He holds you by the hand.

²⁵ Through my whole life (young and old),
    I have never witnessed God forsaking those who do right,
    nor have I seen their children begging for crumbs,
²⁶ Because they are always giving and sharing;
    truly, their children are a joyful blessing.

²⁷ Walk away from evil. Do good
    so you, too, will enjoy never-ending life
²⁸ Because the Eternal cherishes justice
    and will not abandon those loyal to Him.

He will guard and care for them forever,
    but any child born of evil will be rooted out, cut down, and destroyed.
²⁹ Those leading God-pleasing lives will inherit His land
    and settle there forever.

³⁰ Wisdom fills the mouth of the right-living;
    justice and truth roll from their tongues.
³¹ The True God’s law is imprinted upon their hearts,
    and they do not stumble.

³² The wicked stalk God’s good ones,
    looking to kill them,
³³ But the Eternal will never leave them to the dogs of evil,
    nor will they be found guilty when the verdict is read.

³⁴ Wait for the Eternal. Keep to His path. Mind His will.
    He will come for you, exalt you; you will inherit the land.
    Before your very eyes you will see the end of the wicked.

³⁵ I passed by a wicked man with a cold-blooded nature;
    I looked, and he seemed as large as a cedar of Lebanon.
³⁶ But then again, I passed that same way and there was nothing left of him.
    I went out looking for him, but he was nowhere to be found.

³⁷ Keep your eye on the innocent. Model your life after the blameless.
    Everyone who loves peace has a future.
³⁸ But sinners will be doomed.
    The forecast for the wicked: utter destruction.
    There will be none left, not one child of darkness.

³⁹ The Eternal saves His faithful;
    He lends His strength in hard times;
⁴⁰ The Eternal comes and frees them—
    frees them from evildoers and saves them for eternity—
    simply because they seek shelter in Him.

¹ O Eternal One, please do not scold me in Your anger;
    though Your wrath is just, do not correct me in Your fury.
² The arrows from Your bow have penetrated my flesh;
    Your hand has come down hard on me.

³ Because Your anger has infected the depths of my being and stolen my health,
    my flesh is ill.
My bones are no longer sound
    because of all the sins I have committed.
⁴ My guilt has covered me; it’s more than I can handle;
    this burden is too heavy for me to carry.

⁵ Now sores cover me—infected and putrid sores,
    because of all the foolish things I have done.
⁶ I am bent down, cowering in fear, prostrate on the ground;
    I spend the day in mourning, guilty tears stinging and burning my eyes.
⁷ My back aches. I’m full of fever;
    my body is no longer whole, no longer well.
⁸ I am completely numb, totally spent, hopelessly crushed.
    The agitation of my heart makes me groan.

⁹ O Lord, You know all my desires;
    nothing escapes You; You hear my every moan.
¹⁰ My heart pounds against my chest; my vigor is completely drained;
    my eyes were once bright, but now the brightness is all gone.
¹¹ Even my friends and loved ones turn away when they see this marked man;
    those closest to me are no longer close at all.

¹² Those who want me dead lay traps upon my path;
    those who desire my downfall threaten—my end is near—
    they spend their days plotting against me.

¹³ Like one who is deaf, my ears do not hear.
    Like one who is mute, my tongue cannot speak.
¹⁴ The truth is this: I am like one who cannot hear;
    I cannot even protest against them.

¹⁵ Still I wait expectantly for You, O Eternal One—
    knowing You will answer me in some way, O Lord, my True God.
¹⁶ I only asked, “When I stumble on the narrow path,
    don’t let them boast or celebrate my failure.”

¹⁷ I am prepared for what may come; my time must be short;
    my pain and suffering a constant companion.
¹⁸ I confess, “I have sinned,”
    and I regret the wrong I have done.
¹⁹ My enemies are alive and well,
    they are powerful and on the increase,
    and for no reason, they hate me.
²⁰ When I do good, my opponents reward me with evil;
    though I pursue what is right, they stand against me.

²¹ Eternal One, do not leave me to their mercy;
    my True God, don’t be far from me when they are near.
²² I need Your help now—not later.
    O Lord, be my Rescuer.