Psalm 52

God Judges the Proud

For the choir director. A Davidic Maskil. When Doeg the Edomite went and reported to Saul, telling him, “David went to Ahimelech’s house.”(A)

Why brag about evil, you hero!(B)
God’s faithful love is constant.(C)
Like a sharpened razor,
your tongue devises destruction,
working treachery.(D)
You love evil instead of good,
lying instead of speaking truthfully.(E)Selah
You love any words that destroy,
you treacherous tongue!(F)

This is why God will bring you down forever.
He will take you, ripping you out of your tent;
He will uproot you from the land of the living.(G)Selah
The righteous will look on with awe
and will ridicule him:(H)
“Here is the man
who would not make God his refuge,
but trusted in the abundance of his riches,
taking refuge in his destructive behavior.”[a](I)

But I am like a flourishing olive tree
in the house of God;(J)
I trust in God’s faithful love forever and ever.(K)
I will praise You forever for what You have done.
In the presence of Your faithful people,
I will put my hope in Your name, for it is good.(L)

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 52:7 Or riches, and grew strong in his evil desire; lit his destruction

To the Director: A Davidic instruction[a] about Doeg, the Edomite, when he went to Saul and told him, “David went to the house of Abimelech.”

A Rebuke to the Deceitful

52 Why do you make evil
    the foundation of your boasting, mighty one?[b]
        God’s gracious love never ceases.[c]
Your tongue, like a sharp razor, devises wicked things
    and crafts treachery.
You love evil rather than good,
    falsehood rather than speaking uprightly.
Interlude

You love all words that destroy, you deceitful tongue!

But God will tear you down forever;
    he will take you away,
        even snatching you out of your tent!
He will uproot you from the land of the living.
Interlude

The righteous will fear when they see this,
    but then they will laugh at him, saying,
“Look, here is a young man who refused to make God his strength;
    instead, he trusted in his great wealth
        and made his wickedness his strength.

But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God;
    I trust in the gracious love of God forever and ever.
Therefore I will praise you forever
    because of what you did;
I will proclaim that your name is good
    in the midst of your faithful ones.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 52:1 Lit. maskil
  2. Psalm 52:1 Or O warrior
  3. Psalm 52:1 Lit. love is all the day