Passage Resources Hebrew/Greek Your Content
Previous Next
Add parallel Print Page Options Listen to Psalm 53-55
Close NKJV

Psalm 53-55
New King James Version

Folly of the Godless, and the Restoration of Israel(A)

To the Chief Musician. Set to “Mahalath.” A [a]Contemplation of David.

53 The (B)fool has said in his heart,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt, and have done abominable iniquity;
(C)There is none who does good.

2 God looks down from heaven upon the children of men,
To see if there are any who understand, who (D)seek God.
3 Every one of them has turned aside;
They have together become corrupt;
There is none who does good,
No, not one.

4 Have the workers of iniquity (E)no knowledge,
Who eat up my people as they eat bread,
And do not call upon God?
5 (F)There they are in great fear
Where no fear was,
For God has scattered the bones of him who encamps against you;
You have put them to shame,
Because God has despised them.

6 (G)Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion!
When God brings back [b]the captivity of His people,
Let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad.

Answered Prayer for Deliverance from Adversaries

To the Chief Musician. With [c]stringed instruments. A [d]Contemplation of David (H)when the Ziphites went and said to Saul, “Is David not hiding with us?”

54 Save me, O God, by Your name,
And vindicate me by Your strength.
2 Hear my prayer, O God;
Give ear to the words of my mouth.
3 For strangers have risen up against me,
And oppressors have sought after my life;
They have not set God before them. Selah

4 Behold, God is my helper;
The Lord is with those who [e]uphold my life.
5 He will repay my enemies for their evil.
[f]Cut them off in Your [g]truth.

6 I will freely sacrifice to You;
I will praise Your name, O Lord, for it is good.
7 For He has delivered me out of all trouble;
(I)And my eye has seen its desire upon my enemies.

Trust in God Concerning the Treachery of Friends

To the Chief Musician. With [h]stringed instruments. A [i]Contemplation of David.

55 Give ear to my prayer, O God,
And do not hide Yourself from my supplication.
2 Attend to me, and hear me;
I (J)am[j] restless in my complaint, and moan noisily,
3 Because of the voice of the enemy,
Because of the oppression of the wicked;
(K)For they bring down trouble upon me,
And in wrath they hate me.

4 (L)My heart is severely pained within me,
And the terrors of death have fallen upon me.
5 Fearfulness and trembling have come upon me,
And horror has overwhelmed me.
6 So I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove!
I would fly away and be at rest.
7 Indeed, I would wander far off,
And remain in the wilderness. Selah
8 I would hasten my escape
From the windy storm and tempest.”

9 Destroy, O Lord, and divide their [k]tongues,
For I have seen (M)violence and strife in the city.
10 Day and night they go around it on its walls;
(N)Iniquity and trouble are also in the midst of it.
11 Destruction is in its midst;
(O)Oppression and deceit do not depart from its streets.

12 (P)For it is not an enemy who reproaches me;
Then I could bear it.
Nor is it one who hates me who has (Q)exalted himself against me;
Then I could hide from him.
13 But it was you, a man my equal,
(R)My companion and my acquaintance.
14 We took sweet counsel together,
And (S)walked to the house of God in the throng.

15 Let death seize them;
Let them (T)go down alive into [l]hell,
For wickedness is in their dwellings and among them.

16 As for me, I will call upon God,
And the Lord shall save me.
17 (U)Evening and morning and at noon
I will pray, and cry aloud,
And He shall hear my voice.
18 He has redeemed my soul in peace from the battle that was against me,
For (V)there were many against me.
19 God will hear, and afflict them,
(W)Even He who abides from of old. Selah
Because they do not change,
Therefore they do not fear God.

20 He has (X)put forth his hands against those who (Y)were at peace with him;
He has broken his [m]covenant.
21 (Z)The words of his mouth were smoother than butter,
But war was in his heart;
His words were softer than oil,
Yet they were drawn swords.

22 (AA)Cast your burden on the Lord,
And (AB)He shall sustain you;
He shall never permit the righteous to be [n]moved.

23 But You, O God, shall bring them down to the pit of destruction;
(AC)Bloodthirsty and deceitful men (AD)shall not live out half their days;
But I will trust in You.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 53:1 Heb. Maschil
  2. Psalm 53:6 Or His captive people
  3. Psalm 54:1 Heb. neginoth
  4. Psalm 54:1 Heb. Maschil
  5. Psalm 54:4 sustain my soul
  6. Psalm 54:5 Destroy them
  7. Psalm 54:5 Or faithfulness
  8. Psalm 55:1 Heb. neginoth
  9. Psalm 55:1 Heb. Maschil
  10. Psalm 55:2 wander
  11. Psalm 55:9 speech, their counsel
  12. Psalm 55:15 Or Sheol
  13. Psalm 55:20 treaty
  14. Psalm 55:22 shaken
Listen to Psalm 53-55
Close NIV

Psalm 53-55
New International Version

Psalm 53[a](A)

For the director of music. According to mahalath.[b] A maskil[c] of David.

1 The fool(B) says in his heart,
    “There is no God.”(C)
They are corrupt, and their ways are vile;
    there is no one who does good.

2 God looks down from heaven(D)
    on all mankind
to see if there are any who understand,(E)
    any who seek God.(F)
3 Everyone has turned away, all have become corrupt;
    there is no one who does good,
    not even one.(G)

4 Do all these evildoers know nothing?

They devour my people as though eating bread;
    they never call on God.
5 But there they are, overwhelmed with dread,
    where there was nothing to dread.(H)
God scattered the bones(I) of those who attacked you;(J)
    you put them to shame,(K) for God despised them.(L)

6 Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
    When God restores his people,
    let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!

Psalm 54[d]

For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A maskil[e] of David. When the Ziphites(M) had gone to Saul and said, “Is not David hiding among us?”

1 Save me(N), O God, by your name;(O)
    vindicate me by your might.(P)
2 Hear my prayer, O God;(Q)
    listen to the words of my mouth.

3 Arrogant foes are attacking me;(R)
    ruthless people(S) are trying to kill me(T)—
    people without regard for God.[f](U)

4 Surely God is my help;(V)
    the Lord is the one who sustains me.(W)

5 Let evil recoil(X) on those who slander me;
    in your faithfulness(Y) destroy them.

6 I will sacrifice a freewill offering(Z) to you;
    I will praise(AA) your name, Lord, for it is good.(AB)
7 You have delivered me(AC) from all my troubles,
    and my eyes have looked in triumph on my foes.(AD)

Psalm 55[g]

For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A maskil[h] of David.

1 Listen to my prayer, O God,
    do not ignore my plea;(AE)
2     hear me and answer me.(AF)
My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught(AG)
3     because of what my enemy is saying,
    because of the threats of the wicked;
for they bring down suffering on me(AH)
    and assail(AI) me in their anger.(AJ)

4 My heart is in anguish(AK) within me;
    the terrors(AL) of death have fallen on me.
5 Fear and trembling(AM) have beset me;
    horror(AN) has overwhelmed me.
6 I said, “Oh, that I had the wings of a dove!
    I would fly away and be at rest.
7 I would flee far away
    and stay in the desert;[i](AO)
8 I would hurry to my place of shelter,(AP)
    far from the tempest and storm.(AQ)”

9 Lord, confuse the wicked, confound their words,(AR)
    for I see violence and strife(AS) in the city.(AT)
10 Day and night they prowl(AU) about on its walls;
    malice and abuse are within it.
11 Destructive forces(AV) are at work in the city;
    threats and lies(AW) never leave its streets.

12 If an enemy were insulting me,
    I could endure it;
if a foe were rising against me,
    I could hide.
13 But it is you, a man like myself,
    my companion, my close friend,(AX)
14 with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship(AY)
    at the house of God,(AZ)
as we walked about
    among the worshipers.

15 Let death take my enemies by surprise;(BA)
    let them go down alive to the realm of the dead,(BB)
    for evil finds lodging among them.

16 As for me, I call to God,
    and the Lord saves me.
17 Evening,(BC) morning(BD) and noon(BE)
    I cry out in distress,
    and he hears my voice.
18 He rescues me unharmed
    from the battle waged against me,
    even though many oppose me.
19 God, who is enthroned from of old,(BF)
    who does not change—
he will hear(BG) them and humble them,
    because they have no fear of God.(BH)

20 My companion attacks his friends;(BI)
    he violates his covenant.(BJ)
21 His talk is smooth as butter,(BK)
    yet war is in his heart;
his words are more soothing than oil,(BL)
    yet they are drawn swords.(BM)

22 Cast your cares on the Lord
    and he will sustain you;(BN)
he will never let
    the righteous be shaken.(BO)
23 But you, God, will bring down the wicked
    into the pit(BP) of decay;
the bloodthirsty and deceitful(BQ)
    will not live out half their days.(BR)

But as for me, I trust in you.(BS)

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 53:1 In Hebrew texts 53:1-6 is numbered 53:2-7.
  2. Psalm 53:1 Title: Probably a musical term
  3. Psalm 53:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
  4. Psalm 54:1 In Hebrew texts 54:1-7 is numbered 54:3-9.
  5. Psalm 54:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
  6. Psalm 54:3 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here.
  7. Psalm 55:1 In Hebrew texts 55:1-23 is numbered 55:2-24.
  8. Psalm 55:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
  9. Psalm 55:7 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and in the middle of verse 19.
Next
Psalm 52
Psalm 56
Next
dropdown
New King James Version (NKJV)

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Learn the Bible in 30 days
New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.

July Summer Surge

More on the NIV