Prayer for Rescue from Enemies.

For the music director; set to [a]Al-tashheth. A [b]Mikhtam of David, [c]when Saul sent men and they watched the house in order to kill him.

59 (A)Rescue me from my enemies, my God;
[d](B)Set me securely on high away from those who rise up against me.
Rescue me from (C)those who practice injustice,
And save me from (D)men of bloodshed.
For behold, they (E)have [e]set an ambush for my [f]life;
[g]Fierce men (F)attack me,
(G)Not for my wrongdoing nor for my sin, Lord,
[h](H)For no guilt of mine, they run and take their stand against me.
(I)Stir Yourself to [i]help me, and see!
You, (J)Lord God of armies, the God of Israel,
Awake to [j](K)punish all the nations;
(L)Do not be gracious to any who deal treacherously in wrongdoing. Selah
They (M)return at evening, they howl like a (N)dog,
And prowl around the city.
Behold, they (O)gush forth with their mouths;
(P)Swords are in their lips,
For, they say, “(Q)Who hears?”
But You, Lord, (R)laugh at them;
You (S)scoff at all the nations.

Because of [k]his (T)strength I will watch for You,
For God is my (U)refuge.
10 [l]My God (V)in His faithfulness will meet me;
God will let me (W)look triumphantly upon my enemies.
11 Do not kill them, (X)or my people will forget;
[m](Y)Scatter them by Your power and bring them down,
Lord, (Z)our shield.
12 [n]On account of the (AA)sin of their mouths and the words of their lips,
May they even be (AB)caught in their pride,
And on account of (AC)curses and lies which they tell.
13 [o](AD)Destroy them in wrath, [p]destroy them so that they will no longer exist;
So that people may (AE)know that God [q]rules in Jacob,
To the ends of the earth. Selah
14 They (AF)return at evening, they howl like a dog,
And prowl around the city.
15 They (AG)wander about [r]for food
And [s]murmur if they are not satisfied.

16 But as for me, I will (AH)sing of Your strength;
Yes, I will (AI)joyfully sing of Your faithfulness in the (AJ)morning,
For You have been my (AK)refuge
And a (AL)place of refuge on the day of my distress.
17 (AM)My strength, I will sing praises to You;
For God is my (AN)refuge, the [t]God who shows me favor.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 59 Title Lit Do Not Destroy
  2. Psalm 59 Title Possibly Epigrammatic Poem or Atonement Psalm
  3. Psalm 59 Title 1 Sam 19:11
  4. Psalm 59:1 Or May You put me in an inaccessibly high place
  5. Psalm 59:3 Or lain in wait
  6. Psalm 59:3 Lit soul
  7. Psalm 59:3 Or Strong
  8. Psalm 59:4 Lit Without guilt
  9. Psalm 59:4 Lit meet
  10. Psalm 59:5 Lit visit
  11. Psalm 59:9 LXX, some mss and some ancient versions my strength (cf. v 17)
  12. Psalm 59:10 Many mss and some ancient versions The God of my faithfulness
  13. Psalm 59:11 Or Make them wander
  14. Psalm 59:12 Or The sin of their mouth is the word of their lips,
  15. Psalm 59:13 Lit Bring to an end
  16. Psalm 59:13 Lit Bring to an end
  17. Psalm 59:13 Or is Ruler
  18. Psalm 59:15 Lit to eat
  19. Psalm 59:15 Another reading is linger all night
  20. Psalm 59:17 Lit God of my favor

Psalm 59

God Our Stronghold

For the choir director: “Do Not Destroy.” A Miktam of David. When Saul sent agents to watch the house and kill him.(A)

Rescue me from my enemies, my God;(B)
protect me from those who rise up against me.(C)
Rescue me from evildoers,
and save me from men of bloodshed.(D)
Because look, Lord, they set an ambush for me.(E)
Powerful men attack me,
but not because of any sin or rebellion of mine.(F)
For no fault of mine,
they run and take up a position.
Awake to help me, and take notice.(G)
Lord God of Armies, you are the God of Israel.
Rise up to punish all the nations;
do not show favor to any wicked traitors.(H)Selah

They return at evening, snarling like dogs
and prowling around the city.(I)
Look, they spew from their mouths—
sharp words from[a] their lips.(J)
“For who,” they say, “will hear?” (K)
But you laugh at them, Lord;
you ridicule all the nations.(L)
I will keep watch for you, my[b] strength,
because God is my stronghold.(M)
10 My faithful God[c] will come to meet me;
God will let me look down on my adversaries.(N)

11 Do not kill them; otherwise, my people will forget.
By your power, make them homeless wanderers(O)
and bring them down,
Lord, our shield.(P)
12 For the sin of their mouths and the words of their lips,
let them be caught in their pride.
They utter curses and lies.(Q)
13 Consume them in fury;
consume them until they are gone.(R)
Then people will know throughout[d] the earth
that God rules over Jacob.(S)Selah

14 And they return at evening, snarling like dogs
and prowling around the city.(T)
15 They scavenge for food;
they growl if they are not satisfied.(U)

16 But I will sing of your strength
and will joyfully proclaim
your faithful love in the morning.(V)
For you have been a stronghold for me,
a refuge in my day of trouble.(W)
17 To you, my strength, I sing praises,
because God is my stronghold—
my faithful God.(X)

Footnotes

  1. 59:7 Lit swords are on
  2. 59:9 Some Hb mss, LXX, Vg, Tg; other Hb mss read his
  3. 59:10 Alt Hb tradition reads My God in his faithful love
  4. 59:13 Lit know to the ends of