Psalm 12
Complete Jewish Bible
12 (0) For the leader. On sh’minit [low-pitched musical instruments?]. A psalm of David:
2 (1) Help, Adonai! For no one godly is left;
the faithful have vanished from humankind.
3 (2) They all tell lies to each other,
flattering with their lips, but speaking from divided hearts.
4 (3) May Adonai cut off all flattering lips
and the tongue that speaks so proudly,
5 (4) those who say, “By our tongues, we will prevail;
our lips are with us. Who can master us?”
6 (5) “Because the poor are oppressed,
because the needy are groaning,
I will now rise up,” says Adonai,
“and grant security to those whom they scorn.”
7 (6) The words of Adonai are pure words,
silver in a melting-pot set in the earth,
refined and purified seven times over.
8 (7) You, Adonai, protect us;
guard us forever from this generation —
9 (8) the wicked strut about everywhere
when vileness is held in general esteem.
Psalm 12
Lexham English Bible
Human Faithlessness and God’s Faithfulness
For the music director; on the Sheminith.[a] A psalm of David.[b]
12 Save, O Yahweh, for the pious have ceased to be;
for the faithful have vanished
from among the children of humankind.
2 They speak falseness to each other.[c]
With flattering lips,
with a double heart[d] they speak.
3 May Yahweh cut off all flattering lips,
the tongue speaking great boasts—
4 those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail.
Our lips are on our side.
Who is master over us?”
5 “Because of the oppression of the afflicted,
because of the groaning of the poor,
now I will rise up,” Yahweh says.
“I shall put them in the safety for which they[e] long.”
6 The words of Yahweh are pure words
like silver refined in the crucible on the ground,
refined seven times.
7 You, O Yahweh, will protect them.
You will preserve him[f]
from this generation always.
8 The wicked prowl about
when vileness is exalted among the children of humankind.
Footnotes
- Psalm 12:1 Meaning uncertain
- Psalm 12:1 The Hebrew Bible counts the superscription as the first verse of the psalm; the English verse number is reduced by one
- Psalm 12:2 Literally “each with his companion”
- Psalm 12:2 Literally “a heart and a heart”
- Psalm 12:5 Hebrew “he”
- Psalm 12:7 Or “us”
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.
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