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Psalm 35

Prayer for Deliverance from Enemies

Of David.

Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me;
    fight against those who fight against me!(A)
Take hold of shield and buckler,
    and rise up to help me!
Draw the spear and javelin
    against my pursuers;
say to my soul,
    “I am your salvation.”

Let them be put to shame and dishonor
    who seek after my life.
Let them be turned back and confounded
    who devise evil against me.(B)
Let them be like chaff before the wind,
    with the angel of the Lord driving them on.(C)
Let their way be dark and slippery,
    with the angel of the Lord pursuing them.(D)

For without cause they hid their net[a] for me;
    without cause they dug a pit[b] for my life.(E)
Let ruin come on them unawares,
and let the net that they hid ensnare them;
    let them fall in it—to their ruin.(F)

Then my soul shall rejoice in the Lord,
    exulting in his deliverance.(G)
10 All my bones shall say,
    “O Lord, who is like you?
You deliver the weak
    from those too strong for them,
    the weak and needy from those who despoil them.”(H)

11 Malicious witnesses rise up;
    they ask me about things I do not know.(I)
12 They repay me evil for good;
    my soul is forlorn.(J)
13 But as for me, when they were sick,
    I wore sackcloth;
    I afflicted myself with fasting.
I prayed with head bowed[c] on my bosom,(K)
14     as though I grieved for a friend or a brother;
I went about as one who laments for a mother,
    bowed down and in mourning.

15 But at my stumbling they gathered in glee;
    they gathered together against me;
ruffians whom I did not know
    tore at me without ceasing;(L)
16 they impiously mocked more and more,[d]
    gnashing at me with their teeth.

17 How long, O Lord, will you look on?
    Rescue me from their ravages,
    my life from the lions!(M)
18 Then I will thank you in the great congregation;
    in the mighty throng I will praise you.(N)

19 Do not let my treacherous enemies rejoice over me
    or those who hate me without cause wink the eye.(O)
20 For they do not speak peace,
    but they conceive deceitful words
    against those who are quiet in the land.
21 They open wide their mouths against me;
    they say, “Aha, Aha,
    our eyes have seen it.”(P)

22 You have seen, O Lord; do not be silent!
    O Lord, do not be far from me!(Q)
23 Wake up! Rouse yourself for my defense,
    for my cause, my God and my Lord!(R)
24 Vindicate me, O Lord, my God,
    according to your righteousness,
    and do not let them rejoice over me.(S)
25 Do not let them say to themselves,
    “Aha, we have our heart’s desire.”
Do not let them say, “We have swallowed you[e] up.”(T)

26 Let all those who rejoice at my calamity
    be put to shame and confusion;
let those who exalt themselves against me
    be clothed with shame and dishonor.(U)

27 Let those who desire my vindication
    shout for joy and be glad
    and say evermore,
“Great is the Lord,
    who delights in the welfare of his servant.”(V)
28 Then my tongue shall tell of your righteousness
    and of your praise all day long.(W)

Psalm 36

Human Wickedness and Divine Goodness

To the leader. Of David, the servant of the Lord.

Transgression speaks to the wicked
    deep in their hearts;
there is no fear of God
    before their eyes.(X)
For they flatter themselves in their own eyes
    that their iniquity cannot be found out and hated.
The words of their mouths are mischief and deceit;
    they have ceased to act wisely and do good.(Y)
They plot mischief while on their beds;
    they are set on a way that is not good;
    they do not reject evil.(Z)

Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
    your faithfulness to the clouds.
Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains;
    your judgments are like the great deep;
    you save humans and animals alike, O Lord.(AA)

How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
    All people may take refuge in the shadow of your wings.(AB)
They feast on the abundance of your house,
    and you give them drink from the river of your delights.(AC)
For with you is the fountain of life;
    in your light we see light.(AD)

10 O continue your steadfast love to those who know you
    and your salvation to the upright of heart!
11 Do not let the foot of the arrogant tread on me
    or the hand of the wicked drive me away.
12 There the evildoers lie prostrate;
    they are thrust down, unable to rise.(AE)

Psalm 37

Exhortation to Patience and Trust

Of David.

Do not fret because of the wicked;
    do not be envious of wrongdoers,(AF)
for they will soon fade like the grass
    and wither like the green herb.(AG)

Trust in the Lord and do good;
    live in the land and enjoy security.(AH)
Take delight in the Lord,
    and he will give you the desires of your heart.(AI)

Commit your way to the Lord;
    trust in him, and he will act.(AJ)
He will make your vindication shine like the light
    and the justice of your cause like the noonday.(AK)

Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for him;
    do not fret over those who prosper in their way,
    over those who carry out evil devices.(AL)

Refrain from anger and forsake wrath.
    Do not fret—it leads only to evil.(AM)
For the wicked shall be cut off,
    but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land.(AN)

10 Yet a little while, and the wicked will be no more;
    though you look diligently for their place, they will not be there.(AO)
11 But the meek shall inherit the land
    and delight themselves in abundant prosperity.(AP)

12 The wicked plot against the righteous
    and gnash their teeth at them,(AQ)
13 but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
    for he sees that their day is coming.(AR)

14 The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows
    to bring down the poor and needy,
    to kill those who walk uprightly;(AS)
15 their sword shall enter their own heart,
    and their bows shall be broken.(AT)

16 Better is a little that the righteous person has
    than the abundance of many wicked.(AU)
17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
    but the Lord upholds the righteous.(AV)

18 The Lord knows the days of the blameless,
    and their heritage will abide forever;(AW)
19 they are not put to shame in evil times;
    in the days of famine they have abundance.(AX)

20 But the wicked perish,
    and the enemies of the Lord are like the glory of the pastures;
    they vanish—like smoke they vanish away.(AY)

21 The wicked borrow and do not pay back,
    but the righteous are generous and keep giving;(AZ)
22 surely those blessed by the Lord shall inherit the land,
    but those cursed by him shall be cut off.(BA)

23 Our steps[f] are made firm by the Lord
    when he delights in our[g] way;(BB)
24 though we stumble, we[h] shall not fall headlong,
    for the Lord holds us[i] by the hand.(BC)

25 I have been young and now am old,
    yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
    or their children begging bread.(BD)
26 They are ever giving liberally and lending,
    and their children become a blessing.(BE)

27 Depart from evil, and do good;
    so you shall abide forever.(BF)
28 For the Lord loves justice;
    he will not forsake his faithful ones.

The righteous shall be kept safe forever,
    but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.(BG)
29 The righteous shall inherit the land
    and live in it forever.(BH)

30 The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom,
    and their tongues speak justice.(BI)
31 The law of their God is in their hearts;
    their steps do not slip.(BJ)

32 The wicked watch for the righteous
    and seek to kill them.(BK)
33 The Lord will not abandon them to their power
    or let them be condemned when they are brought to trial.(BL)

34 Wait for the Lord and keep to his way,
    and he will exalt you to inherit the land;
    you will look on the destruction of the wicked.(BM)

35 I have seen the wicked oppressing
    and towering like a cedar of Lebanon.[j](BN)
36 Again I[k] passed by, and they were no more;
    though I sought them, they could not be found.(BO)

37 Mark the blameless and behold the upright,
    for there is posterity for the peaceable.(BP)
38 But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed;
    the posterity of the wicked shall be cut off.(BQ)

39 The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
    he is their refuge in the time of trouble.(BR)
40 The Lord helps them and rescues them;
    he rescues them from the wicked and saves them
    because they take refuge in him.(BS)

Psalm 38

A Penitent Sufferer’s Plea for Healing

A Psalm of David, for the memorial offering.

O Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger
    or discipline me in your wrath.(BT)
For your arrows have sunk into me,
    and your hand has come down on me.(BU)

There is no soundness in my flesh
    because of your indignation;
there is no health in my bones
    because of my sin.(BV)
For my iniquities have gone over my head;
    they weigh like a burden too heavy for me.(BW)

My wounds grow foul and fester
    because of my foolishness;(BX)
I am utterly bowed down and prostrate;
    all day long I go around mourning.(BY)
For my loins are filled with burning,
    and there is no soundness in my flesh.(BZ)
I am utterly spent and crushed;
    I groan because of the tumult of my heart.(CA)

O Lord, all my longing is known to you;
    my sighing is not hidden from you.(CB)
10 My heart throbs; my strength fails me;
    as for the light of my eyes—it also has gone from me.
11 My friends and companions stand aloof from my affliction,
    and my neighbors stand far off.(CC)

12 Those who seek my life lay their snares;
    those who seek to hurt me speak of ruin
    and meditate on treachery all day long.(CD)

13 But I am like the deaf; I do not hear;
    like the mute, who cannot speak.(CE)
14 Truly, I am like one who does not hear
    and in whose mouth is no retort.

15 But it is for you, O Lord, that I wait;
    it is you, O Lord my God, who will answer.(CF)
16 For I pray, “Only do not let them rejoice over me,
    those who boast against me when my foot slips.”(CG)

17 For I am ready to fall,
    and my pain is ever with me.(CH)
18 I confess my iniquity;
    I am sorry for my sin.(CI)
19 Those who are my foes without cause[l] are mighty,
    and many are those who hate me wrongfully.(CJ)
20 Those who render me evil for good
    are my adversaries because I follow after good.(CK)

21 Do not forsake me, O Lord;
    O my God, do not be far from me;(CL)
22 make haste to help me,
    O Lord, my salvation.(CM)

Footnotes

  1. 35.7 Heb a pit, their net
  2. 35.7 The word pit is transposed from the preceding line
  3. 35.13 Or My prayer turned back
  4. 35.16 Cn Compare Gk: Heb like the profanest of mockers of a cake
  5. 35.25 Heb him
  6. 37.23 Heb A man’s steps
  7. 37.23 Heb his
  8. 37.24 Heb he stumbles, he
  9. 37.24 Heb him
  10. 37.35 Gk: Meaning of Heb uncertain
  11. 37.36 Gk Syr Jerome: Heb he
  12. 38.19 Q ms: MT my living foes