Psalm 11-17
New King James Version
Faith in the Lord’s Righteousness
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
11 In (A)the Lord I put my trust;
How can you say to my soul,
“Flee as a bird to your mountain”?
2 For look! (B)The wicked bend their bow,
They make ready their arrow on the string,
That they may shoot [a]secretly at the upright in heart.
3 (C)If the foundations are destroyed,
What can the righteous do?
4 The Lord is in His holy temple,
The Lord’s (D)throne is in heaven;
(E)His eyes behold,
His eyelids test the sons of men.
5 The Lord (F)tests the righteous,
But the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates.
6 Upon the wicked He will rain coals;
Fire and brimstone and a burning wind
(G)Shall be [b]the portion of their cup.
Man’s Treachery and God’s Constancy
To the Chief Musician. (I)On [d]an eight-stringed harp. A Psalm of David.
12 Help,[e] Lord, for the godly man (J)ceases!
For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men.
2 (K)They speak idly everyone with his neighbor;
With flattering lips and [f]a double heart they speak.
3 May the Lord [g]cut off all flattering lips,
And the tongue that speaks [h]proud things,
4 Who have said,
“With our tongue we will prevail;
Our lips are our own;
Who is lord over us?”
5 “For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy,
Now I will arise,” says the Lord;
“I will set him in the safety for which he yearns.”
6 The words of the Lord are (L)pure words,
Like silver tried in a furnace of earth,
Purified seven times.
7 You shall keep them, O Lord,
You shall preserve them from this generation forever.
8 The wicked prowl on every side,
When vileness is exalted among the sons of men.
Trust in the Salvation of the Lord
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
13 How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever?
(M)How long will You hide Your face from me?
2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul,
Having sorrow in my heart daily?
How long will my enemy be exalted over me?
3 Consider and hear me, O Lord my God;
(N)Enlighten my eyes,
(O)Lest I sleep the sleep of death;
4 Lest my enemy say,
“I have prevailed against him”;
Lest those who trouble me rejoice when I am moved.
5 But I have trusted in Your mercy;
My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.
6 I will sing to the Lord,
Because He has dealt bountifully with me.
Folly of the Godless, and God’s Final Triumph(P)
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
14 The (Q)fool has said in his heart,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt,
They have done abominable works,
There is none who does good.
2 (R)The Lord looks down from heaven upon the children of men,
To see if there are any who understand, who seek God.
3 (S)They have all turned aside,
They have together become corrupt;
There is none who does good,
No, not one.
4 Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge,
Who eat up my people as they eat bread,
And (T)do not call on the Lord?
5 There they are in great fear,
For God is with the generation of the righteous.
6 You shame the counsel of the poor,
But the Lord is his (U)refuge.
7 (V)Oh,[i] that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion!
(W)When the Lord brings back [j]the captivity of His people,
Let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad.
The Character of Those Who May Dwell with the Lord
A Psalm of David.
2 He who walks uprightly,
And works righteousness,
And speaks the (Y)truth in his heart;
3 He who (Z)does not backbite with his tongue,
Nor does evil to his neighbor,
(AA)Nor does he [l]take up a reproach against his friend;
4 (AB)In whose eyes a vile person is despised,
But he honors those who fear the Lord;
He who (AC)swears to his own hurt and does not change;
5 He who does not put out his money at usury,
Nor does he take a bribe against the innocent.
He who does these things (AD)shall never be moved.
The Hope of the Faithful, and the Messiah’s Victory
A (AE)Michtam of David.
16 Preserve[m] me, O God, for in You I put my trust.
2 O my soul, you have said to the Lord,
“You are my Lord,
(AF)My goodness is nothing apart from You.”
3 As for the saints who are on the earth,
“They are the excellent ones, in (AG)whom is all my delight.”
4 Their sorrows shall be multiplied who hasten after another god;
Their drink offerings of (AH)blood I will not offer,
(AI)Nor take up their names on my lips.
5 O Lord, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup;
You [n]maintain my lot.
6 The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;
Yes, I have a good inheritance.
7 I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel;
My [o]heart also instructs me in the night seasons.
8 (AJ)I have set the Lord always before me;
Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.
9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will [p]rest in hope.
10 (AK)For You will not leave my soul in [q]Sheol,
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to [r]see corruption.
11 You will show me the (AL)path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Prayer with Confidence in Final Salvation
A Prayer of David.
17 Hear a just cause, O Lord,
Attend to my cry;
Give ear to my prayer which is not from deceitful lips.
2 Let my vindication come from Your presence;
Let Your eyes look on the things that are upright.
3 You have tested my heart;
You have visited me in the night;
(AM)You have [s]tried me and have found [t]nothing;
I have purposed that my mouth shall not (AN)transgress.
4 Concerning the works of men,
By the word of Your lips,
I have kept away from the paths of the destroyer.
5 (AO)Uphold my steps in Your paths,
That my footsteps may not slip.
6 (AP)I have called upon You, for You will hear me, O God;
Incline Your ear to me, and hear my speech.
7 Show Your marvelous lovingkindness by Your right hand,
O You who [u]save those who trust in You
From those who rise up against them.
8 Keep me as the [v]apple of Your eye;
Hide me under the shadow of Your wings,
9 From the wicked who oppress me,
From my deadly enemies who surround me.
10 They have closed up their (AQ)fat hearts;
With their mouths they (AR)speak proudly.
11 They have now surrounded us in our steps;
They have set their eyes, crouching down to the earth,
12 As a lion is eager to tear his prey,
And like a young lion lurking in secret places.
13 Arise, O Lord,
Confront him, cast him down;
Deliver my life from the wicked with Your sword,
14 With Your hand from men, O Lord,
From men of the world who have their portion in this life,
And whose belly You fill with Your hidden treasure.
They are satisfied with children,
And leave the rest of their possession for their babes.
15 As for me, (AS)I will see Your face in righteousness;
(AT)I shall be satisfied when I (AU)awake in Your likeness.
Footnotes
- Psalm 11:2 Lit. in darkness
- Psalm 11:6 Their allotted portion or serving
- Psalm 11:7 Or The upright beholds His countenance
- Psalm 12:1 Heb. sheminith
- Psalm 12:1 Save
- Psalm 12:2 An inconsistent mind
- Psalm 12:3 destroy
- Psalm 12:3 great
- Psalm 14:7 Lit. Who will give out of Zion the salvation of Israel?
- Psalm 14:7 Or His captive people
- Psalm 15:1 sojourn
- Psalm 15:3 receive
- Psalm 16:1 Watch over
- Psalm 16:5 Lit. uphold
- Psalm 16:7 Mind, lit. kidneys
- Psalm 16:9 Or dwell securely
- Psalm 16:10 The abode of the dead
- Psalm 16:10 undergo
- Psalm 17:3 examined
- Psalm 17:3 Nothing evil
- Psalm 17:7 deliver
- Psalm 17:8 pupil
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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