Psalm 34
Christian Standard Bible
Psalm 34
The Lord Delivers the Righteous
Concerning David, when he pretended to be insane in the presence of Abimelech,(A) who drove him out, and he departed.
1 I will bless the Lord at all times;
his praise will always be on my lips.(B)
2 I will boast in the Lord;(C)
the humble will hear and be glad.(D)
3 Proclaim the Lord’s greatness with me;(E)
let us exalt his name together.(F)
4 I sought the Lord, and he answered me
and rescued me from all my fears.(G)
5 Those who look to him are[a] radiant with joy;(H)
their faces will never be ashamed.(I)
6 This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him
and saved him from all his troubles.(J)
7 The angel of the Lord encamps
around those who fear him, and rescues them.(K)
8 Taste and see that the Lord is good.(L)
How happy is the person who takes refuge in him!(M)
9 You who are his holy ones, fear the Lord,
for those who fear him lack nothing.(N)
10 Young lions[b] lack food and go hungry,(O)
but those who seek the Lord
will not lack any good thing.(P)
11 Come, children, listen to me;
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.(Q)
12 Who is someone who desires life,
loving a long life to enjoy what is good?(R)
13 Keep your tongue from evil
and your lips from deceitful speech.(S)
14 Turn away from evil and do what is good;(T)
seek peace and pursue it.(U)
15 The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
and his ears are open to their cry for help.(V)
16 The face of the Lord is set
against those who do what is evil,(W)
to remove[c] all memory of them from the earth.(X)
17 The righteous[d] cry out, and the Lord hears,
and rescues them from all their troubles.(Y)
18 The Lord is near the brokenhearted;
he saves those crushed in spirit.(Z)
19 One who is righteous has many adversities,
but the Lord rescues him from them all.(AA)
20 He protects all his bones;
not one of them is broken.(AB)
21 Evil brings death to the wicked,
and those who hate the righteous will be punished.(AC)
22 The Lord redeems the life of his servants,
and all who take refuge in him will not be punished.(AD)
Psalm 34
Common English Bible
Psalm 34[a]
Of David, when he pretended to be crazy before Abimelech, who banished him so that he left.
34 I will bless the Lord at all times;
his praise will always be in my mouth.
2 I[b] praise the Lord—
let the suffering listen and rejoice.
3 Magnify the Lord with me!
Together let us lift his name up high!
4 I sought the Lord and he answered me.
He delivered me from all my fears.
5 Those who look to God will shine;
their faces are never ashamed.
6 This suffering person cried out:
the Lord listened and saved him from every trouble.
7 On every side, the Lord’s messenger protects those who honor God; and he delivers them.
8 Taste and see how good the Lord is!
The one who takes refuge in him is truly happy!
9 You who are the Lord’s holy ones, honor him,
because those who honor him don’t lack a thing.
10 Even strong young lions go without and get hungry,
but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.
11 Come, children, listen to me.
Let me teach you how to honor the Lord:
12 Do you love life;
do you relish the chance to enjoy good things?
13 Then you must keep your tongue from evil
and keep your lips from speaking lies!
14 Turn away from evil! Do good!
Seek peace and go after it!
15 The Lord’s eyes watch the righteous,
his ears listen to their cries for help.
16 But the Lord’s face is set against those who do evil,
to eliminate even the memory of them from the earth.
17 When the righteous cry out, the Lord listens;
he delivers them from all their troubles.
18 The Lord is close to the brokenhearted;
he saves those whose spirits are crushed.
19 The righteous have many problems,
but the Lord delivers them from every one.
20 He protects all their bones;
not even one will be broken.
21 But just one problem will kill the wicked,
and those who hate the righteous will be held responsible.
22 The Lord saves his servants’ lives;
all those who take refuge in him
won’t be held responsible for anything.
Footnotes
- Psalm 34:1 Ps 34 is an alphabetic acrostic poem; see the note at Pss 9–10.
- Psalm 34:2 Or my soul; also in 34:22
1 Samuel 21:10-15
Christian Standard Bible
David Flees to Gath
10 David fled that day from Saul’s presence and went to King Achish of Gath.(A) 11 But Achish’s servants said to him, “Isn’t this David, the king of the land? Don’t they sing about him during their dances:
Saul has killed his thousands,
but David his tens of thousands?” (B)
12 David took this to heart and became very afraid of King Achish of Gath, 13 so he pretended to be insane in their presence.(C) He acted like a madman around them,[a] scribbling[b] on the doors of the city gate and letting saliva run down his beard.
14 “Look! You can see the man is crazy,” Achish said to his servants. “Why did you bring him to me? 15 Do I have such a shortage of crazy people that you brought this one to act crazy around me? Is this one going to come into my house?” (D)
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1 Samuel 21:10-15
Common English Bible
David pretends to be crazy
10 So David got up and continued running from Saul. He went to Achish, Gath’s king. 11 Achish’s servants said to him, “Isn’t that David, king of the land? He’s the one people sing about in their dances,
‘Saul has killed his thousands,
but David has killed his tens of thousands!’”
12 David took these words very seriously and became very frightened of Achish, Gath’s king. 13 So he changed the way he acted with them, pretending to be insane while he was with them.[a] He scratched marks on the doors of the city gates[b] and let spit run down his chin.
14 “Can’t you see he’s crazy?” Achish asked his servants. “Why bring him to me? 15 Am I short on insane people that you’ve brought this person to go crazy right in front of me? Do you really think I’m going to let this man enter my house?”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 1 Samuel 21:13 Or in their hand; Heb uncertain
- 1 Samuel 21:13 Or with correction he spit on the doors of the city gate or he fell down at the doors of the city gate (cf LXX).
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