A Prayer for Guidance

To the Chief Musician. With [a]flutes. A Psalm of David.

Give (A)ear to my words, O Lord,
Consider my [b]meditation.
Give heed to the voice of my cry,
My King and my God,
For to You I will pray.
My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord;
(B)In the morning I will direct it to You,
And I will look up.

For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness,
Nor shall evil [c]dwell with You.
The (C)boastful shall not (D)stand in Your sight;
You hate all workers of iniquity.
You shall destroy those who speak falsehood;
The Lord abhors the (E)bloodthirsty and deceitful man.

But as for me, I will come into Your house in the multitude of Your mercy;
In fear of You I will worship toward [d]Your holy temple.
(F)Lead me, O Lord, in Your righteousness because of my enemies;
Make Your way straight before my face.

For there is no [e]faithfulness in their mouth;
Their inward part is destruction;
(G)Their throat is an open tomb;
They flatter with their tongue.
10 Pronounce them guilty, O God!
Let them fall by their own counsels;
Cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions,
For they have rebelled against You.

11 But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You;
Let them ever shout for joy, because You [f]defend them;
Let those also who love Your name
Be joyful in You.
12 For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous;
With favor You will surround him as with a shield.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 5:1 Heb. nehiloth
  2. Psalm 5:1 Lit. groaning
  3. Psalm 5:4 Lit. sojourn
  4. Psalm 5:7 Lit. the temple of Your holiness
  5. Psalm 5:9 uprightness
  6. Psalm 5:11 protect, lit. cover

Prayer for protection from the wicked.

For the Chief Musician; with the [a]Nehiloth. A Psalm of David.

Give ear to my words, O Jehovah,
Consider my meditation.
Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God;
For unto thee do I pray.
O Jehovah, in the morning shalt thou hear my voice;
In the morning will I order my prayer unto thee, and will keep watch.
For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness:
[b]Evil shall not sojourn with thee.
[c]The arrogant shall not stand in thy sight:
Thou hatest all workers of iniquity.
Thou wilt destroy them that speak lies:
Jehovah abhorreth the blood-thirsty and deceitful man.
But as for me, in the abundance of thy lovingkindness will I come into thy house:
In thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple.
Lead me, O Jehovah, in thy righteousness because of [d]mine enemies;
Make thy way [e]straight before my face.
For there is no [f]faithfulness in their mouth;
Their inward part is [g]very wickedness;
Their throat is an open sepulchre;
They [h]flatter with their tongue.
10 Hold them guilty, O God;
Let them fall [i]by their own counsels;
Thrust them out in the multitude of their transgressions;
For they have rebelled against thee.
11 [j]But let all those that take refuge in thee rejoice,
Let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them:
Let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.
12 For thou wilt bless the righteous;
O Jehovah, thou wilt compass him with favor as with a shield.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 5:1 Or, wind instruments
  2. Psalm 5:4 Or, The evil man
  3. Psalm 5:5 Or, Fools
  4. Psalm 5:8 Or, them that lie in wait for me
  5. Psalm 5:8 Or, level
  6. Psalm 5:9 Or, stedfastness
  7. Psalm 5:9 Or, a yawning gulf
  8. Psalm 5:9 Hebrew make smooth their tongue.
  9. Psalm 5:10 Or, from their counsels
  10. Psalm 5:11 Or, So shall all those . . . rejoice, They shall ever shout . . . and thou shalt defend them: They also . . . shall be joyful in thee.