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For the Chief Musician. To the tune of “Lilies.” By David.

69 Save me, God,
    for the waters have come up to my neck!
I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold.
    I have come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me.
I am weary with my crying.
    My throat is dry.
    My eyes fail looking for my God.
Those who hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head.
    Those who want to cut me off, being my enemies wrongfully, are mighty.
    I have to restore what I didn’t take away.
God, you know my foolishness.
    My sins aren’t hidden from you.
Don’t let those who wait for you be shamed through me, Lord Yahweh of Armies.
    Don’t let those who seek you be brought to dishonor through me, God of Israel.
Because for your sake, I have borne reproach.
    Shame has covered my face.
I have become a stranger to my brothers,
    an alien to my mother’s children.
For the zeal of your house consumes me.
    The reproaches of those who reproach you have fallen on me.
10 When I wept and I fasted,
    that was to my reproach.
11 When I made sackcloth my clothing,
    I became a byword to them.
12 Those who sit in the gate talk about me.
    I am the song of the drunkards.
13 But as for me, my prayer is to you, Yahweh, in an acceptable time.
    God, in the abundance of your loving kindness, answer me in the truth of your salvation.
14 Deliver me out of the mire, and don’t let me sink.
    Let me be delivered from those who hate me, and out of the deep waters.
15 Don’t let the flood waters overwhelm me,
    neither let the deep swallow me up.
    Don’t let the pit shut its mouth on me.
16 Answer me, Yahweh, for your loving kindness is good.
    According to the multitude of your tender mercies, turn to me.
17 Don’t hide your face from your servant,
    for I am in distress.
    Answer me speedily!
18 Draw near to my soul and redeem it.
    Ransom me because of my enemies.
19 You know my reproach, my shame, and my dishonor.
    My adversaries are all before you.
20 Reproach has broken my heart, and I am full of heaviness.
    I looked for some to take pity, but there was none;
    for comforters, but I found none.
21 They also gave me poison for my food.
    In my thirst, they gave me vinegar to drink.
22 Let their table before them become a snare.
    May it become a retribution and a trap.
23 Let their eyes be darkened, so that they can’t see.
    Let their backs be continually bent.
24 Pour out your indignation on them.
    Let the fierceness of your anger overtake them.
25 Let their habitation be desolate.
    Let no one dwell in their tents.
26 For they persecute him whom you have wounded.
    They tell of the sorrow of those whom you have hurt.
27 Charge them with crime upon crime.
    Don’t let them come into your righteousness.
28 Let them be blotted out of the book of life,
    and not be written with the righteous.
29 But I am in pain and distress.
    Let your salvation, God, protect me.
30 I will praise the name of God with a song,
    and will magnify him with thanksgiving.
31 It will please Yahweh better than an ox,
    or a bull that has horns and hoofs.
32 The humble have seen it, and are glad.
    You who seek after God, let your heart live.
33 For Yahweh hears the needy,
    and doesn’t despise his captive people.
34 Let heaven and earth praise him;
    the seas, and everything that moves therein!
35 For God will save Zion, and build the cities of Judah.
    They shall settle there, and own it.
36 The children also of his servants shall inherit it.
    Those who love his name shall dwell therein.

Psalm 69

For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be sung to the tune “Lilies.”

Save me, O God,
    for the floodwaters are up to my neck.
Deeper and deeper I sink into the mire;
    I can’t find a foothold.
I am in deep water,
    and the floods overwhelm me.
I am exhausted from crying for help;
    my throat is parched.
My eyes are swollen with weeping,
    waiting for my God to help me.
Those who hate me without cause
    outnumber the hairs on my head.
Many enemies try to destroy me with lies,
    demanding that I give back what I didn’t steal.

O God, you know how foolish I am;
    my sins cannot be hidden from you.
Don’t let those who trust in you be ashamed because of me,
    O Sovereign Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
Don’t let me cause them to be humiliated,
    O God of Israel.
For I endure insults for your sake;
    humiliation is written all over my face.
Even my own brothers pretend they don’t know me;
    they treat me like a stranger.

Passion for your house has consumed me,
    and the insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.
10 When I weep and fast,
    they scoff at me.
11 When I dress in burlap to show sorrow,
    they make fun of me.
12 I am the favorite topic of town gossip,
    and all the drunks sing about me.

13 But I keep praying to you, Lord,
    hoping this time you will show me favor.
In your unfailing love, O God,
    answer my prayer with your sure salvation.
14 Rescue me from the mud;
    don’t let me sink any deeper!
Save me from those who hate me,
    and pull me from these deep waters.
15 Don’t let the floods overwhelm me,
    or the deep waters swallow me,
    or the pit of death devour me.

16 Answer my prayers, O Lord,
    for your unfailing love is wonderful.
Take care of me,
    for your mercy is so plentiful.
17 Don’t hide from your servant;
    answer me quickly, for I am in deep trouble!
18 Come and redeem me;
    free me from my enemies.

19 You know of my shame, scorn, and disgrace.
    You see all that my enemies are doing.
20 Their insults have broken my heart,
    and I am in despair.
If only one person would show some pity;
    if only one would turn and comfort me.
21 But instead, they give me poison[a] for food;
    they offer me sour wine for my thirst.

22 Let the bountiful table set before them become a snare
    and their prosperity become a trap.[b]
23 Let their eyes go blind so they cannot see,
    and make their bodies shake continually.[c]
24 Pour out your fury on them;
    consume them with your burning anger.
25 Let their homes become desolate
    and their tents be deserted.
26 To the one you have punished, they add insult to injury;
    they add to the pain of those you have hurt.
27 Pile their sins up high,
    and don’t let them go free.
28 Erase their names from the Book of Life;
    don’t let them be counted among the righteous.

29 I am suffering and in pain.
    Rescue me, O God, by your saving power.

30 Then I will praise God’s name with singing,
    and I will honor him with thanksgiving.
31 For this will please the Lord more than sacrificing cattle,
    more than presenting a bull with its horns and hooves.
32 The humble will see their God at work and be glad.
    Let all who seek God’s help be encouraged.
33 For the Lord hears the cries of the needy;
    he does not despise his imprisoned people.

34 Praise him, O heaven and earth,
    the seas and all that move in them.
35 For God will save Jerusalem[d]
    and rebuild the towns of Judah.
His people will live there
    and settle in their own land.
36 The descendants of those who obey him will inherit the land,
    and those who love him will live there in safety.

Footnotes

  1. 69:21 Or gall.
  2. 69:22 Greek version reads Let their bountiful table set before them become a snare, / a trap that makes them think all is well. / Let their blessings cause them to stumble, / and let them get what they deserve. Compare Rom 11:9.
  3. 69:23 Greek version reads and let their backs be bent forever. Compare Rom 11:10.
  4. 69:35 Hebrew Zion.