BOOK I

Psalms 1–41

Psalm 1

Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers,

but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night.

That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers.

Many are saying of me, “God will not deliver him.”

Arise, Lord! Deliver me, my God! Strike all my enemies on the jaw; break the teeth of the wicked.

Psalm 4

For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of David.

Answer me when I call to you, my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; have mercy on me and hear my prayer.

How long will you people turn my glory into shame? How long will you love delusions and seek false gods?

Hear my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray.

For you are not a God who is pleased with wickedness; with you, evil people are not welcome.

Not a word from their mouth can be trusted; their heart is filled with malice. Their throat is an open grave; with their tongues they tell lies.

Declare them guilty, O God! Let their intrigues be their downfall. Banish them for their many sins, for they have rebelled against you.

My soul is in deep anguish. How long, Lord, how long?

Psalm 7

A shiggaion of David, which he sang to the Lord concerning Cush, a Benjamite.

Lord my God, I take refuge in you; save and deliver me from all who pursue me,

Lord my God, if I have done this and there is guilt on my hands—

Arise, Lord, in your anger; rise up against the rage of my enemies. Awake, my God; decree justice.

Bring to an end the violence of the wicked and make the righteous secure— you, the righteous God who probes minds and hearts.

My shield is God Most High, who saves the upright in heart.

God is a righteous judge, a God who displays his wrath every day.

Whoever is pregnant with evil conceives trouble and gives birth to disillusionment.

Psalm 8

For the director of music. According to gittith. A psalm of David.

Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory in the heavens.

what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?

Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble.

The Lord is known by his acts of justice; the wicked are ensnared by the work of their hands.

The wicked go down to the realm of the dead, all the nations that forget God.