Beginning
A Psalm of Thanksgiving for God’s Justice.
For the choir director; on [a]Muth-labben. A Psalm of David.
9 I will give thanks to the Lord with all (A)my heart;
I will (B)tell of all Your [b]wonders.
2 I will be glad and (C)exult in You;
I will (D)sing praise to Your name, O (E)Most High.
3 When my enemies turn back,
They stumble and (F)perish before You.
4 For You have (G)maintained [c]my just cause;
You have sat on the throne [d](H)judging righteously.
5 You have (I)rebuked the nations, You have destroyed the wicked;
You have (J)blotted out their name forever and ever.
6 [e]The enemy has come to an end in perpetual ruins,
And You have uprooted the cities;
The very (K)memory of them has perished.
7 But the (L)Lord [f]abides forever;
He has established His (M)throne for judgment,
8 And He will (N)judge the world in righteousness;
He will execute judgment for the peoples with equity.
9 [g]The Lord also will be a (O)stronghold for the oppressed,
A stronghold in times of trouble;
10 And [h]those who (P)know Your name will put their trust in You,
For You, O Lord, have not (Q)forsaken those who seek You.
11 Sing praises to the Lord, who (R)dwells in Zion;
(S)Declare among the peoples His deeds.
12 For (T)He who [i]requires blood remembers them;
He does not forget (U)the cry of the afflicted.
13 Be gracious to me, O Lord;
See my affliction from those (V)who hate me,
You who (W)lift me up from the gates of death,
14 That I may tell of (X)all Your praises,
That in the gates of the daughter of Zion
I may (Y)rejoice in Your [j]salvation.
15 The nations have sunk down (Z)in the pit which they have made;
In the (AA)net which they hid, their own foot has been caught.
16 The Lord has (AB)made Himself known;
He has (AC)executed judgment.
In the work of his own hands the wicked is snared. [k]Higgaion [l]Selah.
17 The wicked will [m](AD)return to [n]Sheol,
Even all the nations who (AE)forget God.
18 For the (AF)needy will not always be forgotten,
Nor the (AG)hope of the afflicted perish forever.
19 (AH)Arise, O Lord, do not let man prevail;
Let the nations be (AI)judged before You.
20 Put them (AJ)in fear, O Lord;
Let the nations know that they are (AK)but men. Selah.
A Prayer for the Overthrow of the Wicked.
10 Why (AL)do You stand afar off, O Lord?
Why (AM)do You hide [o]Yourself in times of trouble?
2 In (AN)pride the wicked [p]hotly pursue the afflicted;
[q]Let them be (AO)caught in the plots which they have devised.
3 For the wicked (AP)boasts of his (AQ)heart’s desire,
And [r]the greedy man curses and (AR)spurns the Lord.
4 The wicked, in the haughtiness of his countenance, (AS)does not seek Him.
All his [s]thoughts are, “(AT)There is no God.”
5 His ways [t](AU)prosper at all times;
Your judgments are on high, (AV)out of his sight;
As for all his adversaries, he snorts at them.
6 He says to himself, “(AW)I will not be moved;
[u]Throughout all generations (AX)I will not be in adversity.”
7 His (AY)mouth is full of curses and deceit and (AZ)oppression;
(BA)Under his tongue is mischief and wickedness.
8 He sits in the (BB)lurking places of the villages;
In the hiding places he (BC)kills the innocent;
His eyes [v]stealthily watch for the [w](BD)unfortunate.
9 He lurks in a hiding place as (BE)a lion in his [x]lair;
He (BF)lurks to catch (BG)the afflicted;
He catches the afflicted when he draws him into his (BH)net.
10 He [y]crouches, he [z]bows down,
And the [aa]unfortunate fall [ab]by his mighty ones.
11 He (BI)says to himself, “God has forgotten;
He has hidden His face; He will never see it.”
12 Arise, O Lord; O God, (BJ)lift up Your hand.
(BK)Do not forget the afflicted.
13 Why has the wicked (BL)spurned God?
He has said to himself, “You will not require it.”
14 You have seen it, for You have beheld (BM)mischief and vexation to [ac]take it into Your hand.
The [ad](BN)unfortunate commits himself to You;
You have been the (BO)helper of the orphan.
15 (BP)Break the arm of the wicked and the evildoer,
[ae](BQ)Seek out his wickedness until You find none.
16 The Lord is (BR)King forever and ever;
(BS)Nations have perished from His land.
17 O Lord, You have heard the (BT)desire of the [af]humble;
You will (BU)strengthen their heart, (BV)You will incline Your ear
18 To [ag]vindicate the (BW)orphan and the (BX)oppressed,
So that man who is of the earth will no longer cause (BY)terror.
The Lord a Refuge and Defense.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David.
11 In the Lord I (BZ)take refuge;
How can you say to my soul, “Flee as a bird to your (CA)mountain;
2 For, behold, the wicked (CB)bend the bow,
They [ah](CC)make ready their arrow upon the string
To (CD)shoot in darkness at the upright in heart.
3 If the (CE)foundations are destroyed,
What can the righteous do?”
4 The Lord is in His (CF)holy temple; the [ai]Lord’s (CG)throne is in heaven;
His (CH)eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men.
5 The Lord (CI)tests the righteous and (CJ)the wicked,
And the one who loves violence His soul hates.
6 Upon the wicked He will (CK)rain [aj]snares;
(CL)Fire and brimstone and (CM)burning wind will be the portion of (CN)their cup.
7 For the Lord is (CO)righteous, (CP)He loves [ak]righteousness;
The upright will (CQ)behold His face.
God, a Helper against the Treacherous.
For the choir director; [al]upon an eight-stringed lyre. A Psalm of David.
12 Help, Lord, for (CR)the godly man ceases to be,
For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men.
2 They (CS)speak [am]falsehood to one another;
With (CT)flattering [an]lips and with a double heart they speak.
3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
The tongue that (CU)speaks great things;
4 Who (CV)have said, “With our tongue we will prevail;
Our lips are [ao]our own; who is lord over us?”
5 “Because of the (CW)devastation of the afflicted, because of the groaning of the needy,
Now (CX)I will arise,” says the Lord; “I will (CY)set him in the safety for which he longs.”
6 The (CZ)words of the Lord are pure words;
As silver (DA)tried in a furnace on the earth, refined seven times.
7 You, O Lord, will keep them;
You will (DB)preserve him from this generation forever.
8 The (DC)wicked strut about on every side
When [ap](DD)vileness is exalted among the sons of men.
Prayer for Help in Trouble.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David.
13 How long, O Lord? Will You (DE)forget me forever?
How long (DF)will You hide Your face from me?
2 How long shall I (DG)take counsel in my soul,
Having (DH)sorrow in my heart all the day?
How long will my enemy be exalted over me?
3 (DI)Consider and answer me, O Lord my God;
(DJ)Enlighten my eyes, or I will (DK)sleep the sleep of death,
4 And my enemy will (DL)say, “I have overcome him,”
And (DM)my adversaries will rejoice when I am shaken.
5 But I have (DN)trusted in Your lovingkindness;
My heart shall (DO)rejoice in Your salvation.
6 I will (DP)sing to the Lord,
Because He has (DQ)dealt bountifully with me.
Folly and Wickedness of Men.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David.
14 The fool has (DR)said in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, they have committed abominable [aq]deeds;
There is (DS)no one who does good.
2 The Lord has (DT)looked down from heaven upon the sons of men
To see if there are any who [ar](DU)understand,
Who (DV)seek after God.
3 They have all (DW)turned aside, together they have become corrupt;
There is (DX)no one who does good, not even one.
4 Do all the workers of wickedness (DY)not know,
Who (DZ)eat up my people as they eat bread,
And (EA)do not call upon the Lord?
5 There they are in great dread,
For God is with the (EB)righteous generation.
6 You would put to shame the counsel of the afflicted,
But the Lord is his (EC)refuge.
7 Oh, that (ED)the salvation of Israel [as]would come out of Zion!
When the Lord [at](EE)restores His captive people,
Jacob will rejoice, Israel will be glad.
Description of a Citizen of Zion.
A Psalm of David.
15 O Lord, who may [au]abide (EF)in Your tent?
Who may dwell on Your (EG)holy hill?
2 He who (EH)walks with integrity, and works righteousness,
And (EI)speaks truth in his heart.
3 He (EJ)does not slander [av]with his tongue,
Nor (EK)does evil to his neighbor,
Nor (EL)takes up a reproach against his friend;
4 In [aw]whose eyes a reprobate is despised,
But [ax]who (EM)honors those who fear the Lord;
He (EN)swears to his own hurt and does not change;
5 He (EO)does not put out his money [ay]at interest,
Nor (EP)does he take a bribe against the innocent.
(EQ)He who does these things will never be shaken.
The Lord the Psalmist’s Portion in Life and Deliverer in Death.
A [az]Mikhtam of David.
16 (ER)Preserve me, O God, for (ES)I take refuge in You.
2 [ba]I said to the Lord, “You are [bb]my Lord;
I (ET)have no good besides You.”
3 As for the [bc](EU)saints who are in the earth,
[bd]They are the majestic ones (EV)in whom is all my delight.
4 The [be](EW)sorrows of those who have [bf]bartered for another god will be multiplied;
I shall not pour out their drink offerings of (EX)blood,
Nor will I (EY)take their names upon my lips.
5 The Lord is the (EZ)portion of my inheritance and my (FA)cup;
You support my (FB)lot.
6 The (FC)lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;
Indeed, my heritage is (FD)beautiful to me.
7 I will bless the Lord who has (FE)counseled me;
Indeed, my [bg](FF)mind instructs me in the night.
8 (FG)I have (FH)set the Lord continually before me;
Because He is (FI)at my right hand, (FJ)I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore (FK)my heart is glad and (FL)my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will (FM)dwell securely.
10 For You (FN)will not abandon my soul to [bh]Sheol;
Nor will You [bi](FO)allow Your [bj]Holy One to [bk]undergo decay.
11 You will make known to me (FP)the path of life;
In (FQ)Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are (FR)pleasures forever.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.