Chronological
Psalm 7
Plea for Help against Persecutors
A Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the Lord concerning Cush, a Benjaminite.
1 O Lord my God, in you I take refuge;
save me from all my pursuers, and deliver me,(A)
2 or like a lion they will tear me apart;
they will drag me away, with no one to rescue.(B)
3 O Lord my God, if I have done this,
if there is wrong in my hands,(C)
4 if I have repaid my ally with harm
or plundered my foe without cause,(D)
5 then let the enemy pursue and overtake me,
trample my life to the ground,
and lay my soul in the dust. Selah
6 Rise up, O Lord, in your anger;
lift yourself up against the fury of my enemies;
awake, O my God;[a] you have appointed a judgment.(E)
7 Let the assembly of the peoples be gathered around you,
and over it take your seat[b] on high.(F)
8 The Lord judges the peoples;
judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness
and according to the integrity that is in me.(G)
9 O let the evil of the wicked come to an end,
but establish the righteous,
you who test the minds and hearts,
O righteous God.(H)
10 God is my shield,
who saves the upright in heart.(I)
11 God is a righteous judge
and a God who has indignation every day.(J)
12 If one does not repent, God[c] will whet his sword;
he has bent and strung his bow;(K)
13 he has prepared his deadly weapons,
making his arrows fiery shafts.(L)
14 See how they conceive evil
and are pregnant with mischief
and bring forth lies.(M)
15 They make a pit, digging it out,
and fall into the hole that they have made.(N)
16 Their mischief returns upon their own heads,
and on their own heads their violence descends.(O)
17 I will give to the Lord the thanks due to his righteousness
and sing praise to the name of the Lord, the Most High.(P)
Psalm 27
Triumphant Song of Confidence
Of David.
1 The Lord is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold[a] of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?(A)
2 When evildoers assail me
to devour my flesh—
my adversaries and foes—
they shall stumble and fall.(B)
3 Though an army encamp against me,
my heart shall not fear;
though war rise up against me,
yet I will be confident.(C)
4 One thing I asked of the Lord;
this I seek:
to live in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
to behold the beauty of the Lord,
and to inquire in his temple.(D)
5 For he will hide me in his shelter
in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;
he will set me high on a rock.(E)
6 Now my head is lifted up
above my enemies all around me,
and I will offer in his tent
sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make melody to the Lord.(F)
7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud;
be gracious to me and answer me!(G)
8 “Come,” my heart says, “seek his face!”
Your face, Lord, do I seek.(H)
9 Do not hide your face from me.
Do not turn your servant away in anger,
you who have been my help.
Do not cast me off; do not forsake me,
O God of my salvation!(I)
10 If my father and mother forsake me,
the Lord will take me up.(J)
Psalm 31
Prayer and Praise for Deliverance from Enemies
To the leader. A Psalm of David.
1 In you, O Lord, I seek refuge;
do not let me ever be put to shame;
in your righteousness deliver me.(A)
2 Incline your ear to me;
rescue me speedily.
Be a rock of refuge for me,
a strong fortress to save me.(B)
3 You are indeed my rock and my fortress;
for your name’s sake lead me and guide me;(C)
4 take me out of the net that is hidden for me,
for you are my refuge.(D)
5 Into your hand I commit my spirit;
you have redeemed me, O Lord, faithful God.(E)
6 You hate[a] those who pay regard to worthless idols,
but I trust in the Lord.(F)
7 I will exult and rejoice in your steadfast love,
because you have seen my affliction;
you have taken notice of my adversities(G)
8 and have not delivered me into the hand of the enemy;
you have set my feet in a broad place.(H)
9 Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am in distress;
my eye wastes away from grief,
my soul and body also.
10 For my life is spent with sorrow
and my years with sighing;
my strength fails because of my misery,[b]
and my bones waste away.(I)
11 I am the scorn of all my adversaries,
a horror[c] to my neighbors,
an object of dread to my acquaintances;
those who see me in the street flee from me.(J)
12 I have passed out of mind like one who is dead;
I have become like a broken vessel.(K)
13 For I hear the whispering of many—
terror all around!—
as they scheme together against me,
as they plot to take my life.(L)
14 But I trust in you, O Lord;
I say, “You are my God.”(M)
15 My times are in your hand;
deliver me from the hand of my enemies and persecutors.(N)
16 Let your face shine upon your servant;
save me in your steadfast love.(O)
17 Do not let me be put to shame, O Lord,
for I call on you;
let the wicked be put to shame;
let them go dumbfounded to Sheol.(P)
18 Let the lying lips be stilled
that speak insolently against the righteous
with pride and contempt.(Q)
19 O how abundant is your goodness
that you have laid up for those who fear you
and accomplished for those who take refuge in you,
in the sight of everyone!(R)
20 In the shelter of your presence you hide them
from human plots;
you hold them safe under your shelter
from contentious tongues.(S)
Psalm 34
Praise for Deliverance from Trouble
Of David, when he feigned madness before Abimelech, so that he drove him out, and he went away.
1 I will bless the Lord at all times;
his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
2 My soul makes its boast in the Lord;
let the humble hear and be glad.(A)
3 O magnify the Lord with me,
and let us exalt his name together.(B)
4 I sought the Lord, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.(C)
5 Look to him, and be radiant,
so your[a] faces shall never be ashamed.(D)
6 This poor soul cried and was heard by the Lord
and was saved from every trouble.
7 The angel of the Lord encamps
around those who fear him and delivers them.(E)
8 O taste and see that the Lord is good;
happy are those who take refuge in him.(F)
9 O fear the Lord, you his holy ones,
for those who fear him have no want.(G)
10 The young lions suffer want and hunger,
but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.(H)
11 Come, O children, listen to me;
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.(I)
12 Which of you desires life
and covets many days to enjoy good?(J)
13 Keep your tongue from evil
and your lips from speaking deceit.(K)
14 Depart from evil, and do good;
seek peace, and pursue it.(L)
15 The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
and his ears are open to their cry.(M)
16 The face of the Lord is against evildoers,
to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.(N)
17 When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears
and rescues them from all their troubles.(O)
18 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted
and saves the crushed in spirit.(P)
19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
but the Lord rescues them from them all.(Q)
20 He keeps all their bones;
not one of them will be broken.(R)
21 Evil brings death to the wicked,
and those who hate the righteous will be condemned.(S)
22 The Lord redeems the life of his servants;
none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.(T)
Psalm 52
Judgment on the Deceitful
To the leader. A Maskil of David, when Doeg the Edomite came to Saul and said to him, “David has come to the house of Ahimelech.”
1 Why do you boast, O mighty one,
of mischief done against the godly?[a]
All day long(A) 2 you are plotting destruction.
Your tongue is like a sharp razor,
you worker of treachery.(B)
3 You love evil more than good
and lying more than speaking the truth. Selah(C)
4 You love all words that devour,
O deceitful tongue.(D)
5 But God will break you down forever;
he will snatch and tear you from your tent;
he will uproot you from the land of the living. Selah(E)
6 The righteous will see and fear
and will laugh at the evildoer,[b] saying,(F)
7 “See the one who would not take
refuge in God
but trusted in abundant riches
and sought refuge in wealth!”[c](G)
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.