Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

² Hide me from the conspiracy of the wicked,
    from the plots of evildoers.
³ They sharpen their tongues like swords
    and aim cruel words like deadly arrows.
⁴ They shoot from ambush at the innocent;
    they shoot suddenly, without fear.

⁵ They encourage each other in evil plans,
    they talk about hiding their snares;
    they say, ‘Who will see it?’^[b]
6 They plot injustice and say,
    ‘We have devised a perfect plan!’
    Surely the human mind and heart are cunning.

⁷ But God will shoot them with his arrows;
    they will suddenly be struck down.
⁸ He will turn their own tongues against them
    and bring them to ruin;
    all who see them will shake their heads in scorn.
⁹ All people will fear;
    they will proclaim the works of God
    and ponder what he has done.

¹⁰ The righteous will rejoice in the Lord
    and take refuge in him;
    all the upright in heart will glory in him!

² ‘When will you end these speeches?
    Be sensible, and then we can talk.
³ Why are we regarded as cattle
    and considered stupid in your sight?
⁴ You who tear yourself to pieces in your anger,
    is the earth to be abandoned for your sake?
    Or must the rocks be moved from their place?

⁵ ‘The lamp of a wicked man is snuffed out;
    the flame of his fire stops burning.
⁶ The light in his tent becomes dark;
    the lamp beside him goes out.
⁷ The vigour of his step is weakened;
    his own schemes throw him down.
⁸ His feet thrust him into a net;
    he wanders into its mesh.
⁹ A trap seizes him by the heel;
    a snare holds him fast.
¹⁰ A noose is hidden for him on the ground;
    a trap lies in his path.
¹¹ Terrors startle him on every side
    and dog his every step.
¹² Calamity is hungry for him;
    disaster is ready for him when he falls.
¹³ It eats away parts of his skin;
    death’s firstborn devours his limbs.
¹⁴ He is torn from the security of his tent
    and marched off to the king of terrors.
¹⁵ Fire resides^[a] in his tent;
    burning sulphur is scattered over his dwelling.
¹⁶ His roots dry up below
    and his branches wither above.
¹⁷ The memory of him perishes from the earth;
    he has no name in the land.
¹⁸ He is driven from light into the realm of darkness
    and is banished from the world.
¹⁹ He has no offspring or descendants among his people,
    no survivor where once he lived.
²⁰ People of the west are appalled at his fate;
    those of the east are seized with horror.
²¹ Surely such is the dwelling of an evil man;
    such is the place of one who does not know God.’

‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
    the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.’^[a]