PSALM 35
Prayer for Rescue from Enemies.
A Psalm of David.
1Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me;
Fight against those who fight against me.
2Take hold of buckler and shield
And rise up for my help.
3Draw also the spear and the battle-axe to meet those who pursue me;
Say to my soul, “I am your salvation.”
4Let those be ashamed and dishonored who seek my life;
Let those be turned back and humiliated who devise evil against me.
5Let them be like chaff before the wind,
With the angel of the Lord driving them on.
6Let their way be dark and slippery,
With the angel of the Lord pursuing them.
7For without cause they hid their net for me;
Without cause they dug a pit for my soul.
8Let destruction come upon him unawares,
And let the net which he hid catch himself;
Into that very destruction let him fall.
9And my soul shall rejoice in the Lord;
It shall exult in His salvation.
10All my bones will say, “Lord, who is like You,
Who delivers the afflicted from him who is too strong for him,
And the afflicted and the needy from him who robs him?”
11Malicious witnesses rise up;
They ask me of things that I do not know.
12They repay me evil for good,
To the bereavement of my soul.
13But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth;
I humbled my soul with fasting,
And my prayer kept returning to my bosom.
14I went about as though it were my friend or brother;
I bowed down mourning, as one who sorrows for a mother.
15But at my stumbling they rejoiced and gathered themselves together;
The smiters whom I did not know gathered together against me,
They slandered me without ceasing.
16Like godless jesters at a feast,
They gnashed at me with their teeth.
17Lord, how long will You look on?
Rescue my soul from their ravages,
My only life from the lions.
18I will give You thanks in the great congregation;
I will praise You among a mighty throng.
19Do not let those who are wrongfully my enemies rejoice over me;
Nor let those who hate me without cause wink maliciously.
20For they do not speak peace,
But they devise deceitful words against those who are quiet in the land.
21They opened their mouth wide against me;
They said, “Aha, aha, our eyes have seen it!”
22You have seen it, O Lord, do not keep silent;
O Lord, do not be far from me.
23Stir up Yourself, and awake to my right
And to my cause, my God and my Lord.
24Judge me, O Lord my God, according to Your righteousness,
And do not let them rejoice over me.
25Do not let them say in their heart, “Aha, our desire!”
Do not let them say, “We have swallowed him up!”
26Let those be ashamed and humiliated altogether who rejoice at my distress;
Let those be clothed with shame and dishonor who magnify themselves over me.
27Let them shout for joy and rejoice, who favor my vindication;
And let them say continually, “The Lord be magnified,
Who delights in the prosperity of His servant.”
28And my tongue shall declare Your righteousness
And Your praise all day long.
PSALM 36
Wickedness of Men and Lovingkindness of God.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David the servant of the Lord.
1Transgression speaks to the ungodly within his heart;
There is no fear of God before his eyes.
2For it flatters him in his own eyes
Concerning the discovery of his iniquity and the hatred of it.
3The words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit;
He has ceased to be wise and to do good.
4He plans wickedness upon his bed;
He sets himself on a path that is not good;
He does not despise evil.
5Your lovingkindness, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.
6Your righteousness is like the mountains of God;
Your judgments are like a great deep.
O Lord, You preserve man and beast.
7How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God!
And the children of men take refuge in the shadow of Your wings.
8They drink their fill of the abundance of Your house;
And You give them to drink of the river of Your delights.
9For with You is the fountain of life;
In Your light we see light.
10O continue Your lovingkindness to those who know You,
And Your righteousness to the upright in heart.
11Let not the foot of pride come upon me,
And let not the hand of the wicked drive me away.
12There the doers of iniquity have fallen;
They have been thrust down and cannot rise.
PSALM 37
Security of Those Who Trust in the Lord, and Insecurity of the Wicked.
A Psalm of David.
1Do not fret because of evildoers,
Be not envious toward wrongdoers.
2For they will wither quickly like the grass
And fade like the green herb.
3Trust in the Lord and do good;
Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
4Delight yourself in the Lord;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.
5Commit your way to the Lord,
Trust also in Him, and He will do it.
6He will bring forth your righteousness as the light
And your judgment as the noonday.
7Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.
8Cease from anger and forsake wrath;
Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing.
9For evildoers will be cut off,
But those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land.
10Yet a little while and the wicked man will be no more;
And you will look carefully for his place and he will not be there.
11But the humble will inherit the land
And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.
12The wicked plots against the righteous
And gnashes at him with his teeth.
13The Lord laughs at him,
For He sees his day is coming.
14The wicked have drawn the sword and bent their bow
To cast down the afflicted and the needy,
To slay those who are upright in conduct.
15Their sword will enter their own heart,
And their bows will be broken.
16Better is the little of the righteous
Than the abundance of many wicked.
17For the arms of the wicked will be broken,
But the Lord sustains the righteous.
18The Lord knows the days of the blameless,
And their inheritance will be forever.
19They will not be ashamed in the time of evil,
And in the days of famine they will have abundance.
20But the wicked will perish;
And the enemies of the Lord will be like the glory of the pastures,
They vanish—like smoke they vanish away.
21The wicked borrows and does not pay back,
But the righteous is gracious and gives.
22For those blessed by Him will inherit the land,
But those cursed by Him will be cut off.
23The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
And He delights in his way.
24When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong,
Because the Lord is the One who holds his hand.
25I have been young and now I am old,
Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
Or his descendants begging bread.
26All day long he is gracious and lends,
And his descendants are a blessing.
27Depart from evil and do good,
So you will abide forever.
28For the Lord loves justice
And does not forsake His godly ones;
They are preserved forever,
But the descendants of the wicked will be cut off.
29The righteous will inherit the land
And dwell in it forever.
30The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
And his tongue speaks justice.
31The law of his God is in his heart;
His steps do not slip.
32The wicked spies upon the righteous
And seeks to kill him.
33The Lord will not leave him in his hand
Or let him be condemned when he is judged.
34Wait for the Lord and keep His way,
And He will exalt you to inherit the land;
When the wicked are cut off, you will see it.
35I have seen a wicked, violent man
Spreading himself like a luxuriant tree in its native soil.
36Then he passed away, and lo, he was no more;
I sought for him, but he could not be found.
37Mark the blameless man, and behold the upright;
For the man of peace will have a posterity.
38But transgressors will be altogether destroyed;
The posterity of the wicked will be cut off.
39But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
He is their strength in time of trouble.
40The Lord helps them and delivers them;
He delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
Because they take refuge in Him.