May 31 Psalms 9-17

Psalm 9
God’s Power and JusticeTo the leader: according to Muth-labben. A Psalm of David.
1I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart;
I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.
2I will be glad and exult in you;
I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.


3When my enemies turned back,
they stumbled and perished before you.
4For you have maintained my just cause;
you have sat on the throne giving righteous judgement.


5You have rebuked the nations, you have destroyed the wicked;
you have blotted out their name for ever and ever.
6The enemies have vanished in everlasting ruins;
their cities you have rooted out;
the very memory of them has perished.


7But the Lord sits enthroned for ever,
he has established his throne for judgement.
8He judges the world with righteousness;
he judges the peoples with equity.


9The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of trouble.
10And those who know your name put their trust in you,
for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.


11Sing praises to the Lord, who dwells in Zion.
Declare his deeds among the peoples.
12For he who avenges blood is mindful of them;
he does not forget the cry of the afflicted.


13Be gracious to me, O Lord.
See what I suffer from those who hate me;
you are the one who lifts me up from the gates of death,
14so that I may recount all your praises,
and, in the gates of daughter Zion,
rejoice in your deliverance.


15The nations have sunk in the pit that they made;
in the net that they hid has their own foot been caught.
16The Lord has made himself known, he has executed judgement;
the wicked are snared in the work of their own hands.
Higgaion. Selah


17The wicked shall depart to Sheol,
all the nations that forget God.


18For the needy shall not always be forgotten,
nor the hope of the poor perish for ever.


19Rise up, O Lord! Do not let mortals prevail;
let the nations be judged before you.
20Put them in fear, O Lord;
let the nations know that they are only human.
Selah
Psalm 10
Prayer for Deliverance from Enemies
1Why, O Lord, do you stand far off?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
2In arrogance the wicked persecute the poor—
let them be caught in the schemes they have devised.


3For the wicked boast of the desires of their heart,
those greedy for gain curse and renounce the Lord.
4In the pride of their countenance the wicked say, ‘God will not seek it out’;
all their thoughts are, ‘There is no God.’


5Their ways prosper at all times;
your judgements are on high, out of their sight;
as for their foes, they scoff at them.
6They think in their heart, ‘We shall not be moved;
throughout all generations we shall not meet adversity.’


7Their mouths are filled with cursing and deceit and oppression;
under their tongues are mischief and iniquity.
8They sit in ambush in the villages;
in hiding-places they murder the innocent.


Their eyes stealthily watch for the helpless;
9 they lurk in secret like a lion in its covert;
they lurk that they may seize the poor;
they seize the poor and drag them off in their net.


10They stoop, they crouch,
and the helpless fall by their might.
11They think in their heart, ‘God has forgotten,
he has hidden his face, he will never see it.’


12Rise up, O Lord; O God, lift up your hand;
do not forget the oppressed.
13Why do the wicked renounce God,
and say in their hearts, ‘You will not call us to account’?


14But you do see! Indeed you note trouble and grief,
that you may take it into your hands;
the helpless commit themselves to you;
you have been the helper of the orphan.


15Break the arm of the wicked and evildoers;
seek out their wickedness until you find none.
16The Lord is king for ever and ever;
the nations shall perish from his land.


17O Lord, you will hear the desire of the meek;
you will strengthen their heart, you will incline your ear
18to do justice for the orphan and the oppressed,
so that those from earth may strike terror no more.*
Psalm 11
Song of Trust in GodTo the leader. Of David.
1In the Lord I take refuge; how can you say to me,
‘Flee like a bird to the mountains;*
2for look, the wicked bend the bow,
they have fitted their arrow to the string,
to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart.
3If the foundations are destroyed,
what can the righteous do?’


4The Lord is in his holy temple;
the Lord’s throne is in heaven.
His eyes behold, his gaze examines humankind.
5The Lord tests the righteous and the wicked,
and his soul hates the lover of violence.
6On the wicked he will rain coals of fire and sulphur;
a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.
7For the Lord is righteous;
he loves righteous deeds;
the upright shall behold his face.
Psalm 12
Plea for Help in Evil TimesTo the leader: according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.
1Help, O Lord, for there is no longer anyone who is godly;
the faithful have disappeared from humankind.
2They utter lies to each other;
with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.


3May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
the tongue that makes great boasts,
4those who say, ‘With our tongues we will prevail;
our lips are our own—who is our master?’


5‘Because the poor are despoiled, because the needy groan,
I will now rise up,’ says the Lord;
‘I will place them in the safety for which they long.’
6The promises of the Lord are promises that are pure,
silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
purified seven times.


7You, O Lord, will protect us;
you will guard us from this generation for ever.
8On every side the wicked prowl,
as vileness is exalted among humankind.
Psalm 13
Prayer for Deliverance from EnemiesTo the leader. A Psalm of David.
1How long, O Lord? Will you forget me for ever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
2How long must I bear pain* in my soul,
and have sorrow in my heart all day long?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?


3Consider and answer me, O Lord my God!
Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep the sleep of death,
4and my enemy will say, ‘I have prevailed’;
my foes will rejoice because I am shaken.


5But I trusted in your steadfast love;
my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
6I will sing to the Lord,
because he has dealt bountifully with me.
Psalm 14
Denunciation of GodlessnessTo the leader. Of David.
1Fools say in their hearts, ‘There is no God.’
They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds;
there is no one who does good.


2The Lord looks down from heaven on humankind
to see if there are any who are wise,
who seek after God.


3They have all gone astray, they are all alike perverse;
there is no one who does good,
no, not one.


4Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers
who eat up my people as they eat bread,
and do not call upon the Lord?


5There they shall be in great terror,
for God is with the company of the righteous.
6You would confound the plans of the poor,
but the Lord is their refuge.


7O that deliverance for Israel would come from Zion!
When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people,
Jacob will rejoice; Israel will be glad.
Psalm 15
Who Shall Abide in God’s Sanctuary?A Psalm of David.
1O Lord, who may abide in your tent?
Who may dwell on your holy hill?


2Those who walk blamelessly, and do what is right,
and speak the truth from their heart;
3who do not slander with their tongue,
and do no evil to their friends,
nor take up a reproach against their neighbours;
4in whose eyes the wicked are despised,
but who honour those who fear the Lord;
who stand by their oath even to their hurt;
5who do not lend money at interest,
and do not take a bribe against the innocent.


Those who do these things shall never be moved.
Psalm 16
Song of Trust and Security in GodA Miktam of David.
1Protect me, O God, for in you I take refuge.
2I say to the Lord, ‘You are my Lord;
I have no good apart from you.’*


3As for the holy ones in the land, they are the noble,
in whom is all my delight.


4Those who choose another god multiply their sorrows;*
their drink-offerings of blood I will not pour out
or take their names upon my lips.


5The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;
you hold my lot.
6The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
I have a goodly heritage.


7I bless the Lord who gives me counsel;
in the night also my heart instructs me.
8I keep the Lord always before me;
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.


9Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices;
my body also rests secure.
10For you do not give me up to Sheol,
or let your faithful one see the Pit.


11You show me the path of life.
In your presence there is fullness of joy;
in your right hand are pleasures for evermore.
Psalm 17
Prayer for Deliverance from PersecutorsA Prayer of David.
1Hear a just cause, O Lord; attend to my cry;
give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit.
2From you let my vindication come;
let your eyes see the right.


3If you try my heart, if you visit me by night,
if you test me, you will find no wickedness in me;
my mouth does not transgress.
4As for what others do, by the word of your lips
I have avoided the ways of the violent.
5My steps have held fast to your paths;
my feet have not slipped.


6I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;
incline your ear to me, hear my words.
7Wondrously show your steadfast love,
O saviour of those who seek refuge
from their adversaries at your right hand.


8Guard me as the apple of the eye;
hide me in the shadow of your wings,
9from the wicked who despoil me,
my deadly enemies who surround me.
10They close their hearts to pity;
with their mouths they speak arrogantly.
11They track me down;* now they surround me;
they set their eyes to cast me to the ground.
12They are like a lion eager to tear,
like a young lion lurking in ambush.


13Rise up, O Lord, confront them, overthrow them!
By your sword deliver my life from the wicked,
14from mortals—by your hand, O Lord—
from mortals whose portion in life is in this world.
May their bellies be filled with what you have stored up for them;
may their children have more than enough;
may they leave something over to their little ones.


15As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness;
when I awake I shall be satisfied, beholding your likeness.