Prayer of a Suffering Penitent.

A Psalm of David, for a memorial.

1
O LORD, rebuke me not in Your wrath,
And chasten me not in Your burning anger. 2
For Your arrows have sunk deep into me,
And Your hand has pressed down on me. 3
There is no soundness in my flesh because of Your indignation;
There is no health in my bones because of my sin. 4
For my iniquities are gone over my head;
As a heavy burden they weigh too much for me. 5
My wounds grow foul {and} fester
Because of my folly. 6
I am bent over and greatly bowed down;
I go mourning all day long. 7
For my loins are filled with burning,
And there is no soundness in my flesh. 8
I am benumbed and badly crushed;
I groan because of the agitation of my heart.

 9
Lord, all my desire is before You;
And my sighing is not hidden from You. 10
My heart throbs, my strength fails me;
And the light of my eyes, even that has gone from me. 11
My loved ones and my friends stand aloof from my plague;
And my kinsmen stand afar off. 12
Those who seek my life lay snares {for me;}
And those who seek to injure me have threatened destruction,
And they devise treachery all day long.

 13
But I, like a deaf man, do not hear;
And {I am} like a mute man who does not open his mouth. 14
Yes, I am like a man who does not hear,
And in whose mouth are no arguments. 15
For I hope in You, O LORD;
You will answer, O Lord my God. 16
For I said, “May they not rejoice over me,
{Who,} when my foot slips, would magnify themselves against me. 17
For I am ready to fall,
And my sorrow is continually before me. 18
For I confess my iniquity;
I am full of anxiety because of my sin. 19
But my enemies are vigorous {and} strong,
And many are those who hate me wrongfully. 20
And those who repay evil for good,
They oppose me, because I follow what is good. 21
Do not forsake me, O LORD;
O my God, do not be far from me! 22
Make haste to help me,
O Lord, my salvation!

Security of Those Who Trust in the L{ORD}, and Insecurity of the Wicked.

{A Psalm} of David.

1
Do not fret because of evildoers,
Be not envious toward wrongdoers. 2
For they will wither quickly like the grass
And fade like the green herb. 3
Trust in the LORD and do good;
Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. 4
Delight yourself in the LORD;
And He will give you the desires of your heart. 5
Commit your way to the LORD,
Trust also in Him, and He will do it. 6
He will bring forth your righteousness as the light
And your judgment as the noonday.

 7
Rest 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. 8
Cease from anger and forsake wrath;
Do not fret; {it leads} only to evildoing. 9
For evildoers will be cut off,
But those who wait for the LORD, they will inherit the land. 10
Yet 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.} 11
But the humble will inherit the land
And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.

 12
The wicked plots against the righteous
And gnashes at him with his teeth. 13
The Lord laughs at him,
For He sees his day is coming. 14
The 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. 15
Their sword will enter their own heart,
And their bows will be broken.

 16
Better is the little of the righteous
Than the abundance of many wicked. 17
For the arms of the wicked will be broken,
But the LORD sustains the righteous. 18
The LORD knows the days of the blameless,
And their inheritance will be forever. 19
They will not be ashamed in the time of evil,
And in the days of famine they will have abundance. 20
But 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. 21
The wicked borrows and does not pay back,
But the righteous is gracious and gives. 22
For those blessed by Him will inherit the land,
But those cursed by Him will be cut off.

 23
The steps of a man are established by the LORD,
And He delights in his way. 24
When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong,
Because the LORD is the One who holds his hand. 25
I have been young and now I am old,
Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
Or his descendants begging bread. 26
All day long he is gracious and lends,
And his descendants are a blessing.

 27
Depart from evil and do good,
So you will abide forever. 28
For 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. 29
The righteous will inherit the land
And dwell in it forever. 30
The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
And his tongue speaks justice. 31
The law of his God is in his heart;
His steps do not slip. 32
The wicked spies upon the righteous
And seeks to kill him. 33
The LORD will not leave him in his hand
Or let him be condemned when he is judged. 34
Wait 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.

 35
I have seen a wicked, violent man
Spreading himself like a luxuriant tree in its native soil. 36
Then he passed away, and lo, he was no more;
I sought for him, but he could not be found. 37
Mark the blameless man, and behold the upright;
For the man of peace will have a posterity. 38
But transgressors will be altogether destroyed;
The posterity of the wicked will be cut off. 39
But the salvation of the righteous is from the LORD;
He is their strength in time of trouble. 40
The LORD helps them and delivers them;
He delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
Because they take refuge in Him.

Wickedness of Men and Lovingkindness of God.

For the choir director. {A Psalm} of David the servant of the LORD.

1
Transgression speaks to the ungodly within his heart;
There is no fear of God before his eyes. 2
For it flatters him in his {own} eyes
Concerning the discovery of his iniquity {and} the hatred {of it.} 3
The words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit;
He has ceased to be wise {and} to do good. 4
He plans wickedness upon his bed;
He sets himself on a path that is not good;
He does not despise evil.

 5
Your lovingkindness, O LORD, extends to the heavens,
Your faithfulness {reaches} to the skies. 6
Your righteousness is like the mountains of God;
Your judgments are {like} a great deep.
O LORD, You preserve man and beast. 7
How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God!
And the children of men take refuge in the shadow of Your wings. 8
They drink their fill of the abundance of Your house;
And You give them to drink of the river of Your delights. 9
For with You is the fountain of life;
In Your light we see light.

 10
O continue Your lovingkindness to those who know You,
And Your righteousness to the upright in heart. 11
Let not the foot of pride come upon me,
And let not the hand of the wicked drive me away. 12
There the doers of iniquity have fallen;
They have been thrust down and cannot rise.

Prayer for Rescue from Enemies.

{A Psalm} of David.

1
Contend, O LORD, with those who contend with me;
Fight against those who fight against me. 2
Take hold of buckler and shield
And rise up for my help. 3
Draw also the spear and the battle-axe to meet those who pursue me;
Say to my soul, “I am your salvation. 4
Let those be ashamed and dishonored who seek my life;
Let those be turned back and humiliated who devise evil against me. 5
Let them be like chaff before the wind,
With the angel of the LORD driving {them} on. 6
Let their way be dark and slippery,
With the angel of the LORD pursuing them. 7
For without cause they hid their net for me;
Without cause they dug a pit for my soul. 8
Let destruction come upon him unawares,
And let the net which he hid catch himself;
Into that very destruction let him fall.

 9
And my soul shall rejoice in the LORD;
It shall exult in His salvation. 10
All 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? 11
Malicious witnesses rise up;
They ask me of things that I do not know. 12
They repay me evil for good,
{To} the bereavement of my soul. 13
But 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. 14
I went about as though it were my friend or brother;
I bowed down mourning, as one who sorrows for a mother. 15
But 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. 16
Like godless jesters at a feast,
They gnashed at me with their teeth.

 17
Lord, how long will You look on?
Rescue my soul from their ravages,
My only {life} from the lions. 18
I will give You thanks in the great congregation;
I will praise You among a mighty throng. 19
Do not let those who are wrongfully my enemies rejoice over me;
Nor let those who hate me without cause wink maliciously. 20
For they do not speak peace,
But they devise deceitful words against those who are quiet in the land. 21
They opened their mouth wide against me;
They said, “Aha, aha, our eyes have seen it!

 22
You have seen it, O LORD, do not keep silent;
O Lord, do not be far from me. 23
Stir up Yourself, and awake to my right
And to my cause, my God and my Lord. 24
Judge me, O LORD my God, according to Your righteousness,
And do not let them rejoice over me. 25
Do not let them say in their heart, “Aha, our desire!
Do not let them say, “We have swallowed him up! 26
Let those be ashamed and humiliated altogether who rejoice at my distress;
Let those be clothed with shame and dishonor who magnify themselves over me.

 27
Let 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. 28
And my tongue shall declare Your righteousness
{And} Your praise all day long.

The L{ORD}, a Provider and Deliverer.

{A Psalm} of David when he feigned madness before Abimelech, who drove him away and he departed.

1
I will bless the LORD at all times;
His praise shall continually be in my mouth. 2
My soul will make its boast in the LORD;
The humble will hear it and rejoice. 3
O magnify the LORD with me,
And let us exalt His name together.

 4
I sought the LORD, and He answered me,
And delivered me from all my fears. 5
They looked to Him and were radiant,
And their faces will never be ashamed. 6
This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him
And saved him out of all his troubles. 7
The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him,
And rescues them.

 8
O taste and see that the LORD is good;
How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him! 9
O fear the LORD, you His saints;
For to those who fear Him there is no want. 10
The young lions do lack and suffer hunger;
But they who seek the LORD shall not be in want of any good thing. 11
Come, you children, listen to me;
I will teach you the fear of the LORD. 12
Who is the man who desires life
And loves {length of} days that he may see good? 13
Keep your tongue from evil
And your lips from speaking deceit. 14
Depart from evil and do good;
Seek peace and pursue it.

 15
The eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous
And His ears are {open} to their cry. 16
The face of the LORD is against evildoers,
To cut off the memory of them from the earth. 17
{The righteous} cry, and the LORD hears
And delivers them out of all their troubles. 18
The LORD is near to the brokenhearted
And saves those who are crushed in spirit.

 19
Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
But the LORD delivers him out of them all. 20
He keeps all his bones,
Not one of them is broken. 21
Evil shall slay the wicked,
And those who hate the righteous will be condemned. 22
The LORD redeems the soul of His servants,
And none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned.

Praise to the Creator and Preserver.

1
Sing for joy in the LORD, O you righteous ones;
Praise is becoming to the upright. 2
Give thanks to the LORD with the lyre;
Sing praises to Him with a harp of ten strings. 3
Sing to Him a new song;
Play skillfully with a shout of joy. 4
For the word of the LORD is upright,
And all His work is {done} in faithfulness. 5
He loves righteousness and justice;
The earth is full of the lovingkindness of the LORD.

 6
By the word of the LORD the heavens were made,
And by the breath of His mouth all their host. 7
He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap;
He lays up the deeps in storehouses. 8
Let all the earth fear the LORD;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. 9
For He spoke, and it was done;
He commanded, and it stood fast. 10
The LORD nullifies the counsel of the nations;
He frustrates the plans of the peoples. 11
The counsel of the LORD stands forever,
The plans of His heart from generation to generation. 12
Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD,
The people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance.

 13
The LORD looks from heaven;
He sees all the sons of men; 14
From His dwelling place He looks out
On all the inhabitants of the earth, 15
He who fashions the hearts of them all,
He who understands all their works. 16
The king is not saved by a mighty army;
A warrior is not delivered by great strength. 17
A horse is a false hope for victory;
Nor does it deliver anyone by its great strength.

 18
Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him,
On those who hope for His lovingkindness, 19
To deliver their soul from death
And to keep them alive in famine. 20
Our soul waits for the LORD;
He is our help and our shield. 21
For our heart rejoices in Him,
Because we trust in His holy name. 22
Let Your lovingkindness, O LORD, be upon us,
According as we have hoped in You.

Blessedness of Forgiveness and of Trust in God.

{A Psalm} of David. A Maskil.

1
How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered! 2
How blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity,
And in whose spirit there is no deceit!

 3
When I kept silent {about my sin,} my body wasted away
Through my groaning all day long. 4
For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;
My vitality was drained away {as} with the fever heat of summer. Selah. 5
I acknowledged my sin to You,
And my iniquity I did not hide;
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD;
And You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah. 6
Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You in a time when You may be found;
Surely in a flood of great waters they will not reach him. 7
You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble;
You surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah.

 8
I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go;
I will counsel you with My eye upon you. 9
Do not be as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding,
Whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold them in check,
{Otherwise} they will not come near to you. 10
Many are the sorrows of the wicked,
But he who trusts in the LORD, lovingkindness shall surround him. 11
Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you righteous ones;
And shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart.

A Psalm of Complaint and of Praise.

For the choir director. A Psalm of David.

1
In You, O LORD, I have taken refuge;
Let me never be ashamed;
In Your righteousness deliver me. 2
Incline Your ear to me, rescue me quickly;
Be to me a rock of strength,
A stronghold to save me. 3
For You are my rock and my fortress;
For Your name’s sake You will lead me and guide me. 4
You will pull me out of the net which they have secretly laid for me,
For You are my strength. 5
Into Your hand I commit my spirit;
You have ransomed me, O LORD, God of truth.

 6
I hate those who regard vain idols,
But I trust in the LORD. 7
I will rejoice and be glad in Your lovingkindness,
Because You have seen my affliction;
You have known the troubles of my soul, 8
And You have not given me over into the hand of the enemy;
You have set my feet in a large place.

 9
Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am in distress;
My eye is wasted away from grief, my soul and my body {also.} 10
For my life is spent with sorrow
And my years with sighing;
My strength has failed because of my iniquity,
And my body has wasted away. 11
Because of all my adversaries, I have become a reproach,
Especially to my neighbors,
And an object of dread to my acquaintances;
Those who see me in the street flee from me. 12
I am forgotten as a dead man, out of mind;
I am like a broken vessel. 13
For I have heard the slander of many,
Terror is on every side;
While they took counsel together against me,
They schemed to take away my life.

 14
But as for me, I trust in You, O LORD,
I say, “You are my God. 15
My times are in Your hand;
Deliver me from the hand of my enemies and from those who persecute me. 16
Make Your face to shine upon Your servant;
Save me in Your lovingkindness. 17
Let me not be put to shame, O LORD, for I call upon You;
Let the wicked be put to shame, let them be silent in Sheol. 18
Let the lying lips be mute,
Which speak arrogantly against the righteous
With pride and contempt.

 19
How great is Your goodness,
Which You have stored up for those who fear You,
Which You have wrought for those who take refuge in You,
Before the sons of men! 20
You hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the conspiracies of man;
You keep them secretly in a shelter from the strife of tongues. 21
Blessed be the LORD,
For He has made marvelous His lovingkindness to me in a besieged city. 22
As for me, I said in my alarm,
“I am cut off from before Your eyes;
Nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications
When I cried to You.

 23
O love the LORD, all you His godly ones!
The LORD preserves the faithful
And fully recompenses the proud doer. 24
Be strong and let your heart take courage,
All you who hope in the LORD.

Thanksgiving for Deliverance from Death.

A Psalm; a Song at the Dedication of the House.

{A Psalm} of David.

1
I will extol You, O LORD, for You have lifted me up,
And have not let my enemies rejoice over me. 2
O LORD my God,
I cried to You for help, and You healed me. 3
O LORD, You have brought up my soul from Sheol;
You have kept me alive, that I would not go down to the pit. 4
Sing praise to the LORD, you His godly ones,
And give thanks to His holy name. 5
For His anger is but for a moment,
His favor is for a lifetime;
Weeping may last for the night,
But a shout of joy {comes} in the morning.

 6
Now as for me, I said in my prosperity,
“I will never be moved. 7
O LORD, by Your favor You have made my mountain to stand strong;
You hid Your face, I was dismayed. 8
To You, O LORD, I called,
And to the Lord I made supplication: 9
“What profit is there in my blood, if I go down to the pit?
Will the dust praise You? Will it declare Your faithfulness?

 10
“Hear, O LORD, and be gracious to me;
O LORD, be my helper. 11
You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;
You have loosed my sackcloth and girded me with gladness, 12
That {my} soul may sing praise to You and not be silent.
O LORD my God, I will give thanks to You forever.

The Voice of the L{ORD} in the Storm.

A Psalm of David.

1
Ascribe to the LORD, O sons of the mighty,
Ascribe to the LORD glory and strength. 2
Ascribe to the LORD the glory due to His name;
Worship the LORD in holy array.

 3
The voice of the LORD is upon the waters;
The God of glory thunders,
The LORD is over many waters. 4
The voice of the LORD is powerful,
The voice of the LORD is majestic. 5
The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars;
Yes, the LORD breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon. 6
He makes Lebanon skip like a calf,
And Sirion like a young wild ox. 7
The voice of the LORD hews out flames of fire. 8
The voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness;
The LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. 9
The voice of the LORD makes the deer to calve
And strips the forests bare;
And in His temple everything says, “Glory!

 10
The LORD sat {as King} at the flood;
Yes, the LORD sits as King forever. 11
The LORD will give strength to His people;
The LORD will bless His people with peace.