Psalm 109

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

⁶ They say,^[b] “Appoint a wicked man against him;
    let an accuser stand on his right.
⁷ When he is tried, let him be found guilty;
    let his prayer be counted as sin.
⁸ May his days be few;
    may another seize his position.
⁹ May his children be orphans,
    and his wife a widow.
¹⁰ May his children wander about and beg;
    may they be driven out of^[c] the ruins they inhabit.
¹¹ May the creditor seize all that he has;
    may strangers plunder the fruits of his toil.
¹² May there be no one to do him a kindness,
    nor anyone to pity his orphaned children.
¹³ May his posterity be cut off;
    may his name be blotted out in the second generation.
¹⁴ May the iniquity of his father^[d] be remembered before the Lord,
    and do not let the sin of his mother be blotted out.
¹⁵ Let them be before the Lord continually,
    and may his^[e] memory be cut off from the earth.
¹⁶ For he did not remember to show kindness,
    but pursued the poor and needy
    and the brokenhearted to their death.
¹⁷ He loved to curse; let curses come on him.
    He did not like blessing; may it be far from him.
¹⁸ He clothed himself with cursing as his coat,
    may it soak into his body like water,
    like oil into his bones.
¹⁹ May it be like a garment that he wraps around himself,
    like a belt that he wears every day.”

²⁰ May that be the reward of my accusers from the Lord,
    of those who speak evil against my life.
²¹ But you, O Lord my Lord,
    act on my behalf for your name’s sake;
    because your steadfast love is good, deliver me.
²² For I am poor and needy,
    and my heart is pierced within me.
²³ I am gone like a shadow at evening;
    I am shaken off like a locust.
²⁴ My knees are weak through fasting;
    my body has become gaunt.
²⁵ I am an object of scorn to my accusers;
    when they see me, they shake their heads.

²⁶ Help me, O Lord my God!
    Save me according to your steadfast love.
²⁷ Let them know that this is your hand;
    you, O Lord, have done it.
²⁸ Let them curse, but you will bless.
    Let my assailants be put to shame;^[f] may your servant be glad.
²⁹ May my accusers be clothed with dishonor;
    may they be wrapped in their own shame as in a mantle.
³⁰ With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord;
    I will praise him in the midst of the throng.
³¹ For he stands at the right hand of the needy,
    to save them from those who would condemn them to death.