² He says, “How long will you stand up for those who aren’t fair to others?
    How long will you show mercy to sinful people?
³ Stand up for the weak and for children whose fathers have died.
    Protect the rights of people who are poor or treated badly.
⁴ Save those who are weak and needy.
    Save them from the power of sinful people.

⁵ “You leaders don’t know anything.
    You don’t understand anything.
You are in the dark about what is right.
    Law and order have been destroyed all over the world.

⁶ “I said, ‘You leaders are like gods.
    You are all children of the Most High God.’
⁷ But you will die, like mere human beings.
    You will die like every other leader.”

⁸ God, rise up. Judge the earth.
    All the nations belong to you.

⁵ All of them agree on the evil plans they have made.
    They join forces against you.
⁶ Their forces include the people of Edom,
    Ishmael, Moab and Hagar.
⁷ They also include the people of Byblos, Ammon, Amalek,
    Philistia and Tyre.
⁸ Even Assyria has joined them
    to give strength to the people of Moab and Ammon.

⁹ Do to them what you did to the people of Midian.
    Do to them what you did to Sisera and Jabin at the Kishon River.
¹⁰ Sisera and Jabin died near the town of Endor.
    Their bodies were left on the ground like human waste.
¹¹ Do to the nobles of your enemies what you did to Oreb and Zeeb.
    Do to all their princes what you did to Zebah and Zalmunna.
¹² They said, “Let’s take over
    the grasslands that belong to God.”

¹³ My God, make them like straw that the wind blows away.
    Make them like tumbleweed.
¹⁴ Destroy them as fire burns up a forest.
    Destroy them as a flame sets mountains on fire.
¹⁵ Chase them with your mighty winds.
    Terrify them with your storm.
¹⁶ Lord, put them to shame
    so that they will seek you.

¹⁷ May they always be filled with terror and shame.
    May they die in dishonor.
¹⁸ May you, the Lord, let your enemies know who you are.
    You alone are the Most High God over the whole earth.

³ Lord who rules over all,
    even the sparrow has found a home near your altar.
My King and my God,
    the swallow also has a nest there,
    where she may have her young.
⁴ Blessed are those who live in your house.
    They are always praising you.

⁵ Blessed are those whose strength comes from you.
    They have firmly decided to travel to your temple.
⁶ As they pass through the dry Valley of Baka,
    they make it a place where water flows.
    The rain in the fall covers it with pools.
⁷ Those people get stronger as they go along,
    until each of them appears in Zion, where God lives.

⁸ Lord God who rules over all, hear my prayer.
    God of the people of Jacob, listen to me.
⁹ God, may you be pleased with your anointed king.
    You appointed him to be like a shield that keeps us safe.

¹⁰ A single day in your courtyards is better
    than a thousand anywhere else.
I would rather guard the door of the house of my God
    than live in the tents of sinful people.
¹¹ The Lord God is like the sun that gives us light.
    He is like a shield that keeps us safe.
    The Lord blesses us with favor and honor.
He doesn’t hold back anything good
    from those whose lives are without blame.

¹² Lord who rules over all,
    blessed is the person who trusts in you.