Psalm 140-145

New King James Version

^4 (C)Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;
Preserve me from violent men,
Who have purposed to make my steps stumble.
⁵ The proud have hidden a ^(D)snare for me, and cords;
They have spread a net by the wayside;
They have set traps for me. Selah

⁶ I said to the Lord: “You are my God;
Hear the voice of my supplications, O Lord.
⁷ O God the Lord, the strength of my salvation,
You have ^[a]covered my head in the day of battle.
⁸ Do not grant, O Lord, the desires of the wicked;
Do not further his wicked scheme,
^(E)Lest they be exalted. Selah

⁹ “As for the head of those who surround me,
Let the evil of their lips cover them;
^10 (F)Let burning coals fall upon them;
Let them be cast into the fire,
Into deep pits, that they rise not up again.
¹¹ Let not a slanderer be established in the earth;
Let evil hunt the violent man to overthrow him.”

¹² I know that the Lord will ^(G)maintain
The cause of the afflicted,
And justice for the poor.
¹³ Surely the righteous shall give thanks to Your name;
The upright shall dwell in Your presence.

³ Set a guard, O Lord, over my ^(K)mouth;
Keep watch over the door of my lips.
⁴ Do not incline my heart to any evil thing,
To practice wicked works
With men who work iniquity;
^(L)And do not let me eat of their delicacies.

^5 (M)Let the righteous strike me;
It shall be a kindness.
And let him rebuke me;
It shall be as excellent oil;
Let my head not refuse it.

For still my prayer is against the deeds of the wicked.
⁶ Their judges are overthrown by the sides of the ^[b]cliff,
And they hear my words, for they are sweet.
⁷ Our bones are scattered at the mouth of the grave,
As when one plows and breaks up the earth.

⁸ But ^(N)my eyes are upon You, O God the Lord;
In You I take refuge;
^[c]Do not leave my soul destitute.
⁹ Keep me from ^(O)the snares they have laid for me,
And from the traps of the workers of iniquity.
^10 (P)Let the wicked fall into their own nets,
While I escape safely.

³ When my spirit ^[e]was ^(S)overwhelmed within me,
Then You knew my path.
In the way in which I walk
They have secretly ^(T)set a snare for me.
⁴ Look on my right hand and see,
For there is no one who acknowledges me;
Refuge has failed me;
No one cares for my soul.

⁵ I cried out to You, O Lord:
I said, “You are my refuge,
My portion in the land of the living.
^6 [f]Attend to my cry,
For I am brought very low;
Deliver me from my persecutors,
For they are stronger than I.
⁷ Bring my soul out of prison,
That I may ^(U)praise Your name;
The righteous shall surround me,
For You shall deal bountifully with me.”

³ For the enemy has persecuted my soul;
He has crushed my life to the ground;
He has made me dwell in ^[g]darkness,
Like those who have long been dead.
^4 (W)Therefore my spirit is overwhelmed within me;
My heart within me is distressed.

^5 (X)I remember the days of old;
I meditate on all Your works;
I ^[h]muse on the work of Your hands.
⁶ I spread out my hands to You;
^(Y)My soul longs for You like a thirsty land. Selah

⁷ Answer me speedily, O Lord;
My spirit fails!
Do not hide Your face from me,
^(Z)Lest I ^[i]be like those who ^[j]go down into the pit.
⁸ Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness ^(AA)in the morning,
For in You do I trust;
^(AB)Cause me to know the way in which I should walk,
For ^(AC)I lift up my soul to You.

⁹ Deliver me, O Lord, from my enemies;
^[k]In You I take shelter.
^10 (AD)Teach me to do Your will,
For You are my God;
^(AE)Your Spirit is good.
Lead me in ^(AF)the land of uprightness.

^11 (AG)Revive me, O Lord, for Your name’s sake!
For Your righteousness’ sake bring my soul out of trouble.
¹² In Your mercy ^(AH)cut^[l] off my enemies,
And destroy all those who afflict my soul;
For I am Your servant.

^3 (AJ)Lord, what is man, that You take knowledge of him?
Or the son of man, that You are mindful of him?
^4 (AK)Man is like a breath;
^(AL)His days are like a passing shadow.

^5 (AM)Bow down Your heavens, O Lord, and come down;
^(AN)Touch the mountains, and they shall smoke.
^6 (AO)Flash forth lightning and scatter them;
Shoot out Your arrows and destroy them.
⁷ Stretch out Your hand from above;
Rescue me and deliver me out of great waters,
From the hand of foreigners,
⁸ Whose mouth ^(AP)speaks ^[n]lying words,
And whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.

⁹ I will ^(AQ)sing a new song to You, O God;
On a harp of ten strings I will sing praises to You,
¹⁰ The One who gives ^[o]salvation to kings,
^(AR)Who delivers David His servant
From the deadly sword.

¹¹ Rescue me and deliver me from the hand of foreigners,
Whose mouth speaks lying words,
And whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood—
¹² That our sons may be ^(AS)as plants grown up in their youth;
That our daughters may be as ^[p]pillars,
Sculptured in palace style;
¹³ That our barns may be full,
Supplying all kinds of produce;
That our sheep may bring forth thousands
And ten thousands in our fields;
¹⁴ That our oxen may be well laden;
That there be no ^[q]breaking in or going out;
That there be no outcry in our streets.
^15 (AT)Happy are the people who are in such a state;
Happy are the people whose God is the Lord!

^4 (AX)One generation shall praise Your works to another,
And shall declare Your mighty acts.
^5 [t]I will meditate on the glorious splendor of Your majesty,
And ^[u]on Your wondrous works.
⁶ Men shall speak of the might of Your awesome acts,
And I will declare Your greatness.
⁷ They shall ^[v]utter the memory of Your great goodness,
And shall sing of Your righteousness.

^8 (AY)The Lord is gracious and full of compassion,
Slow to anger and great in mercy.
^9 (AZ)The Lord is good to all,
And His tender mercies are over all His works.

^10 (BA)All Your works shall praise You, O Lord,
And Your saints shall bless You.
¹¹ They shall speak of the glory of Your kingdom,
And talk of Your power,
¹² To make known to the sons of men His mighty acts,
And the glorious majesty of His kingdom.
^13 (BB)Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
And Your dominion endures throughout all ^[w]generations.

¹⁴ The Lord upholds all who fall,
And ^(BC)raises up all who are bowed down.
^15 (BD)The eyes of all look expectantly to You,
And ^(BE)You give them their food in due season.
¹⁶ You open Your hand
^(BF)And satisfy the desire of every living thing.

¹⁷ The Lord is righteous in all His ways,
Gracious in all His works.
^18 (BG)The Lord is near to all who call upon Him,
To all who call upon Him ^(BH)in truth.
¹⁹ He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;
He also will hear their cry and save them.
^20 (BI)The Lord preserves all who love Him,
But all the wicked He will destroy.
²¹ My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord,
And all flesh shall bless His holy name
Forever and ever.