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Psalm 12
Contemporary English Version
Psalm 12
Contemporary English Version
(A psalm by David for the music leader.[a])
A Prayer for Help
1 Please help me, Lord!
All who were faithful
and all who were loyal
have disappeared.
2 Everyone tells lies,
and no one is sincere.
3 Won't you chop off
all flattering tongues
that brag so loudly?
4 They say to themselves,
“We are great speakers.
No one else has a chance.”
5 But you, Lord, tell them,
“I will do something!
The poor are mistreated
and helpless people moan.
I'll rescue all who suffer.”
6 Our Lord, you are true
to your promises,
and your word is like silver
heated seven times
in a fiery furnace.[b]
7 You will protect us
and always keep us safe
from those people.
8 But all who are wicked
will keep on strutting,
while everyone praises
their shameless deeds.[c]
Footnotes
- Psalm 12 leader: The Hebrew text adds “according to the sheminith,” which may be a musical instrument with eight strings.
- 12.6 in a fiery furnace: The Hebrew text has “in a furnace to the ground,” which may describe part of a process for refining silver in Old Testament times.
- 12.8 while … deeds: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Psalm 12
The Message
Psalm 12
The Message
12 1-2 Quick, God, I need your helping hand!
The last decent person just went down,
All the friends I depended on gone.
Everyone talks in lie language;
Lies slide off their oily lips.
They doubletalk with forked tongues.
3-4 Slice their lips off their faces! Pull
The braggart tongues from their mouths!
I’m tired of hearing, “We can talk anyone into anything!
Our lips manage the world.”
5 Into the hovels of the poor,
Into the dark streets where the homeless groan, God speaks:
“I’ve had enough; I’m on my way
To heal the ache in the heart of the wretched.”
6-8 God’s words are pure words,
Pure silver words refined seven times
In the fires of his word-kiln,
Pure on earth as well as in heaven.
God, keep us safe from their lies,
From the wicked who stalk us with lies,
From the wicked who collect honors
For their wonderful lies.
Psalm 12
New International Version
Psalm 12
New International Version
Psalm 12[a]
For the director of music. According to sheminith.[b] A psalm of David.
1 Help, Lord, for no one is faithful anymore;(A)
those who are loyal have vanished from the human race.
2 Everyone lies(B) to their neighbor;
they flatter with their lips
but harbor deception in their hearts.(C)
3 May the Lord silence all flattering lips(D)
and every boastful tongue—(E)
4 those who say,
“By our tongues we will prevail;(F)
our own lips will defend us—who is lord over us?”
Footnotes
- Psalm 12:1 In Hebrew texts 12:1-8 is numbered 12:2-9.
- Psalm 12:1 Title: Probably a musical term
- Psalm 12:6 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text; Masoretic Text earth
Psalm 12
New Living Translation
Psalm 12
New Living Translation
Psalm 12
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be accompanied by an eight-stringed instrument.[a]
1 Help, O Lord, for the godly are fast disappearing!
The faithful have vanished from the earth!
2 Neighbors lie to each other,
speaking with flattering lips and deceitful hearts.
3 May the Lord cut off their flattering lips
and silence their boastful tongues.
4 They say, “We will lie to our hearts’ content.
Our lips are our own—who can stop us?”
5 The Lord replies, “I have seen violence done to the helpless,
and I have heard the groans of the poor.
Now I will rise up to rescue them,
as they have longed for me to do.”
6 The Lord’s promises are pure,
like silver refined in a furnace,
purified seven times over.
7 Therefore, Lord, we know you will protect the oppressed,
preserving them forever from this lying generation,
8 even though the wicked strut about,
and evil is praised throughout the land.
Footnotes
- 12:Title Hebrew according to the sheminith.
Contemporary English Version (CEV) 
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The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.