Psalm 56:2-69:35

English Standard Version

⁵ All day long they injure my cause;^[a]
    all their thoughts are against me for evil.
⁶ They ^(C)stir up strife, they ^(D)lurk;
    they ^(E)watch my steps,
    as they have waited for my life.
⁷ For their crime will they escape?
    ^(F)In wrath ^(G)cast down the peoples, O God!

⁸ You have kept count of my tossings;^{[b]
    (H)}put my tears in your bottle.
    ^(I)Are they not in your book?
⁹ Then my enemies will turn back
    ^(J)in the day when I call.
    This I know, that^{[c] (K)}God is for me.
¹⁰ In God, whose word I praise,
    in the Lord, whose word I praise,
¹¹ in God I trust; ^(L)I shall not be afraid.
    What can man do to me?

¹² I must perform my ^(M)vows to you, O God;
    I will ^(N)render thank offerings to you.
^13 (O)For you have delivered my soul from death,
    yes, my feet from falling,
^(P)that I may walk before God
    ^(Q)in the light of life.

⁴ My soul is in the midst of ^(AD)lions;
    I lie down amid fiery beasts—
the children of man, whose ^(AE)teeth are spears and arrows,
    whose ^(AF)tongues are sharp swords.

^5 (AG)Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
    Let your glory be over all the earth!

⁶ They set ^(AH)a net for my steps;
    my soul was ^(AI)bowed down.
They ^(AJ)dug a pit in my way,
    but they have fallen into it themselves. Selah
^7 (AK)My heart is ^(AL)steadfast, O God,
    my heart is steadfast!
I will sing and make melody!
^{8     (AM)}Awake, ^(AN)my glory!^[e]
Awake, ^(AO)O harp and lyre!
    I will awake the dawn!
⁹ I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples;
    I will sing praises to you among the nations.
¹⁰ For your ^(AP)steadfast love is great to the heavens,
    your faithfulness to the clouds.

^11 (AQ)Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
    Let your glory be over all the earth!

³ The wicked are ^(AU)estranged from the womb;
    they go astray from birth, speaking lies.
^4 (AV)They have venom like the venom of a serpent,
    like the deaf adder that stops its ear,
⁵ so that it ^(AW)does not hear the voice of charmers
    or of the cunning enchanter.

⁶ O God, ^(AX)break the teeth in their mouths;
    tear out the fangs of the young lions, O Lord!
⁷ Let them ^(AY)vanish like water that runs away;
    when he ^(AZ)aims his arrows, let them be blunted.
⁸ Let them be like the snail ^(BA)that dissolves into slime,
    like ^(BB)the stillborn child who never sees the sun.
⁹ Sooner than your pots can feel the heat of ^(BC)thorns,
    whether green or ablaze, may he ^(BD)sweep them away!^[h]

^10 (BE)The righteous will rejoice when he sees the vengeance;
    he will ^(BF)bathe his feet in the blood of the wicked.
¹¹ Mankind will say, “Surely there is ^(BG)a reward for the righteous;
    surely there is a God who ^(BH)judges on earth.”

³ For behold, they ^(BQ)lie in wait for my life;
    fierce men ^(BR)stir up strife against me.
^(BS)For no transgression or sin of mine, O Lord,
⁴     for no fault of mine, they run and make ready.
^(BT)Awake, come to meet me, and see!
⁵     You, ^(BU)Lord God of hosts, are God of Israel.
Rouse yourself to punish all the nations;
    spare none of those who treacherously plot evil. Selah

⁶ Each evening they ^(BV)come back,
    howling like dogs
    and prowling about the city.
⁷ There they are, ^(BW)bellowing with their mouths
    with ^(BX)swords in their lips—
    for ^(BY)“Who,” they think,^[j] “will hear us?”

⁸ But you, O Lord, ^(BZ)laugh at them;
    you hold all the nations in derision.
⁹ O my Strength, I will watch for you,
    for you, O God, are ^(CA)my fortress.
^10 (CB)My God in his steadfast love^{[k] (CC)}will meet me;
    God will let me ^(CD)look in triumph on my enemies.

¹¹ Kill them not, lest my people forget;
    make them totter^[l] by your power and ^(CE)bring them down,
    O Lord, our ^(CF)shield!
¹² For ^(CG)the sin of their mouths, the words of their lips,
    let them be trapped in their pride.
For the cursing and lies that they utter,
^{13     (CH)}consume them in wrath;
    consume them till they are no more,
that they may ^(CI)know that God rules over Jacob
    to ^(CJ)the ends of the earth. Selah

^14 (CK)Each evening they come back,
    howling like dogs
    and prowling about the city.
¹⁵ They ^(CL)wander about for food
    and growl if they do not get their fill.

¹⁶ But I will sing of your strength;
    I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning.
For you have been to me ^(CM)a fortress
    and ^(CN)a refuge in ^(CO)the day of my distress.
¹⁷ O my Strength, I will sing praises to you,
    for you, O God, ^(CP)are my fortress,
    ^(CQ)the God who shows me steadfast love.

⁴ You have set up ^(DC)a banner for those who fear you,
    that they may flee to it ^(DD)from the bow.^[n] Selah
^5 (DE)That your ^(DF)beloved ones may be delivered,
    give salvation by your right hand and answer us!

⁶ God has spoken ^(DG)in his holiness:^[o]
    “With exultation ^(DH)I will divide up ^(DI)Shechem
    and portion out the Vale of ^(DJ)Succoth.
^7 (DK)Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine;
    ^(DL)Ephraim is ^(DM)my helmet;
    Judah is my ^(DN)scepter.
^8 (DO)Moab is my washbasin;
    upon Edom I ^(DP)cast my shoe;
    over ^(DQ)Philistia I shout in triumph.”^[p]

⁹ Who will bring me to the fortified city?
    ^(DR)Who will lead me to Edom?
¹⁰ Have you not ^(DS)rejected us, O God?
    You ^(DT)do not go forth, O God, with our armies.
¹¹ Oh, grant us help against the foe,
    for ^(DU)vain is the salvation of man!
¹² With God we shall ^(DV)do valiantly;
    it is he who will ^(DW)tread down our foes.

⁴ Let me ^(ED)dwell in your tent forever!
    Let me take refuge under ^(EE)the shelter of your wings! Selah
⁵ For you, O God, have heard my vows;
    you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name.

^6 (EF)Prolong ^(EG)the life of the king;
    may his years endure to all generations!
⁷ May he be enthroned forever before God;
    appoint ^(EH)steadfast love and faithfulness to watch over him!

⁸ So will I ever sing praises to your name,
    as I ^(EI)perform my vows day after day.

³ How long will all of you attack a man
    to batter him,
    like ^(EP)a leaning wall, a tottering fence?
⁴ They only plan to thrust him down from his ^(EQ)high position.
    They take pleasure in falsehood.
^(ER)They bless with their mouths,
    but inwardly they curse. Selah

⁵ For God alone, O ^(ES)my soul, wait in silence,
    for my hope is from him.
^6 (ET)He only is my rock and my salvation,
    my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
⁷ On God rests my ^(EU)salvation and my glory;
    my mighty rock, ^(EV)my refuge is God.

^8 (EW)Trust in him at all times, O people;
    ^(EX)pour out your heart before him;
    God is ^(EY)a refuge for us. Selah

^9 (EZ)Those of low estate are but a breath;
    those of high estate ^(FA)are a delusion;
in the balances they go up;
    ^(FB)they are together lighter than a breath.
¹⁰ Put no trust in extortion;
    ^(FC)set no vain hopes on robbery;
    ^(FD)if riches increase, set not your heart on them.

^11 (FE)Once God has spoken;
    ^(FF)twice have I heard this:
that ^(FG)power belongs to God,
¹²     and that to you, O Lord, ^(FH)belongs steadfast love.
For you will ^(FI)render to a man
    according to his work.

⁵ My soul will be ^(FS)satisfied as with fat and rich food,
    and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,
⁶ when I remember you ^(FT)upon my bed,
    and meditate on you in ^(FU)the watches of the night;
⁷ for you have been my help,
    and in ^(FV)the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.
⁸ My soul ^(FW)clings to you;
    your right hand ^(FX)upholds me.

⁹ But those who seek to destroy my life
    ^(FY)shall go down into ^(FZ)the depths of the earth;
¹⁰ they shall be given over to the power of the sword;
    they shall be a portion for jackals.
¹¹ But ^(GA)the king shall rejoice in God;
    all who ^(GB)swear by him shall exult,
    ^(GC)for the mouths of ^(GD)liars will be stopped.

^7 (GO)But God shoots his arrow at them;
    they are wounded suddenly.
⁸ They are brought to ruin, with their own ^(GP)tongues turned against them;
    all who ^(GQ)see them will ^(GR)wag their heads.
⁹ Then all mankind ^(GS)fears;
    they ^(GT)tell what God has brought about
    and ponder what he has done.

¹⁰ Let ^(GU)the righteous one rejoice in the Lord
    and ^(GV)take refuge in him!
Let all ^(GW)the upright in heart exult!

⁵ By ^(HG)awesome deeds you answer us with righteousness,
    O God of our salvation,
the hope of all ^(HH)the ends of the earth
    and of the farthest seas;
⁶ the one who by his strength established the mountains,
    being ^(HI)girded with might;
⁷ who ^(HJ)stills the roaring of the seas,
    the roaring of their waves,
    ^(HK)the tumult of the peoples,
⁸ so that those who dwell at the ends of the earth are in awe at your signs.
You make the going out of the morning and the evening to shout for joy.

⁹ You visit the earth and ^(HL)water it;^[r]
    you greatly enrich it;
^(HM)the river of God is full of water;
    ^(HN)you provide their grain,
    for so you have prepared it.
¹⁰ You water its furrows abundantly,
    settling its ridges,
softening it with ^(HO)showers,
    and blessing its growth.
¹¹ You crown the year with your bounty;
    your wagon tracks ^(HP)overflow with abundance.
^12 (HQ)The pastures of the wilderness overflow,
    the hills ^(HR)gird themselves with joy,
^13 (HS)the meadows clothe themselves with flocks,
    the valleys deck themselves with grain,
    they ^(HT)shout and sing together for joy.

^5 (HZ)Come and see what God has done:
    ^(IA)he is awesome in his deeds toward the children of man.
⁶ He ^(IB)turned the sea into dry land;
    they ^(IC)passed through the river on foot.
There did we rejoice in him,
⁷     who rules by his might forever,
whose ^(ID)eyes keep watch on the nations—
    let not the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah

⁸ Bless our God, O peoples;
    let the sound of his praise be heard,
⁹ who has kept our soul among the living
    and ^(IE)has not let our feet slip.
¹⁰ For you, O God, have ^(IF)tested us;
    you have tried us as silver is tried.
¹¹ You brought us into ^(IG)the net;
    you laid a crushing burden on our backs;
¹² you let men ^(IH)ride over our heads;
    we went through fire and through ^(II)water;
yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance.

¹³ I will come into your house with burnt offerings;
    I will ^(IJ)perform my vows to you,
¹⁴ that which my lips uttered
    and my mouth promised ^(IK)when I was in trouble.
¹⁵ I will offer to you burnt offerings of fattened animals,
    with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams;
I will make an offering of bulls and goats. Selah

^16 (IL)Come and hear, all you who fear God,
    and I will tell what he has done for my soul.
¹⁷ I cried to him with my mouth,
    and high praise was on^[s] my tongue.^[t]
18 If I had ^(IM)cherished iniquity in my heart,
    ^(IN)the Lord would not have listened.
¹⁹ But truly ^(IO)God has listened;
    he has attended to the voice of my prayer.

²⁰ Blessed be God,
    because he has not rejected my prayer
    or removed his steadfast love from me!

⁴ Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
    for you ^(IV)judge the peoples with equity
    and guide the nations upon earth. Selah
^5 (IW)Let the peoples praise you, O God;
    let all the peoples praise you!

⁶ The earth has ^(IX)yielded its increase;
    God, our God, shall bless us.
⁷ God shall bless us;
    let ^(IY)all the ends of the earth fear him!

⁴ Sing to God, ^(JE)sing praises to his name;
    ^(JF)lift up a song to him who ^(JG)rides through ^(JH)the deserts;
his name is ^(JI)the Lord;
    exult before him!
^5 (JJ)Father of the fatherless and ^(JK)protector of widows
    is God in his holy habitation.
⁶ God ^(JL)settles the solitary in a home;
    he ^(JM)leads out the prisoners to prosperity,
    but ^(JN)the rebellious dwell in ^(JO)a parched land.

⁷ O God, when you ^(JP)went out before your people,
    ^(JQ)when you marched through ^(JR)the wilderness, Selah
^8 (JS)the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain,
    before God, the One of Sinai,
    before God,^[u] the God of Israel.
^9 (JT)Rain in abundance, O God, you shed abroad;
    you restored your inheritance as it languished;
¹⁰ your flock^[v] found a dwelling in it;
    in your goodness, O God, you ^(JU)provided for the needy.

¹¹ The Lord gives ^(JV)the word;
    ^(JW)the women who announce the news are a great host:
^{12     (JX)}“The kings of the armies—they flee, they flee!”
The women at home ^(JY)divide the spoil—
¹³     though you men lie among ^(JZ)the sheepfolds—
the wings of a dove covered with silver,
    its pinions with shimmering gold.
¹⁴ When the Almighty scatters kings there,
    let snow fall on ^(KA)Zalmon.

¹⁵ O mountain of God, mountain of Bashan;
    O many-peaked^[w] mountain, mountain of Bashan!
¹⁶ Why do you look with hatred, O many-peaked mountain,
    at the mount that God ^(KB)desired for his abode,
    yes, where the Lord will dwell forever?
^17 (KC)The chariots of God are twice ten thousand,
    thousands upon thousands;
    the Lord is among them; Sinai is now in the sanctuary.
^18 (KD)You ascended on high,
    ^(KE)leading a host of captives in your train
    and ^(KF)receiving gifts among men,
even among ^(KG)the rebellious, ^(KH)that the Lord God may dwell there.

¹⁹ Blessed be the Lord,
    who daily ^(KI)bears us up;
    God is our salvation. Selah
²⁰ Our God is a God of salvation,
    ^(KJ)and to God, the Lord, belong deliverances from death.
^21 (KK)But God will strike the heads of his enemies,
    the hairy crown of him who walks in his guilty ways.
²² The Lord said,
    “I will bring them back ^(KL)from Bashan,
^(KM)I will bring them back from the depths of the sea,
²³ that you may ^(KN)strike your feet in their blood,
    that ^(KO)the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from the foe.”

²⁴ Your procession is^[x] seen, O God,
    the procession of my God, my King, into the sanctuary—
^25 (KP)the singers in front, ^(KQ)the musicians last,
    between them ^(KR)virgins playing tambourines:
^26 (KS)“Bless God in the great congregation,
    the Lord, O you^[y] who are of ^(KT)Israel's fountain!”
²⁷ There is ^(KU)Benjamin, the least of them, in the lead,
    the princes of Judah in their throng,
    the princes of ^(KV)Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali.

^28 (KW)Summon your power, O God,^[z]
    the power, O God, by which you have worked for us.
²⁹ Because of your temple at Jerusalem
    kings shall ^(KX)bear gifts to you.
³⁰ Rebuke ^(KY)the beasts that dwell among the reeds,
    the herd of ^(KZ)bulls with the calves of the peoples.
^(LA)Trample underfoot those who lust after tribute;
    scatter the peoples who delight in war.^[aa]
31 Nobles shall come from ^(LB)Egypt;
    ^(LC)Cush shall hasten to ^(LD)stretch out her hands to God.

^32 (LE)O kingdoms of the earth, sing to God;
    sing praises to the Lord, Selah
³³ to him ^(LF)who rides in ^(LG)the heavens, the ancient heavens;
    behold, he ^(LH)sends out his voice, his mighty voice.
^34 (LI)Ascribe power to God,
    whose majesty is over Israel,
    and whose ^(LJ)power is in ^(LK)the skies.
^35 (LL)Awesome is God from his^{[ab] (LM)}sanctuary;
    the God of Israel—he is the one who gives ^(LN)power and strength to his people.
Blessed be God!

^4 (LW)More in number than the hairs of my head
    are ^(LX)those who hate me ^(LY)without cause;
mighty are those who would destroy me,
    ^(LZ)those who attack me with lies.
What I did not steal
    must I now restore?
⁵ O God, you know my folly;
    the wrongs I have done are not hidden from you.

⁶ Let not those who hope in you ^(MA)be put to shame through me,
    O Lord God of hosts;
let not those who seek you be brought to dishonor through me,
    O God of Israel.
⁷ For it is ^(MB)for your sake that I have borne reproach,
    that dishonor has covered my face.
⁸ I have become ^(MC)a stranger to my brothers,
    an alien to my mother's sons.

⁹ For ^(MD)zeal for your house has consumed me,
    and ^(ME)the reproaches of those who reproach you have fallen on me.
¹⁰ When I wept and humbled^[ad] my soul with fasting,
    it became my reproach.
¹¹ When I made ^(MF)sackcloth my clothing,
    I became ^(MG)a byword to them.
¹² I am the talk of those who ^(MH)sit in the gate,
    and the drunkards make ^(MI)songs about me.

¹³ But as for me, my ^(MJ)prayer is to you, O Lord.
    At ^(MK)an acceptable time, O God,
    in the abundance of your steadfast love answer me in your saving faithfulness.
¹⁴ Deliver me
    from sinking in ^(ML)the mire;
^(MM)let me be delivered from my enemies
    and from ^(MN)the deep waters.
¹⁵ Let not the flood sweep over me,
    or the deep swallow me up,
    or ^(MO)the pit close ^(MP)its mouth over me.

¹⁶ Answer me, O Lord, for your ^(MQ)steadfast love is good;
    according to your abundant ^(MR)mercy, ^(MS)turn to me.
^17 (MT)Hide not your face from your servant,
    ^(MU)for I am in distress; ^(MV)make haste to answer me.
¹⁸ Draw near to my soul, redeem me;
    ransom me because of my enemies!

¹⁹ You know my ^(MW)reproach,
    and my shame and my dishonor;
    my foes are all known to you.
^20 (MX)Reproaches have broken my heart,
    so that I am in ^(MY)despair.
I ^(MZ)looked for ^(NA)pity, but there was none,
    and for ^(NB)comforters, but I found none.
²¹ They gave me ^(NC)poison for food,
    and for my thirst they gave me ^(ND)sour wine to drink.

^22 (NE)Let their own ^(NF)table before them become a snare;
    ^(NG)and when they are at peace, let it become a trap.^{[ae]
23 (NH)}Let their eyes be darkened, so that they cannot see,
    ^(NI)and make their loins tremble continually.
²⁴ Pour out your indignation upon them,
    and let your burning anger overtake them.
^25 (NJ)May their camp be a desolation;
    let no one dwell in their tents.
²⁶ For they ^(NK)persecute him whom ^(NL)you have struck down,
    and they recount the pain of ^(NM)those you have wounded.
^27 (NN)Add to them punishment upon punishment;
    may they have no acquittal from you.^[af]
28 Let them be ^(NO)blotted out of the book of the living;
    let them not be ^(NP)enrolled among the righteous.

²⁹ But I am afflicted and in pain;
    let your salvation, O God, ^(NQ)set me on high!

³⁰ I will ^(NR)praise the name of God with a song;
    I will ^(NS)magnify him with ^(NT)thanksgiving.
³¹ This will ^(NU)please the Lord more than an ox
    or a bull ^(NV)with horns and hoofs.
³² When ^(NW)the humble see it they will be glad;
    you who seek God, ^(NX)let your hearts revive.
³³ For the Lord hears the needy
    and ^(NY)does not despise his own people who are prisoners.

³⁴ Let ^(NZ)heaven and earth praise him,
    the seas and everything that moves in them.
³⁵ For ^(OA)God will save Zion
    and build up the cities of Judah,
and people shall dwell there and possess it;