The Lord laughs at him, For He sees his day is coming.
The wicked have drawn the sword and bent their bow To cast down the afflicted and the needy, To slay those who are upright in conduct.
Better is the little of the righteous Than the abundance of many wicked.
For the arms of the wicked will be broken, But the LORD sustains the righteous.
The LORD knows the days of the blameless, And their inheritance will be forever.
They will not be ashamed in the time of evil, And in the days of famine they will have abundance.
But the wicked will perish; And the enemies of the LORD will be like the glory of the pastures, They vanish--like smoke they vanish away.
The wicked borrows and does not pay back, But the righteous is gracious and gives.
For those blessed by Him will inherit the land, But those cursed by Him will be cut off.
The steps of a man are established by the LORD, And He delights in his way.
When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong, Because the LORD is the One who holds his hand.
I have been young and now I am old, Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken Or his descendants begging bread.
For the LORD loves justice And does not forsake His godly ones; They are preserved forever, But the descendants of the wicked will be cut off.
The righteous will inherit the land And dwell in it forever.
The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom, And his tongue speaks justice.
The law of his God is in his heart; His steps do not slip.
The wicked spies upon the righteous And seeks to kill him.
The LORD will not leave him in his hand Or let him be condemned when he is judged.
Wait for the LORD and keep His way, And He will exalt you to inherit the land; When the wicked are cut off, you will see it.
Mark the blameless man, and behold the upright; For the man of peace will have a posterity.
But transgressors will be altogether destroyed; The posterity of the wicked will be cut off.
But the salvation of the righteous is from the LORD; He is their strength in time of trouble.
The LORD helps them and delivers them; He delivers them from the wicked and saves them, Because they take refuge in Him.
I am benumbed and badly crushed; I groan because of the agitation of my heart.
My heart throbs, my strength fails me; And the light of my eyes, even that has gone from me.
For the choir director, for Jeduthun. A Psalm of David. I said, “I will guard my ways That I may not sin with my tongue; I will guard my mouth as with a muzzle While the wicked are in my presence.”
My heart was hot within me, While I was musing the fire burned; Then I spoke with my tongue:
“LORD, make me to know my end And what is the extent of my days; Let me know how transient I am.
“Deliver me from all my transgressions; Make me not the reproach of the foolish.
“Remove Your plague from me; Because of the opposition of Your hand I am perishing.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David. I waited patiently for the LORD; And He inclined to me and heard my cry.
He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay, And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm.
He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God; Many will see and fear And will trust in the LORD.
How blessed is the man who has made the LORD his trust, And has not turned to the proud, nor to those who lapse into falsehood.
Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders which You have done, And Your thoughts toward us; There is none to compare with You. If I would declare and speak of them, They would be too numerous to count.
Then I said, “Behold, I come; In the scroll of the book it is written of me.
I have proclaimed glad tidings of righteousness in the great congregation; Behold, I will not restrain my lips, O LORD, You know.
I have not hidden Your righteousness within my heart; I have spoken of Your faithfulness and Your salvation; I have not concealed Your lovingkindness and Your truth from the great congregation.
For evils beyond number have surrounded me; My iniquities have overtaken me, so that I am not able to see; They are more numerous than the hairs of my head, And my heart has failed me.
Let all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; Let those who love Your salvation say continually, “The LORD be magnified!”
Since I am afflicted and needy, Let the Lord be mindful of me. You are my help and my deliverer; Do not delay, O my God.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David. How blessed is he who considers the helpless; The LORD will deliver him in a day of trouble.
The LORD will protect him and keep him alive, And he shall be called blessed upon the earth; And do not give him over to the desire of his enemies.
The LORD will sustain him upon his sickbed; In his illness, You restore him to health.
Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, From everlasting to everlasting. Amen and Amen.
For the choir director. A Maskil of the sons of Korah. As the deer pants for the water brooks, So my soul pants for You, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; When shall I come and appear before God?
These things I remember and I pour out my soul within me. For I used to go along with the throng and lead them in procession to the house of God, With the voice of joy and thanksgiving, a multitude keeping festival.
Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him For the help of His presence.
O my God, my soul is in despair within me; Therefore I remember You from the land of the Jordan And the peaks of Hermon, from Mount Mizar.
New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995
For Permission to Quote information visit http://www.lockman.org by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif.
All rights reserved.