Psalm 35–36

Psalm 35

PRAYER FOR VICTORY

Of David.

¹Oppose my opponents, Lord;

fight those who fight me.^g

²Take your shields—large and small—

and come to my aid.^h

³Draw the spear and javelin against my pursuers,

and assure me, “I am your deliverance.”ⁱ

⁴Let those who intend to take my life

be disgraced and humiliated;

let those who plan to harm me

be turned back and ashamed.^j

⁵Let them be like chaff in the wind,

with the angel of the Lord driving them away.^k

⁶Let their way be dark and slippery,

with the angel of the Lord pursuing them.^l

⁷They hid their net for me without cause;

they dug a pit for me without cause.^m

⁸Let ruin come on him unexpectedly,

and let the net that he hid ensnare him;

let him fall into it—to his ruin.ⁿ

⁹Then I will rejoice in the Lord;

I will delight in his deliverance.^o

¹⁰All my bones will say,

“Lord, who is like you,^p

rescuing the poor from one too strong for him,

the poor or the needy from one who robs him?”^q

¹¹Malicious witnesses come forward;

they question me about things I do not know.^r

¹²They repay me evil for good,

making me desolate.^s

¹³Yet when they were sick,

my clothing was sackcloth;

I humbled myself with fasting,

and my prayer was genuine.^At

¹⁴I went about mourning as if for my friend or brother;

I was bowed down with grief,

like one mourning for a mother.^u

¹⁵But when I stumbled, they gathered in glee;

they gathered against me.

Assailants I did not know

tore at me and did not stop.^v

¹⁶With godless mockery^B

they gnashed their teeth at me.^w

¹⁷Lord, how long will you look on?^x

Rescue me from their ravages;

rescue my precious life from the young lions.^y

¹⁸I will praise you in the great assembly;

I will exalt you among many people.^z

¹⁹Do not let my deceitful enemies rejoice over me;

do not let those who hate me without cause^aa

wink at me maliciously.^ab

²⁰For they do not speak in friendly ways,

but contrive fraudulent schemes^A

against those who live peacefully in the land.^ac

²¹They open their mouths wide against me and say,

“Aha, aha! We saw it!”^Bad

²²You saw it, Lord; do not be silent.

Lord, do not be far from me.^ae

²³Wake up and rise to my defense,

to my cause, my God and my Lord!^af

²⁴Vindicate me, Lord my God,

in keeping with your righteousness,

and do not let them rejoice over me.^a

²⁵Do not let them say in their hearts,

“Aha! Just what we wanted.”

Do not let them say,

“We have swallowed him up!”^b

²⁶Let those who rejoice at my misfortune

be disgraced and humiliated;

let those who exalt themselves over me

be clothed with shame and reproach.^c

²⁷Let those who want my vindication

shout for joy and be glad;

let them continually say,

“The Lord be exalted.

He takes pleasure in his servant’s well-being.”^d

²⁸And my tongue will proclaim your righteousness,

your praise all day long.^e

Psalm 36

HUMAN WICKEDNESS AND GOD’S LOVE

For the choir director. Of David, the Lord’s servant.

¹An oracle within my heart

concerning the transgression of the wicked person:

Dread of God has no effect on him.^Cf

²For with his flattering opinion of himself,

he does not discover and hate his iniquity.^g

³The words from his mouth are malicious and deceptive;^h

he has stopped acting wisely and doing good.ⁱ

⁴Even on his bed he makes malicious plans.^j

He sets himself on a path that is not good,

and he does not reject evil.^k

⁵Lord, your faithful love reaches to heaven,

your faithfulness to the clouds.^l

⁶Your righteousness is like the highest mountains,

your judgments like the deepest sea.^m

Lord, you preserve people and animals.ⁿ

⁷How priceless your faithful love is, God!

People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.^o

⁸They are filled from the abundance of your house.

You let them drink from your refreshing stream.^p

⁹For the wellspring of life is with you.^q

By means of your light we see light.^r

¹⁰Spread your faithful love over those who know you,

and your righteousness over the upright in heart.^s

¹¹Do not let the foot of the arrogant come near me

or the hand of the wicked drive me away.^t

¹²There! The evildoers have fallen.

They have been thrown down and cannot rise.^u