Search Me, O God, and Know My Heart

139 To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

1  O Lord, you have psearched me and known me!

2  You qknow when I sit down and when I rise up;

you rdiscern my thoughts from afar.

3  You search out my path and my lying down

and are acquainted with all my ways.

4  Even before a word is on my tongue,

behold, O Lord, syou know it altogether.

5  You them me in, behind and before,

and ulay your hand upon me.

6  vSuch knowledge is wtoo wonderful for me;

it is high; I cannot attain it.

7  xWhere shall I go from your Spirit?

Or where yshall I flee from your presence?

8  zIf I ascend to heaven, you are there!

aIf I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!

9  If I take the wings of the morning

and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,

10  even there your hand shall blead me,

and your right hand shall hold me.

11  If I say, c“Surely the darkness shall cover me,

and the light about me be night,”

12  deven the darkness is not dark to you;

the night is bright as the day,

for darkness is as light with you.

13  For you eformed my inward parts;

you fknitted me together in my mother’s womb.

14  I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.1

gWonderful are your works;

my soul knows it very well.

15  hMy frame was not hidden from you,

when I was being made in secret,

intricately woven in ithe depths of the earth.

16  Your eyes saw my unformed substance;

in your jbook were written, every one of them,

the days that were formed for me,

when as yet there was none of them.

17  How precious to me are your kthoughts, O God!

How vast is the sum of them!

18  lIf I would count them, they are more than mthe sand.

I awake, and I am still with you.

19  Oh that you would nslay the wicked, O God!

O omen of blood, pdepart from me!

20  They qspeak against you with malicious intent;

your enemies rtake your name in vain.2

21  sDo I not hate those who hate you, O Lord?

And do I not tloathe those who urise up against you?

22  I hate them with complete hatred;

I count them my enemies.

23  Search me, O God, and know my heart!

vTry me and know my thoughts!3

24  And see if there be any grievous way in me,

and wlead me in xthe way everlasting!4

Deliver Me, O Lord, from Evil Men

140 To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

1  yDeliver me, O Lord, from evil men;

preserve me from zviolent men,

2  who plan evil things in their heart

and astir up wars continually.

3  They make btheir tongue sharp as ca serpent’s,

and dunder their lips is the evenom of asps. Selah

4  Guard me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;

preserve me from zviolent men,

who have planned to trip up my feet.

5  The arrogant have fhidden a trap for me,

and with cords they have spread ga net;1

beside the way they have set hsnares for me. Selah

6  iI say to the Lord, You are my God;

give ear to jthe voice of my pleas for mercy, O Lord!

7  O Lord, my Lord, kthe strength of my salvation,

you have covered my head in the day of battle.

8  lGrant not, O Lord, the desires of the wicked;

do not further their2 evil plot, or mthey will be exalted! Selah

9  As for the head of those who surround me,

let nthe mischief of their lips overwhelm them!

10  Let oburning coals fall upon them!

Let them be cast into fire,

into miry pits, no more to rise!

11  Let not the slanderer be established in the land;

let evil hunt down the violent man speedily!

12  I know that the Lord will pmaintain the cause of the afflicted,

and qwill execute justice for the needy.

13  Surely rthe righteous shall give thanks to your name;

sthe upright shall dwell in your presence.

Give Ear to My Voice

141 A Psalm of David.

1  O Lord, I call upon you; thasten to me!

Give ear to my voice when I call to you!

2  Let umy prayer be counted as incense before you,

and vthe lifting up of my hands as wthe evening sacrifice!

3  xSet a guard, O Lord, over my mouth;

ykeep watch over the door of my lips!

4  zDo not let my heart incline to any evil,

to busy myself with wicked deeds

in company with men who awork iniquity,

and blet me not eat of their delicacies!

5  cLet a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness;

let him rebuke me—it is oil for my head;

let my head not refuse it.

Yet dmy prayer is continually against their evil deeds.

6  When their judges are ethrown over the cliff,1

then they shall hear my words, for they are pleasant.

7  As when one plows and breaks up the earth,

so shall our bones fbe scattered at the mouth of Sheol.2

8  But gmy eyes are toward you, O God, my Lord;

hin you I seek refuge; leave me not defenseless!3

9  Keep me from ithe trap that they have laid for me

and from the snares of evildoers!

10  Let the wicked jfall into their own nets,

while I pass by safely.

You Are My Refuge

142 A Maskil1 of David, when he was in kthe cave. A Prayer.

1  With my voice I lcry out to the Lord;

with my voice I mplead for mercy to the Lord.

2  I npour out my complaint before him;

I tell my trouble before him.

3  When my spirit ofaints within me,

you know my way!

In the path where I walk

they have phidden a trap for me.

4  qLook to the rright and see:

sthere is none who takes notice of me;

tno refuge remains to me;

no one cares for my soul.

5  I cry to you, O Lord;

I say, “You are my urefuge,

my vportion in wthe land of the living.”

6  xAttend to my cry,

for yI am brought very low!

Deliver me from my persecutors,

zfor they are too strong for me!

7  aBring me out of prison,

that I may give thanks to your name!

The righteous will surround me,

for you will bdeal bountifully with me.

My Soul Thirsts for You

143 A Psalm of David.

1  Hear my prayer, O Lord;

cgive ear to my pleas for mercy!

In your dfaithfulness answer me, in your drighteousness!

2  eEnter not into judgment with your servant,

for no one living is righteous fbefore you.

3  For the enemy has pursued my soul;

ghe has crushed my life to the ground;

hhe has made me sit in darkness like those long dead.

4  Therefore my spirit ifaints within me;

my heart within me is appalled.

5  jI remember the days of old;

kI meditate on all that you have done;

I ponder the work of your hands.

6  lI stretch out my hands to you;

mmy soul thirsts for you like na parched land. Selah

7  oAnswer me quickly, O Lord!

pMy spirit fails!

qHide not your face from me,

rlest I be like those who go down to the pit.

8  sLet me hear in the morning of your steadfast love,

for in you I ttrust.

uMake me know the way I should go,

vfor to you I lift up my soul.

9  wDeliver me from my enemies, O Lord!

I have fled to you for refuge.1

10  xTeach me to do your will,

for you are my God!

yLet your good Spirit zlead me

on alevel ground!

11  bFor your name’s sake, O Lord, cpreserve my life!

In your righteousness dbring my soul out of trouble!

12  And in your steadfast love you will ecut off my enemies,

and you will destroy all the adversaries of my soul,

for I am your fservant.