Psalm 52–55

Psalm 52

For the choir director; a maskil; a psalm by David when Doeg (who was from Edom) told Saul that David had come to Ahimelech’s home. 

¹Why do you brag about the evil you’ve done, you hero? 

The mercy of God lasts all day long! 

²Your tongue makes up threats. 

It’s like a sharp razor, you master of deceit. 

³You prefer evil to good. 

You prefer lying to speaking the truth. 

Selah 

⁴You love every destructive accusation, you deceitful tongue! 

⁵But God will ruin you forever. 

He will grab you and drag you out of your tent. 

He will pull your roots out of this world of the living. 

Selah 

⁶Righteous people will see ⸤this⸥ and be struck with fear. 

They will laugh at you and say, 

⁷“Look at this person who refused to make God his fortress! 

Instead, he trusted his great wealth 

and became strong through his greed.” 

⁸But I am like a large olive tree in God’s house. 

I trust the mercy of God forever and ever. 

⁹I will give thanks to you forever 

for what you have done. 

In the presence of your godly people, 

I will wait with hope in your good name. 

Psalm 53^a

For the choir director; according to mahalath,^ba maskil by David. 

¹Godless fools say in their hearts, 

“There is no God.” 

They are corrupt. 

They do disgusting things. 

There is no one who does good things. 

²God looks down from heaven on Adam’s descendants 

to see if there is anyone who acts wisely, 

if there is anyone who seeks help from God. 

³Everyone has fallen away. 

Together they have become rotten to the core. 

No one, not even one person, does good things. 

⁴Are all those troublemakers, 

those who devour my people as if they were devouring food, 

so ignorant that they do not call on God? 

⁵There they are—panic-stricken— 

⸤but⸥ there was no reason to panic, 

because God has scattered the bones 

of those who set up camp against you. 

You put them to shame. 

After all, God has rejected them. 

⁶If only salvation for Israel would come from Zion! 

When God restores the fortunes of his people, 

Jacob will rejoice. 

Israel will be glad. 

Psalm 54

For the choir director; on stringed instruments; a maskil by David when people from the city of Ziph told Saul that David was hiding among them. 

¹O God, save me by your name, 

and defend me with your might. 

²O God, hear my prayer, 

and open your ears to the words from my mouth. 

³Strangers have attacked me. 

Ruthless people seek my life. 

They do not think about God. 

Selah 

⁴God is my helper! 

The Lord is the provider for my life. 

⁵My enemies spy on me. 

Pay them back with evil. 

Destroy them with your truth! 

⁶I will make a sacrifice to you along with a freewill offering. 

I will give thanks to your good name, O Lord. 

⁷Your name rescues me from every trouble. 

My eyes will gloat over my enemies. 

Psalm 55

For the choir director; on stringed instruments; a maskil by David. 

¹Open your ears to my prayer, O God. 

Do not hide from my plea for mercy. 

²Pay attention to me, and answer me. 

My thoughts are restless, and I am confused 

³because my enemy shouts at me 

and a wicked person persecutes me. 

They bring misery crashing down on me, 

and they attack me out of anger. 

⁴My heart is in turmoil. 

The terrors of death have seized me. 

⁵Fear and trembling have overcome me. 

Horror has overwhelmed me. 

⁶I said, “If only I had wings like a dove— 

I would fly away and find rest. 

⁷Indeed, I would run far away. 

I would stay in the desert. 

Selah 

⁸I would hurry to find shelter 

from the raging wind and storm.” 

⁹Completely confuse their language, O Lord, 

because I see violence and conflict in the city. 

¹⁰Day and night they go around on ⸤top of⸥ the city walls. 

Trouble and misery are everywhere. 

¹¹Destruction is everywhere. 

Oppression and fraud never leave the streets.^a

¹²If an enemy had insulted me, 

then I could bear it. 

If someone who hated me had attacked me, 

then I could hide from him. 

¹³But it is you, my equal, 

my best friend, 

one I knew so well! 

¹⁴We used to talk to each other in complete confidence 

and walk into God’s house with the festival crowds. 

¹⁵Let death suddenly take ⸤wicked people⸥! 

Let them go into the grave while they are still alive, 

because evil lives in their homes as well as in their hearts. 

¹⁶But I call on God, 

and the Lord saves me. 

¹⁷Morning, noon, and night I complain and groan, 

and he listens to my voice. 

¹⁸With ⸤his⸥ peace, he will rescue my soul 

from the war waged against me, 

because there are many ⸤soldiers fighting⸥ against me. 

¹⁹God will listen. 

The one who has sat enthroned from the beginning 

will deal with them. 

Selah 

They never change. They never fear God. 

²⁰⸤My best friend⸥ has betrayed his friends. 

He has broken his solemn promise. 

²¹His speech is smoother than butter, 

but there is war in his heart. 

His words are more soothing than oil, 

but they are like swords ready to attack. 

²²Turn your burdens over to the Lord, 

and he will take care of you. 

He will never let the righteous person stumble. 

²³But you, O God, will throw ⸤wicked people⸥ into the deepest pit. 

Bloodthirsty and deceitful people will not live out half their days. 

But I will trust you.