Psalm 35

Psalm 35

Prayer for Victory

Davidic.

¹Oppose my opponents, Lord;

fight those who fight me. ^b

²Take Your shields—large and small—

and come to my aid. ^c

³Draw the spear and javelin against my pursuers,

and assure me: “I am your deliverance.” ^d

⁴Let those who seek to kill me

be disgraced and humiliated;

let those who plan to harm me

be turned back and ashamed. ^e

⁵Let them be like chaff in the wind,

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

⁶Let their way be dark and slippery,

with the angel of the Lord pursuing them. ^g

⁷They hid their net for me without cause;

they dug a pit for me without cause. ^h

⁸Let ruin come on him unexpectedly,

and let the net that he hid ensnare him;

let him fall into it—to his ruin. ⁱ

⁹Then I will rejoice in the Lord;

I will delight in His deliverance. ^j

¹⁰My very bones will say,

“Lord, who is like You, ^k

rescuing the poor from one too strong for him,

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

¹¹Malicious witnesses come forward;

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

¹²They repay me evil for good,

making me desolate. ⁿ

¹³Yet when they were sick,

my clothing was sackcloth;

I humbled myself with fasting,

and my prayer was genuine. ^op

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

I was bowed down with grief,

like one mourning a mother. ^q

¹⁵But when I stumbled, they gathered in glee;

they gathered against me.

Assailants I did not know

tore at me and did not stop. ^r

¹⁶With godless mockery ^s

they gnashed their teeth at me. ^t

¹⁷Lord, how long will You look on? ^u

Rescue my life from their ravages,

my only one from the young lions. ^v

¹⁸I will praise You in the great congregation;

I will exalt You among many people. ^w

¹⁹Do not let my deceitful enemies rejoice over me;

do not let those who hate me without cause ^x

look at me maliciously. ^y

²⁰For they do not speak in friendly ways,

but contrive deceitful schemes ^z

against those who live peacefully in the land. ^a

²¹They open their mouths wide against me and say,

“Aha, aha! We saw it!” ^bc

²²You saw it, Lord; do not be silent.

Lord, do not be far from me. ^d

²³Wake up and rise to my defense,

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

²⁴Vindicate me, Lord my God,

in keeping with Your righteousness,

and do not let them rejoice over me. ^f

²⁵Do not let them say in their hearts,

“Aha! Just what we wanted.”

Do not let them say,

“We have swallowed him up!” ^g

²⁶Let those who rejoice at my misfortune

be disgraced and humiliated;

let those who exalt themselves over me

be clothed with shame and reproach. ^h

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.” ⁱ

²⁸And my tongue will proclaim Your righteousness,

Your praise all day long. ^j