Psalm 12

Human Faithlessness and God’s Faithfulness

12For the music director; on the Sheminith.^a A psalm of David.^b

¹Save, O Yahweh, for the pious have ceased to be;

for the faithful have vanished

from among the children of humankind.

²They speak falseness to each other.^c

With flattering lips,

with a double heart^d they speak.

³May Yahweh cut off all flattering lips,

the tongue speaking great boasts—

⁴those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail.

Our lips are on our side.

Who is master over us?”

⁵“Because of the oppression of the afflicted,

because of the groaning of the poor,

now I will rise up,” Yahweh says.

“I shall put them in the safety for which they^e long.”

⁶The words of Yahweh are pure words

like silver refined in the crucible on the ground,

refined seven times.

⁷You, O Yahweh, will protect them.

You will preserve him^f

from this generation always.

⁸The wicked prowl about

when vileness is exalted among the children of humankind.