Psalm 10–12

PSALM 10

Do Not Forget the Afflicted

Lamedh

¹¹Why ^ado You stand afar off, O Yahweh?

Why ^bdo You hide ²Yourself in times of distress?

²In his ^alofty pride the wicked ¹hotly pursues the afflicted;

²Let them be ^bcaught in the thoughts which they have devised.

³For the wicked ^aboasts of his ^bsoul’s desire,

And ¹the greedy man curses and ^cspurns Yahweh.

⁴The wicked, in the haughtiness of his countenance, ^adoes not seek Him.

All his ¹thoughts are, “^bThere is no God.”

⁵His ways ^1aprosper at all times;

Your judgments are on high, ^bout of his sight;

As for all his adversaries, he snorts at them.

⁶He says in his heart, “^aI will not be shaken;

¹From generation to generation ^bI will not be in adversity.”

Pe

⁷His ^amouth is full of curses and deceit and ^boppression;

^cUnder his tongue is mischief and wickedness.

Ayin

⁸He sits in the ^1aplaces of the villages where one lies in wait;

In the hiding places he ^bkills the innocent;

His eyes ²stealthily watch for the ^3cunfortunate.

⁹He lies in wait in a hiding place as ^aa lion in his ¹lair;

He ^blies in wait to catch ^cthe afflicted;

He catches the afflicted when he draws him into his ^dnet.

¹⁰He ¹crouches, he ²bows down,

And the ³unfortunate fall ⁴by his mighty ones.

¹¹He ^asays in his heart, “God has forgotten;

He has hidden His face; He will never see it.”

Qoph

¹²Arise, O Yahweh; O God, ^alift up Your hand.

^bDo not forget the afflicted.

¹³Why has the wicked ^aspurned God?

He has said in his heart, “You will not require it.”

Resh

¹⁴You have seen it, for You have beheld ^amischief and vexation to ¹take it into Your hand.

The ^2bunfortunate commits himself to You;

You have been the ^chelper of the orphan.

Shin

^15aBreak the arm of the wicked and the evildoer,

^1bSeek out his wickedness until You find none.

¹⁶Yahweh is ^aKing forever and ever;

^bNations have perished from His land.

Tav

¹⁷O Yahweh, You have heard the ^adesire of the ¹humble;

You will ^bstrengthen their heart, ^cYou will cause Your ear to give heed

¹⁸To give justice to the ^aorphan and the ^boppressed,

So that man who is of the earth will no longer cause ^cterror.

PSALM 11

Yahweh Is in His Holy Temple

For the choir director. Of David.

¹In Yahweh I ^atake refuge;

How can you say to my soul, “Flee as a bird to your ^bmountain;

²For, behold, the wicked ^abend the bow,

They ^1bmake ready their arrow upon the string

To ^cshoot in darkness at the upright in heart.

³“If the ^afoundations are destroyed,

What can the righteous do?”

⁴Yahweh is in His ^aholy temple; ¹Yahweh’s ^bthrone is in heaven;

His ^ceyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men.

⁵Yahweh ^atests the righteous,

But ^bthe wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates.

⁶May He ^arain ¹snares upon the wicked;

^bFire and brimstone and ^cburning wind will be the portion of ^dtheir cup.

⁷For Yahweh is ^arighteous, ^bHe loves ¹righteousness;

The upright will ^cbehold His face.

PSALM 12

Yahweh Will Set the Needy in Safety

For the choir director. According to the ^†Sheminith. A Psalm of David.

¹Save, O Yahweh, for ^athe holy man ceases to be,

For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men.

²They ^aspeak worthlessness to one another;

With a ^bflattering lip and with a double heart they speak.

³May Yahweh cut off all flattering lips,

The tongue that ^aspeaks great things;

⁴Who ^ahave said, “With our tongue we will prevail;

Our lips are ¹our own; who is lord over us?”

⁵“Because of the ^adevastation of the afflicted, because of the groaning of the needy,

Now ^bI will arise,” says Yahweh; “I will ^cset him in the ¹safety for which he ²longs.”

⁶The ^awords of Yahweh are pure words;

As silver ^btried in a furnace on the ground, refined seven times.

⁷You, O Yahweh, will keep them;

You will ^aguard him from this generation forever.

⁸The ^awicked strut about on every side

When ^1bvileness is exalted among the sons of men.