Psalm 1–41

BOOK 1

PSALM 1

The Righteous and the Wicked Contrasted.

¹How blessed is the man who ^adoes not walk in the ^bcounsel of the wicked,

Nor stand in the ^1cpath of sinners,

Nor ^dsit in the seat of scoffers!

²But his ^adelight is ^bin the law of the Lord,

And in His law he meditates ^cday and ^dnight.

³He will be like ^aa tree firmly planted by ¹streams of water,

Which yields its fruit in its season

And its ²leaf does not wither;

And ³in whatever he does, ^bhe prospers.

⁴The wicked are not so,

But they are like ^achaff which the wind drives away.

⁵Therefore ^athe wicked will not stand in the ^bjudgment,

Nor sinners in ^cthe assembly of the righteous.

⁶For the Lord ^1aknows the way of the righteous,

But the way of ^bthe wicked will perish.

PSALM 2

The Reign of the Lord’s Anointed.

¹Why are ^athe ¹nations in an uproar

And the peoples ^bdevising a vain thing?

²The ^akings of the earth take their stand

And the rulers take counsel together

^bAgainst the Lord and against His ^1cAnointed, saying,

³“Let us ^atear their fetters apart

And cast away their cords from us!”

⁴He who ¹sits in the heavens ^alaughs,

The Lord ^bscoffs at them.

⁵Then He will speak to them in His ^aanger

And ^bterrify them in His fury, saying,

⁶“But as for Me, I have ¹installed ^aMy King

Upon Zion, ^bMy holy mountain.”

⁷“I will surely tell of the ¹decree of the Lord:

He said to Me, ‘You are ^aMy Son,

Today I have begotten You.

⁸‘Ask of Me, and ^aI will surely give ^bthe ¹nations as Your inheritance,

And the very ^cends of the earth as Your possession.

⁹‘You shall ^1abreak them with a ²rod of iron,

You shall ^bshatter them like ³earthenware.’ ”

¹⁰Now therefore, O kings, ^ashow discernment;

Take warning, O ¹judges of the earth.

¹¹¹Worship the Lord with ^2areverence

And rejoice with ^btrembling.

¹²¹Do homage to ^athe Son, that He not become angry, and you perish in the way,

For ^bHis wrath may ²soon be kindled.

How blessed are all who ^ctake refuge in Him!

PSALM 3

Morning Prayer of Trust in God.

A Psalm of David, when ^†he fled from Absalom his son.

¹O Lord, how ^amy adversaries have increased!

Many are rising up against me.

²Many are saying ¹of my soul,

“There is no ^2adeliverance for him in God.”

³Selah.

³But You, O Lord, are ^aa shield about me,

My ^bglory, and the One who ^clifts my head.

⁴I was crying to the Lord with my voice,

And He ^aanswered me from ^bHis holy ¹mountain.

Selah.

⁵¹I ^alay down and slept;

I awoke, for the Lord sustains me.

⁶I will ^anot be afraid of ten thousands of people

Who have ^bset themselves against me round about.

^7aArise, O Lord; ^bsave me, O my God!

For You ¹have ^csmitten all my enemies on the ²cheek;

You ³have ^dshattered the teeth of the wicked.

^81aSalvation belongs to the Lord;

Your ^bblessing ²be upon Your people!

Selah.

PSALM 4

Evening Prayer of Trust in God.

^†For the choir director; on stringed instruments. A Psalm of David.

^1aAnswer me when ^bI call, O God ¹of my righteousness!

You have ^2crelieved me in my distress;

Be ^dgracious to me and ^ehear my prayer.

²O sons of men, how long will ^amy ¹honor become ^ba reproach?

How long will you love ^cwhat is worthless and aim at ^ddeception?

²Selah.

³But know that the Lord has ^1aset apart the ^bgodly man for Himself;

The Lord ^chears when I call to Him.

^41aTremble, ^2band do not sin;

^3cMeditate in your heart upon your bed, and be still.

Selah.

⁵Offer ¹the ^asacrifices of righteousness,

And ^btrust in the Lord.

⁶Many are saying, “^aWho will show us any good?”

^bLift up the light of Your countenance upon us, O Lord!

⁷You have put ^agladness in my heart,

More than when their grain and new wine abound.

⁸In peace I will ¹both ^alie down and sleep,

For You alone, O Lord, make me to ^bdwell in safety.

PSALM 5

Prayer for Protection from the Wicked.

For the choir director; for ^†flute accompaniment. A Psalm of David.

^1aGive ear to my words, O Lord,

Consider my ^1bgroaning.

²Heed ^athe sound of my cry for help, ^bmy King and my God,

For to You I pray.

³In the morning, O Lord, ¹You will hear my voice;

In the ^amorning I will order my ²prayer to You and eagerly ^bwatch.

⁴For You are not a God ^awho takes pleasure in wickedness;

^bNo evil ¹dwells with You.

⁵The ^aboastful shall not ^bstand before Your eyes;

You ^chate all who do iniquity.

⁶You ^adestroy those who speak falsehood;

The Lord abhors ^bthe man of bloodshed and deceit.

⁷But as for me, ^aby Your abundant lovingkindness I will enter Your house,

¹At Your holy temple I will ^bbow in ^creverence for You.

⁸O Lord, ^alead me ^bin Your righteousness ^cbecause of ¹my foes;

Make Your way ²straight before me.

⁹There is ^anothing ¹reliable in ²what they say;

Their ^binward part is destruction itself.

Their ^cthroat is an open grave;

They ³flatter with their tongue.

¹⁰Hold them guilty, O God;

^aBy their own devices let them fall!

In the multitude of their transgressions ^bthrust them out,

For they are ^crebellious against You.

¹¹But let all who ^atake refuge in You ^bbe glad,

Let them ever sing for joy;

And ¹may You ^cshelter them,

That those who ^dlove Your name may exult in You.

¹²For it is You who ^ablesses the righteous man, O Lord,

You ^bsurround him with favor as with a shield.

PSALM 6

Prayer for Mercy in Time of Trouble.

For the choir director; with stringed instruments, ^†upon an eight-string lyre. A Psalm of David.

¹O Lord, ^ado not rebuke me in Your anger,

Nor chasten me in Your wrath.

²Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am ^apining away;

^bHeal me, O Lord, for ^cmy bones are dismayed.

³And my ^asoul is greatly dismayed;

But You, O Lord—^bhow long?

⁴Return, O Lord, ^arescue my ¹soul;

Save me because of Your lovingkindness.

⁵For ^athere is no ¹mention of You in death;

In ²Sheol who will give You thanks?

⁶I am ^aweary with my sighing;

Every night I make my bed swim,

I dissolve my couch with ^bmy tears.

⁷My ^aeye has wasted away with grief;

It has become old because of all my adversaries.

^8aDepart from me, all you who do iniquity,

For the Lord ^bhas heard the voice of my weeping.

⁹The Lord ^ahas heard my supplication,

The Lord ^breceives my prayer.

¹⁰All my enemies will ^abe ashamed and greatly dismayed;

They shall ¹turn back, they will ^bsuddenly be ashamed.

PSALM 7

The Lord Implored to Defend the Psalmist against the Wicked.

A ^†Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the Lord ^•concerning Cush, a Benjamite.

¹O Lord my God, ^ain You I have taken refuge;

Save me from all those who pursue me, and ^bdeliver me,

²Or he will tear ¹my soul ^alike a lion,

²Dragging me away, while there is none to deliver.

³O Lord my God, if I have done this,

If there is ^ainjustice in my hands,

⁴If I have ^arewarded evil to ¹my friend,

Or have ^bplundered ²him who without cause was my adversary,

⁵Let the enemy pursue ¹my soul and overtake ²it;

And let him trample my life down to the ground

And lay my glory in the dust.

³Selah.

^6aArise, O Lord, in Your anger;

^bLift up Yourself against ^cthe rage of my adversaries,

And ^darouse Yourself ¹for me; You have appointed judgment.

⁷Let the assembly of the ^apeoples encompass You,

And over ¹them return on high.

⁸The Lord ^ajudges the peoples;

^1bVindicate me, O Lord, according to my righteousness and my integrity that is in me.

⁹O let ^athe evil of the wicked come to an end, but ^bestablish the righteous;

For the righteous God ^ctries the hearts and ¹minds.

¹⁰My ^ashield is ¹with God,

Who ^bsaves the upright in heart.

¹¹God is a ^arighteous judge,

And a God who has ^bindignation every day.

¹²If ¹a man ^adoes not repent, He will ^bsharpen His sword;

He has ^cbent His bow and ²made it ready.

¹³He has also prepared ¹for Himself deadly weapons;

He makes His ^aarrows fiery shafts.

¹⁴Behold, he travails with wickedness,

And he ^aconceives mischief and brings forth falsehood.

¹⁵He has dug a pit and hollowed it out,

And has ^afallen into the hole which he made.

¹⁶His ^amischief will return upon his own head,

And his ^bviolence will descend upon ¹his own pate.

¹⁷I will give thanks to the Lord ^aaccording to His righteousness

And will ^bsing praise to the name of the Lord Most High.

PSALM 8

The Lord’s Glory and Man’s Dignity.

For the choir director; on the Gittith. A Psalm of David.

¹O Lord, our Lord,

How majestic is Your name in all the earth,

Who have ^1adisplayed Your splendor above the heavens!

^2aFrom the mouth of infants and nursing babes You have established ^1bstrength

Because of Your adversaries,

To make ^cthe enemy and the revengeful cease.

³When I ^1aconsider ^bYour heavens, the work of Your fingers,

The ^cmoon and the stars, which You have ²ordained;

^4aWhat is man that You ¹take thought of him,

And the son of man that You care for him?

⁵Yet You have made him a ^alittle lower than ¹God,

And ^bYou crown him with ^cglory and majesty!

⁶You make him to ^arule over the works of Your hands;

You have ^bput all things under his feet,

⁷All sheep and oxen,

And also the ¹beasts of the field,

⁸The birds of the heavens and the fish of the sea,

Whatever passes through the paths of the seas.

^9aO Lord, our Lord,

How majestic is Your name in all the earth!

PSALM 9

A Psalm of Thanksgiving for God’s Justice.

For the choir director; on ^†Muth-labben. A Psalm of David.

¹I will give thanks to the Lord with all ^amy heart;

I will ^btell of all Your ¹wonders.

²I will be glad and ^aexult in You;

I will ^bsing praise to Your name, O ^cMost High.

³When my enemies turn back,

They stumble and ^aperish before You.

⁴For You have ^amaintained ¹my just cause;

You have sat on the throne ^2bjudging righteously.

⁵You have ^arebuked the nations, You have destroyed the wicked;

You have ^bblotted out their name forever and ever.

⁶¹The enemy has come to an end in perpetual ruins,

And You have uprooted the cities;

The very ^amemory of them has perished.

⁷But the ^aLord ¹abides forever;

He has established His ^bthrone for judgment,

⁸And He will ^ajudge the world in righteousness;

He will execute judgment for the peoples with equity.

⁹¹The Lord also will be a ^astronghold for the oppressed,

A stronghold in times of trouble;

¹⁰And ¹those who ^aknow Your name will put their trust in You,

For You, O Lord, have not ^bforsaken those who seek You.

¹¹Sing praises to the Lord, who ^adwells in Zion;

^bDeclare among the peoples His deeds.

¹²For ^aHe who ¹…