Psalm 138:1–145:21

^1aI will give You thanks with all my heart;

I will sing praises to You before the ^bgods.

²I will bow down ^atoward Your holy temple

And ^bgive thanks to Your name for Your lovingkindness and Your ¹truth;

For You have ^cmagnified Your ²word ³according to all Your name.

³On the day I ^acalled, You answered me;

You made me bold with ^bstrength in my soul.

^4aAll the kings of the earth will give thanks to You, O Lord,

When they have heard the words of Your mouth.

⁵And they will ^asing of the ways of the Lord,

For ^bgreat is the glory of the Lord.

⁶For ^athough the Lord is exalted,

Yet He ^bregards the lowly,

But the ^chaughty He knows from afar.

⁷Though I ^awalk in the midst of trouble, You will ^1brevive me;

You will ^cstretch forth Your hand against the wrath of my enemies,

And Your right hand will ^dsave me.

⁸The Lord will ^aaccomplish what concerns me;

Your ^blovingkindness, O Lord, is everlasting;

^cDo not forsake the ^dworks of Your hands.

PSALM 139

God’s Omnipresence and Omniscience.

For the choir director. A Psalm of David.

¹O Lord, You have ^asearched me and known me.

²You ^aknow ¹when I sit down and ²when I rise up;

You ^bunderstand my thought from afar.

³You ^1ascrutinize my ²path and my lying down,

And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.

⁴¹Even before there is a word on my tongue,

Behold, O Lord, You ^aknow it all.

⁵You have ^aenclosed me behind and before,

And ^blaid Your hand upon me.

⁶Such ^aknowledge is ^btoo wonderful for me;

It is too high, I cannot attain to it.

^7aWhere can I go from Your Spirit?

Or where can I flee from Your presence?

^8aIf I ascend to heaven, You are there;

If I make my bed in ¹Sheol, behold, ^bYou are there.

⁹If I take the wings of the dawn,

If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea,

¹⁰Even there Your hand will ^alead me,

And Your right hand will lay hold of me.

¹¹If I say, “Surely the ^adarkness will ¹overwhelm me,

And the light around me will be night,”

¹²Even the ^adarkness is not dark ¹to You,

And the night is as bright as the day.

^bDarkness and light are alike to You.

¹³For You ^aformed my ¹inward parts;

You ^bwove me in my mother’s womb.

¹⁴I will give thanks to You, for ¹I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

^aWonderful are Your works,

And my soul knows it very well.

¹⁵My ^1aframe was not hidden from You,

When I was made in secret,

And skillfully wrought in the ^bdepths of the earth;

¹⁶Your ^aeyes have seen my unformed substance;

And in ^bYour book were all written

The ^cdays that were ordained for me,

When as yet there was not one of them.

¹⁷How precious also are Your ^athoughts to me, O God!

How vast is the sum of them!

¹⁸If I should count them, they would ^aoutnumber the sand.

When ^bI awake, I am still with You.

¹⁹O that You would ^aslay the wicked, O God;

^bDepart from me, therefore, ^cmen of bloodshed.

²⁰For they ^aspeak ¹against You wickedly,

And Your enemies ^2btake Your name in vain.

²¹Do I not ^ahate those who hate You, O Lord?

And do I not ^bloathe those who rise up against You?

²²I hate them with the utmost hatred;

They have become my enemies.

^23aSearch me, O God, and know my heart;

^bTry me and know my anxious thoughts;

²⁴And see if there be any ^1ahurtful way in me,

And ^blead me in the ^ceverlasting way.

PSALM 140

Prayer for Protection against the Wicked.

For the choir director. A Psalm of David.

^1aRescue me, O Lord, from evil men;

Preserve me from ^bviolent men

²Who ^adevise evil things in their hearts;

They ^bcontinually stir up wars.

³They ^asharpen their tongues as a serpent;

^bPoison of a viper is under their lips.

¹Selah.

^4aKeep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;

^bPreserve me from violent men

Who have ¹purposed to ^2ctrip up my feet.

⁵The proud have ^ahidden a trap for me, and cords;

They have spread a ^bnet by the ¹wayside;

They have set ^csnares for me.

Selah.

⁶I ^asaid to the Lord, “You are my God;

^bGive ear, O Lord, to the ^cvoice of my supplications.

⁷“O ¹God the Lord, ^athe strength of my salvation,

You have ^bcovered my head in the day of ²battle.

⁸“Do not grant, O Lord, the ^adesires of the wicked;

Do not promote ^bhis evil device, that they not be exalted.

Selah.

⁹“As for the head of those who surround me,

May the ^amischief of their lips cover them.

¹⁰“May ^aburning coals fall upon them;

May they be ^bcast into the fire,

Into ¹deep pits from which they ^ccannot rise.

¹¹“May a ¹slanderer not be established in the earth;

^aMay evil hunt the violent man ²speedily.”

¹²I know that the Lord will ^amaintain the cause of the afflicted

And ^bjustice for the poor.

¹³Surely the ^arighteous will give thanks to Your name;

The ^bupright will dwell in Your presence.

PSALM 141

An Evening Prayer for Sanctification and Protection.

A Psalm of David.

¹O Lord, I call upon You; ^ahasten to me!

^bGive ear to my voice when I call to You!

²May my prayer be ¹counted as ^aincense before You;

The ^blifting up of my hands as the ^cevening offering.

³Set a ^aguard, O Lord, ¹over my mouth;

Keep watch over the ^bdoor of my lips.

^4aDo not incline my heart to any evil thing,

To practice deeds ¹of wickedness

With men who ^bdo iniquity;

And ^cdo not let me eat of their delicacies.

⁵Let the ^arighteous smite me ¹in kindness and reprove me;

It is ^boil upon the head;

Do not let my head refuse it,

²For still my prayer ^cis ³against their wicked deeds.

⁶Their judges are ^athrown down by the sides of the rock,

And they hear my words, for they are pleasant.

⁷As when one ^aplows and breaks open the earth,

Our ^bbones have been scattered at the ^cmouth of ¹Sheol.

⁸For my ^aeyes are toward You, O ¹God, the Lord;

In You I ^btake refuge; ^cdo not ²leave me defenseless.

⁹Keep me from the ^1ajaws of the trap which they have set for me,

And from the ^bsnares of those who do iniquity.

¹⁰Let the wicked ^afall into their own nets,

While I pass by ^1bsafely.

PSALM 142

Prayer for Help in Trouble.

^†Maskil of David, when he was ^•in the cave. A Prayer.

¹I ^acry aloud with my voice to the Lord;

I ^bmake supplication with my voice to the Lord.

²I ^apour out my complaint before Him;

I declare my ^btrouble before Him.

³When ^amy spirit ¹was overwhelmed within me,

You knew my path.

In the way where I walk

They have ^bhidden a trap for me.

⁴Look to the right and see;

For there is ^ano one who regards me;

¹There is no ^bescape for me;

^cNo one cares for my soul.

⁵I cried out to You, O Lord;

I said, “You are ^amy refuge,

My ^bportion in the ^cland of the living.

⁶“^aGive heed to my cry,

For I am ^bbrought very low;

Deliver me from my persecutors,

For they are too ^cstrong for me.

⁷“^aBring my soul out of prison,

So that I may give thanks to Your name;

The righteous will surround me,

For You will ^bdeal bountifully with me.”

PSALM 143

Prayer for Deliverance and Guidance.

A Psalm of David.

¹Hear my prayer, O Lord,

^aGive ear to my supplications!

Answer me in Your ^bfaithfulness, in Your ^crighteousness!

²And ^ado not enter into judgment with Your servant,

For in Your sight ^bno man living is righteous.

³For the enemy has persecuted my soul;

He has crushed my life ^ato the ground;

He ^bhas made me dwell in dark places, like those who have long been dead.

⁴Therefore ^amy spirit ¹is overwhelmed within me;

My heart is ^2bappalled within me.

⁵I ^aremember the days of old;

I ^bmeditate on all Your doings;

I ^cmuse on the work of Your hands.

⁶I ^astretch out my hands to You;

My ^bsoul longs for You, as a ¹parched land.

²Selah.

^7aAnswer me quickly, O Lord, my ^bspirit fails;

^cDo not hide Your face from me,

Or I will become like ^dthose who go down to the pit.

⁸Let me hear Your ^alovingkindness ^bin the morning;

For I trust ^cin You;

Teach me the ^dway in which I should walk;

For to You I ^elift up my soul.

^9aDeliver me, O Lord, from my enemies;

¹I take refuge in You.

^10aTeach me to do Your will,

For You are my God;

Let ^bYour good Spirit ^clead me on level ¹ground.

^11aFor the sake of Your name, O Lord, ^brevive me.

^cIn Your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble.

¹²And in Your lovingkindness, ^1acut off my enemies

And ^bdestroy all those who afflict my soul,

For ^cI am Your servant.

PSALM 144

Prayer for Rescue and Prosperity.

A Psalm of David.

¹Blessed be the Lord, ^amy rock,

Who ^btrains my hands for war,

And my fingers for battle;

²My lovingkindness and ^amy fortress,

My ^bstronghold and my deliverer,

My ^cshield and He in whom I take refuge,

Who ^dsubdues ¹my people under me.

³O Lord, ^awhat is man, that You take knowledge of him?

Or the son of man, that You think of him?

^4aMan is like a mere breath;

His ^bdays are like a passing shadow.

^5aBow Your heavens, O Lord, and ^bcome down;

^cTouch the mountains, that they may smoke.

⁶Flash forth ^alightning and scatter them;

Send out Your ^barrows and confuse them.

⁷Stretch forth Your hand ^afrom on high;

Rescue me and ^bdeliver me out of great waters,

Out of the hand of ^caliens

⁸Whose mouths ^aspeak deceit,

And whose ^bright hand is a right hand of falsehood.

⁹I will sing a ^anew song to You, O God;

Upon a ^bharp of ten strings I will sing praises to You,

¹⁰Who ^agives salvation to kings,

Who ^brescues David His servant from the evil sword.

¹¹Rescue me and deliver me out of the hand of ^aaliens,

Whose mouth ^bspeaks deceit

And whose ^cright hand is a right hand of falsehood.

¹²Let our sons in their youth be as ^agrown-up plants,

And our daughters as ^bcorner pillars ¹fashioned as for a palace;

¹³Let our ^agarners be full, furnishing every kind of produce,

And our flocks bring forth thousands and ten thousands in our ¹fields;

¹⁴Let our ^acattle ¹bear

Without ^2bmishap and without ^3closs,

Let there be no ^doutcry in our streets!

¹⁵How blessed are the people who are so situated;

How ^ablessed are the people whose God is the Lord!

PSALM 145

The Lord Extolled for His Goodness.

A Psalm of Praise, of David.

¹I will ^aextol You, ^bmy God, O King,

And I will ^cbless Your name forever and ever.

²Every day I will bless You,

And I will ^apraise Your name forever and ever.

^3aGreat is the Lord, and highly to be praised,

And His ^bgreatness is unsearchable.

⁴One ^ageneration shall praise Your works to another,

And shall declare Your mighty acts.

⁵On the ^aglorious ¹splendor of Your majesty

And ^bon Your wonderful works, I will meditate.

⁶Men shall speak of…