Psalm 56–58

PSALM 56

Supplication for Deliverance and Grateful Trust in God.

For the choir director; according to ^†•Mikhtam of David, ^{^}when the Philistines seized him in Gath.

¹Be gracious to me, O God, for man has ^1atrampled upon me;

²Fighting all day long he ^boppresses me.

²My foes have ^1atrampled upon me all day long,

For ²they are many who ^bfight proudly against me.

³¹When I am ^aafraid,

²I will ^bput my trust in You.

^4aIn God, whose word I praise,

In God I have put my trust;

I shall not be afraid.

^bWhat can mere ¹man do to me?

⁵All day long they ^1adistort my words;

All their ^2bthoughts are against me for evil.

⁶They ^1aattack, they lurk,

They ^bwatch my ²steps,

As they have ^cwaited to take my ³life.

⁷Because of wickedness, ^1acast them forth,

In anger ^bput down the peoples, O God!

⁸You ^ahave taken account of my wanderings;

Put my ^btears in Your bottle.

Are they not in ^cYour book?

⁹Then my enemies will ^aturn back ^bin the day when I call;

This I know, ¹that ^cGod is for me.

¹⁰In God, whose word I praise,

In the Lord, whose word I praise,

¹¹In God I have put my ¹trust, I shall not be afraid.

What can man do to me?

¹²Your ^avows are binding upon me, O God;

I will render thank offerings to You.

¹³For You have ^adelivered my soul from death,

¹Indeed ^bmy feet from stumbling,

So that I may ^cwalk before God

In the ^dlight of the ²living.

PSALM 57

Prayer for Rescue from Persecutors.

For the choir director; set to ^†•Mikhtam of David, ^{^}when he fled from Saul in the cave.

¹Be gracious to me, O God, be gracious to me,

For my soul ^atakes refuge in You;

And in the ^bshadow of Your wings I will take refuge

Until destruction ^cpasses by.

²I will cry to God Most High,

To God who ^aaccomplishes all things for me.

³He will ^asend from heaven and save me;

He reproaches him who ^1btramples upon me.

²Selah.

God will send forth His ^clovingkindness and His ³truth.

⁴My soul is among ^alions;

I must lie among those who breathe forth fire,

Even the sons of men, whose ^bteeth are spears and arrows

And their ^ctongue a sharp sword.

^5aBe exalted above the heavens, O God;

Let Your glory be above all the earth.

⁶They have ¹prepared a ^anet for my steps;

My soul is ^bbowed down;

They ^cdug a pit before me;

They themselves have ^dfallen into the midst of it.

Selah.

^7aMy ^bheart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast;

I will sing, yes, I will sing praises!

⁸Awake, ^amy glory!

Awake, ^bharp and lyre!

I will awaken the dawn.

^9aI will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the peoples;

I will sing praises to You among the ¹nations.

¹⁰For Your ^alovingkindness is great to the heavens

And Your ¹truth to the clouds.

^11aBe exalted above the heavens, O God;

Let Your glory be above all the earth.

PSALM 58

Prayer for the Punishment of the Wicked.

For the choir director; set to ^†Al-tashheth. A ^•Mikhtam of David.

¹Do you indeed ¹speak righteousness, O ²gods?

Do you ^ajudge ³uprightly, O sons of men?

²No, in heart you ^awork unrighteousness;

On earth you ^bweigh out the violence of your hands.

³The wicked are estranged ^afrom the womb;

These who speak lies ^bgo astray from ¹birth.

⁴They have venom like the ^avenom of a serpent;

Like a deaf cobra that stops up its ear,

⁵So that it ^adoes not hear the voice of ^1bcharmers,

Or a skillful caster of spells.

⁶O God, ^ashatter their teeth in their mouth;

Break out the fangs of the young lions, O Lord.

⁷Let them ^aflow away like water that runs off;

When he ^1baims his arrows, let them be as ²headless shafts.

⁸Let them be as a snail which ¹melts away as it goes along,

Like the ^amiscarriages of a woman which never see the sun.

⁹Before your ^apots can feel the fire of thorns

He will ^bsweep them away with a whirlwind, the ¹green and the burning alike.

¹⁰The ^arighteous will rejoice when he ^bsees the vengeance;

He will ^cwash his feet in the blood of the wicked.

¹¹And men will say, “Surely there is a ^1areward for the righteous;

Surely there is a God who ^bjudges ²on earth!”