Psalm 10–12

Psalm 10

¹Lord, why are you so far away?

Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?

²An evil person is proud and hunts down those who are weak.

He catches weak people by making clever plans.

³He brags about what his heart longs for.

He speaks well of those who always want more.

He attacks the Lord with his words.

⁴Because he is proud, that evil person doesn’t turn to the Lord.

There is no room for God in any of his thoughts.

⁵Everything always goes well for him.

So he is proud.

He doesn’t want to have anything to do with God’s laws.

He makes fun of all of his enemies.

⁶He says to himself, “I will always be secure.

I will always be happy. I’ll never have any trouble.”

⁷His mouth is full of curses and lies and warnings.

With his tongue he speaks evil and makes trouble.

⁸Sinful people hide and wait near the villages.

From their hiding places they murder those who aren’t guilty of doing anything wrong.

They watch in secret for those they want to attack.

⁹They hide and wait like a lion in the bushes.

From their hiding places they wait to catch those who are helpless.

They catch them and drag them off in their nets.

¹⁰Those they have attacked are beaten up. They fall to the ground.

They fall because their attackers are too strong for them.

¹¹Sinful people say to themselves, “God doesn’t pay any attention.

He covers his face. He never sees us.”

¹²Lord, rise up! God, show your power!

Don’t forget those who are helpless.

¹³Why do sinful people attack you with their words?

Why do they say to themselves,

“He won’t hold us accountable”?

¹⁴God, you see trouble and sadness.

You take note of it. You do something about it.

So those who are attacked place themselves in your care.

You help children whose fathers have died.

¹⁵Take away the power of bad and sinful people.

Hold them accountable for the evil things they do.

Uncover all the evil they have done.

¹⁶The Lord is King for ever and ever.

The nations will disappear from his land.

¹⁷Lord, you hear the longings of those who are hurting.

You cheer them up and give them hope.

You listen to their cries.

¹⁸You stand up for those whose fathers have died

and for those who have been beaten down.

You do it so that no one made of dust

may terrify others anymore.

Psalm 11

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

¹I run to the Lord for safety.

So how can you say to me,

“Fly away like a bird to your mountain.

²Look! Evil people are bending their bows.

They are placing their arrows against the strings.

They are planning to shoot from the shadows

at those who have honest hearts.

³When law and order are being destroyed,

what can godly people do?”

⁴The Lord is in his holy temple.

The Lord is on his throne in heaven.

He watches all people.

His eyes study them.

⁵The Lord watches over those who do what is right.

But he hates sinful people and those who love to hurt others.

⁶He will pour out flaming coals and burning sulfur

on those who do what is wrong.

A hot and dry wind will destroy them.

⁷The Lord always does what is right.

So he loves it when people do what is fair.

Those who are honest will enjoy his blessing.

Psalm 12

For the director of music. For sheminith. A psalm of David.

¹Help, Lord! Those who do what is right are gone.

Those who are faithful have disappeared from the earth.

²Everyone tells lies to his neighbors.

With his lips he praises others, but he doesn’t really mean it.

³May the Lord cut off all lips that don’t mean what they say.

May he cut out every tongue that brags.

⁴They say, “We will win the battle with our tongues.

Our lips belong to us. No one else is in charge of us.”

⁵The Lord says, “The weak are beaten down.

Those who are in need groan.

So I will stand up to help them.

I will keep them safe from those who tell lies about them.”

⁶The words of the Lord are perfect.

They are like silver made pure in a clay furnace.

They are like silver made pure seven times over.

⁷Lord, you will keep us safe.

You will always keep sinners from hurting us.

⁸Proud and sinful people walk around openly

when the evil they do is praised by others.