Psalm 9–10

Psalm 9^a,^b

For the director of music. To the tune of “The Death of the Son.” A psalm of David.

¹I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart;^e

I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.^f

²I will be glad and rejoice^g in you;

I will sing the praises^h of your name,ⁱ O Most High.

³My enemies turn back;

they stumble and perish before you.

⁴For you have upheld my right^j and my cause,^k

sitting enthroned^l as the righteous judge.^m

⁵You have rebuked the nationsⁿ and destroyed the wicked;

you have blotted out their name^o for ever and ever.

⁶Endless ruin has overtaken my enemies,

you have uprooted their cities;^p

even the memory of them^q has perished.

⁷The Lord reigns forever;^r

he has established his throne^s for judgment.

⁸He rules the world in righteousness^t

and judges the peoples with equity.^u

⁹The Lord is a refuge^v for the oppressed,^w

a stronghold in times of trouble.^x

¹⁰Those who know your name^y trust in you,

for you, Lord, have never forsaken^z those who seek you.^a

¹¹Sing the praises^b of the Lord, enthroned in Zion;^c

proclaim among the nations^d what he has done.^e

¹²For he who avenges blood^f remembers;

he does not ignore the cries of the afflicted.^g

¹³Lord, see how my enemies^h persecute me!

Have mercyⁱ and lift me up from the gates of death,^j

¹⁴that I may declare your praises^k

in the gates of Daughter Zion,^l

and there rejoice in your salvation.^m

¹⁵The nations have fallen into the pit they have dug;ⁿ

their feet are caught in the net they have hidden.^o

¹⁶The Lord is known by his acts of justice;

the wicked are ensnared by the work of their hands.^cp

¹⁷The wicked go down to the realm of the dead,^q

all the nations that forget God.^r

¹⁸But God will never forget the needy;

the hope^s of the afflicted^t will never perish.

¹⁹Arise,^u Lord, do not let mortals triumph;^v

let the nations be judged^w in your presence.

²⁰Strike them with terror,^x Lord;

let the nations know they are only mortal.^y

Psalm 10^a

¹Why, Lord, do you stand far off?^z

Why do you hide yourself^a in times of trouble?

²In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak,^b

who are caught in the schemes he devises.

³He boasts^c about the cravings of his heart;

he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord.^d

⁴In his pride the wicked man does not seek him;

in all his thoughts there is no room for God.^e

⁵His ways are always prosperous;

your laws are rejected by^b him;

he sneers at all his enemies.

⁶He says to himself, “Nothing will ever shake me.”

He swears, “No one will ever do me harm.”^f

⁷His mouth is full^g of lies and threats;^h

trouble and evil are under his tongue.ⁱ

⁸He lies in wait^j near the villages;

from ambush he murders the innocent.^k

His eyes watch in secret for his victims;

⁹like a lion in cover he lies in wait.

He lies in wait to catch the helpless;^l

he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net.^m

¹⁰His victims are crushed,ⁿ they collapse;

they fall under his strength.

¹¹He says to himself, “God will never notice;^o

he covers his face and never sees.”^p

¹²Arise,^q Lord! Lift up your hand,^r O God.

Do not forget the helpless.^s

¹³Why does the wicked man revile God?^t

Why does he say to himself,

“He won’t call me to account”?^u

¹⁴But you, God, see the trouble^v of the afflicted;

you consider their grief and take it in hand.

The victims commit themselves to you;^w

you are the helper^x of the fatherless.

¹⁵Break the arm of the wicked man;^y

call the evildoer to account for his wickedness

that would not otherwise be found out.

¹⁶The Lord is King for ever and ever;^z

the nations^a will perish from his land.

¹⁷You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted;^b

you encourage them, and you listen to their cry,^c

¹⁸defending the fatherless^d and the oppressed,^e

so that mere earthly mortals

will never again strike terror.