Psalm 12:1–8
1 Help, Lord, for no one is faithful anymore;z
those who are loyal have vanished from the human race.
2 Everyone liesa to their neighbor;
they flatter with their lips
but harbor deception in their hearts.b
3 May the Lord silence all flattering lipsc
and every boastful tongue—d
“By our tongues we will prevail;e
our own lips will defend us—who is lord over us?”
5 “Because the poor are plunderedf and the needy groan,g
I will now arise,h” says the Lord.
“I will protect themi from those who malign them.”
6 And the words of the Lord are flawless,j
like silver purifiedk in a crucible,l
like goldc refined seven times.
7 You, Lord, will keep the needy safem
and will protect us forever from the wicked,n
8 who freely struto about
when what is vile is honored by the human race.
Psalm 12:1–8 — English Standard Version (ESV)
1 Save, O Lord, for the godly one is gone;
for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.
2 Everyone utters lies to his neighbor;
with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.
3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
the tongue that makes great boasts,
4 those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
our lips are with us; who is master over us?”
5 “Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
I will now arise,” says the Lord;
“I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”
6 The words of the Lord are pure words,
like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
purified seven times.
7 You, O Lord, will keep them;
you will guard us from this generation forever.
8 On every side the wicked prowl,
as vileness is exalted among the children of man.
Psalm 12:1–8 — King James Version (KJV 1900)
1 Help, Lord; for the godly man ceaseth;
For the faithful fail from among the children of men.
2 They speak vanity every one with his neighbour:
With flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak.
3 The Lord shall cut off all flattering lips,
And the tongue that speaketh proud things:
4 Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail;
Our lips are our own: who is lord over us?
5 For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy,
Now will I arise, saith the Lord;
I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.
6 The words of the Lord are pure words:
As silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
7 Thou shalt keep them, O Lord,
Thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.
8 The wicked walk on every side,
When the vilest men are exalted.
Psalm 12:1–8 — New Living Translation (NLT)
1 Help, O Lord, for the godly are fast disappearing!
The faithful have vanished from the earth!
2 Neighbors lie to each other,
speaking with flattering lips and deceitful hearts.
3 May the Lord cut off their flattering lips
and silence their boastful tongues.
4 They say, “We will lie to our hearts’ content.
Our lips are our own—who can stop us?”
5 The Lord replies, “I have seen violence done to the helpless,
and I have heard the groans of the poor.
Now I will rise up to rescue them,
as they have longed for me to do.”
6 The Lord’s promises are pure,
like silver refined in a furnace,
purified seven times over.
7 Therefore, Lord, we know you will protect the oppressed,
preserving them forever from this lying generation,
8 even though the wicked strut about,
and evil is praised throughout the land.
Psalm 12:1–8 — The New King James Version (NKJV)
1 Help, Lord, for the godly man ceases!
For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men.
2 They speak idly everyone with his neighbor;
With flattering lips and a double heart they speak.
3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
And the tongue that speaks proud things,
4 Who have said,
“With our tongue we will prevail;
Our lips are our own;
Who is lord over us?”
5 “For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy,
Now I will arise,” says the Lord;
“I will set him in the safety for which he yearns.”
6 The words of the Lord are pure words,
Like silver tried in a furnace of earth,
Purified seven times.
7 You shall keep them, O Lord,
You shall preserve them from this generation forever.
8 The wicked prowl on every side,
When vileness is exalted among the sons of men.
Psalm 12:1–8 — New Century Version (NCV)
1 Save me, Lord, because the good people are all gone;
no true believers are left on earth.
2 Everyone lies to his neighbors;
they say one thing and mean another.
3 The Lord will stop those flattering lips
and cut off those bragging tongues.
4 They say, “Our tongues will help us win.
We can say what we wish; no one is our master.”
5 But the Lord says,
“I will now rise up,
because the poor are being hurt.
Because of the moans of the helpless,
I will give them the help they want.”
6 The Lord’s words are pure,
like silver purified by fire,
like silver purified seven times over.
7 Lord, you will keep us safe;
you will always protect us from such people.
8 But the wicked are all around us;
everyone loves what is wrong.
Psalm 12:1–8 — American Standard Version (ASV)
1 Help, Jehovah; for the godly man ceaseth;
For the faithful fail from among the children of men.
2 They speak falsehood every one with his neighbor:
With flattering lip, and with a double heart, do they speak.
3 Jehovah will cut off all flattering lips,
The tongue that speaketh great things;
4 Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail;
Our lips are our own: who is lord over us?
5 Because of the oppression of the poor, because of the sighing of the needy,
Now will I arise, saith Jehovah;
I will set him in the safety he panteth for.
6 The words of Jehovah are pure words;
As silver tried in a furnace on the earth,
Purified seven times.
7 Thou wilt keep them, O Jehovah,
Thou wilt preserve them from this generation for ever.
8 The wicked walk on every side,
When vileness is exalted among the sons of men.
Psalm 12:1–8 — 1890 Darby Bible (DARBY)
1 Save, Jehovah, for the godly man is gone; for the faithful have failed from among the children of men. 2 They speak falsehood every one with his neighbour: with flattering lip, with a double heart, do they speak. 3 Jehovah will cut off all flattering lips, the tongue that speaketh proud things, 4 Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail, our lips are our own: who is lord over us? 5 Because of the oppression of the afflicted, because of the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith Jehovah, I will set him in safety, at whom they puff. 6 The words of Jehovah are pure words, silver tried in the furnace of earth, purified seven times. 7 Thou, Jehovah, wilt keep them, thou wilt preserve them from this generation for ever. 8 The wicked walk about on every side, when vileness is exalted among the children of men.
Psalm 12:1–8 — GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
1 Help, O Lord.
No godly person is left.
Faithful people have vanished from among Adam’s descendants!
2 All people speak foolishly.
They speak with flattering lips. They say one thing but mean another.
3 May the Lord cut off every flattering lip
and every bragging tongue
4 that has said,
“We will overcome with our tongues.
With lips such as ours, who can be our master?”
5 “Because oppressed people are robbed and needy people groan,
I will now arise,” says the Lord.
“I will provide safety for those who long for it.”
6 The promises of the Lord are pure,
like silver refined in a furnaceand purified seven times.
7 O Lord, you will protect them.
You will keep each one safe from those people forever.
8 Wicked people parade around
when immorality increases among Adam’s descendants.
Psalm 12:1–8 — The Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
1 Help, Lord, for no faithful one remains;
the loyal have disappeared from the human race.
2 They lie to one another;
they speak with flattering lips and deceptive hearts.
3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips
and the tongue that speaks boastfully.
4 They say, “Through our tongues we have power;
our lips are our own—who can be our master?”
5 “Because of the oppression of the afflicted
and the groaning of the poor,
I will now rise up,” says the Lord.
“I will put the one who longs for it in a safe place.”
6 The words of the Lord are pure words,
like silver refined in an earthen furnace,
purified seven times.
7 You, Lord, will guard us;
You will protect us from this generation forever.
8 The wicked wander everywhere,
and what is worthless is exalted by the human race.
Psalm 12:1–8 — The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
1 Help, O Lord, for there is no longer anyone who is godly;
the faithful have disappeared from humankind.
2 They utter lies to each other;
with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.
3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
the tongue that makes great boasts,
4 those who say, “With our tongues we will prevail;
our lips are our own—who is our master?”
5 “Because the poor are despoiled, because the needy groan,
I will now rise up,” says the Lord;
“I will place them in the safety for which they long.”
6 The promises of the Lord are promises that are pure,
silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
purified seven times.
7 You, O Lord, will protect us;
you will guard us from this generation forever.
8 On every side the wicked prowl,
as vileness is exalted among humankind.
Psalm 12:1–8 — The Lexham English Bible (LEB)
1 Save, O Yahweh, for the pious have ceased to be;
for the faithful have vanished
from among the children of humankind.
2 They speak falseness to each other.
With flattering lips,
with a double heart they speak.
3 May Yahweh cut off all flattering lips,
the tongue speaking great boasts—
4 those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail.
Our lips are on our side.
Who is master over us?”
5 “Because of the oppression of the afflicted,
because of the groaning of the poor,
now I will rise up,” Yahweh says.
“I shall put them in the safety for which they long.”
6 The words of Yahweh are pure words
like silver refined in the crucible on the ground,
refined seven times.
7 You, O Yahweh, will protect them.
You will preserve him
from this generation always.
8 The wicked prowl about
when vileness is exalted among the children of humankind.
Psalm 12:1–8 — New International Reader’s Version (1998) (NIrV)
1 Help, Lord! Those who do what is right are gone.
Those who are faithful have disappeared from the earth.
2 Everyone tells lies to his neighbors.
With his lips he praises others, but he doesn’t really mean it.
3 May the Lord cut off all lips that don’t mean what they say.
May he cut out every tongue that brags.
4 They say, “We will win the battle with our tongues.
Our lips belong to us. No one else is in charge of us.”
5 The 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.”
6 The 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.
7 Lord, you will keep us safe.
You will always keep sinners from hurting us.
8 Proud and sinful people walk around openly
when the evil they do is praised by others.
Psalm 12:1–8 — New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (NASB95)
1 Help, Lord, for the godly man ceases to be,
For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men.
2 They speak falsehood to one another;
With flattering lips and with a double heart they speak.
3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
The tongue that speaks great things;
4 Who have said, “With our tongue we will prevail;
Our lips are our own; who is lord over us?”
5 “Because of the devastation of the afflicted, because of the groaning of the needy,
Now I will arise,” says the Lord; “I will set him in the safety for which he longs.”
6 The words of the Lord are pure words;
As silver tried in a furnace on the earth, refined seven times.
7 You, O Lord, will keep them;
You will preserve him from this generation forever.
8 The wicked strut about on every side
When vileness is exalted among the sons of men.