Psalm 7–8

Psalm 7

A psalm of David, which he sang to the Lord concerning Cush of the tribe of Benjamin.

¹I come to you for protection, O Lord my God.

Save me from my persecutors—rescue me!

²If you don’t, they will maul me like a lion,

tearing me to pieces with no one to rescue me.

³O Lord my God, if I have done wrong

or am guilty of injustice,

⁴if I have betrayed a friend

or plundered my enemy without cause,

⁵then let my enemies capture me.

Let them trample me into the ground

and drag my honor in the dust.

Interlude

⁶Arise, O Lord, in anger!

Stand up against the fury of my enemies!

Wake up, my God, and bring justice!

⁷Gather the nations before you.

Rule over them from on high.

⁸The Lord judges the nations.

Declare me righteous, O Lord,

for I am innocent, O Most High!

⁹End the evil of those who are wicked,

and defend the righteous.

For you look deep within the mind and heart,

O righteous God.

¹⁰God is my shield,

saving those whose hearts are true and right.

¹¹God is an honest judge.

He is angry with the wicked every day.

¹²If a person does not repent,

God will sharpen his sword;

he will bend and string his bow.

¹³He will prepare his deadly weapons

and shoot his flaming arrows.

¹⁴The wicked conceive evil;

they are pregnant with trouble

and give birth to lies.

¹⁵They dig a deep pit to trap others,

then fall into it themselves.

¹⁶The trouble they make for others backfires on them.

The violence they plan falls on their own heads.

¹⁷I will thank the Lord because he is just;

I will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High.

Psalm 8

For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be accompanied by a stringed instrument.

¹O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth!

Your glory is higher than the heavens.

²You have taught children and infants

to tell of your strength,

silencing your enemies

and all who oppose you.

³When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers—

the moon and the stars you set in place—

⁴what are mere mortals that you should think about them,

human beings that you should care for them?

⁵Yet you made them only a little lower than God

and crowned them with glory and honor.

⁶You gave them charge of everything you made,

putting all things under their authority—

⁷the flocks and the herds

and all the wild animals,

⁸the birds in the sky, the fish in the sea,

and everything that swims the ocean currents.

⁹O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth!