Book Order Plan

¹Of David. When he pretended to be insane before Abimelek, who drove him away, and he left. I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips.

²I will glory in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice.

³Glorify the LORD with me; let us exalt his name together.

⁴I sought the LORD, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.

⁵Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.

⁶This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles.

⁷The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.

⁸Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.

⁹Fear the LORD, you his holy people, for those who fear him lack nothing.

¹⁰The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

¹¹Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

¹²Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days,

¹³keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies.

¹⁴Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.

¹⁵The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry;

¹⁶but the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to blot out their name from the earth.

¹⁷The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles.

¹⁸The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

¹⁹The righteous person may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all;

²⁰he protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken.

²¹Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned.

²²The LORD will rescue his servants; no one who takes refuge in him will be condemned.

¹Of David. Contend, LORD, with those who contend with me; fight against those who fight against me.

²Take up shield and armor; arise and come to my aid.

³Brandish spear and javelin against those who pursue me. Say to me, “I am your salvation.”

⁴May those who seek my life be disgraced and put to shame; may those who plot my ruin be turned back in dismay.

⁵May they be like chaff before the wind, with the angel of the LORD driving them away;

⁶may their path be dark and slippery, with the angel of the LORD pursuing them.

⁷Since they hid their net for me without cause and without cause dug a pit for me,

⁸may ruin overtake them by surprise— may the net they hid entangle them, may they fall into the pit, to their ruin.

⁹Then my soul will rejoice in the LORD and delight in his salvation.

¹⁰My whole being will exclaim, “Who is like you, LORD? You rescue the poor from those too strong for them, the poor and needy from those who rob them.”

¹¹Ruthless witnesses come forward; they question me on things I know nothing about.

¹²They repay me evil for good and leave me like one bereaved.

¹³Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth and humbled myself with fasting. When my prayers returned to me unanswered,

¹⁴I went about mourning as though for my friend or brother. I bowed my head in grief as though weeping for my mother.

¹⁵But when I stumbled, they gathered in glee; assailants gathered against me without my knowledge. They slandered me without ceasing.

¹⁶Like the ungodly they maliciously mocked; they gnashed their teeth at me.

¹⁷How long, Lord, will you look on? Rescue me from their ravages, my precious life from these lions.

¹⁸I will give you thanks in the great assembly; among the throngs I will praise you.

¹⁹Do not let those gloat over me who are my enemies without cause; do not let those who hate me without reason maliciously wink the eye.

²⁰They do not speak peaceably, but devise false accusations against those who live quietly in the land.

²¹They sneer at me and say, “Aha! Aha! With our own eyes we have seen it.”

²²LORD, you have seen this; do not be silent. Do not be far from me, Lord.

²³Awake, and rise to my defense! Contend for me, my God and Lord.

²⁴Vindicate me in your righteousness, LORD my God; do not let them gloat over me.

²⁵Do not let them think, “Aha, just what we wanted!” or say, “We have swallowed him up.”

²⁶May all who gloat over my distress be put to shame and confusion; may all who exalt themselves over me be clothed with shame and disgrace.

²⁷May those who delight in my vindication shout for joy and gladness; may they always say, “The LORD be exalted, who delights in the well-being of his servant.”

²⁸My tongue will proclaim your righteousness, your praises all day long.

¹For the director of music. Of David the servant of the LORD. I have a message from God in my heart concerning the sinfulness of the wicked: There is no fear of God before their eyes.

²In their own eyes they flatter themselves too much to detect or hate their sin.

³The words of their mouths are wicked and deceitful; they fail to act wisely or do good.

⁴Even on their beds they plot evil; they commit themselves to a sinful course and do not reject what is wrong.

⁵Your love, LORD, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies.

⁶Your righteousness is like the highest mountains, your justice like the great deep. You, LORD, preserve both people and animals.

⁷How priceless is your unfailing love, O God! People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.

⁸They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights.

⁹For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light.

¹⁰Continue your love to those who know you, your righteousness to the upright in heart.

¹¹May the foot of the proud not come against me, nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.

¹²See how the evildoers lie fallen— thrown down, not able to rise!

¹Of David. Do not fret because of those who are evil or be envious of those who do wrong;

²for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away.

³Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.

⁴Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

⁵Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this:

⁶He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun.

⁷Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.

⁸Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret—it leads only to evil.

⁹For those who are evil will be destroyed, but those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land.

¹⁰A little while, and the wicked will be no more; though you look for them, they will not be found.

¹¹But the meek will inherit the land and enjoy peace and prosperity.

¹²The wicked plot against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them;

¹³but the Lord laughs at the wicked, for he knows their day is coming.

¹⁴The wicked draw the sword and bend the bow to bring down the poor and needy, to slay those whose ways are upright.

¹⁵But their swords will pierce their own hearts, and their bows will be broken.

¹⁶Better the little that the righteous have than the wealth of many wicked;

¹⁷for the power of the wicked will be broken, but the LORD upholds the righteous.

¹⁸The blameless spend their days under the LORD’s care, and their inheritance will endure forever.

¹⁹In times of disaster they will not wither; in days of famine they will enjoy plenty.

²⁰But the wicked will perish: Though the LORD’s enemies are like the flowers of the field, they will be consumed, they will go up in smoke.

²¹The wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous give generously;

²²those the LORD blesses will inherit the land, but those he curses will be destroyed.

²³The LORD makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him;

²⁴though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD upholds him with his hand.

²⁵I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread.

²⁶They are always generous and lend freely; their children will be a blessing.

²⁷Turn from evil and do good; then you will dwell in the land forever.

²⁸For the LORD loves the just and will not forsake his faithful ones. Wrongdoers will be completely destroyed; the offspring of the wicked will perish.

²⁹The righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it forever.

³⁰The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom, and their tongues speak what is just.

³¹The law of their God is in their hearts; their feet do not slip.

³²The wicked lie in wait for the righteous, intent on putting them to death;

³³but the LORD will not leave them in the power of the wicked or let them be condemned when brought to trial.

³⁴Hope in the LORD and keep his way. He will exalt you to inherit the land; when the wicked are destroyed, you will see it.

³⁵I have seen a wicked and ruthless man flourishing like a luxuriant native tree,

³⁶but he soon passed away and was no more; though I looked for him, he could not be found.

³⁷Consider the blameless, observe the upright; a future awaits those who seek peace.

³⁸But all sinners will be destroyed; there will be no future for the wicked.

³⁹The salvation of the righteous comes from the LORD; he is their stronghold in time of trouble.

⁴⁰The LORD helps them and delivers them; he delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in him.