Daily Wisdom Plan

¹O LORD, hear my plea for justice. Listen to my cry for help. Pay attention to my prayer, for it comes from honest lips.

²Declare me innocent, for you see those who do right.

³You have tested my thoughts and examined my heart in the night. You have scrutinized me and found nothing wrong. I am determined not to sin in what I say.

⁴I have followed your commands, which keep me from following cruel and evil people.

⁵My steps have stayed on your path; I have not wavered from following you.

⁶I am praying to you because I know you will answer, O God. Bend down and listen as I pray.

⁷Show me your unfailing love in wonderful ways. By your mighty power you rescue those who seek refuge from their enemies.

⁸Guard me as you would guard your own eyes. Hide me in the shadow of your wings.

⁹Protect me from wicked people who attack me, from murderous enemies who surround me.

¹⁰They are without pity. Listen to their boasting!

¹¹They track me down and surround me, watching for the chance to throw me to the ground.

¹²They are like hungry lions, eager to tear me apart — like young lions hiding in ambush.

¹³Arise, O LORD! Stand against them, and bring them to their knees! Rescue me from the wicked with your sword!

¹⁴By the power of your hand, O LORD, destroy those who look to this world for their reward. But satisfy the hunger of your treasured ones. May their children have plenty, leaving an inheritance for their descendants.

¹⁵Because I am righteous, I will see you. When I awake, I will see you face to face and be satisfied.

¹I love you, LORD; you are my strength.

²The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety.

³I called on the LORD, who is worthy of praise, and he saved me from my enemies.

⁴The ropes of death entangled me; floods of destruction swept over me.

⁵The grave wrapped its ropes around me; death laid a trap in my path.

⁶But in my distress I cried out to the LORD; yes, I prayed to my God for help. He heard me from his sanctuary; my cry to him reached his ears.

⁷Then the earth quaked and trembled. The foundations of the mountains shook; they quaked because of his anger.

⁸Smoke poured from his nostrils; fierce flames leaped from his mouth. Glowing coals blazed forth from him.

⁹He opened the heavens and came down; dark storm clouds were beneath his feet.

¹⁰Mounted on a mighty angelic being, he flew, soaring on the wings of the wind.

¹¹He shrouded himself in darkness, veiling his approach with dark rain clouds.

¹²Thick clouds shielded the brightness around him and rained down hail and burning coals.

¹³The LORD thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded amid the hail and burning coals.

¹⁴He shot his arrows and scattered his enemies; great bolts of lightning flashed, and they were confused.

¹⁵Then at your command, O LORD, at the blast of your breath, the bottom of the sea could be seen, and the foundations of the earth were laid bare.

¹⁶He reached down from heaven and rescued me; he drew me out of deep waters.

¹⁷He rescued me from my powerful enemies, from those who hated me and were too strong for me.

¹⁸They attacked me at a moment when I was in distress, but the LORD supported me.

¹⁹He led me to a place of safety; he rescued me because he delights in me.

²⁰The LORD rewarded me for doing right; he restored me because of my innocence.

²¹For I have kept the ways of the LORD; I have not turned from my God to follow evil.

²²I have followed all his regulations; I have never abandoned his decrees.

²³I am blameless before God; I have kept myself from sin.

²⁴The LORD rewarded me for doing right. He has seen my innocence.

²⁵To the faithful you show yourself faithful; to those with integrity you show integrity.

²⁶To the pure you show yourself pure, but to the crooked you show yourself shrewd.

²⁷You rescue the humble, but you humiliate the proud.

²⁸You light a lamp for me. The LORD, my God, lights up my darkness.

²⁹In your strength I can crush an army; with my God I can scale any wall.

³⁰God’s way is perfect. All the LORD’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection.

³¹For who is God except the LORD? Who but our God is a solid rock?

³²God arms me with strength, and he makes my way perfect.

³³He makes me as surefooted as a deer, enabling me to stand on mountain heights.

³⁴He trains my hands for battle; he strengthens my arm to draw a bronze bow.

³⁵You have given me your shield of victory. Your right hand supports me; your help has made me great.

³⁶You have made a wide path for my feet to keep them from slipping.

³⁷I chased my enemies and caught them; I did not stop until they were conquered.

³⁸I struck them down so they could not get up; they fell beneath my feet.

³⁹You have armed me with strength for the battle; you have subdued my enemies under my feet.

⁴⁰You placed my foot on their necks. I have destroyed all who hated me.

⁴¹They called for help, but no one came to their rescue. They even cried to the LORD, but he refused to answer.

⁴²I ground them as fine as dust in the wind. I swept them into the gutter like dirt.

⁴³You gave me victory over my accusers. You appointed me ruler over nations; people I don’t even know now serve me.

⁴⁴As soon as they hear of me, they submit; foreign nations cringe before me.

⁴⁵They all lose their courage and come trembling from their strongholds.

⁴⁶The LORD lives! Praise to my Rock! May the God of my salvation be exalted!

⁴⁷He is the God who pays back those who harm me; he subdues the nations under me

⁴⁸and rescues me from my enemies. You hold me safe beyond the reach of my enemies; you save me from violent opponents.

⁴⁹For this, O LORD, I will praise you among the nations; I will sing praises to your name.

⁵⁰You give great victories to your king; you show unfailing love to your anointed, to David and all his descendants forever.

¹The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship.

²Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known.

³They speak without a sound or word; their voice is never heard.

⁴Yet their message has gone throughout the earth, and their words to all the world. God has made a home in the heavens for the sun.

⁵It bursts forth like a radiant bridegroom after his wedding. It rejoices like a great athlete eager to run the race.

⁶The sun rises at one end of the heavens and follows its course to the other end. Nothing can hide from its heat.

⁷The instructions of the LORD are perfect, reviving the soul. The decrees of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple.

⁸The commandments of the LORD are right, bringing joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are clear, giving insight for living.

⁹Reverence for the LORD is pure, lasting forever. The laws of the LORD are true; each one is fair.

¹⁰They are more desirable than gold, even the finest gold. They are sweeter than honey, even honey dripping from the comb.

¹¹They are a warning to your servant, a great reward for those who obey them.

¹²How can I know all the sins lurking in my heart? Cleanse me from these hidden faults.

¹³Keep your servant from deliberate sins! Don’t let them control me. Then I will be free of guilt and innocent of great sin.

¹⁴May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.

¹In times of trouble, may the LORD answer your cry. May the name of the God of Jacob keep you safe from all harm.

²May he send you help from his sanctuary and strengthen you from Jerusalem.

³May he remember all your gifts and look favorably on your burnt offerings. Interlude

⁴May he grant your heart’s desires and make all your plans succeed.

⁵May we shout for joy when we hear of your victory and raise a victory banner in the name of our God. May the LORD answer all your prayers.

⁶Now I know that the LORD rescues his anointed king. He will answer him from his holy heaven and rescue him by his great power.

⁷Some nations boast of their chariots and horses, but we boast in the name of the LORD our God.

⁸Those nations will fall down and collapse, but we will rise up and stand firm.

⁹Give victory to our king, O LORD! Answer our cry for help.