Daily Wisdom Plan

¹A Prayer of David. Hear the just (righteous) cause, O LORD; listen to my loud [piercing] cry; Listen to my prayer, that comes from guileless lips.

²Let my verdict of vindication come from Your presence; May Your eyes look with equity and behold things that are just.

³You have tried my heart; You have visited me in the night; You have tested me and You find nothing [evil in me]; I intend that my mouth will not transgress.

⁴Concerning the deeds of men, by the word of Your lips I have kept away from the paths of the violent.

⁵My steps have held closely to Your paths; My feet have not staggered.

⁶I have called upon You, for You, O God, will answer me; Incline Your ear to me, hear my speech.

⁷Wondrously show Your [marvelous and amazing] lovingkindness, O Savior of those who take refuge at Your right hand From those who rise up against them.

⁸Keep me [in Your affectionate care, protect me] as the apple of Your eye; Hide me in the [protective] shadow of Your wings

⁹From the wicked who despoil and deal violently with me, My deadly enemies who surround me.

¹⁰They have closed their unfeeling heart [to kindness and compassion]; With their mouths they speak proudly and make presumptuous claims.

¹¹They track us down and have now surrounded us in our steps; They set their eyes to force us to the ground,

¹²He is like a lion eager to tear [his prey], And like a young lion lurking in hiding places.

¹³Arise, O LORD, confront him, cast him down; Save my soul from the wicked with Your sword,

¹⁴From men with Your hand, O LORD, From men of the world [these moths of the night] whose portion [of enjoyment] is in this life—idle and vain, And whose belly You fill with Your treasure; They are satisfied with children, And they leave what they have left [of wealth] to their children.

¹⁵As for me, I shall see Your face in righteousness; I will be [fully] satisfied when I awake [to find myself] seeing Your likeness.

¹To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David, the servant of the LORD, who spoke the words of this song to the LORD on the day when the LORD rescued him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. And he said: "I love You [fervently and devotedly], O LORD, my strength."

²The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and the One who rescues me; My God, my rock and strength in whom I trust and take refuge; My shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower—my stronghold.

³I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised; And I am saved from my enemies.

⁴The cords of death surrounded me, And the streams of ungodliness and torrents of destruction terrified me.

⁵The cords of Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) surrounded me; The snares of death confronted me.

⁶In my distress [when I seemed surrounded] I called upon the LORD And cried to my God for help; He heard my voice from His temple, And my cry for help came before Him, into His very ears.

⁷Then the earth shook and quaked, The foundations of the mountains trembled; They were shaken because He was indignant and angry.

⁸Smoke went up from His nostrils, And fire from His mouth devoured; Coals were kindled by it.

⁹He bowed the heavens also and came down; And thick darkness was under His feet.

¹⁰And He rode upon a cherub (storm) and flew; And He sped on the wings of the wind.

¹¹He made darkness His hiding place (covering); His pavilion (canopy) around Him, The darkness of the waters, the thick clouds of the skies.

¹²Out of the brightness before Him passed His thick clouds, Hailstones and coals of fire.

¹³The LORD also thundered in the heavens, And the Most High uttered His voice, Hailstones and coals of fire.

¹⁴He sent out His arrows and scattered them; And He sent an abundance of lightning flashes and confused and routed them [in defeat].

¹⁵Then the stream beds of the waters appeared, And the foundations of the world were laid bare At Your rebuke, O LORD, At the blast of the breath of Your nostrils.

¹⁶He reached from on high, He took me; He drew me out of many waters.

¹⁷He rescued me from my strong enemy, And from those who hated me, for they were too strong for me.

¹⁸They confronted me in the day of my disaster, But the LORD was my support.

¹⁹He brought me out into a broad place; He rescued me because He was pleased with me and delighted in me.

²⁰The LORD dealt with me according to my righteousness (moral character, spiritual integrity); According to the cleanness of my hands He has rewarded me.

²¹For I have kept the ways of the LORD, And have not wickedly departed from my God.

²²For all His ordinances were before me, And I did not put away His statutes from me.

²³I was blameless before Him, And I kept myself free from my sin.

²⁴Therefore the LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness (moral character, spiritual integrity), According to the cleanness of my hands in His sight.

²⁵With the kind (merciful, faithful, loyal) You show Yourself kind, With the blameless You show Yourself blameless,

²⁶With the pure You show Yourself pure, And with the crooked You show Yourself astute.

²⁷For You save an afflicted and humble people, But bring down those [arrogant fools] with haughty eyes.

²⁸For You cause my lamp to be lighted and to shine; The LORD my God illumines my darkness.

²⁹For by You I can crush a troop, And by my God I can leap over a wall.

³⁰As for God, His way is blameless. The word of the LORD is tested [it is perfect, it is faultless]; He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him.

³¹For who is God, but the LORD? Or who is a rock, except our God,

³²The God who encircles me with strength And makes my way blameless?

³³He makes my feet like hinds' feet [able to stand firmly and tread safely on paths of testing and trouble]; He sets me [securely] upon my high places.

³⁴He trains my hands for war, So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

³⁵You have also given me the shield of Your salvation, And Your right hand upholds and sustains me; Your gentleness [Your gracious response when I pray] makes me great.

³⁶You enlarge the path beneath me and make my steps secure, So that my feet will not slip.

³⁷I pursued my enemies and overtook them; And I did not turn back until they were consumed.

³⁸I shattered them so that they were not able to rise; They fell [wounded] under my feet.

³⁹For You have encircled me with strength for the battle; You have subdued under me those who rose up against me.

⁴⁰You have also made my enemies turn their backs to me [in defeat], And I silenced and destroyed those who hated me.

⁴¹They cried for help, but there was no one to save them— Even to the LORD [they cried], but He did not answer them.

⁴²Then I beat them fine as the dust before the wind; I emptied them out as the dirt of the streets.

⁴³You have rescued me from the contentions of the people; You have placed me as the head of the nations; A people whom I have not known serve me.

⁴⁴As soon as they hear me, they respond and obey me; Foreigners feign obedience to me.

⁴⁵Foreigners lose heart, And come trembling out of their strongholds.

⁴⁶The LORD lives, blessed be my rock; And may the God of my salvation be exalted,

⁴⁷The God who avenges me, And subdues peoples (nations) under me.

⁴⁸He rescues me from my enemies; Yes, You lift me up above those who rise up against me; You deliver me from the man of violence.

⁴⁹Therefore will I give thanks and praise You, O LORD, among the nations, And sing praises to Your name.

⁵⁰He gives great triumphs to His king, And shows steadfast love and mercy to His anointed, To David and his descendants forever.

¹To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And the expanse [of heaven] is declaring the work of His hands.

²Day after day pours forth speech, And night after night reveals knowledge.

³There is no speech, nor are there [spoken] words [from the stars]; Their voice is not heard.

⁴Yet their voice [in quiet evidence] has gone out through all the earth, Their words to the end of the world. In them and in the heavens He has made a tent for the sun,

⁵Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber; It rejoices as a strong man to run his course.

⁶The sun's rising is from one end of the heavens, And its circuit to the other end of them; And there is nothing hidden from its heat.

⁷The law of the LORD is perfect (flawless), restoring and refreshing the soul; The statutes of the LORD are reliable and trustworthy, making wise the simple.

⁸The precepts of the LORD are right, bringing joy to the heart; The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.

⁹The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the LORD are true, they are righteous altogether.

¹⁰They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.

¹¹Moreover, by them Your servant is warned [reminded, illuminated, and instructed]; In keeping them there is great reward.

¹²Who can understand his errors or omissions? Acquit me of hidden (unconscious, unintended) faults.

¹³Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous (deliberate, willful) sins; Let them not rule and have control over me. Then I will be blameless (complete), And I shall be acquitted of great transgression.

¹⁴Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable and pleasing in Your sight, O LORD, my [firm, immovable] rock and my Redeemer.

¹To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. May the LORD answer you (David) in the day of trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob set you securely on high [and defend you in battle]!

²May He send you help from the sanctuary (His dwelling place) And support and strengthen you from Zion!

³May He remember all your meal offerings And accept your burnt offering. Selah.

⁴May He grant you your heart's desire And fulfill all your plans.

⁵We will sing joyously over your victory, And in the name of our God we will set up our banners. May the LORD fulfill all your petitions.

⁶Now I know that the LORD saves His anointed; He will answer him from His holy heaven With the saving strength of His right hand.

⁷Some trust in chariots and some in horses, But we will remember and trust in the name of the LORD our God.

⁸They have bowed down and fallen, But we have risen and stood upright.

⁹O LORD, save [the king]; May the King answer us in the day we call.