Psalms 9-16

Psalm 9

¹To the chief music-maker on Muthlabben. A Psalm. Of David. I will give you praise, O Lord, with all my heart; I will make clear all the wonder of your works.

²I will be glad and have delight in you: I will make a song of praise to your name, O Most High.

³When my haters are turned back, they will be broken and overcome before you.

⁴For you gave approval to my right and my cause; you were seated in your high place judging in righteousness.

⁵You have said sharp words to the nations, you have sent destruction on the sinners, you have put an end to their name for ever and ever.

⁶You have given their towns to destruction; the memory of them has gone; they have become waste for ever.

⁷But the Lord is King for ever: he has made ready his high seat for judging.

⁸And he will be the judge of the world in righteousness, giving true decisions for the peoples.

⁹The Lord will be a high tower for those who are crushed down, a high tower in times of trouble;

¹⁰And those who have knowledge of your name will put their faith in you; because you, Lord, have ever given your help to those who were waiting for you.

¹¹Make songs of praise to the Lord, whose house is in Zion: make his doings clear to the people.

¹²When he makes search for blood, he has them in his memory: he is not without thought for the cry of the poor.

¹³Have mercy on me, O Lord, and see how I am troubled by my haters; let me be lifted up from the doors of death;

¹⁴So that I may make clear all your praise in the house of the daughter of Zion: I will be glad because of your salvation.

¹⁵The nations have gone down into the hole which they made: in their secret net is their foot taken.

¹⁶The Lord has given knowledge of himself through his judging: the evil-doer is taken in the net which his hands had made. (Higgaion. Selah.)

¹⁷The sinners and all the nations who have no memory of God will be turned into the underworld.

¹⁸For the poor will not be without help; the hopes of those in need will not be crushed for ever.

¹⁹Up! O Lord; let not man overcome you: let the nations be judged before you.

²⁰Put them in fear, O Lord, so that the nations may see that they are only men. (Selah.)

Psalm 10

¹Why do you keep far away, O Lord? why are you not to be seen in times of trouble?

²The evil-doer in his pride is cruel to the poor; let him be taken by the tricks of his invention.

³For the evil-doer is lifted up because of the purpose of his heart, and he whose mind is fixed on wealth is turned away from the Lord, saying evil against him.

⁴The evil-doer in his pride says, God will not make a search. All his thoughts are, There is no God.

⁵His ways are ever fixed; your decisions are higher than he may see: as for his haters, they are as nothing to him.

⁶He has said in his heart, I will not be moved: through all generations I will never be in trouble.

⁷His mouth is full of cursing and deceit and false words: under his tongue are evil purposes and dark thoughts.

⁸He is waiting in the dark places of the towns: in the secret places he puts to death those who have done no wrong: his eyes are secretly turned against the poor.

⁹He keeps himself in a secret place like a lion in his hole, waiting to put his hands on the poor man, and pulling him into his net.

¹⁰The upright are crushed and made low, and the feeble are overcome by his strong ones.

¹¹He says in his heart, God has no memory of me: his face is turned away; he will never see it.

¹²Up! O Lord; let your hand be lifted: give thought to the poor.

¹³Why has the evil-doer a low opinion of God, saying in his heart, You will not make search for it?

¹⁴You have seen it; for your eyes are on sorrow and grief, to take it into your hand: the poor man puts his faith in you; you have been the helper of the child who has no father.

¹⁵Let the arm of the sinner and the evil-doer be broken; go on searching for his sin till there is no more.

¹⁶The Lord is King for ever and ever; the nations are gone from his land.

¹⁷Lord, you have given ear to the prayer of the poor: you will make strong their hearts, you will give them a hearing:

¹⁸To give decision for the child without a father and for the broken-hearted, so that the man of the earth may no longer be feared.

Psalm 11

¹For the chief music-maker. Of David. In the Lord put I my faith; how will you say to my soul, Go in flight like a bird to the mountain?

²See, the bows of the evil-doers are bent, they make ready their arrows on the cord, so that they may send them secretly against the upright in heart.

³If the bases are broken down, what is the upright man to do?

⁴The Lord is in his holy Temple, the Lord's seat is in heaven; his eyes are watching and testing the children of men.

⁵The Lord puts the upright and the sinner to the test, but he has hate in his soul for the lover of violent acts.

⁶On the evil-doer he will send down fire and flames, and a burning wind; with these will their cup be full.

⁷For the Lord is upright; he is a lover of righteousness: the upright will see his face.

Psalm 12

¹For the chief music-maker on the Sheminith. A Psalm. Of David. Send help, Lord, for mercy has come to an end; there is no more faith among the children of men.

²Everyone says false words to his neighbour: their tongues are smooth in their talk, and their hearts are full of deceit.

³The smooth lips and the tongue of pride will be cut off by the Lord.

⁴They have said, With our tongues will we overcome; our lips are ours: who is lord over us?

⁵Because of the crushing of the poor and the weeping of those in need, now will I come to his help, says the Lord; I will give him the salvation which he is desiring.

⁶The words of the Lord are true words: like silver tested by fire and burned clean seven times.

⁷You will keep them, O Lord, you will keep them safe from this generation for ever.

⁸The sinners are walking on every side, and evil is honoured among the children of men.

Psalm 13

¹To the chief music-maker. A Psalm. Of David. Will you for ever put me out of your memory, O Lord? will your face for ever be turned away from me?

²How long is my soul to be in doubt, with sorrow in my heart all the day? how long will he who is against me be given power over me?

³Let my voice come before you, and give me an answer, O Lord my God; let your light be shining on me, so that the sleep of death may not overtake me;

⁴And he who is against me may not say, I have overcome him; and those who are troubling me may not be glad when I am moved.

⁵But I have had faith in your mercy; my heart will be glad in your salvation.

⁶I will make a song to the Lord, because he has given me my reward.

Psalm 14

¹To the chief music-maker. Of David. The foolish man has said in his heart, God will not do anything. They are unclean, they have done evil works; there is not one who does good.

²The Lord was looking down from heaven on the children of men, to see if there were any who had wisdom, searching after God.

³They have all gone out of the way together; they are unclean, there is not one who does good, no, not one.

⁴Have all the workers of evil no knowledge? they take my people for food as they would take bread; they make no prayer to the Lord.

⁵Then were they in great fear: for God is in the generation of the upright.

⁶You have put to shame the thoughts of the poor, but the Lord is his support.

⁷May the salvation of Israel come out of Zion! when the fate of his people is changed by the Lord, Jacob will have joy and Israel will be glad.

Psalm 15

¹A Psalm. Of David. Lord, who may have a resting-place in your tent, a living-place on your holy hill?

²He who goes on his way uprightly, doing righteousness, and saying what is true in his heart;

³Whose tongue is not false, who does no evil to his friend, and does not take away the good name of his neighbour;

⁴Who gives honour to those who have the fear of the Lord, turning away from him who has not the Lord's approval. He who takes an oath against himself, and makes no change.

⁵He who does not put out his money at interest, or for payment give false decisions against men who have done no wrong. He who does these things will never be moved.

Psalm 16

¹Michtam. Of David. Keep me safe, O God: for in you I have put my faith.

²O my soul, you have said to the Lord, You are my Lord: I have no good but you.

³As for the saints who are in the earth, they are the noble in whom is all my delight.

⁴Their sorrows will be increased who go after another god: I will not take drink offerings from their hands, or take their names on my lips.

⁵The Lord is my heritage and the wine of my cup; you are the supporter of my right.

⁶Fair are the places marked out for me; I have a noble heritage.

⁷I will give praise to the Lord who has been my guide; knowledge comes to me from my thoughts in the night.

⁸I have put the Lord before me at all times; because he is at my right hand, I will not be moved.

⁹Because of this my heart is glad, and my glory is full of joy: while my flesh takes its rest in hope.

¹⁰For you will not let my soul be prisoned in the underworld; you will not let your loved one see the place of death.

¹¹You will make clear to me the way of life; where you are joy is complete; in your right hand there are pleasures for ever and ever.