Psalm 64

1 [For the choirmaster Psalm Of David] Listen, God, to my voice as I plead, protect my life from fear of the enemy;

2 hide me from the league of the wicked, from the gang of evil-doers.

3 They sharpen their tongues like a sword, aim their arrows of poisonous abuse,

4 shoot at the innocent from cover, shoot suddenly, with nothing to fear.

5 They support each other in their evil designs, they discuss how to lay their snares. 'Who will see us?' they say,

6 'or will penetrate our secrets?' He will do that, he who penetrates human nature to its depths, the depths of the heart.

7 God has shot them with his arrow, sudden were their wounds.

8 He brings them down because of their tongue, and all who see them shake their heads.

9 Everyone will be awestruck, proclaim what God has done, and understand why he has done it.

10 The upright will rejoice in Yahweh, will take refuge in him, and all the honest will praise him.

Psalm 63

1 [Psalm Of David When he was in the desert of Judah] God, you are my God, I pine for you; my heart thirsts for you, my body longs for you, as a land parched, dreary and waterless.

2 Thus I have gazed on you in the sanctuary, seeing your power and your glory.

3 Better your faithful love than life itself; my lips will praise you.

4 Thus I will bless you all my life, in your name lift up my hands.

5 All my longings fulfilled as with fat and rich foods, a song of joy on my lips and praise in my mouth.

6 On my bed when I think of you, I muse on you in the watches of the night,

7 for you have always been my help; in the shadow of your wings I rejoice;

8 my heart clings to you, your right hand supports me.

9 May those who are hounding me to death go down to the depths of the earth,

10 given over to the blade of the sword, and left as food for jackals.

11 Then the king shall rejoice in God, all who swear by him shall gain recognition, for the mouths of liars shall be silenced.

Psalm 62

1 [For the choirmaster . . . Jeduthun Psalm Of David] In God alone there is rest for my soul, from him comes my safety;

2 he alone is my rock, my safety, my stronghold so that I stand unshaken.

3 How much longer will you set on a victim, all together, intent on murder, like a rampart already leaning over, a wall already damaged?

4 Trickery is their only plan, deception their only pleasure, with lies on their lips they pronounce a blessing, with a curse in their hearts.

5 Rest in God alone, my soul! He is the source of my hope.

6 He alone is my rock, my safety, my stronghold, so that I stand unwavering.

7 In God is my safety and my glory, the rock of my strength. In God is my refuge;

8 trust in him, you people, at all times. Pour out your hearts to him, God is a refuge for us.

9 Ordinary people are a mere puff of wind, important people a delusion; set both on the scales together, and they are lighter than a puff of wind.

10 Put no trust in extortion, no empty hopes in robbery; however much wealth may multiply, do not set your heart on it.

11 Once God has spoken, twice have I heard this: Strength belongs to God,

12 to you, Lord, faithful love; and you repay everyone as their deeds deserve.

Psalm 61

1 [For the choirmaster For strings Of David] God, hear my cry, listen to my prayer.

2 From the end of the earth I call to you with fainting heart. Lead me to the high rock that stands far out of my reach.

3 For you are my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy.

4 Let me stay in your tent for ever, taking refuge in the shelter of your wings!

5 For you, God, accept my vows, you grant me the heritage of those who fear your name.

6 Let the king live on and on, let his years continue age after age.

7 May his throne be always in God's presence, your faithful love and constancy watch over him.

8 Then I shall always sing to your name, day after day fulfilling my vows.

Psalm 60

1 [For the choirmaster To the tune 'The decree is a lily' In a quiet voice Of David To be learnt When he was at war with Aram-Naharaim and Aram-Zobah, and Joab marched back to destroy twelve thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt] God, you have rejected us, broken us, you were angry, come back to us!

2 You made the earth tremble, split it open; now mend the rifts, it is tottering still.

3 You have forced your people to drink a bitter drought, forced us to drink a wine that made us reel.

4 You gave a signal to those who fear you to let them escape out of range of the bow.

5 To rescue those you love, save with your right hand and answer us.

6 God has spoken from his sanctuary, 'In triumph I will divide up Shechem, and share out the Valley of Succoth.

7 'Mine is Gilead, mine Manasseh, Ephraim the helmet on my head, Judah my commander's baton,

8 'Moab a bowl for me to wash in, on Edom I plant my sandal. Now try shouting "Victory!" over me, Philistia!'

9 Who will lead me against a fortified city, who will guide me into Edom,

10 if not you, the God who has rejected us? God, you no longer march with our armies.

11 Bring us help in our time of crisis, any human help is worthless.

12 With God we shall do deeds of valor, he will trample down our enemies.

Psalm 59

1 [For the choirmaster Tune: 'Do not destroy' Of David In a quiet voice When Saul sent men to watch David's house in order to have him killed] Rescue me from my enemies, my God, be my stronghold from my assailants,

2 rescue me from evil-doers, from men of violence save me.

3 Look at them, lurking to ambush me, violent men are attacking me, for no fault, no sin of mine, Yahweh,

4 for no guilt, they come running to take up position. Wake up, stand by me and keep watch,

5 Yahweh, God of Sabaoth, God of Israel, rise up, to punish all the nations, show no mercy to all these malicious traitors.

6 Back they come at nightfall, snarling like curs, prowling through the town.

7 Look how they rant in speech with swords on their lips, 'Who is there to hear us?'

8 For your part, Yahweh, you laugh at them, you make mockery of all nations.

9 My strength, I keep my eyes fixed on you. For my stronghold is God,

10 the God who loves me faithfully is coming to meet me, God will let me feast my eyes on those who lie in wait for me.

11 Do not annihilate them, or my people may forget; shake them in your power, bring them low, Lord, our shield.

12 Sin is in their mouths, sin on their lips, so let them be trapped in their pride for the curses and lies that they utter.

13 Destroy them in your anger, destroy them till they are no more, and let it be known that God is Master in Jacob and the whole wide world.

14 Back they come at nightfall, snarling like curs, prowling through the town,

15 scavenging for something to eat, growling unless they have their fill.

16 And so I will sing of your strength, in the morning acclaim your faithful love; you have been a stronghold for me, a refuge when I was in trouble.

17 My strength, I will make music for you, for my stronghold is God, the God who loves me faithfully.

Psalm 58

1 [For the choirmaster Tune: 'Do not destroy' Of David In a quiet voice] Divine as you are, do you truly give upright verdicts? Do you judge fairly the children of Adam?

2 No! You devise injustice in your hearts, and with your hands you administer tyranny on the earth.

3 Since the womb they have gone astray, the wicked, on the wrong path since their birth, with their unjust verdicts.

4 They are poisonous as any snake, deaf as an adder that blocks its ears

5 so as not to hear the magician's music, however skillful his spells.

6 God, break the teeth in their mouths, snap off the fangs of these young lions, Yahweh.

7 May they drain away like water running to waste, may they wither like trampled grass,

8 like the slug that melts as it moves or a still-born child that never sees the sun.

9 Before they sprout thorns like the bramble, green or burnt up, may retribution whirl them away.

10 The upright will rejoice to see vengeance done, and will bathe his feet in the blood of the wicked.

11 'So', people will say, 'the upright does have a reward; there is a God to dispense justice on earth.'

Psalm 57

1 [For the choirmaster Tune: 'Do not destroy' Of David In a quiet voice When he escaped from Saul in the cave] Take pity on me, God, take pity on me, for in you I take refuge, in the shadow of your wings I take refuge, until the destruction is past.

2 I call to God the Most High, to God who has done everything for me;

3 may he send from heaven and save me, and check those who harry me; may God send his faithful love and his constancy.

4 I lie surrounded by lions, greedy for human prey, their teeth are spears and arrows, their tongue a sharp sword.

5 Be exalted above the heavens, God! Your glory over all the earth!

6 They laid a snare in my path -- I was bowed with care -- they dug a pit ahead of me, but fell in it themselves.

7 My heart is ready, God, my heart is ready; I will sing, and make music for you.

8 Awake, my glory, awake, lyre and harp, that I may awake the Dawn.

9 I will praise you among the peoples, Lord, I will make music for you among nations,

10 for your faithful love towers to heaven, your constancy to the clouds.

11 Be exalted above the heavens, God! Your glory over all the earth!

Psalm 56

1 [For the choirmaster Tune: 'The oppression of distant princes' Of David In a quiet voice When the Philistines seized him in Gath] Take pity on me, God, as they harry me, pressing their attacks home all day.

2 Those who harry me lie in wait for me all day, countless are those who attack me from the heights.

3 When I am afraid, I put my trust in you,

4 in God, whose word I praise, in God I put my trust and have no fear, what power has human strength over me?

5 All day long they carp at my words, their only thought is to harm me,

6 they gather together, lie in wait and spy on my movements, as though determined to take my life.

7 Because of this crime reject them, in your anger, God, strike down the nations.

8 You yourself have counted up my sorrows, collect my tears in your wineskin.

9 Then my enemies will turn back on the day when I call. This I know, that God is on my side.

10 In God whose word I praise, in Yahweh whose word I praise,

11 in God I put my trust and have no fear; what can mortal man do to me?

12 I am bound by the vows I have made, God, I will pay you the debt of thanks,

13 for you have saved my life from death to walk in the presence of God, in the light of the living.

Psalm 55

1 [For the choirmaster For strings Poem Of David] God, hear my prayer, do not hide away from my plea,

2 give me a hearing, answer me, my troubles give me no peace. I shudder

3 at the enemy's shouts, at the outcry of the wicked; they heap up charges against me, in their anger bring hostile accusations against me.

4 My heart writhes within me, the terrors of death come upon me,

5 fear and trembling overwhelm me, and shuddering grips me.

6 And I say, 'Who will give me wings like a dove, to fly away and find rest?'

7 How far I would escape, and make a nest in the desert!

8 I would soon find a refuge from the storm of abuse, from the

9 destructive tempest, Lord, from the flood of their tongues. For I see violence and strife in the city,

10 day and night they make their rounds along the city walls, Inside live malice and mischief,

11 inside lives destruction, tyranny and treachery never absent from its central square.

12 Were it an enemy who insulted me, that I could bear; if an opponent pitted himself against me, I could turn away from him.

13 But you, a person of my own rank, a comrade and dear friend,

14 to whom I was bound by intimate friendship in the house of God! May they recoil in disorder,

15 may death descend on them, may they go down alive to Sheol, since evil shares their home with them.

16 For my part, I appeal to God, and Yahweh saves me;

17 evening, morning, noon, I complain and I groan. He hears my cry,

18 he ransoms me and gives me peace from the feud against me, for they are taking me to law.

19 But God will listen and will humble them, he who has been enthroned from the beginning; no change of heart for them, for they do not fear God.

20 They attack those at peace with them, going back on their oaths;

21 though their mouth is smoother than butter, enmity is in their hearts; their words more soothing than oil, yet sharpened like swords.

22 Unload your burden onto Yahweh and he will sustain you; never will he allow the upright to stumble.

23 You, God, will thrust them down to the abyss of destruction, men bloodthirsty and deceptive, before half their days are spent. For my part, I put my trust in you.

Psalm 54

1 [For the choirmaster On stringed instruments Poem Of David When the Ziphites went to Saul and said,'Is not David hiding with us?'] God, save me by your name, in your power vindicate me.

2 God, hear my prayer, listen to the words I speak.

3 Arrogant men are attacking me, bullies hounding me to death, no room in their thoughts for God.

4 But now God is coming to my help, the Lord, among those who sustain me.

5 May their wickedness recoil on those who lie in wait for me. Yahweh, in your constancy destroy them.

6 How gladly will I offer you sacrifice, and praise your name, for it is good,

7 for it has rescued me from all my troubles, and my eye has feasted on my enemies.

Psalm 53

1 [For the choirmaster In sickness Poem Of David] The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God!' They are corrupt, vile and unjust, not one of them does right.

2 God looks down from heaven at the children of Adam, to see if a single one is wise, a single one seeks God.

3 All have proved faithless, all alike turned sour, not one of them does right, not a single one.

4 Are they not aware, these evil-doers? They are devouring my people; this is the bread they eat, and they never call upon God.

5 They will be gripped with fear, just where there is no need for fear, for God scatters the bones of him who besieges you; they are mocked because God rejects them.

6 Who will bring from Zion salvation for Israel? When God brings his people home, what joy for Jacob, what happiness for Israel!

Psalm 52

1 [For the choirmaster Poem Of David When Doeg the Edomite went and warned Saul, 'David has gone to Abimelech's house'] Why take pride in being wicked, you champion in villainy, all day long

2 plotting crime? Your tongue is razor-sharp, you artist in perfidy.

3 You prefer evil to good, lying to uprightness. 

4 You revel in destructive talk, treacherous tongue!

5 That is why God will crush you, destroy you once and for all, snatch you from your tent, uproot you from the land of the living.

6 The upright will be awestruck as they see it, they will mock him,

7 'So much for someone who would not place his reliance in God, but relied on his own great wealth, and made himself strong by crime.'

8 But I, like a flourishing olive tree in the house of God, put my trust in God's faithful love, for ever and ever.

9 I shall praise you forever for what you have done, and shall trust in your name, so full of goodness, in the presence of your faithful.