“Let us break apart their [divine] bands [of restraint]
And cast away their cords [of control] from us.”

Depart from me, all you who do evil,
For the Lord has heard the voice of my weeping.

O Lord my God, in You I take refuge;
Save me and rescue me from all those who pursue me,

So that my enemy will not tear me like a lion,
Dragging me away while there is no one to rescue [me].

Have mercy on me and be gracious to me, O Lord;
See how I am afflicted by those who hate me,
You who lift me up from the gates of death,

Save and help and rescue, Lord, for godly people cease to be,
For the faithful vanish from among the sons of men.

You, O Lord, will preserve and keep them;
You will protect him from this [evil] generation forever.

How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever?
How long will You hide Your face from me?

The Lord has looked down from heaven upon the children of men
To see if there are any who understand (act wisely),
Who [truly] seek after God, [longing for His wisdom and guidance].

Hear the just (righteous) cause, O Lord; listen to my loud [piercing] cry;
Listen to my prayer, that comes from guileless lips.

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

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

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

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

From 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.

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

The 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.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

You 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.

He 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.

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

The 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.

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

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

Also 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.

Let 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.

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

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

Their offspring You will destroy from the earth,
And their descendants from the sons of men.

My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?
Why are You so far from helping me, and from the words of my groaning?

I was cast upon You from birth;
From my mother’s womb You have been my God.

Do not be far from me, for trouble is near;
And there is no one to help.

But You, O Lord, do not be far from me;
O You my help, come quickly to my assistance.

Rescue my life from the sword,
My only life from the paw of the dog (the executioner).

Save me from the lion’s mouth;
From the horns of the wild oxen You answer me.

For He has not despised nor detested the suffering of the afflicted;
Nor has He hidden His face from him;
But when he cried to Him for help, He listened.

He shall receive a blessing from the Lord,
And righteousness from the God of his salvation.

Remember, O Lord, Your [tender] compassion and Your lovingkindnesses,
For they have been from of old.

Do not hide Your face from me,
Do not turn Your servant away in anger;
You have been my help;
Do not abandon me nor leave me,
O God of my salvation!

O Lord, You have brought my life up from Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead);
You have kept me alive, so that I would not go down to the pit (grave).

Because of all my enemies I have become a reproach and disgrace,
Especially to my neighbors,
And an object of dread to my acquaintances;
Those who see me on the street run from me.

My times are in Your hands;
Rescue me from the hand of my enemies and from those who pursue and persecute me.

In the secret place of Your presence You hide them from the plots and conspiracies of man;
You keep them secretly in a shelter (pavilion) from the strife of tongues.

As for me, I said in my alarm,
“I am cut off from Your eyes.”
Nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications (specific requests)
When I cried to You [for help].

You are my hiding place; You, Lord, protect me from trouble;
You surround me with songs and shouts of deliverance. Selah.

Do not be like the horse or like the mule which have no understanding,
Whose trappings include bridle and rein to hold them in check,
Otherwise they will not come near to you.

The Lord looks [down] from heaven;
He sees all the sons of man;

From His dwelling place He looks closely
Upon all the inhabitants of the earth—

To rescue their lives from death
And keep them alive in famine.

I sought the Lord [on the authority of His word], and He answered me,
And delivered me from all my fears.

Keep your tongue from evil
And your lips from speaking deceit.

Turn away from evil and do good;
Seek peace and pursue it.

The face of the Lord is against those who do evil,
To cut off the memory of them from the earth.

All my bones will say, “Lord, who is like You,
Who rescues the afflicted from him who is too strong for him [to resist alone],
And the afflicted and the needy from him who robs him?”

Lord, how long will You look on [without action]?
Rescue my life from their destructions,
My only life from the young lions.

You have seen this, O Lord; do not keep silent.
O Lord, do not be far from me.

Cease from anger and abandon wrath;
Do not fret; it leads only to evil.

Depart from evil and do good;
And you will dwell [securely in the land] forever.

The Lord helps them and rescues them;
He rescues them from the wicked and saves them,
Because they take refuge in Him.

Lord, all my desire is before You;
And my sighing is not hidden from You.

My heart throbs violently, my strength fails me;
And as for the light of my eyes, even that has also gone from me.

My loved ones and my friends stand aloof from my plague;
And my neighbors stand far away.

Do not abandon me, O Lord;
O my God, do not be far from me.

I was mute and silent [before my enemies],
I refrained even from good,
And my distress grew worse.

“Save me from all my transgressions;
Do not make me the scorn and reproach of the [self-righteous, arrogant] fool.

“Remove Your plague from me;
I am wasting away because of the conflict and opposition of Your hand.

“O look away from me, that I may smile and again know joy
Before I depart and am no more.”

I have not concealed Your righteousness within my heart;
I have proclaimed Your faithfulness and Your salvation.
I have not concealed Your lovingkindness and Your truth from the great assembly.

Do not withhold Your compassion and tender mercy from me, O Lord;
Your lovingkindness and Your truth will continually preserve me.

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
From everlasting to everlasting [from this age to the next, and forever].
Amen and Amen (so be it).

O my God, my soul is in despair within me [the burden more than I can bear];
Therefore I will [fervently] remember You from the land of the Jordan
And the peaks of [Mount] Hermon, from Mount Mizar.

Judge and vindicate me, O God; plead my case against an ungodly nation.
O rescue me from the deceitful and unjust man!

But You have saved us from our enemies,
And You have put them to shame and humiliated those who hate us.

You make us turn back from the enemy,
And those who hate us have taken spoil for themselves.

Our heart has not turned back,
Nor have our steps wandered from Your path,

Their inward thought is that their houses will continue forever,
And their dwelling places to all generations;
They have named their lands after their own names [ignoring God].

Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead);
Death will be their shepherd;
And the upright shall rule over them in the morning,
And their form and beauty shall be for Sheol to consume,
So that they have no dwelling [on earth].

But God will redeem my life from the power of Sheol,
For He will receive me. Selah.

The mighty One, God, the Lord, has spoken,
And summoned the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting [from east to west].

“I will accept no young bull from your house
Nor male goat from your folds.

Wash me thoroughly from my wickedness and guilt
And cleanse me from my sin.

Hide Your face from my sins
And blot out all my iniquities.

Do not cast me away from Your presence
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.

Rescue me from bloodguiltiness, O God, the God of my salvation;
Then my tongue will sing joyfully of Your righteousness and Your justice.

But God will break you down forever;
He will take you away and tear you away from your tent,
And uproot you from the land of the living. Selah.

God has looked down from heaven upon the children of men
To see if there is anyone who understands,
Who seeks after God [who requires Him, who longs for Him as essential to life].

Listen to my prayer, O God,
And do not hide Yourself from my plea.

“I would hurry to my refuge [my tranquil shelter far away]
From the stormy wind and from the tempest.”

Destruction is within her;
Oppression and deceit do not depart from her streets and market places.

For it is not an enemy who taunts me—
Then I could bear it;
Nor is it one who has hated me who insolently exalts himself against me—
Then I could hide from him.

He has redeemed my life in peace from the battle that was against me,
For there were many against me.

For You have rescued my soul from death,
Yes, and my feet from stumbling,
So that I may walk before God
In the light of life.

He will send from heaven and save me;
He calls to account him who tramples me down. Selah.
God will send out His lovingkindness and His truth.