Blessed [fortunate, prosperous, and favored by God] is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked [following their advice and example],
Nor stand in the path of sinners,
Nor sit [down to rest] in the seat of scoffers (ridiculers).

But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And on His law [His precepts and teachings] he [habitually] meditates day and night.

And he will be like a tree firmly planted [and fed] by streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season;
Its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers [and comes to maturity].

The wicked [those who live in disobedience to God’s law] are not so,
But they are like the chaff [worthless and without substance] which the wind blows away.

Therefore the wicked will not stand [unpunished] in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

“I will declare the decree of the Lord:
He said to Me, ‘You are My Son;
This day [I proclaim] I have begotten You.

‘Ask of Me, and I will assuredly give [You] the nations as Your inheritance,
And the ends of the earth as Your possession.

‘You shall break them with a rod of iron;
You shall shatter them [in pieces] like earthenware.’”

Kiss (pay respect to) the Son, so that He does not become angry, and you perish in the way,
For His wrath may soon be kindled and set aflame.
How blessed [fortunate, prosperous, and favored by God] are all those who take refuge in Him!

O Lord, how my enemies have increased!
Many are rising up against me.

Many are saying of me,
“There is no help [no salvation] for him in God.” Selah.

But You, O Lord, are a shield for me,
My glory [and my honor], and the One who lifts my head.

Salvation belongs to the Lord;
May Your blessing be upon Your people. Selah.

Tremble [with anger or fear], and do not sin;
Meditate in your heart upon your bed and be still [reflect on your sin and repent of your rebellion]. Selah.

Many are saying, “Oh, that we might see some good!”
Lift up the light of Your face upon us, O Lord.

For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness;
No evil [person] dwells with You.

The boastful and the arrogant will not stand in Your sight;
You hate all who do evil.

But as for me, I will enter Your house through the abundance of Your steadfast love and tender mercy;
At Your holy temple I will bow [obediently] in reverence for You.

O Lord, lead me in Your righteousness because of my enemies;
Make Your way straight (direct, right) before me.

For there is nothing trustworthy or reliable or truthful in what they say;
Their heart is destruction [just a treacherous chasm, a yawning gulf of lies].
Their throat is an open grave;
They [glibly] flatter with their [silken] tongue.

But let all who take refuge and put their trust in You rejoice,
Let them ever sing for joy;
Because You cover and shelter them,
Let those who love Your name be joyful and exult in You.

O Lord, do not rebuke or punish me in Your anger,
Nor discipline me in Your wrath.

Have mercy on me and be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am weak (faint, frail);
Heal me, O Lord, for my bones are dismayed and anguished.

Return, O Lord, rescue my soul;
Save me because of Your [unfailing] steadfast love and mercy.

If I have done evil to him who was at peace with me,
Or without cause robbed him who was my enemy,

Arise, O Lord, in Your anger;
Lift up Yourself against the rage of my enemies;
Rise up for me; You have commanded judgment and vindication.

Oh, let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the righteous [those in right standing with You];
For the righteous God tries the hearts and minds.

O Lord, our Lord,
How majestic and glorious and excellent is Your name in all the earth!
You have displayed Your splendor above the heavens.

Out of the mouths of infants and nursing babes You have established strength
Because of Your adversaries,
That You might silence the enemy and make the revengeful cease.

When I see and consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which You have established,

What is man that You are mindful of him,
And the son of [earthborn] man that You care for him?

Yet You have made him a little lower than God,
And You have crowned him with glory and honor.

You made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands;
You have put all things under his feet,

The birds of the air, and the fish of the sea,
Whatever passes through the paths of the seas.

O Lord, our Lord,
How majestic and glorious and excellent is Your name in all the earth!

I will give thanks and praise the Lord, with all my heart;
I will tell aloud all Your wonders and marvelous deeds.

I will rejoice and exult in you;
I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.

And those who know Your name [who have experienced Your precious mercy] will put their confident trust in You,
For You, O Lord, have not abandoned those who seek You.

That I may tell aloud all Your praises,
That in the gates of the daughter of Zion (Jerusalem)
I may rejoice in Your salvation and Your help.

The Lord has made Himself known;
He executes judgment;
The wicked are trapped by the work of their own hands. Higgaion (meditation) Selah.

The wicked will turn to Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead),
Even all the nations who forget God.

Why do You stand far away, O Lord?
Why do You hide [Yourself, veiling Your eyes] in times of trouble?

The wicked, in the haughtiness of his face, will not seek nor inquire for Him;
All his thoughts are, “There is no God [so there is no accountability or punishment].”

His ways prosper at all times;
Your judgments [Lord] are on high, out of his sight [so he never thinks about them];
As for all his enemies, he sneers at them.

He says to himself, “I will not be moved;
For throughout all generations I will not be in adversity [for nothing bad will happen to me].”

His mouth is full of curses and deceit (fraud) and oppression;
Under his tongue is mischief and wickedness [injustice and sin].

Arise, O Lord! O God, lift up Your hand [in judgment];
Do not forget the suffering.

You have seen it, for You have noted mischief and vexation (irritation) to take it into Your hand.
The unfortunate commits himself to You;
You are the helper of the fatherless.

O Lord, You have heard the desire of the humble and oppressed;
You will strengthen their heart, You will incline Your ear to hear,

In the Lord I take refuge [and put my trust];
How can you say to me, “Flee like a bird to your mountain;

For look, the wicked are bending the bow;
They take aim with their arrow on the string
To shoot [by stealth] in darkness at the upright in heart.

“If the foundations [of a godly society] are destroyed,
What can the righteous do?”

Upon the wicked (godless) He will rain coals of fire;
Fire and brimstone and a dreadful scorching wind will be the portion of their cup [of doom].

For the Lord is [absolutely] righteous, He loves righteousness (virtue, morality, justice);
The upright shall see His face.

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

They speak deceitful and worthless words to one another;
With flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

Who have said, “With our tongue we will prevail;
Our lips are our own; who is lord and master over us?”

“Because of the devastation of the afflicted, because of the groaning of the needy,
Now I will arise,” says the Lord; “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”

The words and promises of the Lord are pure words,
Like silver refined in an earthen furnace, purified seven times.

The wicked strut about [in pompous self-importance] on every side,
As vileness is exalted and baseness is prized among the sons of men.

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

Consider and answer me, O Lord my God;
Give light (life) to my eyes, or I will sleep the sleep of death,

But I have trusted and relied on and been confident in Your lovingkindness and faithfulness;
My heart shall rejoice and delight in Your salvation.

The [spiritually ignorant] fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, they have committed repulsive and unspeakable deeds;
There is no one who does good.

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].

They have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt;
There is no one who does good, not even one.

O Lord, who may lodge [as a guest] in Your tent?
Who may dwell [continually] on Your holy hill?

I said to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
I have no good besides You.”

As for the saints (godly people) who are in the land,
They are the majestic and the noble and the excellent ones in whom is all my delight.

The sorrows [pain and suffering] of those who have chosen another god will be multiplied [because of their idolatry];
I will not pour out their drink offerings of blood,
Nor will I take their names upon my lips.

For You will not abandon me to Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead),
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.

You will show me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are pleasures forevermore.

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.

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

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

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

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.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Then 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.

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

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

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

He 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.

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

You 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.

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

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

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

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

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

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