“Behold, I am of little importance and contemptible; what can I reply to You?
I lay my hand on my mouth.

“Now gird up your loins (prepare yourself) like a man,
And I will ask you, and you instruct Me.

“Will you really annul My judgment and set it aside as void?
Will you condemn Me [your God] that you may [appear to] be righteous and justified?

“No one is so fierce [and foolhardy] that he dares to stir up Leviathan;
Who then is he who can stand before Me [or dares to contend with Me, the beast’s creator]?

“Who has first given to Me that I should repay him?
Whatever is under the whole heaven is Mine. [Who can have a claim against Me who made the unmastered beast?]

“He looks on everything that is high [without terror];
He is monarch over all the sons of pride. [And now, Job, who are you who does not dare to disturb the beast, yet who dares resist Me, the beast’s creator? Everything under the heavens is Mine; therefore, who can have a claim against God?]”

“[You said to me] ‘Who is this that darkens and obscures counsel [by words] without knowledge?’
Therefore [I now see] I have [rashly] uttered that which I did not understand,
Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.

‘Hear, please, and I will speak;
I will ask You, and You instruct [and answer] me.’

“I had heard of You [only] by the hearing of the ear,
But now my [spiritual] eye sees You.

“Therefore I retract [my words and hate myself]
And I repent in dust and ashes.”

It came about that after the Lord had spoken these words to Job, that the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is kindled against you and against your two friends, for you have not spoken of Me what is right, as My servant Job has.

Now therefore, take for yourselves seven bulls and seven rams, and go to My servant Job, and offer up a burnt offering for yourselves, and My servant Job will pray for you. For I will accept him [and his prayer] so that I may not deal with you according to your folly, because you have not spoken of Me the thing that is right, as My servant Job has.”

“Yet as for Me, I have anointed and firmly installed My King
Upon Zion, My holy mountain.”

“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.

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.

With my voice I was crying to the Lord,
And He answered me from His holy mountain. Selah.

I lay down and slept [safely];
I awakened, for the Lord sustains me.

I will not be intimidated or afraid of the ten thousands
Who have set themselves against me all around.

Arise, O Lord; save me, O my God!
For You have struck all my enemies on the cheek;
You have shattered the teeth of the wicked.

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

Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness!
You have freed me when I was hemmed in and relieved me when I was in distress;
Be gracious to me and hear [and respond to] my prayer.

O sons of men, how long will my honor and glory be [turned into] shame?
How long will you [my enemies] love worthless (vain, futile) things and seek deception and lies? Selah.

You have put joy in my heart,
More than [others know] when their wheat and new wine have yielded abundantly.

In peace [and with a tranquil heart] I will both lie down and sleep,
For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety and confident trust.

Listen to my words, O Lord,
Consider my groaning and sighing.

Heed the sound of my cry for help, my King and my God,
For to You I pray.

In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice;
In the morning I will prepare [a prayer and a sacrifice] for You and watch and wait [for You to speak to my heart].

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.

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.

My soul [as well as my body] is greatly dismayed.
But as for You, O Lord—how long [until You act on my behalf]?

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

I am weary with my groaning;
Every night I soak my bed with tears,
I drench my couch with my weeping.

My eye grows dim with grief;
It grows old because of all my enemies.

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

The Lord has heard my supplication [my plea for grace];
The Lord receives my prayer.

Let all my enemies be ashamed and greatly horrified;
Let them turn back, let them suddenly be ashamed [of what they have done].

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].

O Lord my God, if I have done this,
If there is injustice in my hands,

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

Let the enemy pursue me and overtake me;
And let him trample my life to the ground
And lay my honor in the dust. Selah.

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.

The Lord judges the peoples;
Judge me, O Lord, and grant me justice according to my righteousness and according to the integrity within me.

My shield and my defense depend on God,
Who saves the upright in heart.

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

When my enemies turn back,
They stumble and perish before You.

For You have maintained my right and my cause;
You have sat on the throne judging righteously.

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,

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.

Put them in [reverent] fear of You, O Lord,
So that the nations may know they are but [frail and mortal] men. Selah.

He lurks in a hiding place like a lion in his lair;
He lies in wait to catch the afflicted;
He catches the afflicted when he draws him into his net.

He says to himself, “God has [quite] forgotten;
He has hidden His face; He will never see my deed.”

To vindicate and obtain justice for the fatherless and the oppressed,
So that man who is of the earth will no longer terrify them.

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.

May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
The tongue that speaks great things [in boasting];

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

How long must I take counsel in my soul,
Having sorrow in my heart day after day?
How long will my enemy exalt himself and triumph over me?

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

And my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”
And my adversaries will rejoice when I am shaken.

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

I will sing to the Lord,
Because He has dealt bountifully with me.

Have all the workers of wickedness and injustice no knowledge,
Who eat up my people as they eat bread,
And do not call upon the Lord?

Keep and protect me, O God, for in You I have placed my trust and found refuge.

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.

The Lord is the portion of my inheritance, my cup [He is all I need];
You support my lot.

The [boundary] lines [of the land] have fallen for me in pleasant places;
Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me.

I will bless the Lord who has counseled me;
Indeed, my heart (mind) instructs me in the night.

I have set the Lord continually before me;
Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

Therefore my heart is glad and my glory [my innermost self] rejoices;
My body too will dwell [confidently] in safety,

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.

You 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.

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.

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

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,

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

“I love You [fervently and devotedly], O Lord, my strength.”

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.

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

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

In 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.

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.

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

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

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

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