This is the generation (description) of those who diligently seek Him and require Him as their greatest need,
Who seek Your face, even [as did] Jacob. Selah.

Indeed, none of those who [expectantly] wait for You will be ashamed;
Those who turn away from what is right and deal treacherously without cause will be ashamed (humiliated, embarrassed).

Guide me in Your truth and teach me,
For You are the God of my salvation;
For You [and only You] I wait [expectantly] all the day long.

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

Do not remember the sins of my youth or my transgressions;
According to Your lovingkindness remember me,
For Your goodness’ sake, O Lord.

All the paths of the Lord are lovingkindness and goodness and truth and faithfulness
To those who keep His covenant and His testimonies.

For Your name’s sake, O Lord,
Pardon my wickedness and my guilt, for they are great.

The secret [of the wise counsel] of the Lord is for those who fear Him,
And He will let them know His covenant and reveal to them [through His word] its [deep, inner] meaning.

My eyes are continually toward the Lord,
For He will bring my feet out of the net.

Turn to me [Lord] and be gracious to me,
For I am alone and afflicted.

Look upon my enemies, for they are many;
They hate me with cruel and violent hatred.

Guard my soul and rescue me;
Do not let me be ashamed or disappointed,
For I have taken refuge in You.

Let integrity and uprightness protect me,
For I wait [expectantly] for You.

Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have walked in my integrity;
I have [relied on and] trusted [confidently] in the Lord without wavering and I shall not slip.

For Your lovingkindness is before my eyes,
And I have walked [faithfully] in Your truth.

But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity;
Redeem me and be merciful and gracious to me.

The Lord is my light and my salvation—
Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the refuge and fortress of my life—
Whom shall I dread?

Though an army encamp against me,
My heart will not fear;
Though war arise against me,
Even in this I am confident.

One thing I have asked of the Lord, and that I will seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord [in His presence] all the days of my life,
To gaze upon the beauty [the delightful loveliness and majestic grandeur] of the Lord
And to meditate in His temple.

For in the day of trouble He will hide me in His shelter;
In the secret place of His tent He will hide me;
He will lift me up on a rock.

When You said, “Seek My face [in prayer, require My presence as your greatest need],” my heart said to You,
“Your face, O Lord, I will seek [on the authority of Your word].”

Teach me Your way, O Lord,
And lead me on a level path
Because of my enemies [who lie in wait].

Do not give me up to the will of my adversaries,
For false witnesses have come against me;
They breathe out violence.

Wait for and confidently expect the Lord;
Be strong and let your heart take courage;
Yes, wait for and confidently expect the Lord.

Hear the voice of my supplication (specific requests, humble entreaties) as I cry to You for help,
As I lift up my hands and heart toward Your innermost sanctuary (Holy of Holies).

I will extol and praise You, O Lord, for You have lifted me up,
And have not let my enemies rejoice over me.

For His anger is but for a moment,
His favor is for a lifetime.
Weeping may endure for a night,
But a shout of joy comes in the morning.

As for me, in my prosperity I said,
“I shall never be moved.”

You have turned my mourning into dancing for me;
You have taken off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,

Yes, You are my rock and my fortress;
For Your name’s sake You will lead me and guide me.

You will draw me out of the net that they have secretly laid for me,
For You are my strength and my stronghold.

Be gracious and compassionate to me, O Lord, for I am in trouble;
My eye is clouded and weakened by grief, my soul and my body also.

For my life is spent with sorrow
And my years with sighing;
My strength has failed because of my iniquity,
And even my body has wasted away.

For I have heard the slander and whispering of many,
Terror is on every side;
While they schemed together against me,
They plotted to take away my life.

Make Your face shine upon Your servant;
Save me in Your lovingkindness.

Let me not be put to shame, O Lord, for I call on You;
Let the wicked (godless) be put to shame, let them be silent in Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead).

How great is Your goodness,
Which You have stored up for those who [reverently] fear You,
Which You have prepared for those who take refuge in You,
Before the sons of man!

Blessed be the Lord,
For He has shown His marvelous favor and lovingkindness to me [when I was assailed] in a besieged city.

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].

Be strong and let your hearts take courage,
All you who wait for and confidently expect the Lord.

For day and night Your hand [of displeasure] was heavy upon me;
My energy (vitality, strength) was drained away as with the burning heat of summer. Selah.

Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You [for forgiveness] in a time when You [are near and] may be found;
Surely when the great waters [of trial and distressing times] overflow they will not reach [the spirit in] him.

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

Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous [who actively seek right standing with Him];
Shout for joy, all you upright in heart.

Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous ones;
Praise is becoming and appropriate for those who are upright [in heart—those with moral integrity and godly character].

For the word of the Lord is right;
And all His work is done in faithfulness.

Let all the earth fear and worship the Lord;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.

For He spoke, and it was done;
He commanded, and it stood fast.

A horse is a false hope for victory;
Nor does it deliver anyone by its great strength.

Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon those who fear Him [and worship Him with awe-inspired reverence and obedience],
On those who hope [confidently] in His compassion and lovingkindness,

We wait [expectantly] for the Lord;
He is our help and our shield.

For in Him our heart rejoices,
Because we trust [lean on, rely on, and are confident] in His holy name.

Let Your [steadfast] lovingkindness, O Lord, be upon us,
In proportion as we have hoped in You.

They looked to Him and were radiant;
Their faces will never blush in shame or confusion.

The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him [with awe-inspired reverence and worship Him with obedience],
And He rescues [each of] them.

O [reverently] fear the Lord, you His saints (believers, holy ones);
For to those who fear Him there is no want.

Come, you children, listen to me;
I will teach you to fear the Lord [with awe-inspired reverence and worship Him with obedience].

Who is the man who desires life
And loves many days, that he may see good?

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

When the righteous cry [for help], the Lord hears
And rescues them from all their distress and troubles.

The Lord is near to the heartbroken
And He saves those who are crushed in spirit (contrite in heart, truly sorry for their sin).

Take hold of shield and buckler (small shield),
And stand up for my help.

For without cause they hid their net for me;
Without cause they dug a pit [of destruction] for my life.

Let destruction come upon my enemy by surprise;
Let the net he hid for me catch him;
Into that very destruction let him fall.

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?”

They repay me evil for good,
To the sorrow of my soul.

But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth (mourning garment);
I humbled my soul with fasting,
And I prayed with my head bowed on my chest.

I behaved as if grieving for my friend or my brother;
I bowed down in mourning, as one who sorrows for his mother.

Like godless jesters at a feast,
They gnashed at me with their teeth [in malice].

For they do not speak peace,
But they devise deceitful words [half-truths and lies] against those who are quiet in the land.

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

Let them shout for joy and rejoice, who favor my vindication and want what is right for me;
Let them say continually, “Let the Lord be magnified, who delights and takes pleasure in the prosperity of His servant.”

And my tongue shall declare Your righteousness (justice),
And Your praise all the day long.

Transgression speaks [like an oracle] to the wicked (godless) [deep] within his heart;
There is no fear (dread) of God before his eyes.

For he flatters and deceives himself in his own eyes
Thinking that his sinfulness will not be discovered and hated [by God].

For with You is the fountain of life [the fountain of life-giving water];
In Your light we see light.

For they will wither quickly like the grass,
And fade like the green herb.

Be still before the Lord; wait patiently for Him and entrust yourself to Him;
Do not fret (whine, agonize) because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.

For those who do evil will be cut off,
But those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land.

For yet a little while and the wicked one will be gone [forever];
Though you look carefully where he used to be, he will not be [found].

The Lord laughs at him [the wicked one—the one who oppresses the righteous],
For He sees that his day [of defeat] is coming.

For the arms of the wicked will be broken,
But the Lord upholds and sustains the righteous [who seek Him].

The wicked borrows and does not pay back,
But the righteous is gracious and kind and gives.

For those blessed by God will [at last] inherit the land,
But those cursed by Him will be cut off.

When he falls, he will not be hurled down,
Because the Lord is the One who holds his hand and sustains him.

For the Lord delights in justice
And does not abandon His saints (faithful ones);
They are preserved forever,
But the descendants of the wicked will [in time] be cut off.

The wicked lies in wait for the righteous
And seeks to kill him.

Wait for and expect the Lord and keep His way,
And He will exalt you to inherit the land;
[In the end] when the wicked are cut off, you will see it.

Yet he passed away, and lo, he was no more;
I sought him, but he could not be found.

Mark the blameless man [who is spiritually complete], and behold the upright [who walks in moral integrity];
There is a [good] future for the man of peace [because a life of honor blesses one’s descendants].

As for transgressors, they will be completely destroyed;
The future of the wicked will be cut off.

For Your arrows have sunk into me and penetrate deeply,
And Your hand has pressed down on me and greatly disciplined me.

For my iniquities have gone over my head [like the waves of a flood];
As a heavy burden they weigh too much for me.

For my sides are filled with burning,
And there is no health in my flesh.

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

Those who seek my life lay snares for me,
And those who seek to injure me threaten mischievous things and destruction;
They devise treachery all the day long.

For in You, O Lord, I hope;
You will answer, O Lord my God.

For I pray, “May they not rejoice over me,
Who, when my foot slips, would boast against me.”

For I am ready to fall;
My sorrow is continually before me.

For I do confess my guilt and iniquity;
I am filled with anxiety because of my sin.