Be my guide, O Lord, in the ways of your righteousness, because of those who are against me; make your way straight before my face.

For no faith may be put in their words; their inner part is nothing but evil; their throat is like an open place for the dead; smooth are the words of their tongues.

Send them to destruction, O Lord; let their evil designs be the cause of their fall; let them be forced out by all their sins; because they have gone against your authority.

But let all those who put their faith in you be glad with cries of joy at all times, and let all the lovers of your name be glad in you.

For you, Lord, will send a blessing on the upright man; your grace will be round him, and you will be his strength.

O Lord, do not be bitter with me in your wrath; do not send punishment on me in the heat of your passion.

Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am wasted away: make me well, for even my bones are troubled.

Come back, O Lord, make my soul free; O give me salvation because of your mercy.

My eyes are wasting away with trouble; they are becoming old because of all those who are against me.

Go from me, all you workers of evil; for the Lord has given ear to the voice of my weeping.

The Lord has given ear to my request; the Lord has let my prayer come before him.

Let all those who are against me be shamed and deeply troubled; let them be turned back and suddenly put to shame.

If I have given back evil to him who did evil to me, or have taken anything from him who was against me without cause;

Come up, Lord, in your wrath; be lifted up against my haters; be awake, my God, give orders for the judging.

The meeting of the nations will be round you; take your seat, then, over them, on high.

O let the evil of the evil-doer come to an end, but give strength to the upright: for men's minds and hearts are tested by the God of righteousness.

O Lord, our Lord, whose glory is higher than the heavens, how noble is your name in all the earth!

You have made clear your strength even out of the mouths of babies at the breast, because of those who are against you; so that you may put to shame the cruel and violent man.

When I see your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have put in their places;

You have made him ruler 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, and whatever goes through the deep waters of the seas.

O Lord, our Lord, how noble is your name in all the earth!

I will give you praise, O Lord, with all my heart; I will make clear all the wonder of your works.

I will be glad and have delight in you: I will make a song of praise to your name, O Most High.

When my haters are turned back, they will be broken and overcome before you.

For you gave approval to my right and my cause; you were seated in your high place judging in righteousness.

The Lord will be a high tower for those who are crushed down, a high tower in times of trouble;

And those who have knowledge of your name will put their faith in you; because you, Lord, have ever given your help to those who were waiting for you.

So that I may make clear all your praise in the house of the daughter of Zion: I will be glad because of your salvation.

Put them in fear, O Lord, so that the nations may see that they are only men. (Selah.)

Why do you keep far away, O Lord? why are you not to be seen in times of trouble?

The evil-doer in his pride says, God will not make a search. All his thoughts are, There is no God.

His ways are ever fixed; your decisions are higher than he may see: as for his haters, they are as nothing to him.

His mouth is full of cursing and deceit and false words: under his tongue are evil purposes and dark thoughts.

He is waiting in the dark places of the towns: in the secret places he puts to death those who have done no wrong: his eyes are secretly turned against the poor.

The upright are crushed and made low, and the feeble are overcome by his strong ones.

Up! O Lord; let your hand be lifted: give thought to the poor.

You have seen it; for your eyes are on sorrow and grief, to take it into your hand: the poor man puts his faith in you; you have been the helper of the child who has no father.

The Lord is King for ever and ever; the nations are gone from his land.

Lord, you have given ear to the prayer of the poor: you will make strong their hearts, you will give them a hearing:

See, the bows of the evil-doers are bent, they make ready their arrows on the cord, so that they may send them secretly against the upright in heart.

If the bases are broken down, what is the upright man to do?

The Lord is in his holy Temple, the Lord's seat is in heaven; his eyes are watching and testing the children of men.

Everyone says false words to his neighbour: their tongues are smooth in their talk, and their hearts are full of deceit.

They have said, With our tongues will we overcome; our lips are ours: who is lord over us?

The words of the Lord are true words: like silver tested by fire and burned clean seven times.

The sinners are walking on every side, and evil is honoured among the children of men.

Will you for ever put me out of your memory, O Lord? will your face for ever be turned away from me?

Let my voice come before you, and give me an answer, O Lord my God; let your light be shining on me, so that the sleep of death may not overtake me;

And he who is against me may not say, I have overcome him; and those who are troubling me may not be glad when I am moved.

But I have had faith in your mercy; my heart will be glad in your salvation.

The foolish man has said in his heart, God will not do anything. They are unclean, they have done evil works; there is not one who does good.

The Lord was looking down from heaven on the children of men, to see if there were any who had wisdom, searching after God.

They have all gone out of the way together; they are unclean, there is not one who does good, no, not one.

Then were they in great fear: for God is in the generation of the upright.

Lord, who may have a resting-place in your tent, a living-place on your holy hill?

O my soul, you have said to the Lord, You are my Lord: I have no good but you.

As for the saints who are in the earth, they are the noble in whom is all my delight.

Their sorrows will be increased who go after another god: I will not take drink offerings from their hands, or take their names on my lips.

The Lord is my heritage and the wine of my cup; you are the supporter of my right.

Fair are the places marked out for me; I have a noble heritage.

For you will not let my soul be prisoned in the underworld; you will not let your loved one see the place of death.

You will make clear to me the way of life; where you are joy is complete; in your right hand there are pleasures for ever and ever.

Let my cause come to your ears, O Lord, give attention to my cry; give ear to my prayer which goes not out from false lips.

I will send up my cry to the Lord, who is to be praised; so will I be made safe from those who are against me.

The cords of death were round me, and the seas of evil put me in fear.

The cords of hell were round me: the nets of death came on me.

Then trouble and shock came on the earth; and the bases of the mountains were moved and shaking, because he was angry.

There went up a smoke from his nose, and a fire of destruction from his mouth: flames were lighted by it.

The heavens were bent, so that he might come down; and it was dark under his feet.

And he went in flight through the air, seated on a storm-cloud: going quickly on the wings of the wind.

He sent out his arrows, driving them in all directions; by his flames of fire they were troubled.

Then the deep beds of the waters were seen, and the bases of the world were uncovered, because of your words of wrath, O Lord, because of the breath from your mouth.

He made me free from my strong hater, and from those who were against me, because they were stronger than I.

The Lord gives me the reward of my righteousness, because my hands are clean before him.

For all his decisions were before me, and I did not put away his laws from me.

Because of this the Lord has given me the reward of my righteousness, because my hands are clean in his eyes.

He who is holy will see that you are holy; but to the man whose way is not straight you will be a hard judge.

For you are the saviour of those who are in trouble; but eyes full of pride will be made low.

By your help I have made a way through the wall which was shutting me in; by the help of my God I have gone over a wall.

For who is God but the Lord? or who is a Rock but our God?

He makes my hands expert in war, so that a bow of brass is bent by my arms.

You have given me the breastplate of your salvation: your right hand has been my support, and your mercy has made me great.

You have made my steps wide under me, so that my feet are kept from slipping.

I go after my haters and overtake them; not turning back till they are all overcome.

I will give them wounds, so that they are not able to get up: they are stretched under my feet.

By you their backs are turned in flight, so that my haters are cut off.

They were crying out, but there was no one to come to their help: even to the Lord, but he gave them no answer.

Then they were crushed as small as dust before the wind; they were drained out like the waste of the streets.

Because of this I will give you praise, O Lord, among the nations, and will make a song of praise to your name.

The heavens are sounding the glory of God; the arch of the sky makes clear the work of his hands.

There are no words or language; their voice makes no sound.

The orders of the Lord are right, making glad the heart: the rule of the Lord is holy, giving light to the eyes.

The fear of the Lord is clean, and has no end; the decisions of the Lord are true and full of righteousness.

More to be desired are they than gold, even than much shining gold; sweeter than the dropping honey.

By them is your servant made conscious of danger, and in keeping them there is great reward.

Keep your servant back from sins of pride; let them not have rule over me: then will I be upright and free from great sin.

Let the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart be pleasing in your eyes, O Lord, my strength and my salvation.

May the Lord give ear to you in the day of trouble; may you be placed on high by the name of the God of Jacob;

May he keep all your offerings in mind, and be pleased with the fat of your burned offerings; (Selah.)