They say, "Let's tear off the shackles they've put on us! Let's free ourselves from their ropes!"

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

Out of the mouth of children and sucklings, hast thou laid a foundation of strength, - because of thine adversaries, to make foe and avenger be still.

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

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

He rescued me from my foe, in his might, and from them who hated me, because they were too strong for me:

O my God, in thee, have I put my trust, Let me not be put to shame, Let not my foe exult over me:

One thing, have I asked of Yahweh, That, will I seek to secure, - That I may dwell in the house of Yahweh, all the days of my life, To view the delightfulness of Yahweh, And to contemplate in his temple.

And hast not shut me up in the hand of the foe, Thou hast given standing, in a roomy place, unto my feet.

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

They are ready to devour me; they say, "Aha! Aha! We've got you!"

You make us retreat from the foe,
and those who hate us
have taken plunder for themselves.

At the voice of him who reproacheth and revileth, At the face of the foe and avenger.

Come! view the doings of Yahweh, - Who hath set desolations in the earth;

Now it is not an enemy who insults me—
otherwise I could bear it;
it is not a foe who rises up against me—
otherwise I could hide from him.

Give us aid against the foe,
for human help is worthless.

For thou hast been, A Refuge to me, A Tower of Strength, from the face of the foe.

Hear, O God, my voice when I complain, From dread peril by the foe, wilt thou guard my life.

{To the chief Musician, A Psalm and Song of David.} Praise waiteth for thee, O God, in Sion: and unto thee shall the vow be performed.

That your foot may crush them in blood,
That the tongue of your dogs may have its share from your enemies.”

Turn your footsteps [quickly] toward the perpetual ruins;
The enemy has damaged everything within the sanctuary.

God, how long will the enemy mock?
Will the foe insult Your name forever?

Vow, and pay unto the LORD your God: let all that be round about him bring presents unto him that ought to be feared.

They did not remember His power shown
on the day He redeemed them from the foe,

And gave up His strength and power (the ark of the covenant) into captivity,
And His glory into the hand of the enemy (the Philistines).

Who said - Let us take a possession foe ourselves, The pastures of God!

For great is your gracious love to me; you've delivered me from the depths of Sheol.

No foe shall make exactions on him, Nor shall, a son of perversity, humiliate him;

Lord, you've been our refuge from generation to generation.

For in Your sight a thousand years
are like yesterday that passes by,
like a few hours of the night.

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
Will remain secure and rest in the shadow of the Almighty [whose power no enemy can withstand].

You've grown my strength like the horn of a wild ox; I was anointed with fresh oil.

So I made a vow in my anger, 'They will never enter into the resting place I had set aside for them.'"

When they were but a few men in number; yea, very few, and strangers in it.

And saved them from the hand of one full of hatred, And redeemed them out of the hand of the foe;

So he made a solemn vow that he would make them die in the desert,

May Yahweh, the God of Israel, be praised
from everlasting to everlasting.
Let all the people say, “Amen!”
Hallelujah!

Let the redeemed of the Lord proclaim
that He has redeemed them from the hand of the foe

And he blesses them and they multiply greatly, and he does not let their cattle become few.

When they become few and they are bent down from [the] oppression of calamity and grief,

Give us aid against the foe,
for human help is worthless.

Let his days be few; and let another take his office.

Costly {in Yahweh's view} [is] the death of his faithful [ones].

VAU. Let thy mercies come also unto me, O LORD, even thy salvation, according to thy word.

How few are the days of thy servant! When wilt thou execute sentence on my persecutors?

Show us favor, Lord, show us favor,
for we’ve had more than enough contempt.

We’ve had more than enough
scorn from the arrogant
and contempt from the proud.

and how he swore an oath to the Lord,
making a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob:

Flash Your lightning and scatter the foe;
shoot Your arrows and rout them.

Look, it is useless to spread a net in full view of all the birds,

For a prostitute’s fee is only a loaf of bread,
but an adulteress goes after a precious life.

“I’ve made fellowship offerings;
today I’ve fulfilled my vows.

So I came out to meet you,
to search for you, and I’ve found you.

I’ve spread coverings on my bed—
richly colored linen from Egypt.

I’ve perfumed my bed
with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.

He who has knowledge uses few words; a man of understanding is of an excellent spirit.

It is a trap for a man to [speak a vow of consecration and] say rashly, “It is holy!”
And [not until] afterward consider [whether he can fulfill it].

Every man's lifestyle is proper in his own view, but the LORD weighs the heart.

You will vomit the little you’ve eaten
and waste your pleasant words.

for it is better for him to say to you, “Come up here!”
than to demote you in plain view of a noble.

Some people view themselves as pure, but haven't been cleansed from their own filth.

This is the way of an adulteress:
she eats and wipes her mouth
and says, “I’ve done nothing wrong.”

If you have been foolish by exalting yourself
or if you’ve been scheming,
put your hand over your mouth.

I explored with my mind how to let my body enjoy life with wine and how to grasp folly—my mind still guiding me with wisdom—until I could see what is good for people to do under heaven during the few days of their lives.

As for the people that have been before him, and that come after him, they are innumerable: yet is not their joy the greater through him. This is also a vain thing and a vexation of mind. (v17) When thou comest into the house of God, keep thy foot and draw nigh, that thou mayest hear: that is better than the offerings of fools, for they know not what evil they do

Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few.

Just as dreams come when there are many cares, so the rash vow of a fool occurs when there are many words.

When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed.

Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay.

Never let your mouth cause you to sin and don't proclaim in the presence of the angel, "My promise was a mistake," for why should God be angry at your excuse and destroy what you've undertaken?

Here is what I have seen to be good: it is appropriate to eat, drink, and experience good in all the labor one does under the sun during the few days of his life God has given him, because that is his reward.

For who knows what [is] good for a man in his life during the few days of his fleeting life, which are fleeting as a shadow? For who can tell anyone what will happen {in the future} under the sun?

There was a little city, and few men within it; and there came a great king against it, and besieged it, and built great bulwarks against it:

Here's another tragedy that I've observed on earth, a kind of error that comes from an overseer:

So enjoy yourself in your youth, young man, and be encouraged during your younger days. Live as you like, consistent with your world view, but keep in mind that God will bring you to account for everything.

In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened,

I've come into my garden, my sister, my bride; I've gathered my myrrh with my spices. I've eaten my honeycomb with my honey. I've drunk my wine with my milk. Eat, friends! Drink and become drunk with love.

"I've taken off my clothes am I supposed to put them on again? I've washed my feet am I supposed to get them dirty again?"

The mandrakes give off their fragrance, and over our doors are all the choice fruits, both old and new, that I've stored up for you, my beloved.

If only you were like a brother to me, like one who nursed at my mother's breasts. If I found you outside I would kiss you, and no one would view me with contempt.

"Oh, you sinful nation! You people burdened down by iniquity! You offspring of those who keep practicing what is evil! You corrupt children! "They've abandoned the LORD; they've despised the Holy One of Israel; in their estrangement, they've walked away from me.

"Your country lies desolate; your cities have been incinerated. Before your very eyes, foreigners are devouring your land they've brought devastation on it, while the land is overthrown by foreigners.

If Yahweh of hosts had not left us survivors, we would have been as few as Sodom, we would have become like Gomorrah.

"How do your voluminous sacrifices benefit me?" the LORD is asking. "I've had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of well-fed beasts. I don't enjoy the blood of bulls, lambs, or goats.

As for your New Moons and your appointed festivals, I abhor them. They've become a burden to me; I've grown weary of carrying that burden.

Their respect for a man's position is a witness against them; and their sin is open to the view of all; like that of Sodom, it is not covered. A curse on their soul! for the measure of their sin is full.

And he dug it, and gathered out the stones of it, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also hewed out a winepress in it. And he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought fo

Indeed, a large vineyard will produce just a few gallons, and enough seed to yield several bushels will produce less than a bushel."

Ah! [Those who are] wise in their own eyes and have understanding {in their view}!

In that day the Lord will whistle for the fly that is in the mouth of the rivers and canals of Egypt and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.

Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy and cut off nations not a few.

He keeps bragging: "I've done it by the strength of my hand, and by my wisdom, because I'm so clever. I removed the boundaries of nations, and plundered their treasures; like a bull I brought down those who sat on thrones.

And the rest of the trees of his forest shall be few, that a child may write them.

At that time, his burden will depart from your shoulder and his yoke from your neck. Indeed, the yoke will be broken, because you've become obese."

Even the cypresses rejoice over you, as do the cedars of Lebanon, saying, "Now that you've been laid low, no woodcutter comes up against us.'

In answer, all of them will tell you, "You've also become as weak as we are! You have become just like us!'

The Lord who commands armies makes this solemn vow: "Be sure of this: Just as I have intended, so it will be; just as I have planned, it will happen.

"This is what I've planned for the whole earth, and this is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations.

"We've heard about Moab's pride so very proud he became! his arrogance, his pride, and his insolence; therefore he is alone.

Joy and gladness are taken away from the orchards, in the vineyards people will sing no songs, and no cheers are raised. No vintner treads out wine in the presses, because I've put an end to the shouting.