“Once [for all] I have sworn by My holiness, [My vow which cannot be violated];
I will not lie to David.

But [in apparent contradiction of all this] You [the faithful Lord] have cast off and rejected;
You have been full of wrath against Your anointed.

You have spurned and repudiated the covenant with Your servant;
You have profaned his crown [by casting it] in the dust.

You have broken down all his [city] walls;
You have brought his strongholds to ruin.

You have exalted the right hand of his foes;
You have made all his enemies rejoice.

Also, You have turned back the edge of his sword
And have not made him [strong enough] to stand in battle.

You have put an end to his splendor
And have hurled his throne to the ground.

You have shortened the days of his youth;
You have covered him with shame. Selah.

Remember how fleeting my lifetime is;
For what vanity, [for what emptiness, for what futility, for what wisp of smoke] You have created all the sons of men!

With which Your enemies have taunted, O Lord,
With which they have mocked the footsteps of Your anointed.

Lord, You have been our dwelling place [our refuge, our sanctuary, our stability] in all generations.

You have placed our wickedness before you,
Our secret sins [which we tried to conceal, You have placed] in the [revealing] light of Your presence.

Make us glad in proportion to the days You have afflicted us,
And the years we have suffered evil.

Because you have made the Lord, [who is] my refuge,
Even the Most High, your dwelling place,

For You, O Lord, have made me glad by Your works;
At the works of Your hands I joyfully sing.

But my horn [my emblem of strength and power] You have exalted like that of a wild ox;
I am anointed with fresh oil [for Your service].

The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
The floods have lifted up their voice;
The floods lift up their pounding waves.

If the Lord had not been my help,
I would soon have dwelt in [the land of] silence.

Can a throne of destruction be allied with You,
One which frames and devises mischief by decree [under the sacred name of law]?

O sing to the Lord a new song,
For He has done marvelous and wonderful things;
His right hand and His holy arm have gained the victory for Him.

He has [graciously] remembered His lovingkindness and His faithfulness to the house of Israel;
All the ends of the earth have witnessed the salvation of our God.

For I have eaten ashes like bread,
And have mingled my drink with tears

Because of Your indignation and Your wrath,
For You have lifted me up and thrown me away.

You will arise and have compassion on Zion,
For it is time to be gracious and show favor to her;
Yes, the appointed time [the moment designated] has come.

“But You remain the same,
And Your years will never end.

You set a boundary [for the waters] that they may not cross over,
So that they will not return to cover the earth.

Beside them the birds of the heavens have their nests;
They lift up their voices and sing among the branches.

O Lord, how many and varied are Your works!
In wisdom You have made them all;
The earth is full of Your riches and Your creatures.

There the ships [of the sea] sail,
And Leviathan [the sea monster], which You have formed to play there.

I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.

We have sinned like our fathers;
We have committed iniquity, we have behaved wickedly.

Therefore He said He would destroy them,
[And He would have done so] had not Moses, His chosen one, stepped into the gap before Him,
To turn away His wrath from destroying them.

Then they were glad because of the calm,
And He guided them to their desired haven (harbor).

Have You not rejected us, O God?
And will You not go out, O God, with our armies?

For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me;
They have spoken against me with a lying tongue.

They have also surrounded me with words of hatred,
And have fought against me without a cause.

They have repaid me evil for good,
And hatred for my love.

Let there be no one to extend kindness to him,
Nor let anyone be gracious to his fatherless children.

I also have become a reproach and an object of taunting to others;
When they see me, they shake their heads [in derision].

And let them know that this is Your hand;
You, Lord, have done it.

Great are the works of the Lord,
Studied by all those who delight in them.

The [reverent] fear of the Lord is the beginning (the prerequisite, the absolute essential, the alphabet) of wisdom;
A good understanding and a teachable heart are possessed by all those who do the will of the Lord;
His praise endures forever.

They have mouths, but they cannot speak;
They have eyes, but they cannot see;

They have ears, but they cannot hear;
They have noses, but they cannot smell;

They have hands, but they cannot feel;
They have feet, but they cannot walk;
Nor can they make a sound with their throats.

For You have rescued my life from death,
My eyes from tears,
And my feet from stumbling and falling.

I believed [and clung to my God] when I said,
“I am greatly afflicted.”

O Lord, truly I am Your servant;
I am Your servant, the son of Your handmaid;
You have unfastened my chains.

I will give thanks to You, for You have heard and answered me;
And You have become my salvation [my Rescuer, my Savior].

You have ordained Your precepts,
That we should follow them with [careful] diligence.

Then I will not be ashamed
When I look [with respect] to all Your commandments [as my guide].

With all my heart I have sought You, [inquiring of You and longing for You];
Do not let me wander from Your commandments [neither through ignorance nor by willful disobedience].

Your word I have treasured and stored in my heart,
That I may not sin against You.

With my lips I have told of
All the ordinances of Your mouth.

I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies,
As much as in all riches.

I will meditate on Your precepts
And [thoughtfully] regard Your ways [the path of life established by Your precepts].

I have told of my ways, and You have answered me;
Teach me Your statutes.

I have chosen the faithful way;
I have placed Your ordinances before me.

So I will have an answer for the one who taunts me,
For I trust [completely] in Your word [and its reliability].

And I will walk at liberty,
For I seek and deeply long for Your precepts.

Zayin.
Remember [always] the word and promise to Your servant,
In which You have made me hope.

The arrogant utterly ridicule me,
Yet I do not turn away from Your law.

I have remembered [carefully] Your ancient ordinances, O Lord,
And I have taken comfort.

Your statutes are my songs
In the house of my pilgrimage.

O Lord, I remember Your name in the night,
And keep Your law.

This has become mine [as the gift of Your grace],
That I observe Your precepts [accepting them with loving obedience].

Heth.
The Lord is my portion;
I have promised to keep Your words.

The cords of the wicked have encircled and ensnared me,
But I have not forgotten Your law.

Teth.
You have dealt well with Your servant,
O Lord, according to Your promise.

Teach me good judgment (discernment) and knowledge,
For I have believed and trusted and relied on Your commandments.

The arrogant have forged a lie against me,
But I will keep Your precepts with all my heart.

It is good for me that I have been afflicted,
That I may learn Your statutes.

Yodh.
Your hands have made me and established me;
Give me understanding and a teachable heart, that I may learn Your commandments.

May those who [reverently] fear You see me and be glad,
Because I wait for Your word.

I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are fair,
And that in faithfulness You have disciplined me.

May those who fear You [with submissive wonder] turn to me,
Even those who have known Your testimonies.

For I have become like a wineskin [blackened and shriveled] in the smoke [in which it hangs],
Yet I do not forget Your statutes.

The arrogant (godless) have dug pits for me,
Men who do not conform to Your law.

Your faithfulness continues from generation to generation;
You have established the earth, and it stands [securely].

If Your law had not been my delight,
Then I would have perished in my time of trouble.

I will never forget Your precepts,
For by them You have revived me and given me life.

I am Yours, save me [as Your own];
For I have [diligently] sought Your precepts and required them [as my greatest need].

I have seen that all [human] perfection has its limits [no matter how grand and perfect and noble];
Your commandment is exceedingly broad and extends without limits [into eternity].

I have better understanding and deeper insight than all my teachers [because of Your word],
For Your testimonies are my meditation.

I have restrained my feet from every evil way,
That I may keep Your word.

I have not turned aside from Your ordinances,
For You Yourself have taught me.

I have sworn [an oath] and have confirmed it,
That I will keep Your righteous ordinances.

The wicked have laid a snare for me,
Yet I do not wander from Your precepts.

I have taken Your testimonies as a heritage forever,
For they are the joy of my heart.

I have inclined my heart to perform Your statutes
Forever, even to the end.

Uphold me that I may be safe,
That I may have regard for Your statutes continually.

Ayin.
I have done justice and righteousness;
Do not leave me to those who oppress me.

It is time for the Lord to act;
They have broken Your law.

Establish my footsteps in [the way of] Your word;
Do not let any human weakness have power over me [causing me to be separated from You].

You have commanded Your testimonies in righteousness
And in great faithfulness.

My zeal has [completely] consumed me,
Because my enemies have forgotten Your words.

Trouble and anguish have found me,
Yet Your commandments are my delight and my joy.

Of old I have known from Your testimonies
That You have founded them forever.

Those who love Your law have great peace;
Nothing makes them stumble.

My soul keeps Your testimonies [hearing and accepting and obeying them];
I love them greatly.