Nor do those who pass by say,
“The blessing of the Lord be upon you;
We bless you in the name of the Lord.”

If You, Lord, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could stand?

A Song of Ascents.
Behold, bless the Lord, all servants of the Lord,
Who serve by night in the house of the Lord!

May the Lord bless you from Zion,
He who made heaven and earth.

You who stand in the house of the Lord,
In the courts of the house of our God!

He causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth;
Who makes lightnings for the rain,
Who brings forth the wind from His treasuries.

Those who make them will be like them,
Yes, everyone who trusts in them.

O house of Levi, bless the Lord;
You who revere the Lord, bless the Lord.

Blessed be the Lord from Zion,
Who dwells in Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord!

To Him who alone does great wonders,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting;

To Him who made the heavens with skill,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting;

To Him who spread out the earth above the waters,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting;

To Him who made the great lights,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting:

To Him who smote the Egyptians in their firstborn,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting,

To Him who divided the Red Sea asunder,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting,

To Him who led His people through the wilderness,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting;

To Him who smote great kings,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting,

Who remembered us in our low estate,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting,

Who gives food to all flesh,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.

Remember, O Lord, against the sons of Edom
The day of Jerusalem,
Who said, “Raze it, raze it
To its very foundation.”

O daughter of Babylon, you devastated one,
How blessed will be the one who repays you
With the recompense with which you have repaid us.

How blessed will be the one who seizes and dashes your little ones
Against the rock.

Do I not hate those who hate You, O Lord?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against You?

Who devise evil things in their hearts;
They continually stir up wars.

Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;
Preserve me from violent men
Who have purposed to trip up my feet.

“As for the head of those who surround me,
May the mischief of their lips cover them.

Do not incline my heart to any evil thing,
To practice deeds of wickedness
With men who do iniquity;
And do not let me eat of their delicacies.

Keep me from the jaws of the trap which they have set for me,
And from the snares of those who do iniquity.

Look to the right and see;
For there is no one who regards me;
There is no escape for me;
No one cares for my soul.

For the enemy has persecuted my soul;
He has crushed my life to the ground;
He has made me dwell in dark places, like those who have long been dead.

Answer me quickly, O Lord, my spirit fails;
Do not hide Your face from me,
Or I will become like those who go down to the pit.

And in Your lovingkindness, cut off my enemies
And destroy all those who afflict my soul,
For I am Your servant.

A Psalm of David.
Blessed be the Lord, my rock,
Who trains my hands for war,
And my fingers for battle;

My lovingkindness and my fortress,
My stronghold and my deliverer,
My shield and He in whom I take refuge,
Who subdues my people under me.

Who gives salvation to kings,
Who rescues David His servant from the evil sword.

How blessed are the people who are so situated;
How blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!

The Lord sustains all who fall
And raises up all who are bowed down.

The Lord is near to all who call upon Him,
To all who call upon Him in truth.

He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;
He will also hear their cry and will save them.

The Lord keeps all who love Him,
But all the wicked He will destroy.

Do not trust in princes,
In mortal man, in whom there is no salvation.

Who made heaven and earth,
The sea and all that is in them;
Who keeps faith forever;

Who executes justice for the oppressed;
Who gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets the prisoners free.

The Lord opens the eyes of the blind;
The Lord raises up those who are bowed down;
The Lord loves the righteous;

Who covers the heavens with clouds,
Who provides rain for the earth,
Who makes grass to grow on the mountains.

The Lord favors those who fear Him,
Those who wait for His lovingkindness.

He casts forth His ice as fragments;
Who can stand before His cold?

Let us swallow them alive like Sheol,
Even whole, as those who go down to the pit;

So are the ways of everyone who gains by violence;
It takes away the life of its possessors.

“But he who listens to me shall live securely
And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”

He stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
He is a shield to those who walk in integrity,

To deliver you from the way of evil,
From the man who speaks perverse things;

From those who leave the paths of uprightness
To walk in the ways of darkness;

Who delight in doing evil
And rejoice in the perversity of evil;

Whose paths are crooked,
And who are devious in their ways;

To deliver you from the strange woman,
From the adulteress who flatters with her words;

None who go to her return again,
Nor do they reach the paths of life.

For whom the Lord loves He reproves,
Even as a father corrects the son in whom he delights.

How blessed is the man who finds wisdom
And the man who gains understanding.

She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her,
And happy are all who hold her fast.

Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due,
When it is in your power to do it.

For they are life to those who find them
And health to all their body.

A worthless person, a wicked man,
Is the one who walks with a perverse mouth,

Who winks with his eyes, who signals with his feet,
Who points with his fingers;

Who with perversity in his heart continually devises evil,
Who spreads strife.

A false witness who utters lies,
And one who spreads strife among brothers.

So is the one who goes in to his neighbor’s wife;
Whoever touches her will not go unpunished.

The one who commits adultery with a woman is lacking sense;
He who would destroy himself does it.

That they may keep you from an adulteress,
From the foreigner who flatters with her words.

“They are all straightforward to him who understands,
And right to those who find knowledge.

“By me princes rule, and nobles,
All who judge rightly.

“I love those who love me;
And those who diligently seek me will find me.

To endow those who love me with wealth,
That I may fill their treasuries.

“Now therefore, O sons, listen to me,
For blessed are they who keep my ways.

“Blessed is the man who listens to me,
Watching daily at my gates,
Waiting at my doorposts.

“For he who finds me finds life
And obtains favor from the Lord.

“But he who sins against me injures himself;
All those who hate me love death.”

“Whoever is naive, let him turn in here!”
To him who lacks understanding she says,

He who corrects a scoffer gets dishonor for himself,
And he who reproves a wicked man gets insults for himself.

Calling to those who pass by,
Who are making their paths straight:

“Whoever is naive, let him turn in here,”
And to him who lacks understanding she says,

Poor is he who works with a negligent hand,
But the hand of the diligent makes rich.

He who gathers in summer is a son who acts wisely,
But he who sleeps in harvest is a son who acts shamefully.

He who walks in integrity walks securely,
But he who perverts his ways will be found out.

He who winks the eye causes trouble,
And a babbling fool will be ruined.

On the lips of the discerning, wisdom is found,
But a rod is for the back of him who lacks understanding.

He is on the path of life who heeds instruction,
But he who ignores reproof goes astray.

He who conceals hatred has lying lips,
And he who spreads slander is a fool.

When there are many words, transgression is unavoidable,
But he who restrains his lips is wise.

Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes,
So is the lazy one to those who send him.

He who despises his neighbor lacks sense,
But a man of understanding keeps silent.

He who goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets,
But he who is trustworthy conceals a matter.

He who is guarantor for a stranger will surely suffer for it,
But he who hates being a guarantor is secure.

The wicked earns deceptive wages,
But he who sows righteousness gets a true reward.

He who is steadfast in righteousness will attain to life,
And he who pursues evil will bring about his own death.

As a ring of gold in a swine’s snout
So is a beautiful woman who lacks discretion.

There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more,
And there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in want.

The generous man will be prosperous,
And he who waters will himself be watered.

He who withholds grain, the people will curse him,
But blessing will be on the head of him who sells it.

He who diligently seeks good seeks favor,
But he who seeks evil, evil will come to him.