1 O God, whom I praise,
do not remain silent, |
2 for wicked and deceitful men
have opened their mouths against me;
they have spoken against me with lying tongues. |
3 With words of hatred they surround me;
they attack me without cause. |
4 In return for my friendship they accuse me,
but I am a man of prayer. |
5 They repay me evil for good,
and hatred for my friendship. |
6 Appoint1 109:6 Or They say: "Appoint (with quotation marks at the end of verse 19) an evil man2 109:6 Or the Evil One to oppose him;
let an accuser3 109:6 Or let Satan stand at his right hand. |
7 When he is tried, let him be found guilty,
and may his prayers condemn him. |
8 May his days be few;
may another take his place of leadership. |
9 May his children be fatherless
and his wife a widow. |
10 May his children be wandering beggars;
may they be driven4 109:10 Septuagint; Hebrew sought from their ruined homes. |
11 May a creditor seize all he has;
may strangers plunder the fruits of his labor. |
12 May no one extend kindness to him
or take pity on his fatherless children. |
13 May his descendants be cut off,
their names blotted out from the next generation. |
14 May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD ;
may the sin of his mother never be blotted out. |
15 May their sins always remain before the LORD ,
that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth. |
16 For he never thought of doing a kindness,
but hounded to death the poor
and the needy and the brokenhearted. |
17 He loved to pronounce a curse-
may it5 109:17 Or curse, / and it has come on him;
he found no pleasure in blessing-
may it be6 109:17 Or blessing, / and it is far from him. |
18 He wore cursing as his garment;
it entered into his body like water,
into his bones like oil. |
19 May it be like a cloak wrapped about him,
like a belt tied forever around him. |
20 May this be the LORD's payment to my accusers,
to those who speak evil of me. |
21 But you, O Sovereign LORD ,
deal well with me for your name's sake;
out of the goodness of your love, deliver me. |
22 For I am poor and needy,
and my heart is wounded within me. |
23 I fade away like an evening shadow;
I am shaken off like a locust. |
24 My knees give way from fasting;
my body is thin and gaunt. |
25 I am an object of scorn to my accusers;
when they see me, they shake their heads. |
26 Help me, O LORD my God;
save me in accordance with your love. |
27 Let them know that it is your hand,
that you, O LORD , have done it. |
28 They may curse, but you will bless;
when they attack they will be put to shame,
but your servant will rejoice. |
29 My accusers will be clothed with disgrace
and wrapped in shame as in a cloak. |
30 With my mouth I will greatly extol the LORD ;
in the great throng I will praise him. |
31 For he stands at the right hand of the needy one,
to save his life from those who condemn him. |
