Aa
Prayer against an Enemy
For the choir director. A Davidic psalm.
1God of my praise, do not be silent. Ps 28:1; 83:1
2For wicked and deceitful mouths open against me;
they speak against me with lying tongues. Ps 10:7; 52:4; 120:2
3They surround me with hateful words
and attack me without cause. Ps 35:7; 69:4; Jn 15:25
4In return for my love they accuse me,
but I continue to pray. Lit but I, prayer Ps 69:13
5They repay me evil for good,
and hatred for my love. Ps 35:12; 38:20
6Set a wicked person over him;
let an accuser Or adversary stand at his right hand. Zch 3:1
7When he is judged, let him be found guilty,
and let his prayer be counted as sin. Ps 1:5; Pr 28:9
8Let his days be few;
let another take over his position. Ps 55:23; Ac 1:20
9Let his children be fatherless
and his wife a widow. Ex 22:24
10Let his children wander as beggars,
searching for food far LXX reads beggars, driven far from their demolished homes. Jb 30:5-8; Ps 59:15
11Let a creditor seize all he has;
let strangers plunder what he has worked for. Dt 28:43-44; Lm 5:2
12Let no one show him kindness,
and let no one be gracious to his fatherless children. Jb 5:4
13Let the line of his descendants be cut off;
let their name be blotted out in the next generation. Jb 18:17,19; Ps 9:5; Pr 10:7
14Let his ancestors’ guilt
be remembered before the Lord, Ex 20:5; Nm 14:18
and do not let his mother’s sin be blotted out. Neh 4:5; Jr 18:23
15Let their sins Lit Let them always remain before the Lord,
and let Him erase Or cut off all memory of them from the earth. Ps 34:16; 90:8; Jr 16:17
16For he did not think to show kindness,
but pursued the afflicted, poor, and brokenhearted
in order to put them to death. Ps 34:18; 94:6
17He loved cursing — let it fall on him;
he took no delight in blessing — let it be far from him. Pr 14:14; Ezk 35:6; Mt 7:2
18He wore cursing like his coat —
let it enter his body like water
and go into his bones like oil. Nm 5:22
19Let it be like a robe he wraps around himself,
like a belt he always wears. Ps 73:26
20Let this be the Lord’s payment to my accusers,
to those who speak evil against me. Ps 54:5; 94:23; Is 3:11
21But You, Yahweh my Lord,
deal kindly with me because of Your name; Ps 79:9; 106:8
deliver me because of the goodness of Your faithful love. Ps 69:16
22For I am afflicted and needy; Ps 40:17; 86:1
my heart is wounded within me. Ps 143:4
23I fade away like a lengthening shadow; Ps 102:11
I am shaken off like a locust.
24My knees are weak from fasting,
and my body is emaciated. Lit denied from fat Jb 16:8; Ps 35:13
25I have become an object of ridicule to my accusers; Lit to them
when they see me, they shake their heads in scorn. Ps 22:6-7; 69:19
26Help me, Lord my God;
save me according to Your faithful love Ps 119:86
27so they may know that this is Your hand
and that You, Lord, have done it. Jb 37:7
28Though they curse, You will bless.
When they rise up, they will be put to shame,
but Your servant will rejoice. 2Sm 16:11-12; Is 65:14
29My accusers will be clothed with disgrace;
they will wear their shame like a cloak. Jb 8:22; Ps 35:26; 132:18
30I will fervently thank the Lord with my mouth;
I will praise Him in the presence of many. Ps 22:22,25; 35:18; 111:1
31For He stands at the right hand of the needy
to save him from those who would condemn him. Ps 16:8; 110:5; 121:5