Psalm 17

A prayer of David.

1 Hear me,d Lord, my plea is just;

listen to my cry.e

Hearf my prayer—

it does not rise from deceitful lips.g

2 Let my vindicationh come from you;

may your eyes see what is right.i

3 Though you probe my heart,j

though you examine me at night and test me,k

you will find that I have planned no evil;l

my mouth has not transgressed.m

4 Though people tried to bribe me,

I have kept myself from the ways of the violent

through what your lips have commanded.

5 My steps have held to your paths;n

my feet have not stumbled.o

6 I call on you, my God, for you will answer me;p

turn your ear to meq and hear my prayer.r

7 Show me the wonders of your great love,s

you who save by your right handt

those who take refugeu in you from their foes.

8 Keep mev as the apple of your eye;w

hide mex in the shadow of your wingsy

9 from the wicked who are out to destroy me,

from my mortal enemies who surround me.z

10 They close up their callous hearts,a

and their mouths speak with arrogance.b

11 They have tracked me down, they now surround me,c

with eyes alert, to throw me to the ground.

12 They are like a liond hungry for prey,e

like a fierce lion crouching in cover.

13 Rise up,f Lord, confront them, bring them down;g

with your sword rescue me from the wicked.

14 By your hand save me from such people, Lord,

from those of this worldh whose reward is in this life.i

May what you have stored up for the wicked fill their bellies;

may their children gorge themselves on it,

and may there be leftoversj for their little ones.

15 As for me, I will be vindicated and will see your face;

when I awake,k I will be satisfied with seeing your likeness.l

Psalm 18a

18:Title–50pp—2Sa 22:1–51

For the director of music. Of David the servant of the Lord. He sang to the Lord the words of this song when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said:

1 I love you, Lord, my strength.m

2 The Lord is my rock,n my fortresso and my deliverer;p

my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,q

my shieldb r and the hornc of my salvation,s my stronghold.

3 I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise,t

and I have been saved from my enemies.u

4 The cords of deathv entangled me;

the torrentsw of destruction overwhelmed me.

5 The cords of the grave coiled around me;

the snares of deathx confronted me.

6 In my distressy I called to the Lord;z

I cried to my God for help.

From his temple he heard my voice;a

my cry cameb before him, into his ears.

7 The earth trembledc and quaked,d

and the foundations of the mountains shook;e

they trembled because he was angry.f

8 Smoke rose from his nostrils;g

consuming fireh came from his mouth,

burning coalsi blazed out of it.

9 He parted the heavens and came down;j

dark cloudsk were under his feet.

10 He mounted the cherubiml and flew;

he soaredm on the wings of the wind.n

11 He made darkness his covering,o his canopyp around him—

the dark rain clouds of the sky.

12 Out of the brightness of his presenceq clouds advanced,

with hailstonesr and bolts of lightning.s

13 The Lord thunderedt from heaven;

the voice of the Most High resounded.d

14 He shot his arrowsu and scattered the enemy,

with great bolts of lightningv he routed them.w

15 The valleys of the sea were exposed

and the foundationsx of the earth laid bare

at your rebuke,y Lord,

at the blast of breath from your nostrils.z

16 He reached down from on high and took hold of me;

he drew me out of deep waters.a

17 He rescued me from my powerful enemy,b

from my foes, who were too strong for me.c

18 They confronted me in the day of my disaster,d

but the Lord was my support.e

19 He brought me out into a spacious place;f

he rescued me because he delighted in me.g

20 The Lord has dealt with me according to my righteousness;h

according to the cleanness of my handsi he has rewarded me.j

21 For I have kept the ways of the Lord;k

I am not guilty of turningl from my God.

22 All his laws are before me;m

I have not turned away from his decrees.

23 I have been blamelessn before him

and have kept myself from sin.

24 The Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness,o

according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.

25 To the faithfulp you show yourself faithful,q

to the blameless you show yourself blameless,

26 to the purer you show yourself pure,

but to the devious you show yourself shrewd.s

27 You save the humblet

but bring low those whose eyes are haughty.u

28 You, Lord, keep my lampv burning;

my God turns my darkness into light.w

29 With your helpx I can advance against a troope;

with my God I can scale a wall.

30 As for God, his way is perfect:y

The Lord’s word is flawless;z

he shieldsa all who take refugeb in him.

31 For who is God besides the Lord?c

And who is the Rockd except our God?

32 It is God who arms me with strengthe

and keeps my way secure.f

33 He makes my feet like the feet of a deer;g

he causes me to stand on the heights.h

34 He trains my hands for battle;i

my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

35 You make your saving help my shield,

and your right hand sustainsj me;

your help has made me great.

36 You provide a broad pathk for my feet,

so that my ankles do not give way.l

37 I pursued my enemiesm and overtook them;

I did not turn back till they were destroyed.

38 I crushed themn so that they could not rise;o

they fell beneath my feet.p

39 You armed me with strengthq for battle;

you humbled my adversariesr before me.

40 You made my enemies turn their backss in flight,

and I destroyedt my foes.

41 They cried for help, but there was no one to save themu—

to the Lord, but he did not answer.v

42 I beat them as fine as windblown dust;w

I trampled themf like mud in the streets.

43 You have delivered me from the attacks of the people;

you have made me the head of nations.x

People I did not knowy now serve me,

44 foreignersz cower before me;

as soon as they hear of me, they obey me.

45 They all lose heart;a

they come tremblingb from their strongholds.c

46 The Lord lives!d Praise be to my Rock!e

Exalted be Godf my Savior!g

47 He is the God who avengesh me,

who subdues nationsi under me,

48 who savesj me from my enemies.k

You exalted me above my foes;

from a violent manl you rescued me.

49 Therefore I will praise you, Lord, among the nations;m

I will singn the praises of your name.o

50 He gives his king great victories;

he shows unfailing love to his anointed,p

to Davidq and to his descendants forever.r

Psalm 19a

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

1 The heavenss declaret the glory of God;u

the skiesv proclaim the work of his hands.w

2 Day after day they pour forth speech;

night after night they reveal knowledge.x

3 They have no speech, they use no words;

no sound is heard from them.

4 Yet their voiceb goes out into all the earth,

their words to the ends of the world.y

In the heavens God has pitched a tentz for the sun.a

5 It is like a bridegroomb coming out of his chamber,c

like a championd rejoicing to run his course.

6 It rises at one end of the heavense

and makes its circuit to the other;f

nothing is deprived of its warmth.

7 The law of the Lordg is perfect,h

refreshing the soul.i

The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy,j

making wise the simple.k

8 The precepts of the Lord are right,l

giving joym to the heart.

The commands of the Lord are radiant,

giving light to the eyes.n

9 The fear of the Lordo is pure,

enduring forever.

The decrees of the Lord are firm,

and all of them are righteous.p

10 They are more precious than gold,q

than much pure gold;

they are sweeter than honey,r

than honey from the honeycomb.s

11 By them your servant is warned;

in keeping them there is great reward.

12 But who can discern their own errors?

Forgive my hidden faults.t

13 Keep your servant also from willful sins;u

may they not rule over me.v

Then I will be blameless,w

innocent of great transgression.

14 May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart

be pleasingx in your sight,

Lord, my Rocky and my Redeemer.z

Psalm 20a

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

1 May the Lord answer you when you are in distress;a

may the name of the God of Jacobb protect you.c

2 May he send you helpd from the sanctuarye

and grant you supportf from Zion.g

3 May he rememberh all your sacrifices

and accept your burnt offerings.b i

4 May he give you the desire of your heartj

and make all your plans succeed.k

5 May we shout for joyl over your victory

and lift up our bannersm in the name of our God.

May the Lord grant all your requests.n

6 Now this I know:

The Lord gives victory to his anointed.o

He answers him from his heavenly sanctuary

with the victorious power of his right hand.p

7 Some trust in chariotsq and some in horses,r

but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.s

8 They are brought to their knees and fall,t

but we rise upu and stand firm.v

9 Lord, give victory to the king!

Answer usw when we call!

Psalm 21a

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

1 The king rejoices in your strength, Lord.x

How great is his joy in the victories you give!y

2 You have granted him his heart’s desirez

and have not withheld the request of his lips.b

3 You came to greet him with rich blessings

and placed a crown of pure golda on his head.b

4 He asked you for life, and you gave it to him—

length of days, for ever and ever.c

5 Through the victoriesd you gave, his glory is great;

you have bestowed on him splendor and majesty.e

6 Surely you have granted him unending blessings

and made him glad with the joyf of your presence.g

7 For the king trusts in the Lord;h

through the unfailing lovei of the Most Highj

he will not be shaken.k

8 Your hand will lay holdl on all your enemies;

your right hand will seize your foes.

9 When you appear for battle,

you will burn them up as in a blazing furnace.

The Lord will swallow them up in his wrath,

and his fire will consume them.m

10 You will destroy their descendants from the earth,

their posterity from mankind.n

11 Though they plot evilo against you

and devise wicked schemes,p they cannot succeed.

12 You will make them turn their backsq

when you aim at them with drawn bow.

13 Be exaltedr in your strength, Lord;s

we will sing and praise your might.