Psalm 9; Psalm 10; Psalm 11; Psalm 12; Psalm 13; Psalm 14; Psalm 15; Psalm 16

1 Lord, I will praise you with all my heart. I will tell about all of the miracles you have done. 2 I will be glad and full of joy because of you. Most High God, I will sing praise to you. 3 My enemies turn back. They fall down and die right in front of you. 4 You have proved that I haven't done anything wrong. You have sat on your throne and judged fairly. 5 You have punished the nations. You have destroyed evil people. You have erased their names from your book for ever and ever. 6 The enemy has been destroyed forever. You have leveled their cities to the ground. Even the memory of them is gone. 7 The LORD rules forever. He has set up his throne so that he can judge people. 8 He will judge the world in keeping with what is right. He will rule over all of its people fairly. 9 The LORD is a place of safety for those who have been beaten down. He keeps them safe in times of trouble. 10 Lord, those who know you will trust in you. You have never deserted those who look to you. 11 Sing praises to the Lord. He rules from his throne in Zion. Tell among the nations what he has done. 12 The One who pays back murderers remembers. He doesn't forget the cries of those who are hurting. 13 Lord, see how badly my enemies treat me! Show me your favor. Don't let me go down to the gates of death. 14 Then I can give praise to you at the gates of the city of Zion. There I will be full of joy because you have saved me. 15 The nations have fallen into the pit they have dug. Their feet are caught in the net they have hidden. 16 The LORD is known to be fair. Evil people are trapped by what they have done. "Higgaion." "Selah" 17 Sinful people go down to the grave. So do all the nations that forget God. 18 But those who are in need will always be remembered. The hope of those who are hurting will never die. 19 Lord, rise up. Don't let people win the battle. Let the nations come to you and be judged. 20 Lord, strike them with terror. Let the nations know they are only human. "Selah"

1 Lord, why are you so far away? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? 2 An evil person is proud and hunts down those who are weak. He catches weak people by making clever plans. 3 He brags about what his heart longs for. He speaks well of those who always want more. He attacks the LORD with his words. 4 Because he is proud, that evil person doesn't turn to the Lord. There is no room for God in any of his thoughts. 5 Everything always goes well for him. So he is proud. He doesn't want to have anything to do with God's laws. He makes fun of all of his enemies. 6 He says to himself, "I will always be secure. I will always be happy. I'll never have any trouble." 7 His mouth is full of curses and lies and warnings. With his tongue he speaks evil and makes trouble. 8 Sinful people hide and wait near the villages. From their hiding places they murder those who aren't guilty of doing anything wrong. They watch in secret for those they want to attack. 9 They hide and wait like a lion in the bushes. From their hiding places they wait to catch those who are helpless. They catch them and drag them off in their nets. 10 Those they have attacked are beaten up. They fall to the ground. They fall because their attackers are too strong for them. 11 Sinful people say to themselves, "God doesn't pay any attention. He covers his face. He never sees us." 12 Lord, rise up! God, show your power! Don't forget those who are helpless. 13 Why do sinful people attack you with their words? Why do they say to themselves, "He won't hold us accountable"? 14 God, you see trouble and sadness. You take note of it. You do something about it. So those who are attacked place themselves in your care. You help children whose fathers have died. 15 Take away the power of bad and sinful people. Hold them accountable for the evil things they do. Uncover all the evil they have done. 16 The LORD is King for ever and ever. The nations will disappear from his land. 17 Lord, you hear the longings of those who are hurting. You cheer them up and give them hope. You listen to their cries. 18 You stand up for those whose fathers have died and for those who have been beaten down. You do it so that no one made of dust may terrify others anymore.

1 I run to the LORD for safety. So how can you say to me, "Fly away like a bird to your mountain. 2 Look! Evil people are bending their bows. They are placing their arrows against the strings. They are planning to shoot from the shadows at those who have honest hearts. 3 When law and order are being destroyed, what can godly people do?" 4 The LORD is in his holy temple. The LORD is on his throne in heaven. He watches all people. His eyes study them. 5 The LORD watches over those who do what is right. But he hates sinful people and those who love to hurt others. 6 He will pour out flaming coals and burning sulfur on those who do what is wrong. A hot and dry wind will destroy them. 7 The LORD always does what is right. So he loves it when people do what is fair. Those who are honest will enjoy his blessing.

1 Help, Lord! Those who do what is right are gone. Those who are faithful have disappeared from the earth. 2 Everyone tells lies to his neighbors. With his lips he praises others, but he doesn't really mean it. 3 May the LORD cut off all lips that don't mean what they say. May he cut out every tongue that brags. 4 They say, "We will win the battle with our tongues. Our lips belong to us. No one else is in charge of us." 5 The LORD says, "The weak are beaten down. Those who are in need groan. So I will stand up to help them. I will keep them safe from those who tell lies about them." 6 The words of the LORD are perfect. They are like silver made pure in a clay furnace. They are like silver made pure seven times over. 7 Lord, you will keep us safe. You will always keep sinners from hurting us. 8 Proud and sinful people walk around openly when the evil they do is praised by others.

1 Lord, how long must I wait? Will you forget me forever? How long will you turn your face away from me? 2 How long must I struggle with my thoughts? How long must my heart be sad day after day? How long will my enemies keep winning the battle over me? 3 LORD my God, look at me and answer me. Give me new life, or I will die. 4 Then my enemies will say, "We have beaten him." They will be filled with joy when I die. 5 But I trust in your faithful love. My heart is filled with joy because you will save me. 6 I will sing to the Lord. He has been so good to me.

1 Foolish people say in their hearts, "There is no God." They do all kinds of horrible and evil things. No one does anything good. 2 The LORD looks down from heaven on all people. He wants to see if there are any who understand. He wants to see if there are any who trust in God. 3 All of them have turned away. They have all become evil. No one does anything good, no one at all. 4 Won't those who do evil ever learn? They eat up my people as if they were eating bread. They don't call out to the LORD for help. 5 Just look at them! They are filled with terror because God is among those who do right. 6 You who do evil make it hard for poor people to do what they plan to do. But the LORD is their place of safety. 7 How I pray that the One who saves Israel will come out of Zion! Then the LORD will bless his people with great success again. So let the people of Jacob be filled with joy! Let Israel be glad!

1 Lord, who can live in your sacred tent? Who can stay on your holy hill? 2 Anyone who lives without blame and does what is right. He speaks the truth from his heart. 3 He doesn't tell lies about others. He doesn't do wrong to his neighbors. He doesn't say anything bad about them. 4 He hates sinful people. He honors those who have respect for the Lord. He keeps his promises even when it hurts. 5 He lends his money without charging too much interest. He doesn't accept money to harm those who aren't guilty. Anyone who lives like that will always be secure.

1 God, keep me safe. I go to you for safety. 2 I said to the Lord, "You are my Lord. Without you, I don't have anything that is good." 3 God's people who live in our land are glorious. I take great delight in them. 4 Those who run after other gods will have nothing but trouble. I will not pour out offerings of blood to those gods. My lips will not speak their names. 5 Lord, everything you have given me is good. You have made my life secure. 6 I am very pleased with what you have given me. I am very happy with what I've received from you. 7 I will praise the Lord. He gives me good advice. Even at night my heart teaches me. 8 I know that the LORD is always with me. He is at my right hand. I will always be secure. 9 So my heart is glad. Joy is on my tongue. My body also will be secure. 10 You will not leave me in the grave. You will not let your faithful one rot away. 11 You always show me the path that leads to life. You will fill me with joy when I am with you. You will give me endless pleasures at your right hand.