Psalms 7; Psalms 8; Psalms 9

1 O Lord, my God, I come to you for protection; rescue me and save me from all who pursue me,

2 or else like a lion they will carry me off where no one can save me, and there they will tear me to pieces.

3 O Lord, my God, if I have wronged anyone, if I have betrayed a friend or without cause done violence to my enemy - if I have done any of these things -

5 then let my enemies pursue me and catch me, let them cut me down and kill me and leave me lifeless on the ground!

6 Rise in your anger, O Lord! Stand up against the fury of my enemies; rouse yourself and help me! Justice is what you demand,

7 so bring together all the peoples around you, and rule over them from above.

8 You are the judge of all people. Judge in my favor, O Lord; you know that I am innocent.

9 You are a righteous God and judge our thoughts and desires. Stop the wickedness of evildoers and reward those who are good.

10 God is my protector; he saves those who obey him.

11 God is a righteous judge and always condemns the wicked.

12 If they do not change their ways, God will sharpen his sword. He bends his bow and makes it ready;

13 he takes up his deadly weapons and aims his burning arrows.

14 See how wicked people think up evil; they plan trouble and practice deception.

15 But in the traps they set for others, they themselves get caught.

16 So they are punished by their own evil and are hurt by their own violence.

17 I thank the Lord for his justice; I sing praises to the Lord, the Most High.

1 O Lord, our Lord, your greatness is seen in all the world! Your praise reaches up to the heavens;

2 it is sung by children and babies. You are safe and secure from all your enemies; you stop anyone who opposes you.

3 When I look at the sky, which you have made, at the moon and the stars, which you set in their places -

4 what are human beings, that you think of them; mere mortals, that you care for them?

5 Yet you made them inferior only to yourself; you crowned them with glory and honor.

6 You appointed them rulers over everything you made; you placed them over all creation:

7 sheep and cattle, and the wild animals too;

8 the birds and the fish and the creatures in the seas.

9 O Lord, our Lord, your greatness is seen in all the world!

1 I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all the wonderful things you have done.

2 I will sing with joy because of you. I will sing praise to you, Almighty God.

3 My enemies turn back when you appear; they fall down and die.

4 You are fair and honest in your judgments, and you have judged in my favor.

5 You have condemned the heathen and destroyed the wicked; they will be remembered no more.

6 Our enemies are finished forever; you have destroyed their cities, and they are completely forgotten.

7 But the Lord is king forever; he has set up his throne for judgment.

8 He rules the world with righteousness; he judges the nations with justice.

9 The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a place of safety in times of trouble.

10 Those who know you, Lord, will trust you; you do not abandon anyone who comes to you.

11 Sing praise to the Lord, who rules in Zion! Tell every nation what he has done!

12 God remembers those who suffer; he does not forget their cry, and he punishes those who wrong them.

13 Be merciful to me, O Lord! See the sufferings my enemies cause me! Rescue me from death, O Lord,

14 that I may stand before the people of Jerusalem and tell them all the things for which I praise you. I will rejoice because you saved me.

15 The heathen have dug a pit and fallen in; they have been caught in their own trap.

16 The Lord has revealed himself by his righteous judgments, and the wicked are trapped by their own deeds.

17 Death is the destiny of all the wicked, of all those who reject God.

18 The needy will not always be neglected; the hope of the poor will not be crushed forever.

19 Come, Lord! Do not let anyone defy you! Bring the heathen before you and pronounce judgment on them.

20 Make them afraid, O Lord; make them know that they are only mortal beings.