O God, Be Not Silent

¹O God, be not silent; be not speechless;be not still, O God.

²See how Your enemies rage,how Your foes have reared their heads.

³With cunning they scheme against Your peopleand conspire against those You cherish,

⁴saying, “Come, let us erase them as a nation;may the name of Israel be remembered no more.”

⁵For with one mind they plot together;they form an alliance against You—

⁶the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites,of Moab and the Hagrites,

⁷of Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek,of Philistia with the people of Tyre.

⁸Even Assyria has joined them,lending strength to the sons of Lot.Selah

⁹Do to them as You did to Midian,as to Sisera and Jabin at the River Kishon,

¹⁰who perished at Endorand became like dung on the ground.

¹¹Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb,and all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna,

¹²who said, “Let us possess for ourselvesthe pastures of God.”

¹³Make them like tumbleweed, O my God,like chaff before the wind.

¹⁴As fire consumes a forest,as a flame sets the mountains ablaze,

¹⁵so pursue them with Your tempest,and terrify them with Your storm.

¹⁶Cover their faces with shame,that they may seek Your name, O LORD.

¹⁷May they be ever ashamed and terrified;may they perish in disgrace.

¹⁸May they know that You alone,whose name is the LORD,are Most High over all the earth.

The Song of the Slandered

¹O God of my praise,be not silent.

²For wicked and deceitful mouths open against me;they speak against me with lying tongues.

³They surround me with hateful wordsand attack me without cause.

⁴In return for my love they accuse me,but I am a man of prayer.

⁵They repay me evil for good,and hatred for my love.

⁶Set over him a wicked man;let an accuser stand at his right hand.

⁷When he is tried, let him be found guilty,and may his prayer be regarded as sin.

⁸May his days be few;may another take his position.

⁹May his children be fatherlessand his wife a widow.

¹⁰May his children wander as beggars,seeking sustenancefar from their ruined homes.

¹¹May the creditor seize all he owns,and strangers plunder the fruits of his labor.

¹²May there be no one to extend kindness to him,and no one to favor his fatherless children.

¹³May his descendants be cut off;may their name be blotted out from the next generation.

¹⁴May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD,and the sin of his mother never be blotted out.

¹⁵May their sins always remain before the LORD,that He may cut off their memory from the earth.

¹⁶For he never thought to show kindness,but pursued the poor and needy and brokenhearted,even to their death.

¹⁷The cursing that he loved,may it fall on him;the blessing in which he refused to delight,may it be far from him.

¹⁸The cursing that he wore like a coat,may it soak into his body like water,and into his bones like oil.

¹⁹May it be like a robe wrapped about him,like a belt tied forever around him.

²⁰May this be the LORD’s reward to my accusers,to those who speak evil against me.

²¹But You, O GOD, the Lord,deal kindly with me for the sake of Your name;deliver me by the goodness of Your loving devotion.

²²For I am poor and needy;my heart is wounded within me.

²³I am fading away like a lengthening shadow;I am shaken off like a locust.

²⁴My knees are weak from fasting,and my body grows lean and gaunt.

²⁵I am an object of scorn to my accusers;when they see me, they shake their heads.

²⁶Help me, O LORD my God;save me according to Your loving devotion.

²⁷Let them know that this is Your hand,that You, O LORD, have done it.

²⁸Though they curse, You will bless.When they rise up, they will be put to shame,but Your servant will rejoice.

²⁹May my accusers be clothed with disgrace;may they wear their shame like a robe.

³⁰With my mouth I will thank the LORD profusely;I will praise Him in the presence of many.

³¹For He stands at the right hand of the needy one,to save him from the condemners of his soul.

Majestic Is His Work

¹Hallelujah!I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heartin the council of the upright and in the assembly.

²Great are the works of the LORD;they are pondered by all who delight in them.

³Splendid and majestic is His work;His righteousness endures forever.

⁴He has caused His wonders to be remembered;the LORD is gracious and compassionate.

⁵He provides food for those who fear Him;He remembers His covenant forever.

⁶He has shown His people the power of His worksby giving them the inheritance of the nations.

⁷The works of His hands are truth and justice;all His precepts are trustworthy.

⁸They are upheld forever and ever,enacted in truth and uprightness.

⁹He has sent redemption to His people;He has ordained His covenant forever;holy and awesome is His name.

¹⁰The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom;all who follow His precepts gain rich understanding.His praise endures forever!

The Way of Wisdom

¹Wisdom has built her house;she has carved outher seven pillars.

²She has prepared her meat and mixed her wine;she has also set her table.

³She has sent out her maidservants;she calls out from the heights of the city.

⁴“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”she says to him who lacks judgment.

⁵“Come, eat my breadand drink the wine I have mixed.

⁶Leave your folly behind, and you will live;walk in the way of understanding.”

⁷He who corrects a mocker brings shame on himself;he who rebukes a wicked man taints himself.

⁸Do not rebuke a mocker, or he will hate you;rebuke a wise man, and he will love you.

⁹Instruct a wise man, and he will be wiser still;teach a righteous man, and he will increase his learning.

¹⁰The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom,and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

¹¹For through wisdomyour days will be multiplied,and years will be added to your life.

¹²If you are wise, you are wise to your own advantage;but if you scoff, you alone will bear the consequences.

The Way of Folly

¹³The woman named Folly is loud;she is naive and knows nothing.

¹⁴She sits at the door of her house,on a seat in the heights of the city,

¹⁵calling out to those who pass by,who make their paths straight.

¹⁶“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”she says to him who lacks judgment.

¹⁷“Stolen water is sweet,and bread eaten in secret is tasty!”

¹⁸But they do not know that the deadare there,that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.