I Waited Patiently for the LORD

¹I waited patiently for the LORD;He inclined to me and heard my cry.

²He lifted me up from the pit of despair,out of the miry clay;He set my feet upon a rock,and made my footsteps firm.

³He put a new song in my mouth,a hymn of praise to our God.Many will see and fearand put their trust in the LORD.

⁴Blessed is the manwho has made the LORD his trust,who has not turned to the proud,nor to those who lapse into falsehood.

⁵Many, O LORD my God,are the wonders You have done,and the plans You have for us—none can compare to You—if I proclaim and declare them,they are more than I can count.

⁶Sacrifice and offering You did not desire,but my ears You have opened.Burnt offerings and sin offeringsYou did not require.

⁷Then I said, “Here I am, I have come—it is written about me in the scroll:

⁸I delight to do Your will, O my God;Your law is within my heart.”

⁹I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly;behold, I do not seal my lips,as You, O LORD, do know.

¹⁰I have not covered up Your righteousness in my heart;I have declared Your faithfulness and salvation;I have not concealed Your loving devotion and faithfulnessfrom the great assembly.

¹¹O LORD, do not withhold Your mercy from me;Your loving devotion and faithfulness will always guard me.

¹²For evils without number surround me;my sins have overtaken me, so that I cannot see.They are more than the hairs of my head,and my heart has failed within me.

¹³Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me;hurry, O LORD, to help me.

¹⁴May those who seek my lifebe ashamed and confounded;may those who wish me harmbe repelled and humiliated.

¹⁵May those who say to me, “Aha, aha!”be appalled at their own shame.

¹⁶May all who seek Yourejoice and be glad in You;may those who love Your salvationalways say, “The LORD be magnified!”

¹⁷But I am poor and needy;may the Lord think of me.You are my helper and deliverer;O my God, do not delay.

Hurry, O LORD, to Help Me!

¹Make haste, O God, to deliver me!Hurry, O LORD, to help me!

²May those who seek my lifebe ashamed and confounded;may those who wish me harmbe repelled and humiliated.

³May those who say, “Aha, aha!”retreat because of their shame.

⁴May all who seek Yourejoice and be glad in You;may those who love Your salvation always say,“Let God be magnified!”

⁵But I am poor and needy;hurry to me, O God.You are my help and my deliverer;O LORD, do not delay.

Give Ear to My Words

¹Give ear to my words, O LORD;consider my groaning.

²Attend to the sound of my cry,my King and my God,for to You I pray.

³In the morning, O LORD, You hear my voice;at daybreak I lay my plea before Youand wait in expectation.

⁴For You are not a God who delights in wickedness;no evil can dwell with You.

⁵The boastful cannot stand in Your presence;You hate all workers of iniquity.

⁶You destroy those who tell lies;the LORD abhors the man of bloodshed and deceit.

⁷But I will enter Your houseby the abundance of Your loving devotion;in reverence I will bow downtoward Your holy temple.

⁸Lead me, O LORD, in Your righteousnessbecause of my enemies;make straight Your way before me.

⁹For not a word they speak can be trusted;destruction lies within them.Their throats are open graves;their tongues practice deceit.

¹⁰Declare them guilty, O God;let them fall by their own devices.Drive them out for their many transgressions,for they have rebelled against You.

¹¹But let all who take refuge in You rejoice;let them ever shout for joy.May You shelter them,that those who love Your name may rejoice in You.

¹²For surely You, O LORD, bless the righteous;You surround them with the shield of Your favor.

Contend with My Opponents, O LORD

¹Contend with my opponents, O LORD;fight against those who fight against me.

²Take up Your shield and buckler;arise and come to my aid.

³Draw the spear and javelinagainst my pursuers;say to my soul: “I am your salvation.”

⁴May those who seek my lifebe disgraced and put to shame;may those who plan to harm mebe driven back and confounded.

⁵May they be like chaff in the wind,as the angel of the LORD drives them away.

⁶May their path be dark and slick,as the angel of the LORD pursues.

⁷For without cause they laid their net for me;without reason they dug a pit for my soul.

⁸May ruin befall them by surprise;may the net they hid ensnare them;may they fall into the hazard they created.

⁹Then my soul will rejoice in the LORDand exult in His salvation.

¹⁰All my bones will exclaim,“Who is like You, O LORD,who delivers the afflicted from the aggressor,the poor and needy from the robber?”

¹¹Hostile witnesses come forward;they make charges I know nothing about.

¹²They repay me evil for good,to the bereavement of my soul.

¹³Yet when they were ill,I put on sackcloth;I humbled myself with fasting,but my prayers returned unanswered.

¹⁴I paced aboutas for my friend or brother;I was bowed down with grief,like one mourning for his mother.

¹⁵But when I stumbled, they assembled in glee;they gathered together against me.Assailants I did not knowslandered me without ceasing.

¹⁶Like godless jesters at a feast,they gnashed their teeth at me.

¹⁷How long, O Lord, will You look on?Rescue my soul from their ravages,my precious life from these lions.

¹⁸Then I will give You thanks in the great assembly;I will praise You among many people.

¹⁹Let not my enemies gloat over me without cause,nor those who hate me without reason wink in malice.

²⁰For they do not speak peace,but they devise deceitful schemesagainst those who live quietly in the land.

²¹They gape at me and say,“Aha, aha! Our eyes have seen!”

²²O LORD, You have seen it; be not silent.O Lord, be not far from me.

²³Awake and rise to my defense,to my cause, my God and my Lord!

²⁴Vindicate me by Your righteousness, O LORD my God,and do not let them gloat over me.

²⁵Let them not say in their hearts,“Aha, just what we wanted!”Let them not say,“We have swallowed him up!”

²⁶May those who gloat in my distressbe ashamed and confounded;may those who exalt themselves over mebe clothed in shame and reproach.

²⁷May those who favor my vindicationshout for joy and gladness;may they always say, “Exalted be the LORDwho delights in His servant’s well-being.”

²⁸Then my tongue will proclaim Your righteousnessand Your praises all day long.