For the music director; a psalm of David.
140:1 O Lord, rescue me from wicked men!
Protect me from violent men,
140:2 who plan ways to harm me.
All day long they stir up conflict.
140:3 Their tongues wound like a serpent;
a viper’s
140:4 O Lord, shelter me from the power
Protect me from violent men,
who plan to knock me over.
140:5 Proud men hide a snare for me;
evil men
they set traps for me. (Selah)
140:6 I say to the Lord, “You are my God.”
O Lord, pay attention to my plea for mercy!
140:7 O sovereign Lord, my strong deliverer,
you shield
140:8 O Lord, do not let the wicked have their way!
Do not allow their
140:9 As for the heads of those who surround me –
may the harm done by
140:10 May he rain down
May he throw them into the fire!
From bottomless pits they will not escape.
140:11 A slanderer
calamity will hunt down a violent man and strike him down.
140:12 I know
and vindicates the poor.
140:13 Certainly the godly will give thanks to your name;
the morally upright will live in your presence.
A psalm of David.
141:1 O Lord, I cry out to you. Come quickly to me!
Pay attention to me when I cry out to you!
141:2 May you accept my prayer like incense,
my uplifted hands like the evening offering!
141:3 O Lord, place a guard on my mouth!
Protect the opening
141:4 Do not let me have evil desires,
or participate in sinful activities
with men who behave wickedly.
I will not eat their delicacies.
141:5 May the godly strike me in love and correct me!
May my head not refuse
Indeed, my prayer is a witness against their evil deeds.
141:6 They will be thrown down the side of a cliff by their judges.
They
141:7 As when one plows and breaks up the soil,
so our bones are scattered at the mouth of Sheol.
141:8 Surely I am looking to you,
In you I take shelter.
Do not expose me to danger!
141:9 Protect me from the snare they have laid for me,
and the traps the evildoers have set.
141:10 Let the wicked fall
while I escape.
A well-written song
142:1 To the Lord I cry out;
to the Lord I plead for mercy.
142:2 I pour out my lament before him;
I tell him about
142:3 Even when my strength leaves me,
you watch my footsteps.
In the path where I walk
they have hidden a trap for me.
142:4 Look to the right and see!
No one cares about me.
I have nowhere to run;
no one is concerned about my life.
142:5 I cry out to you, O Lord;
I say, “You are my shelter,
my security
142:6 Listen to my cry for help,
for I am in serious trouble!
Rescue me from those who chase me,
for they are stronger than I am.
142:7 Free me
that I may give thanks to your name.
Because of me the godly will assemble,
for you will vindicate me.
A psalm of David.
143:1 O Lord, hear my prayer!
Pay attention to my plea for help!
Because of your faithfulness and justice, answer me!
143:2 Do not sit in judgment on
for no one alive is innocent before you.
143:3 Certainly
They smash me into the ground.
They force me to live
like those who have been dead for ages.
143:4 My strength leaves me;
I am absolutely shocked.
143:5 I recall the old days;
I meditate on all you have done;
I reflect on your accomplishments.
143:6 I spread my hands out to you in prayer;
my soul thirsts for you in a parched
143:7 Answer me quickly, Lord!
My strength is fading.
Do not reject me,
or I will join
143:8 May I hear about your loyal love in the morning,
for I trust in you.
Show me the way I should go,
because I long for you.
143:9 Rescue me from my enemies, O Lord!
I run to you for protection.
143:10 Teach me to do what pleases you,
for you are my God.
May your kind presence
lead me
143:11 O Lord, for the sake of your reputation,
Because of your justice, rescue me from trouble!
143:12 As a demonstration of your loyal love,
Annihilate
for I am your servant.
By David.
144:1 The Lord, my protector,
the one who trains my hands for battle,
and my fingers for war,
144:2 who loves me
my refuge
my shield and the one in whom I take shelter,
who makes nations submit to me.
144:3 O Lord, of what importance is the human race,
Of what importance is mankind,
144:4 People
their days like a shadow that disappears.
144:5 O Lord, make the sky sink
Touch the mountains and make them smolder!
144:6 Hurl lightning bolts and scatter them!
Shoot your arrows and rout them!
144:7 Reach down
Grab me and rescue me from the surging water,
from the power of foreigners,
144:8 who speak lies,
and make false promises.
144:9 O God, I will sing a new song to you!
Accompanied by a ten-stringed instrument, I will sing praises to you,
144:10 the one who delivers
and rescued David his servant from a deadly
144:11 Grab me and rescue me from the power of foreigners,
who speak lies,
and make false promises.
144:12 Then
that quickly grow to full size.
Our daughters will be like corner pillars,
carved like those in a palace.
144:13 Our storehouses
providing all kinds of food.
Our sheep will multiply by the thousands
and fill
144:14 Our cattle will be weighted down with produce.
No one will break through our walls,
no one will be taken captive,
and there will be no terrified cries in our city squares.
144:15 How blessed are the people who experience these things!
How blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!