Psalm 109

1  O GOD of my praise! Keep not silence,2  For the mouths of the wicked and the mouth of deceit are opened against me; they have spoken to me and against me with lying tongues.3  They have compassed me about also with words of hatred and have fought against me without a cause.4  In return for my love they are my adversaries, but I resort to prayer.5  And they have rewarded and laid upon me evil for good, and hatred for my love.6  Set a wicked man over him [as a judge], and let [a malicious] accuser stand at his right hand.7  When [the wicked] is judged, let him be condemned, and let his prayer [for leniency] be turned into a sin.8  Let his days be few; and let another take his office and charge. 9  Let his children be fatherless and his wife a widow.10  Let his children be continual vagabonds [as was Cain] and beg; let them seek their bread and be driven far from their ruined homes. 11  Let the creditor and extortioner seize all that he has; and let strangers (barbarians and foreigners) plunder the fruits of his labor.12  Let there be none to extend or continue mercy and kindness to him, neither let there be any to have pity on his fatherless children.13  Let his posterity be cut off, and in the generation following let their names be blotted out.14  Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered by the Lord; and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.15  Let them be before the Lord continually, that He may cut off the memory of them from the earth!--16  Because the man did not [earnestly] remember to show mercy, but pursued and persecuted the poor and needy man, and the broken in heart [he was ready] to slay.17  Yes, he loved cursing, and it came [back] upon him; he delighted not in blessing, and it was far from him.18  He clothed himself also with cursing as with his garment, and it seeped into his inward [life] like water, and like oil into his bones.19  Let it be to him as the raiment with which he covers himself and as the girdle with which he is girded continually.20  Let this be the reward of my adversaries from the Lord, and of those who speak evil against my life.21  But You deal with me and act for me, O God the Lord, for Your name’s sake; because Your mercy and loving-kindness are good, O deliver me.22  For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded and stricken within me.23  I am gone like the shadow when it lengthens and declines; I toss up and down and am shaken off as the locust.24  My knees are weak and totter from fasting; and my body is gaunt and has no fatness.25  I have become also a reproach and a taunt to others; when they see me, they shake their heads. 26  Help me, O Lord my God; O save me according to Your mercy and loving-kindness!--27  That they may know that this is Your hand, that You, Lord, have done it.28  Let them curse, but do You bless. When adversaries arise, let them be put to shame, but let Your servant rejoice.29  Let my adversaries be clothed with shame and dishonor, and let them cover themselves with their own disgrace and confusion as with a robe.30  I will give great praise and thanks to the Lord with my mouth; yes, and I will praise Him among the multitude.31  For He will stand at the right hand of the poor and needy, to save him from those who condemn his life.

Psalm 109

For the music director, a psalm of David.

1 O God whom I praise, do not ignore me!

2 For they say cruel and deceptive things to me;
they lie to me.

3 They surround me and say hateful things;
they attack me for no reason.

4 They repay my love with accusations,
but I continue to pray.

5 They repay me evil for good,
and hate for love.

6 Appoint an evil man to testify against him!
May an accuser stand at his right side!

7 When he is judged, he will be found guilty!
Then his prayer will be regarded as sinful.

8 May his days be few!
May another take his job!

9 May his children be fatherless,
and his wife a widow!

10 May his children roam around begging,
asking for handouts as they leave their ruined home!

11 May the creditor seize all he owns!
May strangers loot his property!

12 May no one show him kindness!
May no one have compassion on his fatherless children!

13 May his descendants be cut off!
May the memory of them be wiped out by the time the next generation arrives!

14 May his ancestors’ sins be remembered by the Lord!
May his mother’s sin not be forgotten!

15 May the Lord be constantly aware of them,
and cut off the memory of his children from the earth!

16 For he never bothered to show kindness;
he harassed the oppressed and needy,
and killed the disheartened.

17 He loved to curse others, so those curses have come upon him.
He had no desire to bless anyone, so he has experienced no blessings.

18 He made cursing a way of life,
so curses poured into his stomach like water
and seeped into his bones like oil.

19 May a curse attach itself to him, like a garment one puts on,
or a belt one wears continually!

20 May the Lord repay my accusers in this way,
those who say evil things about me!

21 O sovereign Lord,
intervene on my behalf for the sake of your reputation!
Because your loyal love is good, deliver me!

22 For I am oppressed and needy,
and my heart beats violently within me.

23 I am fading away like a shadow at the end of the day;
I am shaken off like a locust.

24 I am so starved my knees shake;
I have turned into skin and bones.

25 I am disdained by them.
When they see me, they shake their heads.

26 Help me, O Lord my God!
Because you are faithful to me, deliver me!

27 Then they will realize this is your work,
and that you, Lord, have accomplished it.

28 They curse, but you will bless.
When they attack, they will be humiliated,
but your servant will rejoice.

29 My accusers will be covered with shame,
and draped in humiliation as if it were a robe.

30 I will thank the Lord profusely,
in the middle of a crowd I will praise him,

31 because he stands at the right hand of the needy,
to deliver him from those who threaten his life.