Psalms 109
1 To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. Hold not thy peace, O God of my praise;
For the music director. A psalm of David. God, the one I praise, please don't remain silent,
2 For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me: they have spoken against me with a lying tongue.
because wicked and deceitful people are attacking me, telling lies about me.
3 They surrounded me also with words of hatred; and fought against me without a cause.
They surround me with words of hate, fighting against me for no reason.
4 For my love they are my adversaries: but I give myself to prayer.
I love them, but they respond with hostility towards me, even while I'm praying for them!
5 And they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love.
They pay me back with evil instead of good, with hatred instead of love.
6 Set thou a wicked man over him: and let Satan stand at his right hand.
“Appoint someone wicked over him. Have someone stand as an accuser against him.
7 When he shall be judged, let him be condemned: and let his prayer become sin.
When he is judged and sentenced, may he be found guilty. Let his prayers be counted as sins.
8 Let his days be few; and let another take his office.
May his life be short; let someone else take over his position.
9 Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow.
May his children be left fatherless, and his wife become a widow.
10 Let his children be continually vagabonds, and beg: let them seek their bread also out of their desolate places.
May his children be homeless, wandering beggars, driven from their ruined houses.
11 Let the extortioner catch all that he hath; and let strangers spoil his labour.
May creditors seize all that he owns; may strangers take all that he worked for.
12 Let there be none to extend mercy to him: neither let there be any to favour his fatherless children.
May no one be kind to him; may no one take pity on his fatherless children.
13 Let his posterity be cut off; and in the generation following let their name be blotted out.
May his descendants die; may his family name be wiped out in the next generation.
14 Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered with the LORD; and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.
May the Lord be reminded of the sins of his fathers; may his mother's sins not be blotted out.
15 Let them be before the LORD continually, that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth.
May their sins be constantly before the Lord; may his name be totally forgotten by people.
16 Because that he remembered not to show mercy, but persecuted the poor and needy man, that he might even slay the broken in heart.
For he didn't think to be kind to others, instead he harassed and killed the poor, the needy, the brokenhearted.
17 As he loved cursing, so let it come to him: as he delighted not in blessing, so let it be far from him.
He loved to put a curse on others—let it come back on him. He had no time for blessings—so may he never receive any.
18 As he clothed himself with cursing like as with his garment, so let it come into his bowels like water, and like oil into his bones.
He cursed as often as he got dressed. May his curses go into him like the water he drinks, like the olive oil he rubs on his skin that enters his bones.
19 Let it be to him as the garment which covereth him, and for a belt with which he is girded continually.
May his curses stick to him like clothing, may they be pulled tight around him like a belt.”
20 Let this be the reward of my adversaries from the LORD, and of them that speak evil against my soul.
May all this be the punishment of the Lord on my enemies, on those who speak evil of me.
21 But do thou for me, O GOD the Lord, for thy name’s sake: because thy mercy is good, deliver thou me.
But treat me well, Lord God, because of your own reputation. Save me because you are faithful and good.
22 For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.
For I am poor and needy, and my heart is breaking.
23 I am gone like the shadow when it declineth: I am tossed up and down as the locust.
I am fading away like an evening shadow; I am like a locust that is shaken off.
24 My knees are weak through fasting; and my flesh faileth of fatness.
I am so weak from lack of food that my legs give way; my body is just skin and bones.
25 I became also a reproach to them: when they looked upon me they shook their heads.
People ridicule me—they look at me and shake their heads!
26 Help me, O LORD my God: O save me according to thy mercy:
Help me, Lord my God; save me because of your trustworthy love.
27 That they may know that this is thy hand; that thou, LORD, hast done it.
May they recognize that this is what you are doing—that you are the one who saves me.
28 Let them curse, but bless thou: when they arise, let them be ashamed; but let thy servant rejoice.
When they curse me, you will bless me. When they attack me, you will defeat them. And I, your servant, will be happy.
29 Let my adversaries be clothed with shame, and let them cover themselves with their own confusion, as with a mantle.
May those who accuse me be clothed with disgrace; may they cover themselves with a cloak of shame.
30 I will greatly praise the LORD with my mouth; yea, I will praise him among the multitude.
But I will keep on thanking the Lord, praising him to everyone around me.
31 For he shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those that condemn his soul.
For he takes a stand to defend the needy, to save them from those who condemn them.
