Psalms 35
35
A psalm of David.
1Oppose my opponents, Lord; fight those who are fighting against me.
2Put your armor on, and pick up your shield. Get ready, come and help me.
3Draw your spear and your javelin, confront those who are chasing me. Tell me, “I am your salvation!”
4Shame them! Humiliate those who are trying to kill me! Turn them back! Disgrace those who are planning to hurt me!
5Let them be like chaff blown by the wind; let the angel of the Lord drive them away.
6May their path be dark and slippery, with the angel of the Lord chasing them down.
7For no reason they set a net to catch me; for no reason they dug a pit to trap me.
8Let disaster come on them suddenly; let the net they set catch them instead; let the pit they dug trap them instead.
9Then I will be glad in the Lord; I will be happy in his salvation.
10Every part of me#35:10. Literally, “all of my bones.” will say, Who can compare to you, Lord? You rescue the weak from the strong; the poor and needy from robbers.
11Hostile witnesses stand up to testify against me, accusing me of crimes I don't know anything about.
12They pay me back with evil instead of good. I feel like giving up.#35:12. Literally, “my soul is forlorn.”
13But when they were sick, I put on clothes of sackcloth#35:13. “Clothes of sackcloth”—a sign of mourning. in sympathy. I denied myself through fasting. May my prayer for them return to bless me too.#35:13. Literally, “my prayer returned to my bosom.”
14I was upset for them, as if they were my own friends or family; I bowed down in grief as if I was mourning my own mother.
15But when I was in trouble, they gathered around and laughed at me. Even strangers I don't know attacked me, constantly tearing me apart.
16Like irreligious people mocking a cripple#35:16. The Hebrew here is unclear. they mock me and call me names, gnashing their teeth at me.
17How long, Lord, will you sit by and just watch? Save me from their vicious attacks; defend the only life I have from these lions.
18Then I will thank you in front of the whole congregation and praise you in front of all the people.
19Don't let my enemies take pleasure in my troubles, those people who hate me and tell lies about me, gloating over me for no reason.
20They are not looking for peace; they invent malicious and deceptive schemes against innocent peace-loving people.#35:20. Literally, “the quiet ones of the land.”
21They open their mouths wide to make accusations against me, saying, “Look! Look! We saw it with our own eyes!”
22But Lord, you've seen all this! Say something! Don't give up on me, Lord!
23Wake up! Get up and defend me, my Lord and my God! Take up my case and make sure justice is done!
24Vindicate me, my Lord and my God, because you are just and right. Don't let them gloat over me.
25Don't let them say to themselves, “Look! We got what we wanted!” Don't let them say, “We completely destroyed him!”
26Make them totally ashamed, all those who are happy for the trouble I'm in. Let those who are celebrating over me be covered with shame and dishonor.
27Instead let those who are pleased I've been vindicated celebrate and shout for joy. Let them always say, “How great is the Lord! He is happy when his servants live in peace and have what they need.”#35:27. The word used here “shalom” is often translated as simply “peace.” However, it is not simply the absence of conflict but also refers to a happy and prosperous life.
28I will tell others about your character of truth and right, praising you all day long!
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com
Psalms 35
35
(A psalm by David.)
A Prayer for Protection from Enemies
1Fight my enemies, Lord!
Attack my attackers!
2Shield me and help me.
3Aim your spear at everyone
who hunts me down,
but promise to save me.
4Let all who want to kill me
be disgraced
and put to shame.
Chase away and confuse
all who plan to harm me.
5Send your angel after them
and let them be like straw
in the wind.
6Make them run in the dark
on a slippery road,
as your angel chases them.
7I did them no harm,
but they hid a net
to trap me,
and they dug a deep pit
to catch and kill me.
8 #
3 Macc 6.21. Surprise them with disaster!
Trap them in their own nets
and let them fall and rot
in the pits they have dug.
9I will celebrate and be joyful
because you, Lord,
have saved me.
10Every bone in my body
will shout:
“No one is like the Lord!”
You protect the helpless
from those in power;
you save the poor and needy
from those who hurt them.
11Liars accuse me of crimes
I know nothing about.
12They repay evil for good,
and I feel all alone.
13When they were sick,
I wore sackcloth#35.13 sackcloth: See the note at 30.11.
and went without food.#35.13 went without food: People sometimes went without food (called “fasting”) to show sorrow.
I truly prayed for them,#35.13 I … them: Or “My prayer wasn't answered, but I prayed.”
14as I would for a friend
or a relative.
I was in sorrow and mourned,
as I would for my mother.
15I have stumbled,
and worthless liars
I don't even know
surround me and sneer.
16Worthless people make fun#35.16 Worthless … fun: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
and never stop laughing.
17But all you do is watch!
When will you do something?
Save me from the attack
of those vicious lions.
18And when your people meet,
I will praise you
and thank you, Lord,
in front of them all.
19 #
Ps 69.4; Jn 15.25. Don't let my brutal enemies
be glad because of me.
They hate me for no reason.
Don't let them wink
behind my back.
20They say hurtful things,
and they lie to people
who want to live in peace.
21They are quick to accuse me.
They say, “You did it!
We saw you ourselves.”
22You see everything, Lord!
Please don't keep silent
or stay so far away.
23Fight to defend me, Lord God,
24and prove that I am right
by your standards.
Don't let them laugh at me
25or say to each other,
“Now we've got what we want!
We'll gobble him up!”
26Disappoint and confuse
all who are glad
to see me in trouble;
disgrace and embarrass
my proud enemies who say to me,
“You are nothing!”
27Let all who want me to win
be happy and joyful.
From now on let them say,
“The Lord is wonderful!
God is glad when all goes well
for his servant.”
28Then I will shout all day,
“Praise the Lord God!
He did what was right.”
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.