Psalms 35
35
1-3Harass these hecklers, God,
punch these bullies in the nose.
Grab a weapon, anything at hand;
stand up for me!
Get ready to throw the spear, aim the javelin,
at the people who are out to get me.
Reassure me; let me hear you say,
“I’ll save you.”
4-8When those thugs try to knife me in the back,
make them look foolish.
Frustrate all those
who are plotting my downfall.
Make them like cinders in a high wind,
with God’s angel working the bellows.
Make their road lightless and mud-slick,
with God’s angel on their tails.
Out of sheer cussedness they set a trap to catch me;
for no good reason they dug a ditch to stop me.
Surprise them with your ambush—
catch them in the very trap they set,
the disaster they planned for me.
9-10But let me run loose and free,
celebrating God’s great work,
Every bone in my body laughing, singing, “God,
there’s no one like you.
You put the down-and-out on their feet
and protect the unprotected from bullies!”
11-12Hostile accusers appear out of nowhere,
they stand up and badger me.
They pay me back misery for mercy,
leaving my soul empty.
13-14When they were sick, I dressed in black;
instead of eating, I prayed.
My prayers were like lead in my gut,
like I’d lost my best friend, my brother.
I paced, distraught as a motherless child,
hunched and heavyhearted.
15-16But when I was down
they threw a party!
All the nameless misfits of the town came
chanting insults about me.
Like barbarians desecrating a shrine,
they destroyed my reputation.
17-18 God, how long are you going
to stand there doing nothing?
Save me from their brutalities;
everything I’ve got is being thrown to the lions.
I will give you full credit
when everyone gathers for worship;
When the people turn out in force
I will say my Hallelujahs.
19-21Don’t let these liars, my enemies,
have a party at my expense,
Those who hate me for no reason,
winking and rolling their eyes.
No good is going to come
from that crowd;
They spend all their time cooking up gossip
against those who mind their own business.
They open their mouths
in ugly grins,
Mocking, “Ha-ha, ha-ha, thought you’d get away with it?
We’ve caught you hands down!”
22Don’t you see what they’re doing, God?
You’re not going to let them
Get by with it, are you? Not going to walk off
without doing something, are you?
23-26Please get up—wake up! Tend to my case.
My God, my Lord—my life is on the line.
Do what you think is right, God, my God,
but don’t make me pay for their good time.
Don’t let them say to themselves,
“Ha-ha, we got what we wanted.”
Don’t let them say,
“We’ve chewed him up and spit him out.”
Let those who are being hilarious
at my expense
Be made to look ridiculous.
Make them wear donkey’s ears;
Pin them with the donkey’s tail,
who made themselves so high and mighty!
27-28But those who want
the best for me,
Let them have the last word—a glad shout!—
and say, over and over and over,
“God is great—everything works
together for good for his servant.”
I’ll tell the world how great and good you are,
I’ll shout Hallelujah all day, every day.
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Psalms 35: MSG
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.
Psalms 35
35
Psalm 35
By David.
1O Lord, attack those who attack me.
Fight against those who fight against me.
2Use your shields, ⌞both⌟ small and large.
Arise to help me.
3Hold your spear to block the way of those who pursue me.
Say to my soul, “I am your savior.”
4Let those who seek my life be put to shame and disgraced.
Let those who plan my downfall be turned back in confusion.
5Let them be like husks blown by the wind
as the Messenger of the Lord chases them.
6Let their path be dark and slippery
as the Messenger of the Lord pursues them.
7For no reason they hid their net in a pit.
For no reason they dug the pit ⌞to trap me⌟.
8Let destruction surprise them.
Let the net that they hid catch them.
Let them fall into their own pit and be destroyed.
9My soul will find joy in the Lord
and be joyful about his salvation.
10All my bones will say, “O Lord, who can compare with you?
You rescue the weak person from the one who is too strong for him
and weak and needy people from the one who robs them.”
11Malicious people bring charges against me.
They ask me things I know nothing about.
12I am devastated
because they pay me back with evil instead of good.
13But when they were sick, I wore sackcloth.
I humbled myself with fasting.
When my prayer returned unanswered,
14I walked around as if I were mourning for my friend or my brother.
I was bent over as if I were mourning for my mother.
15Yet, when I stumbled,
they rejoiced and gathered together.
They gathered together against me.
Unknown attackers tore me apart without stopping.
16With crude and abusive mockers,
they grit their teeth at me.
17O Lord, how long will you look on?
Rescue me from their attacks.
Rescue my precious life from the lions.
18I will give you thanks in a large gathering.
I will praise you in a crowd ⌞of worshipers⌟.
19Do not let my treacherous enemies gloat over me.
Do not let those who hate me for no reason wink ⌞at me⌟.
20They do not talk about peace.
Instead, they scheme against the peaceful people in the land.
21They open their big mouths and say about me,
“Aha! Aha! Our own eyes have seen it.”
22You have seen it, O Lord.
Do not remain silent.
O Lord, do not be so far away from me.
23Wake up, and rise to my defense.
Plead my case, O my God and my Lord.
24Judge me by your righteousness, O Lord my God.
Do not let them gloat over me
25or think, “Aha, just what we wanted!”
Do not let them say, “We have swallowed him up.”
26Let those who gloat over my downfall
be thoroughly put to shame and confused.
Let those who promote themselves at my expense
be clothed with shame and disgrace.
27Let those who are happy when I am declared innocent
joyfully sing and rejoice.
Let them continually say, “The Lord is great.
He is happy when his servant has peace.”
28Then my tongue will tell about your righteousness,
about your praise all day long.
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