Psalms 55

¹Give hearing to my prayer, O God; and let not your ear be shut against my request.

²Give thought to me, and let my prayer be answered: I have been made low in sorrow;

³I am troubled because of the voice of the cruel ones, because of the loud cry of the evil-doers; for they put a weight of evil on me, and they are cruel in their hate for me.

⁴My heart is deeply wounded, and the fear of death has come on me.

⁵Fear and shaking have come over me, with deep fear I am covered.

⁶And I said, If only I had wings like a dove! for then I would go in flight from here and be at rest.

⁷I would go wandering far away, living in the waste land. (Selah.)

⁸I would quickly take cover from the driving storm and from the violent wind.

⁹Send destruction on them, O Lord, make a division of tongues among them: for I have seen fighting and violent acts in the town.

¹⁰By day and night they go round the town, on the walls; trouble and sorrow are in the heart of it.

¹¹Evil is there; cruel rule and deceit are ever in the streets.

¹²For it was not my hater who said evil of me; that would have been no grief to me; it was not one outside the number of my friends who made himself strong against me, or I would have kept myself from him in a secret place;

¹³But it was you, my equal, my guide, my well-loved friend.

¹⁴We had loving talk together, and went to the house of God in company.

¹⁵Let the hand of death come on them suddenly, and let them go down living into the underworld; because evil is in their houses and in their hearts.

¹⁶As for me, I will make my prayer to God, and he will be my saviour.

¹⁷In the evening and in the morning and in the middle of the day I will make my prayer with sounds of grief; and my voice will come to his ears.

¹⁸He has taken my soul away from the attack which was made against me, and given it peace; for great numbers were against me.

¹⁹God will give thought to me; he who from early times is strong will send pain and trouble on them. (Selah.) Because they are unchanged, they have no fear of God.

²⁰He has put out his hand against those who were at peace with him; he has not kept his agreement.

²¹The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart; his words were softer than oil, but they were sharp swords.

²²Put your cares on the Lord, and he will be your support; he will not let the upright man be moved.

²³But you, O God, will send them down into the underworld; the cruel and the false will be cut off before half their days are ended; but I will have faith in you.

Psalms 55

¹Listen to my prayer, God. Do not hide yourself from my supplication.

²Attend to me, and answer me. I am restless in my complaint, and moan,

³Because of the voice of the enemy, Because of the oppression of the wicked. For they bring suffering on me. In anger they hold a grudge against me.

⁴My heart is severely pained within me. The terrors of death have fallen on me.

⁵Fearfulness and trembling have come on me. Horror has overwhelmed me.

⁶I said, "Oh that I had wings like a dove! Then I would fly away, and be at rest.

⁷Behold, then I would wander far off. I would lodge in the wilderness." Selah.

⁸"I would hurry to a shelter from the stormy wind and storm."

⁹Confuse them, Lord, and confound their language, for I have seen violence and strife in the city.

¹⁰Day and night they prowl around on its walls. Malice and abuse are also within her.

¹¹Destructive forces are within her. Threats and lies do not depart from her streets.

¹²For it was not an enemy who insulted me, then I could have endured it. Neither was it he who hated me who raised himself up against me, then I would have hid myself from him.

¹³But it was you, a man like me, my companion, and my familiar friend.

¹⁴We took sweet fellowship together. We walked in God's house with company.

¹⁵Let death come suddenly on them. Let them go down alive into Sheol. For wickedness is in their dwelling, in the midst of them.

¹⁶As for me, I will call on God. The Lord will save me.

¹⁷Evening, morning, and at noon, I will cry out in distress. He will hear my voice.

¹⁸He has redeemed my soul in peace from the battle that was against me, although there are many who oppose me.

¹⁹God, who is enthroned forever, will hear, and answer them. Selah. They never change, who do not fear God.

²⁰He raises his hands against his friends. He has violated his covenant.

²¹His mouth was smooth as butter, but his heart was war. His words were softer than oil, yet they were drawn swords.

²²Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you. He will never allow the righteous to be moved.

²³But you, God, will bring them down into the pit of destruction. Bloodthirsty and deceitful men shall not live out half their days, but I will trust in you.