Psalms 7

¹O Lord my God, I put my faith in you; take me out of the hands of him who is cruel to me, and make me free;

²So that he may not come rushing on my soul like a lion, wounding it, while there is no one to be my saviour.

³O Lord my God, if I have done this; if my hands have done any wrong;

⁴If I have given back evil to him who did evil to me, or have taken anything from him who was against me without cause;

⁵Let my hater go after my soul and take it; let my life be crushed to the earth, and my honour into the dust. (Selah.)

⁶Come up, Lord, in your wrath; be lifted up against my haters; be awake, my God, give orders for the judging.

⁷The meeting of the nations will be round you; take your seat, then, over them, on high.

⁸The Lord will be judge of the peoples; give a decision for me, O Lord, because of my righteousness, and let my virtue have its reward.

⁹O let the evil of the evil-doer come to an end, but give strength to the upright: for men's minds and hearts are tested by the God of righteousness.

¹⁰God, who is the saviour of the upright in heart, is my breastplate.

¹¹God is the judge of the upright, and is angry with the evil-doers every day.

¹²If a man is not turned from his evil, he will make his sword sharp; his bow is bent and ready.

¹³He has made ready for him the instruments of death; he makes his arrows flames of fire.

¹⁴That man is a worker of evil; the seed of wrongdoing has given birth to deceit.

¹⁵He has made a hole deep in the earth, and is falling into the hole which he has made

¹⁶His wrongdoing will come back to him, and his violent behaviour will come down on his head.

¹⁷I will give praise to the Lord for his righteousness; I will make a song to the name of the Lord Most High.

¹Lord, my God, I take refuge in you. Save me from all those who pursue me, and deliver me,

²lest they tear apart my soul like a lion, ripping it in pieces, while there is none to deliver.

³Lord, my God, if I have done this, if there is iniquity in my hands,

⁴if I have rewarded evil to him who was at peace with me (yes, if I have delivered him who without cause was my adversary),

⁵let the enemy pursue my soul, and overtake it; yes, let him tread my life down to the earth, and lay my glory in the dust. Selah.

⁶Arise, Lord, in your anger. Lift up yourself against the rage of my adversaries. Awake for me. You have commanded judgment.

⁷Let the congregation of the peoples surround you. Rule over them on high.

⁸The Lord administers judgment to the peoples. Judge me, Lord, according to my righteousness, and to my integrity that is in me.

⁹Oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the righteous; their minds and hearts are searched by the righteous God.

¹⁰My shield is with God, who saves the upright in heart.

¹¹God is a righteous judge, yes, a God who has indignation every day.

¹²If a man doesn't relent, he will sharpen his sword; he has bent and strung his bow.

¹³He has also prepared for himself the instruments of death. He makes ready his flaming arrows.

¹⁴Behold, he travails with iniquity. Yes, he has conceived mischief, and brought forth falsehood.

¹⁵He has dug a hole, and has fallen into the pit which he made.

¹⁶The trouble he causes shall return to his own head. His violence shall come down on the crown of his own head.

¹⁷I will give thanks to the Lord according to his righteousness, and will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High.