Study Desk

I know that Yahweh will maintain the cause for the afflictedAnd judgment for the needy.

Let the righteous smite me in lovingkindness and reprove me;It is oil upon the head;Let not my head refuse it,For still my prayer is against their evil deeds.

Their judges are thrown down by the sides of the cliff,And they hear my words, for they are pleasant.

For my eyes are toward You, O Yahweh, O Lord;In You I take refuge; do not pour out my soul to death.

Keep me from the jaws of the trap which they have set for me,And from the snares of workers of iniquity.

Let the wicked fall into their own nets,As for myself—meanwhile, I am passing by.

When my spirit was faint within me,You knew my path.In the way where I walkThey have hidden a trap for me.

Look to the right and see;That there is no one who regards me;A way of escape has been destroyed from me;No one cares for my soul.

Give heed to my cry of lamentation,For I am brought very low;Deliver me from my persecutors,For they are too strong for me.

Bring my soul out of prison,To give thanks to Your name;The righteous will encircle me,For You will deal bountifully with me."

And do not enter into judgment with Your slave,For no one living is righteous in Your sight.

For the enemy has pursued my soul;He has crushed my life to the ground;He has made me inhabit dark places, like those who have long been dead.

I stretch out my hands to You;My soul reaches for You like a weary land. Selah.

Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning;For I trust in You;Cause me to know the way in which I should walk;For to You I lift up my soul.

Teach me to do Your will,For You are my God;Let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground.

For the sake of Your name, O Yahweh, revive me.In Your righteousness bring my soul out of distress.

And in Your lovingkindness, cut off my enemiesAnd cause all those who assail my soul to perish,For I am Your slave.

Blessed be Yahweh, my rock,Who trains my hands for war,My fingers for battle;

That our sons would be as grown‑up plants in their youth,And our daughters as corner pillars fashioned as for a palace;

How blessed are the people for whom this is so;How blessed are the people for whom God is Yahweh!