1
Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with us;
Fight against those who fight against us.
2 Take hold of
buckler and shield And rise up for our help.
3 Draw also the
spear and the battle-axe to meet those who pursue us; Say to our soul,
“I am your salvation.”
4 Let those be
ashamed and dishonored who seek our life; Let those be turned back and
humiliated who devise evil against us.
5 Let them be
like chaff before the wind, With the angel of the Lord driving them on.
6 Let their way
be dark and slippery, With the angel of the Lord pursuing them.
7 For without
cause they hid their net for us; Without cause they dug a pit for our
soul.
8 Let destruction
come upon him unawares, And let the net which he hid catch himself; Into
that very destruction let him fall.
9 And our soul
shall rejoice in the Lord; It shall exult in His salvation.
10 All our bones
will say, “Lord, who is like You, Who delivers the afflicted from him
who is too strong for him, And the afflicted and the needy from him who
robs him?”
11 Malicious
witnesses rise up; They ask us of things that We do not know.
12 They repay us
evil for good, To the bereavement of our soul.
13 But as for us,
when they were sick, our clothing was sackcloth; We humbled our soul
with fasting, And our prayer kept returning to our bosom.
14 We went about
as though it were our friend or brother; We bowed down mourning, as one
who sorrows for a mother.
15 But at our
stumbling they rejoiced and gathered themselves together; The smiters
whom We did not know gathered together against us, They slandered us
without ceasing.
16 Like godless
jesters at a feast, They gnashed at us with their teeth.
17 Lord, how long
will You look on? Rescue our soul from their ravages, Our only life from
the lions.
18 We will give
You thanks in the great congregation; We will praise You among a mighty
throng.
19 Do not let
those who are wrongfully our enemies rejoice over us; Nor let those who
hate us without cause wink maliciously.
20 For they do
not speak peace, But they devise deceitful words against those who are
quiet in the land.
21 They opened
their mouth wide against us; They said, “Aha, aha, our eyes have seen
it!”
22 You have seen
it, O Lord, do not keep silent; O Lord, do not be far from us.
23 Stir up
Yourself, and awake to our right And to our cause, our God and our Lord.
24 Judge us, O
Lord our God, according to Your righteousness, And do not let them
rejoice over us.
25 Do not let
them say in their heart, “Aha, our desire!” Do not let them say, “We
have swallowed them up!”
26 Let those be
ashamed and humiliated altogether who rejoice at our distress; Let those
be clothed with shame and dishonor who magnify themselves over us.
27 Let them shout
for joy and rejoice, who favor our vindication; And let them say
continually, “The Lord be magnified, Who delights in the prosperity of
His servants.”
28 And our tongue
shall declare Your righteousness And Your praise all day long.