Plea for Mercy and God’s Justice — May 13

Psalms 6-9

Psalms 6

1 O Lord , do not rebuke me in Your anger, Nor chasten me in Your hot displeasure.365N 133.1

2 Have mercy on me, O Lord , for I am weak; O Lord , heal me, for my bones are troubled.365N 133.2

3 My soul also is greatly troubled; But You, O Lord —how long?365N 133.3

4 Return, O Lord , deliver me! Oh, save me for Your mercies’ sake!365N 133.4

5 For in death there is no remembrance of You; In the grave who will give You thanks?365N 133.5

6 I am weary with my groaning; ^{[b]Or Every night} All night I make my bed swim; I drench my couch with my tears.365N 133.6

7 My eye wastes away because of grief; It grows old because of all my enemies.365N 133.7

8 Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity; For the Lord has heard the voice of my weeping.365N 133.8

9 The Lord has heard my supplication; The Lord will receive my prayer.365N 133.9

10 Let all my enemies be ashamed and greatly troubled; Let them turn back and be ashamed suddenly.365N 133.10

Psalms 7

1 O Lord my God, in You I put my trust; Save me from all those who persecute me; And deliver me,365N 133.11

2 Lest they tear me like a lion, Rending me in pieces, while there is none to deliver.365N 133.12

3 O Lord my God, if I have done this: If there is iniquity in my hands,365N 133.13

4 If I have repaid evil to him who was at peace with me, Or have plundered my enemy without cause,365N 133.14

5 Let the enemy pursue me and overtake me; Yes, let him trample my life to the earth, And lay my honor in the dust. Selah365N 133.15

6 Arise, O Lord , in Your anger; Lift Yourself up because of the rage of my enemies; Rise up ^{[b]So with MT, Tg., Vg.; LXX O Lord my God} for me to the judgment You have commanded!365N 133.16

7 So the congregation of the peoples shall surround You; For their sakes, therefore, return on high.365N 133.17

8 The Lord shall judge the peoples; Judge me, O Lord , according to my righteousness, And according to my integrity within me.365N 133.18

9 Oh, let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, But establish the just; For the righteous God tests the hearts and ^{[c]Lit. kidneys, the most secret part of man} minds.365N 133.19

10 ^{[d]Lit. My shield is upon God} My defense is of God, Who saves the upright in heart.365N 133.20

11 God is a just judge, And God is angry with the wicked every day.365N 133.21

12 If he does not turn back, He will sharpen His sword; He bends His bow and makes it ready.365N 133.22

13 He also prepares for Himself instruments of death; He makes His arrows into fiery shafts.365N 133.23

14 Behold, the wicked brings forth iniquity; Yes, he conceives trouble and brings forth falsehood.365N 133.24

15 He made a pit and dug it out, And has fallen into the ditch which he made.365N 133.25

16 His trouble shall return upon his own head, And his violent dealing shall come down on ^{[e]The crown of his own head} his own crown.365N 133.26

17 I will praise the Lord according to His righteousness, And will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High.365N 133.27

Psalms 8

1 O Lord , our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth, Who have set Your glory above the heavens!365N 133.28

2 Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have ^{[b]established} ordained strength, Because of Your enemies, That You may silence the enemy and the avenger.365N 133.29

3 When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained,365N 133.30

4 What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit ^{[c]give attention to or care for} him?365N 133.31

5 For You have made him a little lower than ^{[d]Heb. Elohim, God; LXX, Syr., Tg., Jewish tradition angels} the angels, And You have crowned him with glory and honor.365N 133.32

6 You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet,365N 133.33

7 All sheep and oxen— Even the beasts of the field,365N 133.34

8 The birds of the air, And the fish of the sea That pass through the paths of the seas.365N 133.35

9 O Lord , our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth!365N 133.36

Psalms 9

1 I will praise You, O Lord , with my whole heart; I will tell of all Your marvelous works.365N 133.37

2 I will be glad and rejoice in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.365N 133.38

3 When my enemies turn back, They shall fall and perish at Your presence.365N 133.39

4 For You have maintained my right and my cause; You sat on the throne judging in righteousness.365N 133.40

5 You have rebuked the ^[b]Gentiles nations, You have destroyed the wicked; You have blotted out their name forever and ever.365N 133.41

6 O enemy, destructions are finished forever! And you have destroyed cities; Even their memory has perished.365N 133.42

7 But the Lord shall endure forever; He has prepared His throne for judgment.365N 133.43

8 He shall judge the world in righteousness, And He shall administer judgment for the peoples in uprightness.365N 133.44

9 The Lord also will be a refuge ^{[c]Lit. secure height} for the oppressed, A refuge in times of trouble.365N 133.45

10 And those who know Your name will put their trust in You; For You, Lord , have not forsaken those who seek You.365N 133.46

11 Sing praises to the Lord , who dwells in Zion! Declare His deeds among the people.365N 133.47

12 When He avenges blood, He remembers them; He does not forget the cry of the ^[d]afflicted humble.365N 133.48

13 Have mercy on me, O Lord ! Consider my trouble from those who hate me, You who lift me up from the gates of death,365N 133.49

14 That I may tell of all Your praise In the gates of ^[e]Jerusalem the daughter of Zion. I will rejoice in Your salvation.365N 133.50

15 The ^[f]Gentiles nations have sunk down in the pit which they made; In the net which they hid, their own foot is caught.365N 133.51

16 The Lord is known by the judgment He executes; The wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. Meditation. ^{[g]Heb. Higgaion} Selah365N 133.52

17 The wicked shall be turned into hell, And all the ^[h]Gentiles nations that forget God.365N 133.53

18 For the needy shall not always be forgotten; The expectation of the poor shall not perish forever.365N 133.54

19 Arise, O Lord , Do not let man prevail; Let the ^[i]Gentiles nations be judged in Your sight.365N 133.55

20 Put them in fear, O Lord , That the ^[j]Gentiles nations may know themselves to be but men. Selah365N 133.56