Psalm 9-10

Psalm 9Psalms 9 and 10 may originally have been a single acrostic poem in which alternating lines began with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. In the Septuagint they constitute one psalm.,In Hebrew texts 9:1-20 is numbered 9:2-21. 1For the director of music. To the tune of “The Death of the Son.” A psalm of David. I will give thanks to you, LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.

2I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High.

3My enemies turn back; they stumble and perish before you.

4For you have upheld my right and my cause, sitting enthroned as the righteous judge.

5You have rebuked the nations and destroyed the wicked; you have blotted out their name for ever and ever.

6Endless ruin has overtaken my enemies, you have uprooted their cities; even the memory of them has perished.

7The LORD reigns forever; he has established his throne for judgment.

8He rules the world in righteousness and judges the peoples with equity.

9The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble.

10Those who know your name trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.

11Sing the praises of the LORD, enthroned in Zion; proclaim among the nations what he has done.

12For he who avenges blood remembers; he does not ignore the cries of the afflicted.

13LORD, see how my enemies persecute me! Have mercy and lift me up from the gates of death,

14that I may declare your praises in the gates of Daughter Zion, and there rejoice in your salvation.

15The nations have fallen into the pit they have dug; their feet are caught in the net they have hidden.

16The LORD is known by his acts of justice; the wicked are ensnared by the work of their hands. The Hebrew has Higgaion and Selah (words of uncertain meaning) here; Selah occurs also at the end of verse 20.

17The wicked go down to the realm of the dead, all the nations that forget God.

18But God will never forget the needy; the hope of the afflicted will never perish.

19Arise, LORD, do not let mortals triumph; let the nations be judged in your presence. 20Strike them with terror, LORD ; let the nations know they are only mortal.

Psalm 10Psalms 9 and 10 may originally have been a single acrostic poem in which alternating lines began with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. In the Septuagint they constitute one psalm. 1Why, LORD, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?

2In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak, who are caught in the schemes he devises.

3He boasts about the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the LORD .

4In his pride the wicked man does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.

5His ways are always prosperous; your laws are rejected by See Septuagint; Hebrew / they are haughty, and your laws are far from him; he sneers at all his enemies.

6He says to himself, “Nothing will ever shake me.” He swears, “No one will ever do me harm.”

7His mouth is full of lies and threats; trouble and evil are under his tongue.

8He lies in wait near the villages; from ambush he murders the innocent. His eyes watch in secret for his victims;

9like a lion in cover he lies in wait. He lies in wait to catch the helpless; he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net.

10His victims are crushed, they collapse; they fall under his strength.

11He says to himself, “God will never notice; he covers his face and never sees.”

12Arise, LORD ! Lift up your hand, O God. Do not forget the helpless.

13Why does the wicked man revile God? Why does he say to himself, “He won’t call me to account”?

14But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted; you consider their grief and take it in hand. The victims commit themselves to you; you are the helper of the fatherless.

15Break the arm of the wicked man; call the evildoer to account for his wickedness that would not otherwise be found out.

16The LORD is King for ever and ever; the nations will perish from his land.

17You, LORD, hear the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry, 18defending the fatherless and the oppressed, so that mere earthly mortals will never again strike terror.