1  ^qVindicate me, O Lord,

for I have ^rwalked in my integrity,

and I have ^strusted in the Lord without wavering.

2  ^tProve me, O Lord, and try me;

test my heart and ^umy mind.¹

3  For your ^vsteadfast love is before my eyes,

and I ^wwalk in your ^vfaithfulness.

4  I do not ^xsit with men of ^yfalsehood,

nor do I consort with hypocrites.

5  I ^zhate the assembly of evildoers,

and I will not sit with the wicked.

6  I ^awash my hands in innocence

and go around your altar, O Lord,

7  proclaiming thanksgiving aloud,

and telling all your ^bwondrous deeds.

8  O Lord, I ^clove the habitation of your house

and the place where your glory dwells.

9  ^dDo not sweep my soul away with sinners,

nor my life with bloodthirsty men,

10  in whose hands are evil devices,

and whose right hands are full of ^ebribes.

11  But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity;

redeem me, and be gracious to me.

12  My foot stands on ^flevel ground;

in ^gthe great assembly I will bless the Lord.

1  ^rBe gracious to me, O God, for man ^stramples on me;

all day long an attacker oppresses me;

2  my enemies trample on me all day long,

for many attack me proudly.

3  When I am afraid,

I ^tput my trust in you.

4  In God, whose word I praise,

in God I trust; ^uI shall not be afraid.

What can flesh do to me?

5  All day long they injure my cause;²

all their thoughts are against me for evil.

6  They ^vstir up strife, they ^wlurk;

they ^xwatch my steps,

as they have waited for my life.

7  For their crime will they escape?

^yIn wrath ^zcast down the peoples, O God!

8  You have kept count of my tossings;³

^aput my tears in your bottle.

^bAre they not in your book?

9  Then my enemies will turn back

^cin the day when I call.

This I know, that^{4 d}God is for me.

10  In God, whose word I praise,

in the Lord, whose word I praise,

11  in God I trust; ^uI shall not be afraid.

What can man do to me?

12  I must perform my ^evows to you, O God;

I will ^erender thank offerings to you.

13  ^fFor you have delivered my soul from death,

yes, my feet from falling,

^gthat I may walk before God

^hin the light of life.

1  ^jIncline your ear, O Lord, and answer me,

for I am ^kpoor and needy.

2  Preserve my life, for I am ^lgodly;

save your servant, who ^mtrusts in you—you are my God.

3  ⁿBe gracious to me, O Lord,

for to you do I cry all the day.

4  Gladden the soul of your servant,

for ^oto you, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.

5  For you, O Lord, are good and ^pforgiving,

^qabounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you.

6  ^rGive ear, O Lord, to my prayer;

listen to my plea for grace.

7  In ^sthe day of my trouble I call upon you,

^tfor you answer me.

8  There is ^unone like you among the gods, O Lord,

^vnor are there any works like yours.

9  ^wAll the nations you have made shall come

and worship before you, O Lord,

and shall glorify your name.

10  For ^xyou are great and ^ydo wondrous things;

^zyou alone are God.

11  ^aTeach me your way, O Lord,

that I may ^bwalk in your truth;

^cunite my heart to fear your name.

12  I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart,

and I will glorify your name forever.

13  ^dFor great is your steadfast love toward me;

you have ^edelivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.

14  O God, insolent men have ^frisen up against me;

a band of ruthless men seeks my life,

and they do not set you before them.

15  But you, O Lord, are a God ^gmerciful and gracious,

slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.

16  ^hTurn to me and be gracious to me;

give your strength to ⁱyour servant,

and save ⁱthe son of your maidservant.

17  ^jShow me a sign of your ^kfavor,

that those who hate me may see and be put to shame

because you, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.

1  I ^ylove the Lord, because he has ^zheard

my voice and my pleas for mercy.

2  Because he ^ainclined his ear to me,

therefore I will call on him as long as I live.

3  ^bThe snares of death encompassed me;

the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;

I suffered distress and anguish.

4  Then ^cI called on the name of the Lord:

“O Lord, I pray, deliver my soul!”

5  ^dGracious is the Lord, and ^erighteous;

our God is ^fmerciful.

6  The Lord preserves ^gthe simple;

when ^hI was brought low, he saved me.

7  Return, O my soul, to your ⁱrest;

for the Lord has ^jdealt bountifully with you.

8  For ^kyou have delivered my soul from death,

my eyes from tears,

my feet from stumbling;

9  I will walk before the Lord

^lin the land of the living.

10  ^mI believed, ⁿeven when¹ I spoke:

“I am greatly afflicted”;

11  ^oI said in my alarm,

^p“All mankind are liars.”

12  What shall I ^qrender to the Lord

for all his benefits to me?

13  I will lift up ^rthe cup of salvation

and ^scall on the name of the Lord,

14  I will ^tpay my vows to the Lord

in the presence of all his people.

15  ^uPrecious in the sight of the Lord

is the death of his ^vsaints.

16  O Lord, I am your ^wservant;

I am your servant, ^xthe son of your maidservant.

You have ^yloosed my bonds.

17  I will ^zoffer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving

and ^scall on the name of the Lord.

18  I will ^tpay my vows to the Lord

in the presence of all his people,

19  in ^athe courts of the house of the Lord,

in your midst, O Jerusalem.

^bPraise the Lord!

1  ⁿPraise the Lord!

Praise the Lord, O my soul!

2  I will praise the Lord ^oas long as I live;

^pI will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

3  ^qPut not your trust in princes,

^rin a son of man, in whom there is ^sno salvation.

4  When ^this breath departs, he returns to the earth;

on that very day his plans perish.

5  ^uBlessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,

whose ^vhope is in the Lord his God,

6  ^wwho made heaven and earth,

the sea, and all that is in them,

^xwho keeps faith forever;

7  ^ywho executes justice for the oppressed,

^zwho gives food to the hungry.

^aThe Lord sets the prisoners free;

8  ^bthe Lord opens the eyes of the blind.

^cThe Lord lifts up those who are bowed down;

^dthe Lord loves the righteous.

9  ^eThe Lord watches over the sojourners;

^fhe upholds the widow and the fatherless,

but ^gthe way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

10  ^hThe Lord will reign forever,

your God, O Zion, to all generations.

ⁿPraise the Lord!

1  Like snow in summer or ^urain in harvest,

so ^vhonor is ^wnot fitting for a fool.

2  Like ^xa sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying,

^ya curse that is causeless does not alight.

3  ^zA whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,

and ^aa rod for the back of fools.

4  ^bAnswer not a fool according to his folly,

lest you be like him yourself.

5  ^cAnswer a fool according to his folly,

lest he be ^dwise in his own eyes.

6  Whoever sends a message by the hand of a fool

cuts off his own feet and ^edrinks violence.

7  Like a lame man’s legs, which hang useless,

is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

8  Like one who binds the stone in the sling

is ^fone who gives honor to a fool.

9  Like ^ga thorn that goes up into the hand of a drunkard

is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

10  Like an archer who wounds everyone

is one who hires a passing fool or drunkard.¹

11  Like ^ha dog that returns to his vomit

is ⁱa fool who repeats his folly.

12  Do you see a man who is ^jwise in his own eyes?

^kThere is more hope for a fool than for him.

13  ^lThe sluggard says, “There is a lion in the road!

There is a lion in the streets!”

14  As a door turns on its hinges,

so does a sluggard on his bed.

15  ^mThe sluggard buries his hand in the dish;

it wears him out to bring it back to his mouth.

16  The sluggard is ^jwiser in his own eyes

ⁿthan seven men who can answer sensibly.

17  Whoever meddles in a quarrel not his own

is like one who takes a passing dog by the ears.

18  Like a madman who throws ^ofirebrands, arrows, and death

19  is the man who deceives his neighbor

and says, “I am only joking!”

20  For lack of wood the fire goes out,

and where there is no ^pwhisperer, ^qquarreling ceases.

21  As charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire,

so is ^ra quarrelsome man for kindling strife.

22  ^sThe words of ^pa whisperer are like delicious morsels;

they go down into the inner parts of the body.

23  ^tLike the ^uglaze² covering an earthen vessel

are fervent lips with an evil heart.

24  Whoever hates disguises himself with his lips

and harbors deceit in his heart;

25  ^vwhen he speaks graciously, believe him not,

for there are ^wseven abominations in his heart;

26  though his hatred be covered with deception,

his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.

27  ^xWhoever digs a pit will fall into it,

and a stone will come back on him who starts it rolling.

28  A lying tongue hates its victims,

and a flattering mouth works ruin.