1  ^aBlessed is the man¹

who walks not in the ^bcounsel of the wicked,

nor stands in the way of sinners,

nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

2  but his ^cdelight is in the law² of the Lord,

and on his law he ^dmeditates day and night.

3  ^eHe is like a tree

planted by streams of water

that ^fyields its fruit in its season,

and its leaf does not wither.

In all that he does, he ^gprospers.

4  The wicked are not so,

but are like chaff that the wind drives away.

5  Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,

nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;

6  for ^hthe Lord knows the way of the righteous,

but the way of the wicked will perish.

1  ⁱWhy do the nations rage¹

and the peoples plot in vain?

2  The kings of the earth set themselves,

and the rulers take counsel together,

against the Lord and against his ^jAnointed, saying,

3  “Let us burst their bonds apart

and cast away their cords from us.”

4  He who sits in the heavens ^klaughs;

the Lord holds them in derision.

5  Then he will speak to them in his wrath,

and terrify them in his fury, saying,

6  “As for me, I have set my King

on Zion, my holy hill.”

7  I will tell of the decree:

^lThe Lord said to me, ^m“You are my ⁿSon;

today I have begotten you.

8  Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,

and the ^oends of the earth your possession.

9  ^pYou shall break² them with a ^qrod of iron

and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”

10  Now therefore, O kings, be wise;

be warned, O rulers of the earth.

11  Serve the Lord with fear,

and rejoice with trembling.

12  ^rKiss the Son,

lest he be angry, and you perish in the way,

for his wrath is quickly kindled.

^sBlessed are all who take refuge in him.

1  ^wWhy, O Lord, do you stand far away?

Why do you ^xhide yourself in times of trouble?

2  In arrogance the wicked hotly pursue the poor;

^ylet them be caught in the schemes that they have devised.

3  For the wicked boasts of the desires of his soul,

and the one ^zgreedy for gain curses¹ and renounces the Lord.

4  In the pride of his face² the wicked does not seek him;³

all his thoughts are, ^a“There is no God.”

5  His ways prosper at all times;

your judgments are on high, out of his sight;

as for all his foes, he puffs at them.

6  He says in his heart, “I shall not be moved;

throughout all generations I shall not meet adversity.”

7  ^bHis mouth is filled with cursing and deceit and oppression;

under his tongue are mischief and iniquity.

8  He sits in ambush in the villages;

^cin hiding places he murders the innocent.

His eyes stealthily watch for the helpless;

9  he lurks in ambush like a lion in his thicket;

he lurks that he may seize the poor;

he seizes the poor when he draws him into his net.

10  The helpless are crushed, sink down,

and fall by his might.

11  He says in his heart, “God has forgotten,

he has hidden his face, ^dhe will never see it.”

12  Arise, O Lord; O God, lift up your hand;

^eforget not the afflicted.

13  Why does the wicked renounce God

and say in his heart, “You will not call to account”?

14  But you do see, for you note mischief and vexation,

that you may take it into your hands;

to you the helpless commits himself;

^fyou have been the helper of the fatherless.

15  Break the arm of the wicked and evildoer;

^gcall his wickedness to account till you find none.

16  ^hThe Lord is king forever and ever;

the nations perish from his land.

17  O Lord, you hear the desire of the afflicted;

you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear

18  to do ⁱjustice to the fatherless and the ^joppressed,

^kso that man who is of the earth may strike terror no more.