They ask me things that I do not know.
12iThey reward me evil for good,
To the sorrow of my soul.
13But as for me, jwhen they were sick,
My clothing was sackcloth;
I humbled myself with fasting;
And my prayer would return to my own 5heart.
14I paced about as though he were my friend or brother;
I bowed down 6heavily, as one who mourns for his mother.
15But in my 7adversity they rejoiced
And gathered together;
Attackers gathered against me,
And I did not know it;
They tore at me and did not cease;
16With ungodly mockers at feasts
They gnashed at me with their teeth.
17Lord, how long will You klook on?
Rescue me from their destructions,
My precious life from the lions.
18I will give You thanks in the great assembly;
I will praise You among 8many people.
19lLet them not rejoice over me who are wrongfully my enemies;
Nor let them wink with the eye who hate me without a cause.
20For they do not speak peace,
But they devise deceitful matters
Against the quiet ones in the land.
21They also opened their mouth wide against me,
And said, “Aha, aha!
Our eyes have seen it.”
22This You have seen, O LORD;
Do not keep silence.
O Lord, do not be far from me.
23Stir up Yourself, and awake to my vindication,
To my cause, my God and my Lord.
24Vindicate me, O LORD my God, according to Your righteousness;
And let them not rejoice over me.
25Let them not say in their hearts, “Ah, so we would have it!”
Let them not say, “We have swallowed him up.”
26Let them be ashamed and brought to mutual confusion
Who rejoice at my hurt;
Let them be mclothed with shame and dishonor
Who exalt themselves against me.
27nLet them shout for joy and be glad,
Who favor my righteous cause;
And let them say continually,
“Let the LORD be magnified,
Who has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant.”
28And my tongue shall speak of Your righteousness
And of Your praise all the day long.
Psalm 36
Man’s Wickedness and God’s Perfections
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David the servant of the LORD.
1An oracle within my heart concerning the transgression of the wicked:
aThere is no fear of God before his eyes.
2For he flatters himself in his own eyes,
When he finds out his iniquity and when he hates.
3The words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit;
bHe has ceased to be wise and to do good.
4cHe devises wickedness on his bed;
He sets himself din a way that is not good;
He does not 1abhor eevil.
5Your mercy, O LORD, is in the heavens;
Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
6Your righteousness is like the 2great mountains;
fYour judgments are a great deep;
O LORD, You preserve man and beast.
7How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God!
Therefore the children of men gput their trust under the shadow of Your wings.
8hThey are abundantly satisfied with the fullness of Your house,
And You give them drink from ithe river of Your pleasures.
9jFor with You is the fountain of life;
kIn Your light we see light.
10Oh, continue Your lovingkindness to those who know You,
And Your righteousness to the upright in heart.
11Let not the foot of pride come against me,
And let not the hand of the wicked drive me away.
12There the workers of iniquity have fallen;
They have been cast down and are not able to rise.
Psalm 37
The Heritage of the Righteous and the Calamity of the Wicked
A Psalm of David.
1Doa not fret because of evildoers,
Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity.
2For they shall soon be cut down blike the grass,
And wither as the green herb.
3Trust in the LORD, and do good;
Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
4cDelight yourself also in the LORD,
And He shall give you the desires of your dheart.
5eCommit1 your way to the LORD,
Trust also in Him,
And He shall bring it to pass.
6fHe shall bring forth your righteousness as the light,
And your justice as the noonday.
7Rest in the LORD, gand wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who hprospers in his way,
Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.
8iCease from anger, and forsake wrath;
jDo not fret—it only causes harm.
9For evildoers shall be 2cut off;
But those who wait on the LORD,
They shall kinherit the earth.
10For lyet a little while and the wicked shall be no more;
Indeed, myou will look carefully for his place,
But it shall be no more.
11nBut the meek shall inherit the earth,
And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
12The wicked plots against the just,
oAnd gnashes at him with his teeth.
13pThe Lord laughs at him,
For He sees that qhis day is coming.
14The wicked have drawn the sword
And have bent their bow,
To cast down the poor and needy,
To slay those who are of upright conduct.
15Their sword shall enter their own heart,
And their bows shall be broken.
16rA little that a righteous man has
Is better than the riches of many wicked.
17For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
But the LORD upholds the righteous.
18The LORD knows the days of the upright,
And their inheritance shall be forever.
19They shall not be ashamed in the evil time,
And in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.
20But the wicked shall perish;
And the enemies of the LORD,
Like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish.
Into smoke they shall vanish away.
21The wicked borrows and does not repay,
But sthe righteous shows mercy and gives.
22tFor those blessed by Him shall inherit the earth,
But those cursed by Him shall be 3cut off.
23uThe steps of a good man are 4ordered by the LORD,
And He delights in his way.
24vThough he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down;
For the LORD upholds him with His hand.
25I have been young, and now am old;
Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken,
Nor his descendants begging bread.
26wHe is 5ever merciful, and lends;
And his descendants are blessed.
27Depart from evil, and do good;
And dwell forevermore.
28For the LORD loves justice,
And does not forsake His saints;
They are preserved forever,
But the descendants of the wicked shall be cut off.
29xThe righteous shall inherit the land,
And dwell in it forever.
30yThe mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom,
And his tongue talks of justice.
31The law of his God is in his hea
rt;
None of his steps shall 6slide.
32The wicked zwatches the righteous,
And seeks to slay him.
33The LORD awill not leave him in his hand,
Nor condemn him when he is judged.
34bWait on the LORD,
And keep His way,
And He shall exalt you to inherit the land;
When the wicked are cut off, you shall see it.
35I have seen the wicked in great power,
And spreading himself like a native green tree.
36Yet 7he passed away, and behold, he was no more;
Indeed I sought him, but he could not be found.
37Mark the blameless man, and observe the upright;
For the future of that man is peace.
38cBut the transgressors shall be destroyed together;
The future of the wicked shall be cut off.
39But the salvation of the righteous is from the LORD;
He is their strength din the time of trouble.
40And ethe LORD shall help them and deliver them;
He shall deliver them from the wicked,
And save them,
fBecause they trust in Him.
Psalm 38
Prayer in Time of Chastening
A Psalm of David. aTo bring to remembrance.
1O LORD, do not brebuke me in Your wrath,
Nor chasten me in Your hot displeasure!
2For Your arrows pierce me deeply,
And Your hand presses me down.
3There is no soundness in my flesh
Because of Your anger,
Nor any health in my bones
Because of my sin.
4For my iniquities have gone over my head;
Like a heavy burden they are too heavy for me.
5My wounds are foul and festering
Because of my foolishness.
6I am 1troubled, I am bowed down greatly;
I go mourning all the day long.
7For my loins are full of inflammation,
And there is no soundness in my flesh.
8I am feeble and severely broken;
I groan because of the turmoil of my heart.
9Lord, all my desire is before You;
And my sighing is not hidden from You.
10My heart pants, my strength fails me;
As for the light of my eyes, it also has gone from me.
11My loved ones and my friends cstand aloof from my plague,
And my relatives stand afar off.
12Those also who seek my life lay snares for me;
Those who seek my hurt speak of destruction,
And plan deception all the day long.
13But I, like a deaf man, do not hear;
And I am like a mute who does not open his mouth.
14Thus I am like a man who does not hear,
And in whose mouth is no response.
15For 2in You, O LORD, dI hope;
You will 3hear, O Lord my God.
16For I said, “Hear me, lest they rejoice over me,
Lest, when my foot slips, they exalt themselves against me.”
17eFor I am ready to fall,
And my sorrow is continually before me.
18For I will fdeclare my iniquity;
I will be gin 4anguish over my sin.
19But my enemies are vigorous, and they are strong;
And those who hate me wrongfully have multiplied.
20Those also hwho render evil for good,
They are my adversaries, because I follow what is good.
21Do not forsake me, O LORD;
O my God, ibe not far from me!
22Make haste to help me,
O Lord, my salvation!
Psalm 39
Prayer for Wisdom and Forgiveness
To the Chief Musician. To Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
1I SAID, “I will guard my ways,
Lest I sin with my atongue;
I will restrain my mouth with a muzzle,
While the wicked are before me.”
2bI was mute with silence,
I held my peace even from good;
And my sorrow was stirred up.
3My heart was hot within me;
While I was 1musing, the fire burned.
Then I spoke with my tongue:
4“LORD, cmake me to know my end,
And what is the measure of my days,
That I may know how frail I am.
5Indeed, You have made my days as handbreadths,
And my age is as nothing before You;
Certainly every man at his best state is but dvapor. Selah
6Surely every man walks about like a shadow;
Surely they 2busy themselves in vain;
He heaps up riches,
And does not know who will gather them.
7“And now, Lord, what do I wait for?
My ehope is in You.
8Deliver me from all my transgressions;
Do not make me fthe reproach of the foolish.
9gI was mute, I did not open my mouth,
Because it was hYou who did it.
10iRemove Your plague from me;
I am consumed by the blow of Your hand.
11When with rebukes You correct man for iniquity,
You make his beauty jmelt away like a moth;
Surely every man is vapor. Selah
12“Hear my prayer, O LORD,
And give ear to my cry;
Do not be silent at my tears;
For I am a stranger with You,
A sojourner, kas all my fathers were.
13lRemove Your gaze from me, that I may regain strength,
Before I go away and mam no more.”
Psalm 40
Faith Persevering in Trial
(Ps. 70:1–5)
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
1I aWAITED patiently for the LORD;
And He inclined to me,
And heard my cry.
2He also brought me up out of a horrible pit,
Out of bthe miry clay,
And cset my feet upon a rock,
And established my steps.
3dHe has put a new song in my mouth—
Praise to our God;
Many will see it and fear,
And will trust in the LORD.
4eBlessed is that man who makes the LORD his trust,
And does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.
5fMany, O LORD my God, are Your wonderful works
Which You have done;
gAnd Your thoughts toward us
Cannot be recounted to You in order;
If I would declare and speak of them,
They are more than can be numbered.
6hSacrifice and offering You did not desire;
My ears You have opened.
Burnt offering and sin offering You did not require.
7Then I said, “Behold, I come;
In the scroll of the book it is written of me.
8iI delight to do Your will, O my God,
And Your law is jwithin my heart.”
9kI have proclaimed the good news of righteousness
In the great assembly;
Indeed, lI do not restrain my lips,
O LORD, You Yourself know.
10mI have not hidden Your righteousness within my heart;
I have declared Your faithfulness and Your salvation;
I have not concealed Your lovingkindness and Your truth
From the great assembly.
11Do not withhold Your tender mercies from me, O LORD;
nLet Your lovingkindness and Your truth continually preserve me.
12For innumerable evils have surrounded me;
oMy iniquities have overtaken me, so that I am not able to look up;
They are more than the hairs of my head;
Therefore my heart fails me.
13pBe pleased, O LORD, to deliver me;
O LOR
D, make haste to help me!
14qLet them be ashamed and brought to mutual confusion
Who seek to destroy my 1life;
Let them be driven backward and brought to dishonor
Who wish me evil.
15Let them be rconfounded because of their shame,
Who say to me, “Aha, aha!”
16sLet all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You;
Let such as love Your salvation tsay continually,
“The LORD be magnified!”
17uBut I am poor and needy;
vYet the LORD thinks upon me.
You are my help and my deliverer;
Do not delay, O my God.
Psalm 41
The Blessing and Suffering of the Godly
To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
1Blessed is he who considers the 1poor;
The LORD will deliver him in time of trouble.
2The LORD will preserve him and keep him alive,
And he will be blessed on the earth;
aYou will not deliver him to the will of his enemies.
3The LORD will strengthen him on his bed of illness;
You will 2sustain him on his sickbed.
4I said, “LORD, be merciful to me;
bHeal my soul, for I have sinned against You.”
5My enemies speak evil of me:
“When will he die, and his name perish?”
6And if he comes to see me, he speaks 3lies;
His heart gathers iniquity to itself;
When he goes out, he tells it.
7All who hate me whisper together against me;
Against me they 4devise my hurt.
8“An5 evil disease,” they say, “clings to him.
And now that he lies down, he will rise up no more.”
9cEven my own familiar friend in whom I trusted,
dWho ate my bread,
Has 6lifted up his heel against me.
10But You, O LORD, be merciful to me, and raise me up,
That I may repay them.
11By this I know that You are well pleased with me,
Because my enemy does not triumph over me.
12As for me, You uphold me in my integrity,
And eset me before Your face forever.
13fBlessed be the LORD God of Israel
From everlasting to everlasting!
Amen and Amen.
BOOK TWO
Psalms 42—72
Psalm 42
Yearning for God in the Midst of Distresses
To the Chief Musician. A 1Contemplation of the sons of Korah.
1As the deer 2pants for the water brooks,
So pants my soul for You, O God.
2aMy soul thirsts for God, for the bliving God.
When shall I come and 3appear before God?
3cMy tears have been my food day and night,
The MacArthur Study Bible, NKJV Page 258