1 Blessed is the man1
who awalks not in bthe counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in cthe way of sinners,
nor dsits in ethe seat of fscoffers;
2 but his gdelight is in the law2 of the Lord,
and on his hlaw he meditates day and night.
3 He is like ia tree
planted by jstreams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its kleaf does not wither.
lIn all that he does, he prospers.
4 The wicked are not so,
but are like mchaff that the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the wicked nwill not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in othe congregation of the righteous;
6 for the Lord pknows qthe way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.
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 tAnointed, saying,
3 “Let us uburst their bonds apart
and cast away their cords from us.”
4 He who vsits in the heavens wlaughs;
the Lord holds them in derision.
5 Then he will speak to them in his xwrath,
and terrify them in his fury, saying,
6 “As for me, I have yset my King
7 I will tell of the decree:
The Lord said to me, b“You are my Son;
today I have begotten you.
8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,
and cthe ends of the earth your possession.
9 You shall dbreak4 them with ea rod of iron
and dash them in pieces like fa potter’s vessel.”
10 Now therefore, O kings, be wise;
be warned, O rulers of the earth.
11 gServe the Lord with hfear,
lest he be angry, and you perish in the way,
for his lwrath is quickly kindled.
mBlessed are all who take refuge in him.
Psalm 18
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, fthe servant of the Lord, gwho addressed the words of this hsong to the Lord on the day when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. He said:
1 I love you, O Lord, my strength.
2 The Lord is my irock and my jfortress and my deliverer,
my God, my irock, in kwhom I take refuge,
my lshield, and mthe horn of my salvation, my nstronghold.
3 I call upon the Lord, who is oworthy to be praised,
and I am saved from my enemies.
4 pThe cords of death encompassed me;
qthe torrents of destruction assailed me;1
5 pthe cords of Sheol entangled me;
the snares of death confronted me.
6 rIn my distress I called upon the Lord;
to my God I cried for help.
From his stemple he heard my voice,
and my cry to him reached his ears.
7 Then the earth treeled and rocked;
the foundations also of the mountains trembled
and quaked, because he was angry.
8 Smoke went up from his nostrils,2
and devouring ufire from his mouth;
glowing coals flamed forth from him.
9 He vbowed the heavens and wcame down;
xthick darkness was under his feet.
10 He rode on a cherub and flew;
he came swiftly on zthe wings of the wind.
11 He made darkness his covering, his acanopy around him,
thick clouds bdark with water.
12 Out of the brightness before him
chailstones and coals of fire broke through his clouds.
13 The Lord also dthundered in the heavens,
and the Most High uttered his evoice,
hailstones and coals of fire.
14 And he sent out his farrows and scattered them;
he flashed forth lightnings and grouted them.
15 Then hthe channels of the sea were seen,
and the foundations of the world were laid bare
at your irebuke, O Lord,
at the blast of jthe breath of your nostrils.
16 He ksent from on high, he took me;
he ldrew me out of mmany waters.
17 He rescued me from my strong enemy
and from those who hated me,
for they were ntoo mighty for me.
18 They confronted me in the day of my calamity,
but the Lord was my support.
19 He brought me out into oa broad place;
he rescued me, because he pdelighted in me.
20 The Lord dealt with me qaccording to my righteousness;
according to rthe cleanness of my hands he rewarded me.
21 For I have skept the ways of the Lord,
and have not wickedly departed from my God.
22 For tall his rules3 were before me,
and his statutes I did not put away from me.
23 I was ublameless before him,
and I kept myself from my guilt.
24 So the Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness,
according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.
25 With vthe merciful you show yourself merciful;
with the blameless man you show yourself blameless;
26 with the purified you show yourself pure;
and with wthe crooked you make yourself seem tortuous.
27 For you save xa humble people,
but ythe haughty eyes you bring down.
28 For it is you who light my zlamp;
the Lord my God lightens my darkness.
29 For by you I can run against a troop,
and by my God I can aleap over ba wall.
30 This God—his way is cperfect;4
the word of the Lord dproves true;
31 For gwho is God, but the Lord?
And who is ha rock, except our God?—
32 the God who iequipped me with strength
and made my way jblameless.
33 He made my feet like the feet of a kdeer
and set me secure on lthe heights.
34 He mtrains my hands for war,
so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
35 You have given me the shield of your salvation,
and your right hand nsupported me,
and your ogentleness made me great.
36 You pgave a wide place for my steps under me,
and my feet did not slip.
37 I pursued my enemies and overtook them,
and did not turn back till they were consumed.
38 I thrust them through, so that they were not able to rise;
they fell under my feet.
39 For you equipped me with strength for the battle;
you made those who rise against me sink under me.
40 You made my enemies qturn their backs to me,5
and those who hated me I destroyed.
41 rThey cried for help, but there was none to save;
they cried to the Lord, but he did not answer them.
42 I beat them fine as sdust before the wind;
I cast them out like tthe mire of the streets.
43 You delivered me from ustrife with the people;
you made me vthe head of the nations;
wpeople whom I had not known served me.
44 As soon as they heard of me they obeyed me;
xforeigners ycame cringing to me.
45 xForeigners lost heart
and zcame trembling out of their fortresses.
46 The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock,
and exalted be the God of my salvation—
47 the God who gave me vengeance
and asubdued peoples under me,
48 who rescued me from my enemies;
yes, you bexalted me above those who rose against me;
you delivered me from cthe man of violence.
49 dFor this I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations,
and esing to your name.
50 Great fsalvation he brings to his king,
and shows steadfast love to his ganointed,
to hDavid and his offspring forever.
Psalm 22
To the choirmaster: according to The Doe of the Dawn. A Psalm of David.
1 uMy God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so vfar from saving me, from the words of my wgroaning?
2 O my God, I cry by xday, but you do not answer,
and by night, but I find no rest.
3 Yet you are yholy,
zenthroned on athe praises1 of Israel.
4 In you our fathers trusted;
they trusted, and you delivered them.
5 To you they bcried and were rescued;
in you they ctrusted and were not put to shame.
6 But I am da worm and not a man,
escorned by mankind and fdespised by the people.
7 All who see me gmock me;
they make mouths at me; they hwag their heads;
8 i“He trusts in the Lord; let him jdeliver him;
let him rescue him, for he kdelights in him!”
9 Yet you are he who ltook me from the womb;
you made me trust you at my mother’s breasts.
10 On you was I cast from my birth,
and from mmy mother’s womb you have been my God.
11 Be not nfar from me,
for trouble is near,
and there is onone to help.
12 Many bulls encompass me;
pstrong bulls of qBashan surround me;
13 they ropen wide their mouths at me,
like a ravening and roaring lion.
14 I am spoured out like water,
and all my bones are tout of joint;
it is melted within my breast;
15 my strength is wdried up like a potsherd,
and my xtongue sticks to my jaws;
you lay me in the dust of death.
16 For ydogs encompass me;
a company of evildoers zencircles me;
they have apierced my hands and feet2—
17 I can count all my bones—
they bstare and gloat over me;
18 cthey divide my garments among them,
and for my clothing they cast lots.
19 But you, O Lord, ndo not be far off!
O you my help, dcome quickly to my aid!
20 Deliver my soul from the sword,
my precious life from the power of ethe dog!
21 Save me from fthe mouth of the lion!
22 hI will tell of your name to my ibrothers;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:
23 You who jfear the Lord, praise him!
All you offspring of Jacob, kglorify him,
and stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!
24 For he has not despised or abhorred
the affliction of lthe afflicted,
and he has not mhidden his face from him,
but has heard, when he ncried to him.
25 From you comes my praise in the great ocongregation;
my pvows I will qperform before those who fear him.
26 rThe afflicted4 shall seat and be satisfied;
those who seek him shall praise the Lord!
May your hearts tlive forever!
27 All uthe ends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the Lord,
and all vthe families of the nations
shall worship before you.
28 For wkingship belongs to the Lord,
and he rules over the nations.
29 All xthe prosperous of the earth eat and worship;
before him shall ybow all who go down to the dust,
even the one who could not zkeep himself alive.
30 Posterity shall serve him;
it shall be told of the Lord to the coming ageneration;
31 they shall bcome and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet cunborn,
that he has done it.
Psalm 45
To the choirmaster: according to Lilies. A Maskil1 of vthe Sons of Korah; a love song.
1 My heart overflows with a pleasing theme;
I address my verses to the king;
my tongue is like the pen of wa ready scribe.
2 You are xthe most handsome of the sons of men;
ygrace is poured upon your lips;
therefore God has blessed you forever.
3 zGird your asword on your thigh, O bmighty one,
in cyour splendor and majesty!
4 In your majesty dride out victoriously
for the cause of truth and meekness and righteousness;
let your right hand teach you eawesome deeds!
5 Your arrows are sharp
in the heart of the king’s enemies;
the peoples fall under you.
6 fYour throne, O God, is forever and ever.
The gscepter of your kingdom is a scepter of uprightness;
7 hyou have loved righteousness and hated wickedness.
Therefore iGod, your God, has janointed you
with the oil of kgladness lbeyond your companions;
8 your robes are all fragrant with mmyrrh and aloes and cassia.
From ivory palaces nstringed instruments make you glad;
9 daughters of kings are among your ladies of honor;
10 Hear, O daughter, and consider, and incline your ear:
forget your people and your father’s house,
11 and the king will desire your beauty.
Since he is your qlord, rbow to him.
13 All glorious is vthe princess in her chamber, with robes interwoven with gold.
14 wIn many-colored robes xshe is led to the king,
with her virgin companions following behind her.
15 With joy and gladness they are led along
as they enter the palace of the king.
16 In place of your fathers shall be your sons;
you will make them yprinces in all the earth.
17 zI will cause your name to be remembered in all generations;
therefore nations will praise you forever and ever.
Psalm 110
A Psalm of David.
1 qThe Lord says to my Lord:
r“Sit at my right hand,
2 The Lord sends forth ufrom Zion
vyour mighty scepter.
wRule in the midst of your enemies!
3 xYour people will yoffer themselves freely
from the womb of the morning,
the dew of your youth will be yours.3
and will dnot change his mind,
after the order of hMelchizedek.”
5 The Lord is at your iright hand;
he will jshatter kings on kthe day of his wrath.
6 He will lexecute judgment among the nations,
mfilling them with corpses;
over the wide earth.
7 He will odrink from the brook by the way;
therefore he will lift up his head.
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