Of David.

1                    Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong;

2                    for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away.

3                    Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.

4                    Delight yourself in the LORD and He will give you the desires of your heart.

5                    Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him and He will do this:

6                    He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.

7                    Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for Him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.

8                    Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret – it leads only to evil.

9                    For evil men will be cut off, but those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land.

10               A little while, and the wicked will be no more; though you look for them, they will not be found.

11               But the meek will inherit the land and enjoy great peace.

12               The wicked plot against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them;

13               but the LORD laughs at the wicked, for He knows their day is coming.

14               The wicked draw the sword and bend the bow to bring down the poor and needy, to slay those whose ways are upright.

15               But their swords will pierce their own hearts, and their bows will be broken.

16               Better the little that the righteous have than the wealth of many wicked;

17               for the power of the wicked will be broken, but the LORD upholds the righteous.

18               The days of the blameless are known to the LORD, and their inheritance will endure forever.

19               In times of disaster they will not wither; in days of famine they will enjoy plenty.

20               But the wicked will perish: The LORD’s enemies will be like the beauty of the fields, they will vanish – vanish like smoke.

21               The wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous give generously;

22               those the LORD blesses will inherit the land, but those He curses will be cut off.

23               If the LORD delights in a man’s way, He makes his steps firm;

24               though he stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD upholds him with His hand.

25               I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread.

26               They are always generous and lend freely; their children will be blessed.

27               Turn from evil and do good; then you will dwell in the land forever.

28               For the LORD loves the just and will not forsake His faithful ones.  They will be protected forever, but the offspring of the wicked will be cut off;

29               the righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it forever.

30               The mouth of the righteous man utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks what is just.

31               The law of his God is in his heart; his feet do not slip.

32               The wicked lie in wait for the righteous, seeking their very lives;

33               but the LORD will not leave them in their power or let them be condemned when brought to trial.

34               Wait for the LORD and keep His way.  He will exalt you to inherit the land; when the wicked are cut off, you will see it.

35               I have seen a wicked and ruthless man flourishing like a green tree in its native soil,

36               but he soon passed away and was no more; though I looked for him, he could not be found.

37               Consider the blameless, observe the upright; there is a future [b] for the man of peace.

38               But all sinners will be destroyed; the future [c] of the wicked will be cut off.

39               The salvation of the righteous comes from the LORD; He is their stronghold in time of trouble.

40               The LORD helps them and delivers them; He delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in Him.

For the director of music.  Of David the servant of the LORD.  He sang to the LORD the words of this song 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 rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge.  He is my shield and the horn [a] of my salvation, my stronghold.

3                    I call to the LORD, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies.

4                    The cords of death entangled me; the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me.

5                    The cords of the grave [b] coiled around me; the snares of death confronted me.

6                    In my distress I called to the LORD; I cried to my God for help.  From His temple He heard my voice; my cry came before Him, into His ears.

7                    The earth trembled and quaked, and the foundations of the mountains shook; they trembled because He was angry.

8                    Smoke rose from His nostrils; consuming fire came from His mouth, burning coals blazed out of it.

9                    He parted the heavens and came down; dark clouds were under His feet.

10               He mounted the cherubim and flew; He soared on the wings of the wind.

11               He made darkness His covering, his canopy around Him – the dark rain clouds of the sky.

12               Out of the brightness of His presence clouds advanced, with hailstones and bolts of lightning.

13               The LORD thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded. [c]

14               He shot His arrows and scattered the enemies, great bolts of lightning and routed them.

15               The valleys of the sea were exposed and the foundations of the earth laid bare at your rebuke, O LORD, at the blast of your breath from your nostrils.

16               He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters.

17               He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes, who were too strong for me.

18               They confronted me in the day of my disaster, but the LORD was my support.

19               He brought me out into a spacious place; He rescued me because He delighted in me.

20               The LORD has dealt with me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands He has rewarded me.

21               For I have kept the ways of the LORD; I have not done evil by turning from my God.

22               All His laws are before me; I have not turned away from His decrees.

23               I have been blameless before Him and have kept myself from sin.

24               The LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in His sight.

25               To the faithful you show yourself faithful, to the blameless you show yourself blameless,

26               to the pure you show yourself pure, but to the crooked you show yourself shrewd.

27               You save the humble but bring low those whose eyes are haughty.

28               You, O LORD, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light.

29               With your help I can advance against a troop [d] ; with my God I can scale a wall.

30               As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless.  He is a shield for all who take refuge in Him.

31               For who is God besides the LORD?  And who is the Rock except our God?

32               It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect.

33               He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand on the heights.

34               He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

35               You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great.

36               You broaden the path beneath me, so that my ankles do not turn.

37               I pursued my enemies and overtook them; I did not turn back till they were destroyed.

38               I crushed them so that they could not rise; they fell beneath my feet.

39               You armed me with strength for battle; you made my adversaries bow at my feet.

40               You made my enemies turn their backs in flight, and I destroyed my foes.

41               They cried for help, but there was no one to save them – to the LORD, but He did not answer.

42               I beat them as fine as dust borne on the wind; I poured them out like mud in the streets.

43               You have delivered me from the attacks of the people; you have made me the head of nations; people I did not know are subject to me.

44               As soon as they hear me, they obey me; foreigners cringe before me.

45               They all lose heart; they come trembling from their strongholds.

46               The LORD lives!  Praise be to my Rock!  Exalted be God my Savior!

47               He is the God who avenges me, who subdues nations under me,

48               who saves me from my enemies.  You exalted me above my foes; from violent men you rescued me.

49               Therefore I will praise you among the nations, O LORD; I will sing praises to your name.

50               He gives His king great victories; He shows unfailing kindness to His anointed, to David and his descendants forever.