Psalms 82

1 A Psalm of Asaph. God presides in the divine assembly; He renders judgment among the gods:

— A Psalm of Asaph. God hath stood in the company of God, In the midst God doth judge.

2 “How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked?

Till when do ye judge perversely? And the face of the wicked lift up? (Selah)

3 Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; uphold the rights of the afflicted and oppressed.

Judge ye the weak and fatherless, The afflicted and the poor declare righteous.

4 Rescue the weak and needy; save them from the hand of the wicked.

Let the weak and needy escape, From the hand of the wicked deliver them.

5 They do not know or understand; they wander in the darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.

They knew not, nor do they understand, In darkness they walk habitually, Moved are all the foundations of earth.

6 I have said, ‘You are gods; you are all sons of the Most High.’

I — I have said, 'Gods ye [are], And sons of the Most High — all of you,

7 But like mortals you will die, and like rulers you will fall.”

But as man ye die, and as one of the heads ye fall,

8 Arise, O God, judge the earth, for all the nations are Your inheritance.

Rise, O God, judge the earth, For Thou hast inheritance among all the nations!