Psalms 35
1 A psalm of David. Oppose my opponents, Lord; fight those who are fighting against me.
Plead my cause, O LORD, with them that strive with me: fight against them that fight against me.
2 Put your armor on, and pick up your shield. Get ready, come and help me.
Take hold of shield and buckler, and stand up for my help.
3 Draw your spear and your javelin, confront those who are chasing me. Tell me, “I am your salvation!”
Draw out also the spear, and stop the way against them that persecute me: say to my soul, I am your salvation.
4 Shame them! Humiliate those who are trying to kill me! Turn them back! Disgrace those who are planning to hurt me!
Let them be confounded and put to shame that seek after my soul: let them be turned back and brought to confusion that devise my hurt.
5 Let them be like chaff blown by the wind; let the angel of the Lord drive them away.
Let them be as chaff before the wind: and let the angel of the LORD chase them.
6 May their path be dark and slippery, with the angel of the Lord chasing them down.
Let their way be dark and slippery: and let the angel of the LORD persecute them.
7 For no reason they set a net to catch me; for no reason they dug a pit to trap me.
For without cause have they hid for me their net in a pit, which without cause they have dig for my soul.
8 Let disaster come on them suddenly; let the net they set catch them instead; let the pit they dug trap them instead.
Let destruction come on him at unawares; and let his net that he has hid catch himself: into that very destruction let him fall.
9 Then I will be glad in the Lord; I will be happy in his salvation.
And my soul shall be joyful in the LORD: it shall rejoice in his salvation.
10 Every part of me will say, Who can compare to you, Lord? You rescue the weak from the strong; the poor and needy from robbers.
All my bones shall say, LORD, who is like to you, which deliver the poor from him that is too strong for him, yes, the poor and the needy from him that spoils him?
11 Hostile witnesses stand up to testify against me, accusing me of crimes I don't know anything about.
False witnesses did rise up; they laid to my charge things that I knew not.
12 They pay me back with evil instead of good. I feel like giving up.
They rewarded me evil for good to the spoiling of my soul.
13 But when they were sick, I put on clothes of sackcloth in sympathy. I denied myself through fasting. May my prayer for them return to bless me too.
But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth: I humbled my soul with fasting; and my prayer returned into my own bosom.
14 I was upset for them, as if they were my own friends or family; I bowed down in grief as if I was mourning my own mother.
I behaved myself as though he had been my friend or brother: I bowed down heavily, as one that mourns for his mother.
15 But when I was in trouble, they gathered around and laughed at me. Even strangers I don't know attacked me, constantly tearing me apart.
But in my adversity they rejoiced, and gathered themselves together: yes, the attackers gathered themselves together against me, and I knew it not; they did tear me, and ceased not:
16 Like irreligious people mocking a cripple they mock me and call me names, gnashing their teeth at me.
With hypocritical mockers in feasts, they gnashed on me with their teeth.
17 How long, Lord, will you sit by and just watch? Save me from their vicious attacks; defend the only life I have from these lions.
Lord, how long will you look on? rescue my soul from their destructions, my darling from the lions.
18 Then I will thank you in front of the whole congregation and praise you in front of all the people.
I will give you thanks in the great congregation: I will praise you among much people.
19 Don't let my enemies take pleasure in my troubles, those people who hate me and tell lies about me, gloating over me for no reason.
Let not them that are my enemies wrongfully rejoice over me: neither let them wink with the eye that hate me without a cause.
20 They are not looking for peace; they invent malicious and deceptive schemes against innocent peace-loving people.
For they speak not peace: but they devise deceitful matters against them that are quiet in the land.
21 They open their mouths wide to make accusations against me, saying, “Look! Look! We saw it with our own eyes!”
Yes, they opened their mouth wide against me, and said, Aha, aha, our eye has seen it.
22 But Lord, you've seen all this! Say something! Don't give up on me, Lord!
This you have seen, O LORD: keep not silence: O Lord, be not far from me.
23 Wake up! Get up and defend me, my Lord and my God! Take up my case and make sure justice is done!
Stir up yourself, and awake to my judgment, even to my cause, my God and my Lord.
24 Vindicate me, my Lord and my God, because you are just and right. Don't let them gloat over me.
Judge me, O LORD my God, according to your righteousness; and let them not rejoice over me.
25 Don't let them say to themselves, “Look! We got what we wanted!” Don't let them say, “We completely destroyed him!”
Let them not say in their hearts, Ah, so would we have it: let them not say, We have swallowed him up.
26 Make them totally ashamed, all those who are happy for the trouble I'm in. Let those who are celebrating over me be covered with shame and dishonor.
Let them be ashamed and brought to confusion together that rejoice at my hurt: let them be clothed with shame and dishonor that magnify themselves against me.
27 Instead let those who are pleased I've been vindicated celebrate and shout for joy. Let them always say, “How great is the Lord! He is happy when his servants live in peace and have what they need.”
Let them shout for joy, and be glad, that favor my righteous cause: yes, let them say continually, Let the LORD be magnified, which has pleasure in the prosperity of his servant.
28 I will tell others about your character of truth and right, praising you all day long!
And my tongue shall speak of your righteousness and of your praise all the day long.
