< Psalms 17 >
1 A PRAYER OF DAVID. Hear, O YHWH, righteousness, attend my cry, Give ear [to] my prayer, without lips of deceit.
A Prayer of David. Hear, O Yahweh, the right, Attend to my loud cry, Give ear unto my prayer, on lips that would not deceive:
2 My judgment goes out from before You; Your eyes see uprightly.
From before thee, let my sentence come forth, Thine eyes, behold with equity.
3 You have proved my heart, You have inspected by night, You have tried me, You find nothing; My thoughts do not pass over my mouth.
Thou hast tested my heart, hast made inspection by night, hast refined me until thou couldst find nothing, Had I devised evil, my mouth should not have transgressed:
4 As for doings of man, Through a word of Your lips I have observed The paths of a destroyer;
As for the workings of men, By the word of thy lips, have, I, taken heed of the paths of the violent one.
5 To uphold my goings in Your paths, My steps have not slipped.
Thou hast held fast my goings on to thy ways, My footsteps have not been shaken:
6 I called You, for You answer me, O God, incline Your ear to me, hear my speech.
I, have called upon thee, for thou wilt answer me, O GOD, —Incline thine ear unto me, Hear thou my speech:
7 Separate Your kindness wonderfully, O Savior of the confiding, By Your right hand, from withstanders.
Let thy lovingkindness be distinguished, thou Saviour of such as seek refuge from them who lift themselves up against thy right hand.
8 Keep me as the apple, the daughter of the eye; Hide me in the shadow of Your wings,
Guard me, as the pupil of the eye, —Under the shadow of thy wings, wilt thou hide me:
9 From the face of the wicked who spoiled me, [From] my enemies in soul who go around against me.
From the face of lawless ones who have treated me with violence, the foes of my soul, who come round against me:
10 They have closed up their fat, Their mouths have spoken with pride:
Their own fat [heart], have they shut up, —With their mouth, have they spoken proudly.
11 “Our steps have now surrounded [him]”; They set their eyes to turn aside in the land.
As for our own goings, now, have they surrounded us, —Their eyes, they fix, bending to the earth:
12 His likeness as a lion desirous to tear, As a young lion dwelling in secret places.
His likeness, is as a lion, that longeth to rend, and as a young lion, lurking in secret places.
13 Arise, O YHWH, go before his face, Cause him to bend. Deliver my soul from the wicked, Your sword,
Rise, Yahweh! Confront his face, Bring him down, Deliver my soul from the lawless one [who is] thy sword:
14 From men, Your hand, O YHWH, From men of the world, their portion [is] in life, And [with] Your hidden things You fill their belly, They are satisfied [with] sons, And have left their abundance to their sucklings.
From men [who are] thy hand, O Yahweh, From the men of this age, whose portion, is among the living, and, with thy treasure, thou fillest their bosom, —They must be satisfied with sons, And must leave their abundance to their children: —
15 I—in righteousness, I see Your face; I am satisfied, in awaking, [with] Your form!
I, in righteousness, shall behold thy face, Shall be satisfied when awakened by a vision of thee.