Psalms 31

1 TO THE OVERSEER. A PSALM OF DAVID. In You, O YHWH, I have trusted, Do not let me be ashamed for all time, In Your righteousness deliver me.

To the chief music-maker. A Psalm. Of David. In you, O Lord, have I put my hope; let me never be shamed; keep me safe in your righteousness.

2 Incline Your ear to me quickly, deliver me, Be to me for a strong rock, For a house of bulwarks to save me.

Let your ear be turned to me; take me quickly out of danger; be my strong Rock, my place of strength where I may be safe.

3 For You [are] my rock and my bulwark, For Your Name’s sake lead me and tend me.

For you are my Rock and my strong tower; go in front of me and be my guide, because of your name.

4 Bring me out from the net that they hid for me, For You [are] my strength.

Take me out of the net which they have put ready for me secretly; for you are my strength.

5 Into Your hand I commit my spirit, You have redeemed me, YHWH God of truth.

Into your hands I give my spirit; you are my saviour, O Lord God for ever true.

6 I have hated the observers of lying vanities, And I have been confident toward YHWH.

I am full of hate for those who go after false gods; but my hope is in the Lord.

7 I rejoice, and am glad in Your kindness, In that You have seen my affliction, You have known my soul in adversities.

I will be glad and have delight in your mercy; because you have seen my trouble; you have had pity on my soul in its sorrows;

8 And You have not shut me up, Into the hand of an enemy, You have caused my feet to stand in a broad place.

And you have not given me into the hand of my hater; you have put my feet in a wide place.

9 Favor me, O YHWH, for distress [is] to me, My eye, my soul, and my body Have become old by provocation.

Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am in trouble; my eyes are wasted with grief, I am wasted in soul and body.

10 For my life has been consumed in sorrow And my years in sighing. My strength has been feeble because of my iniquity, And my bones have become old.

My life goes on in sorrow, and my years in weeping; my strength is almost gone because of my sin, and my bones are wasted away.

11 I have been a reproach among all my adversaries, And to my neighbors exceedingly, And a fear to my acquaintances, Those seeing me without—fled from me.

Because of all those who are against me, I have become a word of shame to my neighbours; a cause of shaking the head and a fear to my friends: those who saw me in the street went in flight from me.

12 I have been forgotten as dead, out of mind, I have been as a perishing vessel.

I have gone from men's minds and memory like a dead man; I am like a broken vessel.

13 For I have heard an evil account of many, Fear [is] all around. In their being united against me, They have devised to take my life,

False statements against me have come to my ears; fear was on every side: they were talking together against me, designing to take away my life.

14 And I have trusted on You, O YHWH, I have said, “You [are] my God.”

But I had faith in you, O Lord; I said, You are my God.

15 In Your hand [are] my times, Deliver me from the hand of my enemies, And from my pursuers.

The chances of my life are in your hand; take me out of the hands of my haters, and of those who go after me.

16 Cause Your face to shine on Your servant, Save me in Your kindness.

Let your servant see the light of your face; in your mercy be my saviour.

17 O YHWH, do not let me be ashamed, For I have called You, let the wicked be ashamed, Let them become silent to Sheol. (Sheol h7585)

Let me not be shamed, O Lord, for I have made my prayer to you; let the sinners be shamed, and let their mouths be shut in the underworld. (Sheol h7585)

18 Let lips of falsehood become mute, That are speaking against the righteous, Ancient sayings, in pride and contempt.

Let the false lips be shut, which say evil against the upright, looking down on him in their pride.

19 How abundant is Your goodness, That You have laid up for those fearing You, You have worked for those trusting in You, Before sons of men.

O how great is your grace, which you have put in store for your worshippers, and which you have made clear to those who had faith in you, before the sons of men!

20 You hide them in the secret place of Your presence, From schemes of man, You conceal them in a dwelling place, From the strife of tongues.

You will keep them safe in your house from the designs of man; in the secret of your tent will you keep them from angry tongues.

21 Blessed [is] YHWH, For He has made His kindness marvelous To me in a city of bulwarks.

May the Lord be praised, because he has made clear to me the wonder of his grace in a strong town.

22 And I have said in my haste, “I have been cut off from before Your eyes,” But You have heard the voice of my supplications, In my crying to You.

And as for me, I said in my fear, I am cut off from before your eyes; but you gave ear to the voice of my prayer, when my cry went up to you.

23 Love YHWH, all you His saints, YHWH is keeping the faithful, And repaying a proud doer abundantly.

O have love for the Lord, all you his saints; for the Lord keeps safe from danger all those who are true to him, and gives the workers of pride their right reward.

24 Be strong, and He strengthens your heart, All you who are waiting for YHWH!

Put away fear and let your heart be strong, all you whose hope is in the Lord.