Psalm 140[a]

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

Rescue me,(A) Lord, from evildoers;
    protect me from the violent,(B)
who devise evil plans(C) in their hearts
    and stir up war(D) every day.
They make their tongues as sharp as(E) a serpent’s;
    the poison of vipers(F) is on their lips.[b]

Keep me safe,(G) Lord, from the hands of the wicked;(H)
    protect me from the violent,
    who devise ways to trip my feet.
The arrogant have hidden a snare(I) for me;
    they have spread out the cords of their net(J)
    and have set traps(K) for me along my path.

I say to the Lord, “You are my God.”(L)
    Hear, Lord, my cry for mercy.(M)
Sovereign Lord,(N) my strong deliverer,
    you shield my head in the day of battle.
Do not grant the wicked(O) their desires, Lord;
    do not let their plans succeed.

Those who surround me proudly rear their heads;
    may the mischief of their lips engulf them.(P)
10 May burning coals fall on them;
    may they be thrown into the fire,(Q)
    into miry pits, never to rise.
11 May slanderers not be established in the land;
    may disaster hunt down the violent.(R)

12 I know that the Lord secures justice for the poor(S)
    and upholds the cause(T) of the needy.(U)
13 Surely the righteous will praise your name,(V)
    and the upright will live(W) in your presence.(X)

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 140:1 In Hebrew texts 140:1-13 is numbered 140:2-14.
  2. Psalm 140:3 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verses 5 and 8.

140 Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man: preserve me from the violent man;

Which imagine mischiefs in their heart; continually are they gathered together for war.

They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; adders' poison is under their lips. Selah.

Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from the violent man; who have purposed to overthrow my goings.

The proud have hid a snare for me, and cords; they have spread a net by the wayside; they have set gins for me. Selah.

I said unto the Lord, Thou art my God: hear the voice of my supplications, O Lord.

O God the Lord, the strength of my salvation, thou hast covered my head in the day of battle.

Grant not, O Lord, the desires of the wicked: further not his wicked device; lest they exalt themselves. Selah.

As for the head of those that compass me about, let the mischief of their own lips cover them.

10 Let burning coals fall upon them: let them be cast into the fire; into deep pits, that they rise not up again.

11 Let not an evil speaker be established in the earth: evil shall hunt the violent man to overthrow him.

12 I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and the right of the poor.

13 Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name: the upright shall dwell in thy presence.

16 This is what the Lord Almighty says:

“Do not listen(A) to what the prophets are prophesying to you;
    they fill you with false hopes.
They speak visions(B) from their own minds,
    not from the mouth(C) of the Lord.
17 They keep saying(D) to those who despise me,
    ‘The Lord says: You will have peace.’(E)
And to all who follow the stubbornness(F) of their hearts
    they say, ‘No harm(G) will come to you.’
18 But which of them has stood in the council(H) of the Lord
    to see or to hear his word?
    Who has listened and heard his word?
19 See, the storm(I) of the Lord
    will burst out in wrath,
a whirlwind(J) swirling down
    on the heads of the wicked.
20 The anger(K) of the Lord will not turn back(L)
    until he fully accomplishes
    the purposes of his heart.
In days to come
    you will understand it clearly.
21 I did not send(M) these prophets,
    yet they have run with their message;
I did not speak to them,
    yet they have prophesied.
22 But if they had stood in my council,(N)
    they would have proclaimed(O) my words to my people
and would have turned(P) them from their evil ways
    and from their evil deeds.(Q)

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16 Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the Lord.

17 They say still unto them that despise me, The Lord hath said, Ye shall have peace; and they say unto every one that walketh after the imagination of his own heart, No evil shall come upon you.

18 For who hath stood in the counsel of the Lord, and hath perceived and heard his word? who hath marked his word, and heard it?

19 Behold, a whirlwind of the Lord is gone forth in fury, even a grievous whirlwind: it shall fall grievously upon the head of the wicked.

20 The anger of the Lord shall not return, until he have executed, and till he have performed the thoughts of his heart: in the latter days ye shall consider it perfectly.

21 I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied.

22 But if they had stood in my counsel, and had caused my people to hear my words, then they should have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings.

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16 “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves.(A) Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.(B) 17 Be on your guard; you will be handed over to the local councils(C) and be flogged in the synagogues.(D) 18 On my account you will be brought before governors and kings(E) as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. 19 But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it.(F) At that time you will be given what to say, 20 for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father(G) speaking through you.

21 “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rebel against their parents(H) and have them put to death.(I) 22 You will be hated by everyone because of me,(J) but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.(K) 23 When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another. Truly I tell you, you will not finish going through the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.(L)

24 “The student is not above the teacher, nor a servant above his master.(M) 25 It is enough for students to be like their teachers, and servants like their masters. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebul,(N) how much more the members of his household!

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16 Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.

17 But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues;

18 And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles.

19 But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak.

20 For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.

21 And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death.

22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

23 But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come.

24 The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.

25 It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household?

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