The Blessing and Suffering of the Godly

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.

41 Blessed is he who considers the [a]poor;
The Lord will deliver him in time of trouble.
The Lord will preserve him and keep him alive,
And he will be blessed on the earth;
(A)You will not deliver him to the will of his enemies.
The Lord will strengthen him on his bed of illness;
You will [b]sustain him on his sickbed.

I said, “Lord, be merciful to me;
(B)Heal my soul, for I have sinned against You.”
My enemies speak evil of me:
“When will he die, and his name perish?”
And if he comes to see me, he speaks [c]lies;
His heart gathers iniquity to itself;
When he goes out, he tells it.

All who hate me whisper together against me;
Against me they [d]devise my hurt.
“An[e] evil disease,” they say, “clings to him.
And now that he lies down, he will rise up no more.”
(C)Even my own familiar friend in whom I trusted,
(D)Who ate my bread,
Has [f]lifted up his heel against me.

10 But You, O Lord, be merciful to me, and raise me up,
That I may repay them.
11 By this I know that You are well pleased with me,
Because my enemy does not triumph over me.
12 As for me, You uphold me in my integrity,
And (E)set me before Your face forever.

13 (F)Blessed be the Lord God of Israel
From everlasting to everlasting!
Amen and Amen.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 41:1 helpless or powerless
  2. Psalm 41:3 restore
  3. Psalm 41:6 empty words
  4. Psalm 41:7 plot
  5. Psalm 41:8 Lit. A thing of Belial
  6. Psalm 41:9 Acted as a traitor

Psalm 41[a]

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

Blessed(A) are those who have regard for the weak;(B)
    the Lord delivers them in times of trouble.(C)
The Lord protects(D) and preserves them—(E)
    they are counted among the blessed in the land—(F)
    he does not give them over to the desire of their foes.(G)
The Lord sustains them on their sickbed(H)
    and restores them from their bed of illness.(I)

I said, “Have mercy(J) on me, Lord;
    heal(K) me, for I have sinned(L) against you.”
My enemies say of me in malice,
    “When will he die and his name perish?(M)
When one of them comes to see me,
    he speaks falsely,(N) while his heart gathers slander;(O)
    then he goes out and spreads(P) it around.

All my enemies whisper together(Q) against me;
    they imagine the worst for me, saying,
“A vile disease has afflicted him;
    he will never get up(R) from the place where he lies.”
Even my close friend,(S)
    someone I trusted,
one who shared my bread,
    has turned[b] against me.(T)

10 But may you have mercy(U) on me, Lord;
    raise me up,(V) that I may repay(W) them.
11 I know that you are pleased with me,(X)
    for my enemy does not triumph over me.(Y)
12 Because of my integrity(Z) you uphold me(AA)
    and set me in your presence forever.(AB)

13 Praise(AC) be to the Lord, the God of Israel,(AD)
    from everlasting to everlasting.
Amen and Amen.(AE)

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 41:1 In Hebrew texts 41:1-13 is numbered 41:2-14.
  2. Psalm 41:9 Hebrew has lifted up his heel

41 Blessed is he that considereth the poor: the Lord will deliver him in time of trouble.

The Lord will preserve him, and keep him alive; and he shall be blessed upon the earth: and thou wilt not deliver him unto the will of his enemies.

The Lord will strengthen him upon the bed of languishing: thou wilt make all his bed in his sickness.

I said, Lord, be merciful unto me: heal my soul; for I have sinned against thee.

Mine enemies speak evil of me, When shall he die, and his name perish?

And if he come to see me, he speaketh vanity: his heart gathereth iniquity to itself; when he goeth abroad, he telleth it.

All that hate me whisper together against me: against me do they devise my hurt.

An evil disease, say they, cleaveth fast unto him: and now that he lieth he shall rise up no more.

Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.

10 But thou, O Lord, be merciful unto me, and raise me up, that I may requite them.

11 By this I know that thou favourest me, because mine enemy doth not triumph over me.

12 And as for me, thou upholdest me in mine integrity, and settest me before thy face for ever.

13 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting, and to everlasting. Amen, and Amen.

O Lord, Be Gracious to Me

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

41 (A)Blessed is the one who considers the poor![a]
    (B)In the day of trouble the Lord delivers him;
the Lord protects him and keeps him alive;
    he is called blessed in the land;
    you (C)do not give him up to the will of his enemies.
The Lord sustains him on his sickbed;
    in his illness you restore him to full health.[b]

As for me, I said, “O Lord, (D)be gracious to me;
    (E)heal me,[c] for I have sinned against you!”
My enemies say of me in malice,
    “When will he die, and his name perish?”
And when one comes to see me, (F)he utters empty words,
    while his heart gathers iniquity;
    when he goes out, he tells it abroad.
All who hate me whisper together about me;
    they imagine the worst for me.[d]

They say, “A deadly thing is poured out[e] on him;
    he will not rise again from where he lies.”
Even my (G)close friend in whom I trusted,
    who (H)ate my bread, has lifted his heel against me.
10 But you, O Lord, be gracious to me,
    and raise me up, that I may repay them!

11 By this I know that (I)you delight in me:
    my enemy will not shout in triumph over me.
12 But (J)you have upheld me because of (K)my integrity,
    and (L)set me in your presence (M)forever.

13 (N)Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
    from everlasting to everlasting!
Amen and Amen.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 41:1 Or weak
  2. Psalm 41:3 Hebrew you turn all his bed
  3. Psalm 41:4 Hebrew my soul
  4. Psalm 41:7 Or they devise evil against me
  5. Psalm 41:8 Or has fastened