Psalms 7

The righteous judge

Lord my God, I take refuge in you; save and deliver me from all who pursue me,a ²or they will tear me apart like a lion and rip me to pieces with no one to rescue me. ³Lord my God, if I have done this and there is guilt on my hands— ⁴if I have repaid my ally with evil or without cause have robbed my foe— ⁵then let my enemy pursue and overtake me; let him trample my life to the ground and make me sleep in the dust.

⁶Arise, Lord, in your anger; rise up against the rage of my enemies. Awake, my God; decree justice. ⁷Let the assembled peoples gather around you, while you sit enthroned over them on high. ⁸Let the Lord judge the peoples. Vindicate me, Lord, according to my righteousness, according to my integrity, O Most High.

⁹Bring to an end the violence of the wicked and make the righteous secure— you, the righteous God who probes minds and hearts.b ¹⁰My shield is God Most High, who saves the upright in heart.c ¹¹God is a righteous judge, a God who displays his wrath every day.d

¹²If he does not relent, he will sharpen his sword; he will bend and string his bow. ¹³He has prepared his deadly weapons; he makes ready his flaming arrows. ¹⁴Whoever is pregnant with evil conceives trouble and gives birth to disillusionment.e

¹⁵Whoever digs a hole and scoops it out falls into the pit they have made.f ¹⁶The trouble they cause recoils on them; their violence comes down on their own heads. ¹⁷I will give thanks to the Lord because of his righteousness; I will sing the praises of the name of the Lord Most High.g