Psalms 7

The righteous judge

I come to you for protection, O Lord my God. Save me from my persecutors—rescue me!a ²If you don’t, they will maul me like a lion, tearing me to pieces with no one to rescue me. ³O Lord my God, if I have done wrong or am guilty of injustice, ⁴if I have betrayed a friend or plundered my enemy without cause, ⁵then let my enemies capture me. Let them trample me into the ground and drag my honor in the dust. Interlude ⁶Arise, O Lord, in anger! Stand up against the fury of my enemies! Wake up, my God, and bring justice!

⁷Gather the nations before you. Rule over them from on high. ⁸The Lord judges the nations. Declare me righteous, O Lord, for I am innocent, O Most High! ⁹End the evil of those who are wicked, and defend the righteous. For you look deep within the mind and heart, O righteous God.b

¹⁰God is my shield, saving those whose hearts are true and right.c ¹¹God is an honest judge. He is angry with the wicked every day.d ¹²If a person does not repent, God will sharpen his sword; he will bend and string his bow.

¹³He will prepare his deadly weapons and shoot his flaming arrows. ¹⁴The wicked conceive evil; they are pregnant with trouble and give birth to lies.e ¹⁵They dig a deep pit to trap others, then fall into it themselves.f

¹⁶The trouble they make for others backfires on them. The violence they plan falls on their own heads. ¹⁷I will thank the Lord because he is just; I will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High.g