A Prayer for Rescue from Persecutors

571 Be gracious to me, O God , be gracious to me, For my soul takes refuge in You; And in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge Until destruction passes by. 2 I will cry to God Most High , To God who accomplishes all things for me. 3 He will send from heaven and save me; He reproaches him who tramples upon me. Selah . God will send forth His lovingkindness and His truth . 4 My soul is among lions ; I must lie among those who breathe forth fire , Even the sons of men , whose teeth are spears and arrows And their tongue a sharp sword . 5 Be exalted above the heavens , O God ; Let Your glory be above all the earth . 6 They have prepared a net for my steps ; My soul is bowed down ; They dug a pit before me; They themselves have fallen into the midst of it. Selah .

7 My heart is steadfast , O God , my heart is steadfast ; I will sing , yes, I will sing praises ! 8 Awake , my glory ! Awake , harp and lyre ! I will awaken the dawn . 9 I will give thanks to You, O Lord , among the peoples ; I will sing praises to You among the nations . 10 For Your lovingkindness is great to the heavens And Your truth to the clouds . 11 Be exalted above the heavens , O God ; Let Your glory be above all the earth .

A Prayer for the Punishment of the Wicked

581 Do you indeed speak righteousness , O gods ? Do you judge uprightly , O sons of men ? 2 No , in heart you work unrighteousness ; On earth you weigh out the violence of your hands . 3 The wicked are estranged from the womb ; These who speak lies go astray from birth . 4 They have venom like the venom of a serpent ; Like a deaf cobra that stops up its ear , 5 So that it does not hear the voice of charmers , Or a skillful caster of spells .

6 O God , shatter their teeth in their mouth ; Break out the fangs of the young lions , O Lord . 7 Let them flow away like water that runs off ; When he aims his arrows , let them be as headless shafts . 8 Let them be as a snail which melts away as it goes along, Like the miscarriages of a woman which never see the sun . 9 Before your pots can feel the fire of thorns He will sweep them away with a whirlwind , the green and the burning alike . 10 The righteous will rejoice when he sees the vengeance ; He will wash his feet in the blood of the wicked . 11 And men will say , "Surely there is a reward for the righteous ; Surely there is a God who judges on earth !"

A Prayer for Deliverance from Enemies

591 Deliver me from my enemies , O my God ; Set me securely on high away from those who rise up against me. 2 Deliver me from those who do iniquity And save me from men of bloodshed . 3 For behold , they have set an ambush for my life ; Fierce men launch an attack against me, Not for my transgression nor for my sin , O Lord , 4 For no guilt of mine, they run and set themselves against me. Arouse Yourself to help me, and see ! 5 You, O Lord God of hosts , the God of Israel , Awake to punish all the nations ; Do not be gracious to any who are treacherous in iniquity . Selah . 6 They return at evening , they howl like a dog , And go around the city . 7 Behold , they belch forth with their mouth ; Swords are in their lips , For, they say, " Who hears ?"

8 But You, O Lord , laugh at them; You scoff at all the nations . 9 Because of his strength I will watch for You, For God is my stronghold . 10 My God in His lovingkindness will meet me; God will let me look triumphantly upon my foes . 11 Do not slay them, or my people will forget ; Scatter them by Your power , and bring them down , O Lord , our shield . 12 On account of the sin of their mouth and the words of their lips , Let them even be caught in their pride , And on account of curses and lies which they utter . 13 Destroy them in wrath , destroy them that they may be no more ; That men may know that God rules in Jacob To the ends of the earth . Selah . 14 They return at evening , they howl like a dog , And go around the city . 15 They wander about for food And growl if they are not satisfied . 16 But as for me, I shall sing of Your strength ; Yes, I shall joyfully sing of Your lovingkindness in the morning , For You have been my stronghold And a refuge in the day of my distress . 17 O my strength , I will sing praises to You; For God is my stronghold , the God who shows me lovingkindness .

The Example of Abraham

41 What then shall we say that Abraham , our forefather according to the flesh , has found ? 2 For if Abraham was justified by works , he has something to boast about , but not before God . 3 For what does the Scripture say ? " ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD , AND IT WAS CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS ." 4 Now to the one who works , his wage is not credited as a favor , but as what is due . 5 But to the one who does not work , but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly , his faith is credited as righteousness , 6 just as David also speaks of the blessing on the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works : 7 " BLESSED ARE THOSE WHOSE LAWLESS DEEDS HAVE BEEN FORGIVEN , AND WHOSE SINS HAVE BEEN COVERED . 8 " BLESSED IS THE MAN WHOSE SIN THE Lord WILL NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT ."

9 Is this blessing then on the circumcised , or on the uncircumcised also ? For we say , " FAITH WAS CREDITED TO ABRAHAM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS ." 10 How then was it credited ? While he was circumcised , or uncircumcised ? Not while circumcised , but while uncircumcised ; 11 and he received the sign of circumcision , a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while uncircumcised , so that he might be the father of all who believe without being circumcised , that righteousness might be credited to them, 12 and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision , but who also follow in the steps of the faith of our father Abraham which he had while uncircumcised .

The Promise Realized through Faith

13 For the promise to Abraham or to his descendants that he would be heir of the world was not through the Law , but through the righteousness of faith . 14 For if those who are of the Law are heirs , faith is made void and the promise is nullified ; 15 for the Law brings about wrath , but where there is no law , there also is no violation . 16 For this reason it is by faith , in order that it may be in accordance with grace , so that the promise will be guaranteed to all the descendants , not only to those who are of the Law , but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham , who is the father of us all ,

17 (as it is written , " A FATHER OF MANY NATIONS HAVE I MADE YOU") in the presence of Him whom he believed , even God , who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist . 18 In hope against hope he believed , so that he might become a father of many nations according to that which had been spoken , " SO SHALL YOUR DESCENDANTS BE." 19 Without becoming weak in faith he contemplated his own body , now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old , and the deadness of Sarah's womb ; 20 yet , with respect to the promise of God , he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith , giving glory to God , 21 and being fully assured that what God had promised , He was able also to perform . 22 Therefore IT WAS ALSO CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS .

23 Now not for his sake only was it written that it was credited to him, 24 but for our sake also , to whom it will be credited , as those who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead , 25 He who was delivered over because of our transgressions , and was raised because of our justification .