A Prayer for Rescue from Enemies
351 Contend , O Lord , with those who contend with me; Fight against those who fight against me. 2 Take hold of buckler and shield And rise up for my help . 3 Draw also the spear and the battle-axe to meet those who pursue me; Say to my soul , "I am your salvation ." 4 Let those be ashamed and dishonored who seek my life ; Let those be turned back and humiliated who devise evil against me. 5 Let them be like chaff before the wind , With the angel of the Lord driving them on. 6 Let their way be dark and slippery , With the angel of the Lord pursuing them. 7 For without cause they hid their net for me; Without cause they dug a pit for my soul . 8 Let destruction come upon him unawares e , And let the net which he hid catch himself; Into that very destruction let him fall . 9 And my soul shall rejoice in the Lord ; It shall exult in His salvation . 10 All my bones will say , "Lord , who is like You, Who delivers the afflicted from him who is too strong for him, And the afflicted and the needy from him who robs him?"
11 Malicious witnesses rise up; They ask me of things that I do not know . 12 They repay me evil for good , To the bereavement of my soul . 13 But as for me, when they were sick , my clothing was sackcloth ; I humbled my soul with fasting , And my prayer kept returning to my bosom . 14 I went about as though it were my friend or brother ; I bowed down mourning , as one who sorrows for a mother . 15 But at my stumbling they rejoiced and gathered themselves together; The smiters whom I did not know gathered together against me, They slandered me without ceasing . 16 Like godless jesters at a feast , They gnashed at me with their teeth .
17 Lord , how long will You look on? Rescue my soul from their ravages , My only life from the lions . 18 I will give You thanks in the great congregation ; I will praise You among a mighty throng . 19 Do not let those who are wrongfully my enemies rejoice over me; Nor let those who hate me without cause wink maliciously e . 20 For they do not speak peace , But they devise deceitful words against those who are quiet in the land . 21 They opened their mouth wide against me; They said , " Aha , aha , our eyes have seen it!" 22 You have seen it, O Lord , do not keep silent ; O Lord , do not be far from me. 23 Stir up Yourself, and awake to my right And to my cause , my God and my Lord . 24 Judge me, O Lord my God , according to Your righteousness , And do not let them rejoice over me. 25 Do not let them say in their heart , " Aha , our desire !" Do not let them say , "We have swallowed him up!" 26 Let those be ashamed and humiliated altogether who rejoice at my distress ; Let those be clothed with shame and dishonor who magnify themselves over me. 27 Let them shout for joy and rejoice , who favor my vindication ; And let them say continually , "The Lord be magnified , Who delights in the prosperity of His servant ." 28 And my tongue shall declare Your righteousness And Your praise all day long.
A Prayer for Rescue from Enemies
351 Harass these hecklers, God, punch these bullies in the nose. 2 Grab a weapon, anything at hand; stand up for me! 3 Get ready to throw the spear, aim the javelin, at the people who are out to get me. Reassure me; let me hear you say, "I'll save you." 4 When those thugs try to knife me in the back, make them look foolish. Frustrate all those who are plotting my downfall. 5 Make them like cinders in a high wind, with God's angel working the bellows. 6 Make their road lightless and mud-slick, with God's angel on their tails. 7 Out of sheer cussedness they set a trap to catch me; for no good reason they dug a ditch to stop me. 8 Surprise them with your ambush - catch them in the very trap they set, the disaster they planned for me. 9 But let me run loose and free, celebrating God's great work, 10 Every bone in my body laughing, singing, "God, there's no one like you. You put the down-and-out on their feet and protect the unprotected from bullies!"
11 Hostile accusers appear out of nowhere, they stand up and badger me. 12 They pay me back misery for mercy, leaving my soul empty. 13 When they were sick, I dressed in black; instead of eating, I prayed. 14 My prayers were like lead in my gut, like I'd lost my best friend, my brother. I paced, distraught as a motherless child, hunched and heavyhearted. 15 But when I was down they threw a party! All the nameless riffraff of the town came chanting insults about me. 16 Like barbarians desecrating a shrine, they destroyed my reputation.
17 God, how long are you going to stand there doing nothing? Save me from their brutalities; everything I've got is being thrown to the lions. 18 I will give you full credit when everyone gathers for worship; When the people turn out in force I will say my Hallelujahs. 19 Don't let these liars, my enemies, have a party at my expense, Those who hate me for no reason, winking and rolling their eyes. 20 No good is going to come from that crowd; They spend all their time cooking up gossip against those who mind their own business. 21 They open their mouths in ugly grins, Mocking, "Ha-ha, ha-ha, thought you'd get away with it? We've caught you hands down!" 22 Don't you see what they're doing, God? You're not going to let them Get by with it, are you? Not going to walk off without doing something, are you? 23 Please get up - wake up! Tend to my case. My God, my Lord - my life is on the line. 24 Do what you think is right, God, my God, but don't make me pay for their good time. 25 Don't let them say to themselves, "Ha-ha, we got what we wanted." Don't let them say, "We've chewed him up and spit him out." 26 Let those who are being hilarious at my expense Be made to look ridiculous. Make them wear donkey's ears; Pin them with the donkey's tail, who made themselves so high and mighty! 27 But those who want the best for me, Let them have the last word - a glad shout! - and say, over and over and over, "God is great - everything works together for good for his servant." 28 I'll tell the world how great and good you are, I'll shout Hallelujah all day, every day.