Psalms 109
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Hold not thy peace, O God of my praise;
2 For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me: they have spoken against me with a lying tongue.
3 They compassed me about also with words of hatred; and fought against me without a cause.
4 For my love they are my adversaries: but I give myself unto prayer.
5 And they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love.
6 Set thou a wicked man over him: and let Satan stand at his right hand.
7 When he shall be judged, let him be condemned: and let his prayer become sin.
8 Let his days be few; and let another take his office.
9 Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow.
10 Let his children be continually vagabonds, and beg: let them seek their bread also out of their desolate places.
11 Let the extortioner catch all that he hath; and let the strangers spoil his labour.
12 Let there be none to extend mercy unto him: neither let there be any to favour his fatherless children.
13 Let his posterity be cut off; and in the generation following let their name be blotted out.
14 Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered with the Lord; and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.
15 Let them be before the Lord continually, that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth.
16 Because that he remembered not to shew mercy, but persecuted the poor and needy man, that he might even slay the broken in heart.
17 As he loved cursing, so let it come unto him: as he delighted not in blessing, so let it be far from him.
18 As he clothed himself with cursing like as with his garment, so let it come into his bowels like water, and like oil into his bones.
19 Let it be unto him as the garment which covereth him, and for a girdle wherewith he is girded continually.
20 Let this be the reward of mine adversaries from the Lord, and of them that speak evil against my soul.
21 But do thou for me, O God the Lord, for thy name's sake: because thy mercy is good, deliver thou me.
22 For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.
23 I am gone like the shadow when it declineth: I am tossed up and down as the locust.
24 My knees are weak through fasting; and my flesh faileth of fatness.
25 I became also a reproach unto them: when they looked upon me they shaked their heads.
26 Help me, O Lord my God: O save me according to thy mercy:
27 That they may know that this is thy hand; that thou, Lord, hast done it.
28 Let them curse, but bless thou: when they arise, let them be ashamed; but let thy servant rejoice.
29 Let mine adversaries be clothed with shame, and let them cover themselves with their own confusion, as with a mantle.
30 I will greatly praise the Lord with my mouth; yea, I will praise him among the multitude.
31 For he shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those that condemn his soul.
Public Domain KJV text from Wordproject.org
Psalm 109:1-31
Help Me, O Lord My God
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.
1Be not silent, O God of my praise!
2For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me,
speaking against me with lying tongues.
3They encircle me with words of hate,
and attack me without cause.
4In return for my love they accuse me,
but I give myself to prayer.
5So they reward me evil for good,
and hatred for my love.
6Appoint a wicked man against him;
let an accuser stand at his right hand.
7When he is tried, let him come forth guilty;
let his prayer be counted as sin!
8May his days be few;
may another take his office!
9May his children be fatherless
and his wife a widow!
10May his children wander about and beg,
seeking food far from the ruins they inhabit!
11May the creditor seize all that he has;
may strangers plunder the fruits of his toil!
12Let there be none to extend kindness to him,
nor any to pity his fatherless children!
13May his posterity be cut off;
may his name be blotted out in the second generation!
14May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord,
and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out!
15Let them be before the Lord continually,
that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth!
16For he did not remember to show kindness,
but pursued the poor and needy
and the brokenhearted, to put them to death.
17He loved to curse; let curses come upon him!
He did not delight in blessing; may it be far from him!
18He clothed himself with cursing as his coat;
may it soak into his body like water,
like oil into his bones!
19May it be like a garment that he wraps around him,
like a belt that he puts on every day!
20May this be the reward of my accusers from the Lord,
of those who speak evil against my life!
21But you, O God my Lord,
deal on my behalf for your name’s sake;
because your steadfast love is good, deliver me!
22For I am poor and needy,
and my heart is stricken within me.
23I am gone like a shadow at evening;
I am shaken off like a locust.
24My knees are weak through fasting;
my body has become gaunt, with no fat.
25I am an object of scorn to my accusers;
when they see me, they wag their heads.
26Help me, O Lord my God!
Save me according to your steadfast love!
27Let them know that this is your hand;
you, O Lord, have done it!
28Let them curse, but you will bless!
They arise and are put to shame, but your servant will be glad!
29May my accusers be clothed with dishonor;
may they be wrapped in their own shame as in a cloak!
30With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord;
I will praise him in the midst of the throng.
31For he stands at the right hand of the needy one,
to save him from those who condemn his soul to death.
ESV Bible text displayed through the American Bible Society's Global Bible Widget
Psalm 109:1-31
Psalm 109
For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.
1My God, whom I praise,
do not remain silent,
2for people who are wicked and deceitful
have opened their mouths against me;
they have spoken against me with lying tongues.
3With words of hatred they surround me;
they attack me without cause.
4In return for my friendship they accuse me,
but I am a man of prayer.
5They repay me evil for good,
and hatred for my friendship.
6Appoint someone evil to oppose my enemy;
let an accuser stand at his right hand.
7When he is tried, let him be found guilty,
and may his prayers condemn him.
8May his days be few;
may another take his place of leadership.
9May his children be fatherless
and his wife a widow.
10May his children be wandering beggars;
may they be driven from their ruined homes.
11May a creditor seize all he has;
may strangers plunder the fruits of his labor.
12May no one extend kindness to him
or take pity on his fatherless children.
13May his descendants be cut off,
their names blotted out from the next generation.
14May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord;
may the sin of his mother never be blotted out.
15May their sins always remain before the Lord,
that he may blot out their name from the earth.
16For he never thought of doing a kindness,
but hounded to death the poor
and the needy and the brokenhearted.
17He loved to pronounce a curse—
may it come back on him.
He found no pleasure in blessing—
may it be far from him.
18He wore cursing as his garment;
it entered into his body like water,
into his bones like oil.
19May it be like a cloak wrapped about him,
like a belt tied forever around him.
20May this be the Lord’s payment to my accusers,
to those who speak evil of me.
21But you, Sovereign Lord,
help me for your name’s sake;
out of the goodness of your love, deliver me.
22For I am poor and needy,
and my heart is wounded within me.
23I fade away like an evening shadow;
I am shaken off like a locust.
24My knees give way from fasting;
my body is thin and gaunt.
25I am an object of scorn to my accusers;
when they see me, they shake their heads.
26Help me, Lord my God;
save me according to your unfailing love.
27Let them know that it is your hand,
that you, Lord, have done it.
28While they curse, may you bless;
may those who attack me be put to shame,
but may your servant rejoice.
29May my accusers be clothed with disgrace
and wrapped in shame as in a cloak.
30With my mouth I will greatly extol the Lord;
in the great throng of worshipers I will praise him.
31For he stands at the right hand of the needy,
to save their lives from those who would condemn them.
NIV Bible text displayed through the American Bible Society's Global Bible Widget
Commentary
Psalm 109 is directed to “My God, whom I praise,” and closes with a similar commitment to praise Him: “With my mouth I will greatly extol the Lord.” David, the author of this Psalm, is again attacked, surrounded by enemies who hurl denouncing words at him and distort any sense of fairness.
This Psalm is a practical lesson of what we should do with our negative emotions, with the bitterness which sometimes comes into our hearts to control us, sometimes without us being aware of it. David speaks to God about his negative emotions and he summons Him to manifest Himself and intervene. This is his reason to turn to God in full confidence: “But You, O GOD the Lord, deal with me for Your name’s sake; because of Your mercy is good, deliver me” (v. 21). Only in this way can we enter the state of mind needed to praise God.
Dear Lord, Help us when we see ourselves surrounded by enemies or when our souls are engulfed by sadness. We seek You in full confidence that You are at the right side of the “poor and needy.” Our hearts will praise only You. Amen.
Ioan Campian-Tatar
Romanian Union Conference (as of this writing)
