Psalms 17
17
PSALM 17
Common Meter: 8,6,8,6
A Prayer of David.
1Lord, hear the right, attend my cry,
unto my pray'r give heed,
That doth not in hypocrisy
from feigned lips proceed.
2And from before thy presence forth
my sentence do thou send:
Toward these things that equal are
do thou thine eyes intend.
3Thou prov'dst mine heart, thou visit'dst me
by night, thou didst me try,
Yet nothing found'st; for that my mouth
shall not sin, purpos'd I.
4As for men's works, I, by the word
that from thy lips doth flow,
Did me preserve out of the paths
wherein destroyers go.
5Hold up my goings,
Lord, me guide
in those thy paths divine,
So that my footsteps may not slide
out of those ways of thine.
6I called have on thee, O God,
because thou wilt me hear:
That thou may'st hearken to my speech,
to me incline thine ear.
7Thy wondrous loving-kindness show,
thou that, by thy right hand,
Sav'st them that trust in thee from those
that up against them stand.
8As th' apple of the eye me keep;
in thy wings shade me close
9From lewd oppressors, compassing
me round, as deadly foes.
10In their own fat they are inclos'd;
their mouth speaks loftily.
11Our steps they compass'd; and to ground
down bowing set their eye.
12He like unto a lion is
that's greedy of his prey,
Or lion young, which lurking doth
in secret places stay.
13Arise, and disappoint my foe,
and cast him down,
O Lord: My soul save from the wicked man,
the man which is thy sword.
14From men, which are thy hand, O Lord,
from worldly men me save,
Which only in this present life
their part and portion have.
Whose belly with thy treasure hid
thou fill'st: they children have
In plenty; of their goods the rest
they to their children leave.
15But as for me, I thine own face
in righteousness will see;
And with thy likeness, when I wake,
I satisfy'd shall be.
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maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society
Psalms 17
17
A prayer of David.
1Lord, please hear my cry for justice! Please pay attention to my call for help! Listen to the prayer of an honest man!#17:1. Literally, “which is not among the lips of deceit.”
2Vindicate me before you—for you see what is right.
3You have observed my thoughts, you have visited me at night, you have examined me—and you have found nothing wrong. I promised myself I wouldn't say anything I shouldn't.
4With regard to the actions of others: I have done what you told me and I have avoided what violent people do.#17:4. Or “I have seen what happens to violent people.”
5I have not strayed from your path; my feet have not slipped from it.
6God, I call out to you because I know you will answer; please listen carefully to what I have to say.
7Show me how wonderful your trustworthy love really is, Savior of those who come to you for protection against their enemies!
8Keep me safe as someone you love;#17:8. Literally, “Guard me as the pupil of your eye.” hide me underneath your wings.
9Protect me from the attacks of the wicked who want to destroy me, from my enemies who surround me, intent on killing me.
10They have no compassion,#17:10. Literally, “They close up the fat.” and all they have to say is pure arrogance.
11They hunt me down and surround me, looking for the chance to knock me down in the dust.
12They are like lions, longing to tear their prey apart; like fierce lions crouching in ambush.
13Lord, stand up and confront them! Force them to back down! By your sword rescue me from the wicked!
14Lord, by your power, save me from people whose only thought is for this world. May they be filled with what you have in store for them, their children too, with left-overs for their grandchildren!#17:14. The meaning of this verse is uncertain, even whether it is a blessing or a curse. From the context it is certainly an appeal for God to vindicate the good and punish the bad.
15As for me, I shall see your face in all its goodness. When I awake, I will be so pleased to see you face to face.
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com