Psalms 55:7-23

⁷I would go wandering far away, living in the waste land. (Selah.)

⁸I would quickly take cover from the driving storm and from the violent wind.

⁹Send destruction on them, O Lord, make a division of tongues among them: for I have seen fighting and violent acts in the town.

¹⁰By day and night they go round the town, on the walls; trouble and sorrow are in the heart of it.

¹¹Evil is there; cruel rule and deceit are ever in the streets.

¹²For it was not my hater who said evil of me; that would have been no grief to me; it was not one outside the number of my friends who made himself strong against me, or I would have kept myself from him in a secret place;

¹³But it was you, my equal, my guide, my well-loved friend.

¹⁴We had loving talk together, and went to the house of God in company.

¹⁵Let the hand of death come on them suddenly, and let them go down living into the underworld; because evil is in their houses and in their hearts.

¹⁶As for me, I will make my prayer to God, and he will be my saviour.

¹⁷In the evening and in the morning and in the middle of the day I will make my prayer with sounds of grief; and my voice will come to his ears.

¹⁸He has taken my soul away from the attack which was made against me, and given it peace; for great numbers were against me.

¹⁹God will give thought to me; he who from early times is strong will send pain and trouble on them. (Selah.) Because they are unchanged, they have no fear of God.

²⁰He has put out his hand against those who were at peace with him; he has not kept his agreement.

²¹The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart; his words were softer than oil, but they were sharp swords.

²²Put your cares on the Lord, and he will be your support; he will not let the upright man be moved.

²³But you, O God, will send them down into the underworld; the cruel and the false will be cut off before half their days are ended; but I will have faith in you.