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A Cry of Distress and Imprecation on Adversaries.

¹ Save me, O God,
For the ^(C1)waters have threatened my life they have come up to my neck.

² I have sunk in deep ^(C1)mire, where there is no foothold;
I have come into deep waters, where a ^(C2)flood overwhelms me.

³ I am ^(C1)weary with my crying; my throat is parched;
My ^(C2)eyes fail while I wait with confident expectation for my God.

⁴ Those ^(C1)who hate me without cause are more than the hairs of my head;
Those who would destroy me are ^(C2)powerful, being my enemies wrongfully;
I am forced to restore ^(C3)what I did not steal. ^(VR1)

⁵ O God, You know ^(C1)my folly;
^(C2)My wrongs are not hidden from You.

⁶ Do not let those who wait confidently for You ^(C1)be ^(F1)ashamed through me, O Lord ^(F2)GOD of hosts;
Do not let those who seek You as necessary for life itself be dishonored through me, O God of Israel,

⁷ Because ^(C1)for Your sake I have borne reproach;
Confusion and ^(C2)dishonor have covered my face.

⁸ I have become ^(C1)estranged from my brothers
And an alien to my mother's sons. ^(VR1)

⁹ For ^(C1)zeal for Your house has consumed me,
And ^(C2)the mocking insults of those who insult You have fallen on me. ^(VR1)

¹⁰ When I wept and ^(C1)humbled myself with fasting,
It became my reproach.

¹¹ When I made ^(C1)sackcloth my clothing as one in mourning,
I became ^(C2)a byword a mere object of scorn to them.

¹² They who ^(C1)sit in the city's gate talk about me and mock me,
And I am the ^(C2)song of the drunkards.

¹³ But as for me, my prayer is to You, O LORD, ^(C1)at an acceptable and opportune time;
O God, in the ^(C2)greatness of Your favor and in the abundance of Your lovingkindness,
Answer me with truth that is, the faithfulness of Your salvation.

¹⁴ Rescue me from the ^(C1)mire and do not let me sink;
Let me be ^(C2)rescued from those who hate me and from the ^(C1)deep waters.

¹⁵ Do not let the ^(C1)floodwater overwhelm me,
Nor the deep waters swallow me up,
Nor the ^(C2)pit of Sheol shut its mouth over me.

¹⁶ Answer me, O LORD, for ^(C1)Your lovingkindness is sweet and good and comforting;
^(C2)According to the greatness of Your compassion, ^(C3)turn to me.

^17 (C1)Do not hide Your face from Your servant,
For I am ^(C2)in distress; answer me quickly.

¹⁸ Draw near to my soul and ^(C1)redeem it;
^(C2)Ransom me because of my enemies so that they do not delight in my distress.

¹⁹ You know my ^(C1)reproach and my shame and my dishonor how I am insulted;
My adversaries are all before You each one fully known.

²⁰ Reproach and insults have ^(C1)broken my heart and I am so sick.
^(C2)I looked for sympathy, but there was none,
And for ^(C3)comforters, but I found none.

²¹ They (self-righteous hypocrites) also gave me ^(C1)gall poisonous and bitter for my food,
And for my thirst they ^(C2)gave me vinegar to drink. ^(VR1)

²² May ^(C1)their table with all its abundance and luxury become a snare to them;
And ^(C2)when they are in peace secure at their sacrificial feasts, may it become a trap.

²³ May their ^(C1)eyes be dimmed so that they cannot see,
And make their ^(C2)loins shake continually in terror and weakness.

^24 (C1)Pour out Your indignation on them,
And let the fierceness of Your burning anger overtake them.

²⁵ May their ^(C1)encampment be desolate;
May no one dwell in their tents. ^(VR1)

²⁶ For they have ^(C1)persecuted him whom ^(C2)You have struck,
And they tell of the pain of those whom ^(C3)You have pierced and wounded.

²⁷ Add unforgiven ^(C1)iniquity to their iniquity in Your book,
And ^(C2)may they not come into ^(C3)Your ^(F1)righteousness.

²⁸ May they be ^(C1)blotted out of the ^(C2)book of life and their lives come to an end
And may they not be ^(C3)recorded with the righteous (those in right standing with God). ^(VR1)

²⁹ But I am ^(C1)sorrowful and in pain;
May Your salvation, O God, ^(C2)set me securely on high.

³⁰ I will ^(C1)praise the name of God with song
And ^(C2)magnify Him with ^(C3)thanksgiving.

³¹ And it will ^(C1)please the LORD better than an ox
Or a young bull with horns and hoofs.

³² The ^(C1)humble have seen it and are glad;
You who seek God requiring Him as your greatest need, ^(C2)let your heart revive and live. ^(VR1)

³³ For ^(C1)the LORD hears the needy
And ^(C2)does not despise His who are prisoners.

³⁴ Let ^(C1)heaven and earth praise Him,
The seas and ^(C2)everything that moves in them.

³⁵ For God will ^(C1)save Zion and ^(C2)rebuild the cities of Judah,
That His servants may remain there and ^(C3)possess it.

³⁶ The ^(C1)descendants of His servants will inherit it,
And those who love His name ^(C2)will dwell in it.