Jan 27, 2018
1 Why, Lord,
do you stand far off?
Why do you hide yourself in times of
trouble?
2 In his arrogance
the wicked man hunts down the weak,
who are caught in the schemes he
devises.
3 He boasts about the cravings of his
heart;
he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord.
4 In his pride the wicked man does not seek
him;
in all his thoughts there is no room for
God.
5 His ways are always prosperous;
your laws are rejected by[b]
him;
he sneers at all his enemies.
6 He says to himself, “Nothing will ever
shake me.”
He swears, “No one will ever do me
harm.”
7 His mouth is full
of lies and threats;
trouble and evil are under his
tongue.
8 He lies in wait near the
villages;
from ambush he murders the
innocent.
His eyes watch in secret for his
victims;
9 like a lion in
cover he lies in wait.
He lies in wait to catch the
helpless;
he catches the helpless and drags them off in his
net.
10 His victims are crushed, they
collapse;
they fall under his strength.
11 He says to himself, “God will never
notice;
he covers his face and never
sees.”
12 Arise,
Lord! Lift up your hand, O
God.
Do not forget the helpless.
13 Why does the wicked man revile
God?
Why does he say to himself,
“He won’t call me to account”?
14 But you, God, see the trouble of the
afflicted;
you consider their grief and take it in
hand.
The victims commit themselves to
you;
you are the helper of the
fatherless.
15 Break the arm of the wicked
man;
call the evildoer to account for his
wickedness
that would not otherwise be found
out.
16 The
Lord is King for ever and
ever;
the nations will perish from his
land.
17 You, Lord,
hear the desire of the afflicted;
you encourage them, and you listen to their
cry,
18 defending the fatherless and the
oppressed,
so that mere earthly mortals
will never again strike terror.