Psalm 55

Listen to my prayer, O God.
Ignore not my plea for help.
Heed and give me an answer,
For my grievance troubles me
And I groan in my distress.

This, because of my enemy’s threats,
The oppression of the wicked;
They rain disaster upon me
And harass me with their hatred.
Within me my heart is in anguish,
The terrors of death overcome me,
A trembling fear is upon me
And horror has overwhelmed me.

I say, “Oh that I had the wings of a dove
For then I could fly away and be at peace.”
Indeed I would then wander far away
And remain in the desert wilderness.
I would hurry to find a place of shelter
That I might escape the gale and the tempest.

Confound the wicked, O Jehovah,
Make their words hard to understand,
For in the city I have seen
Much violence and civil strife.
Day and night a guards patrol its walls,
But the evil and crime is within:
The forces of destruction are there.
Lies and deceit walk down her streets.

It is not an enemy that taunts me.
If it were that, indeed I could bear it;
And if the one who rises up against me
Was someone that hates me, I could hide from him.
But it is you, my equal, my companion,
My bosom friend whose genial fellowship
I enjoyed, when, in the temple of God,
We mingled among the congregation.

My enemies, let death steal upon them,
Let them go to Hell while they are still alive,
For in their homes and hearts they are evil.

As for me, I call to God,
And Jehovah saves me.
Evening, morning, and noon,
Will I cry out and moan
And he shall hear my voice.

He safely delivers my body
From the battle waged against me,
No matter how many oppose me.

God, enthroned from old, will hear them and humble them,
Because they do no change their ways or have fear of God.
He who raises his hand against those at peace with him
Is in violation of his sacred covenant.
Give your cares to Jehovah, and he will sustain you.
He will never permit the righteous to feel terror.

But you, O God, will drag them down
Into the pit of destruction.
The violent and deceitful
Will live out only half their days. ---
But me, I put my trust in you.