Psalm 41

Blessed is he who cares about the destitute;
In times of trouble Jehovah will rescue him;
Jehovah will preserve him and keep him alive
That he may be blessed in the land; he will not
Surrender him to the will of his enemies.

On his sickbed Jehovah will nurse him;
He will raise him up and restore him to health.
I have cried, “Jehovah, have mercy on me.
Heal my body for I have sinned against you.”
My enemies speak evil words about me,
“When will he die and his name pass away?”
They visit me as if they were my friends,
But when they are here they gather gossip,
And when they leave they spread the slanders abroad.

Those who hate me whisper among themselves,
Imagining the worst for me and saying,
“He’s afflicted with some fatal disease
And will never rise up from where he lies.”
Even my closest friend, who had my trust,
Who did share my bread, has turned against me.
May you have mercy on me, Jehovah.
Let me recover that I may show them up.

I know that you are pleased with me,
For you have not let my enemies
Proclaim their triumph over me.
Because of my integrity,
You have supported me and will let me
Enjoy your presence forever.

Blessed be Jehovah, the god of Israel,
From everlasting age to everlasting age;
Amen and Amen!

Psalm 40

For Jehovah I waited patiently.
He turned to me and heard my plea for help.
He pulled me out of a desolate pit
Of muck and mire and set me on a rock;
He steadied me and sent me on my way,
Teaching me a new song of praise to our god.

Many will see and be in awe
And place their trust in Jehovah.
Blessed is he who makes Jehovah
The object of his faith and turns not
To the falsehoods of the arrogant.

Your miracles have multiplied,
As have your plans for our people.
They are too many to mention;
Indeed, none can compare with you.
I would proclaim your wondrous acts,
But they are more than one can count.

You craved not sacrifices and offerings;
You made me understand they were not required,
The burnt offerings and the sin offerings.

Then I announced, “Behold I have arrived!” --
As it is written of me in the scriptures.
I delight in doing your will, O my god,
For your law is written deep in my heart.
I have proclaimed to the congregation
The tidings of your justice, and, as you know,
I did not hold my tongue, O Jehovah.
I did not hide in my breast your righteousness:
I announced your faithfulness and salvation.
From the congregation I did not conceal
Your truth, your love and kindness and mercy.

O Jehovah, do not hold back from me,
Your mercy, for it is your faithful love
That will protect and preserve me forever.
For countless evils have encompassed me
And my sins have taken such hold of me
That I can no longer see my way clear.
They number more that the hairs on my head.
My heart and courage have forsaken me.

Please, then, Jehovah, deliver me,
Make haste, Jehovah, and help me!
May those who seek to take my life
Know shame and humiliation.
May those who wish to do me harm
Be put to disgraceful retreat.
Those who taunt me with “Aha, aha,”
May they be shocked by their own shame.

Let those who seek you out, rejoice
And be gladdened because of you.
Let those who love your salvation
Always say, “Great is Jehovah!”

As for me, I am poor and needy.
May Jehovah give thought to me.
You are my help and my savior,
May there be no delay, my god.

Psalm 39

I have promised to guard my ways
So I may not sin with my tongue;
I would put a muzzle on my mouth
When the wicked are in my presence.

And so I was totally silent, dumb,
Not even saying anything positive;
Yet, my distress was exacerbated;
More and more a heartache seethed within me
Until, after contemplation, it flared up.

Then, I spoke out, “Show me, O Jehovah,
How I will die and how long I will live,
That I may know how fleeting is my life.
You have made my days like the breadth of a hand;
My lifespan is nothing compared to yours.
At his best, man is but a breath of wind.
He moves about like a shadow, a phantom,
And his rushing around is all in vain.
He hoards riches, but knows not who will spend them.
And so, what now is my expectation?
I will place my hope in you, Jehovah.

“From all my transgressions deliver me.
Do not let me be the mockery of fools.
I have been silent and kept my mouth shut,
For that is what you’ve demanded of me.
But remove this scourge you’ve laid upon me,
For I am perishing under its blows.
When you correct and discipline a man,
Rebuking him for his iniquities,
Like a moth you consume what is dear to him. ---
For each of us is but a breath of wind.

"Hear my prayer, O Jehovah.
Listen to my cries for help.
Do not ignore my tears.
For I am a guest with you,
A foreign resident,
As my forefathers were.
Turn away your angry gaze
So I may be cheered again
Before I go away
And so exist no more."

Psalm 38

O Jehovah, rebuke me not in anger,
Nor chastise me in your furious wrath.
Your arrows have struck me and stick deep within, 
And your hand has come down hard upon me.
Because of your wrathful indignation
My entire body suffers from ill health.
Because of my sin no strength is left in me.
My guilt is so crushing it overwhelms me;
It is a burden too heavy to bear.
For my folly, my wounds reek and fester.
I have been bent and brought down utterly.
All day I walk about consumed by grief.
All my insides burn with a raging fever;
There is no wellness left within my body.
I am enfeebled and shattered wholly.
I groan and cry out with an anguished heart.

All that I long for is laid before you,
Jehovah; my moans are not hidden from you.
My heart pounds and my strength has deserted me,
Even the light in my eyes has left me.
Because I am ill, friends and neighbors shun me;
Even my family keeps their distance.
Those who seek my life set their traps for me;
Those who wish me harm talk of my ruin
And constantly plot ways to deceive me.
But I am like a deaf man, I can not hear;
I am like one who is dumb and cannot speak.
Indeed, I am a man who does not hear
And out of my mouth there are no protests.

I am waiting for you, O Jehovah.
You will answer me, Jehovah my god.
For I have prayed, “Let not my enemies
Gloat over me or magnify themselves
When my foot slips.”  I am about to fall,
Aware of the pain that is ever with me.
I confess my sins and repent of them.
But my enemies are vigorous and strong;
Those that hate me without cause have multiplied.
They return evil for the good I have done
And oppose me because I strive to do good.

Do not forsake me, O Jehovah,
Do not be far from me, my god.
Come quickly to lend me succor,
O Jehovah, my salvation!

Psalm 37

Do not fret over the wicked
Or have envy for wrongdoers,
For they, like the grass, will soon wither
And, like the green plants, they will wilt.
Trust in Jehovah and do good.
Then you will live in security
And the land will faithfully feed you.
Take your delight in Jehovah,
And he will grant you your heart’s desire.

Commit yourself to follow Jehovah.
Have faith in him and he will bring this to pass:
Your righteousness will shine like the dawning light;
Your justice will glow like the noonday sun.
Silently, patiently wait for Jehovah.
Do not be troubled that some may prosper
Pursuing wicked schemes and machinations.
Put aside your anger, forsake your wrath,
For rage leads only to evil doing,
And those who do evil will be destroyed,
While those who place their faith in Jehovah
Will be the inheritors of the earth.
And the evil men will soon be no more,
You will search for them and they will not be there.
For the humble will inherit the earth
And delight in peace and prosperity.

The wicked plot against the righteous,
Poised to attack him with gnashing teeth.
But Jehovah laughs at the wicked,
For he knows that their time will come.
They draw the sword and bend the bow
To strike down the poor and the needy
And slaughter those of upright ways,
But their swords will pierce their own hearts,
And their bows will splinter when they bend.
Better the little the righteous have
Than the great riches of the wicked,
For the power of the wicked
Will be subdued while the righteous
Will be sustained by Jehovah.
All the days of the innocent
Are watched over by Jehovah;
Their inheritance is eternal.

In times of trouble they will not be shamed,
In times of famine they will have enough,
But the wicked ones will come to their end;
Jehovah’s enemies will be consumed
And, like the fat of lambs, go up in smoke.
The wicked borrow, but do not repay.
The righteous give with generosity.

Those who are blessed by Jehovah
Will take possession of the earth;
Those cursed by him will be destroyed.
Sure does he make the steps of the man
Whose path is pleasing to Jehovah.
Though he stumbles, he will not fall,
For Jehovah holds him by the hand.

Once I was young, but now I am old,
Yet never have I seen forsaken
A righteous man, nor have I seen
His children begging for their bread.
Generous, gracious, he freely lends;
His children are a blessing to him.
Shun evil and do what is right,
And you will live forevermore.
For Jehovah fosters justice
And will not forsake the faithful
Whom he keeps secure forever,
While the unjust will be punished,
The children of the wicked, destroyed.
The righteous will possess the land
And live upon it forever.
Out of the mouth of the righteous
Comes wisdom and from his tongue, judgment.
The law of his god is on his mind,
So his footsteps do not falter.
The wicked spy upon the righteous
To seek a way to murder him.
But Jehovah will not leave him
In his power nor allow him
To be condemned when brought to trial.

Keep faith with Jehovah and follow his ways;
He will exalt you to inherit the land.
You will see it when the wicked are destroyed.
I have seen a wicked man exalted,
Rising up like a cedar of Lebanon.
But when I passed again, he was no more;
I looked for him, but he could not be found.
Observe the innocent, behold the upright,
For the future of each is one of peace.
But sinners will be destroyed together
Cut off is the future of the wicked.

The salvation of the righteous
Lies in Jehovah, their refuge,
Their strength in their times of trouble.
Jehovah will lend them succor
Delivering them from the wicked.
He saves them, for they have faith in him.

Psalm 36

To my mind has come a revelation --
The errors of the wicked man are these:
In his conceit he is too blind to see
His own sins and how detestable they are,
His words are malicious and deceitful,
His actions have ceased to be wise and good,
Even in his bed he plots evil schemes,
He sets himself on an immoral path,
Rejecting not the ways of iniquity.

Your love, O Jehovah, and loyalty
Is written in the clouds of the heavens.
Your righteous is like the mountains of God;
Your justice is like the great ocean depths.
You sustain man and beast, O Jehovah.

How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
So the children of mankind find their refuge
In the shadow of your sheltering wings.
With the bounty of your house they are sated;
You bid them drink from a stream of delights,
For it is you who is the spring of life,
Your light, the source of the light that we see.
Continue to bestow upon those who know you
Your love and mercy and extend your justice
To the upright and those of good intentions.

Let not the foot of the proud trample me,
Nor the hand of the wicked push me away. ---
Look! How the evildoers have fallen,
Overthrown.  Never can they rise again!

Psalm 35

O Jehovah, challenge those who challenge me;
Make war against those who make war against me!
Put on your armor and take up your shield;
Stir yourself and rise, come to my rescue!
Seize the spear, brandish the javelin;
Block the way against those who pursue me!
Tell me that you will be my salvation.

Bring disgrace and shame on those who would destroy me;
Confuse, put to retreat those who seek my ruin.
Let them be like chaff blown before the wind
Driven forth by the agent of Jehovah.
And let their way be dark and slippery,
Pursued by the agent of Jehovah.
Without reason they have set a trap for me,
Spreading a net and digging a hidden pit.
But let them be ensnared in their own net;
Let them fall into their own hidden pit
And, unawares, meet their own destruction.

My spirit will then rejoice in Jehovah
And be glad that he has brought my salvation.
With every ounce of my soul I will say,
“O Jehovah, who can compare with you?
Who is it that saves the weak from the strong
And protects the helpless and poor from robbers?”

Hostile witnesses rise up against me
And quiz me on things I know nothing about.
They return evil for the good I do them
And leave my spirit in desolation.

When they were ill, I dressed in mourning
And denied myself by fasting.
I prayed for them repeatedly
As if they were a friend or brother.
I went around bent over with grief,
As one who mourns for his mother.

But when I stumbled, they rejoiced.
They gathered round and looked on with glee,
As strangers kept insulting me.
They abused, mocked, and belittled,
And ground their teeth at me in anger. 

How much longer, O God, will you look on?
Rescue my soul from these ruthless attacks!
Protect my precious life from these predators!

Then, in the assembly, I will thank you,
And before all the people I will praise you.

They who have no reason to oppose me,
Let them not delight in my defeat.
They who have no cause to hate me,
Let them not sneer at my sorrow.

They do not speak in words of peace,
But tell lies about the peaceable.
Of me they make false accusations.
“Aha, aha,” they mockingly say,
“We have seen what you are up to.”
Jehovah, you are witness to this.
Do not remain silent about it,
Do not leave me alone, O God!
Arouse yourself and defend me!
Rise up and fight for me, O my God!
Judge me fairly, Jehovah my god,
According to your righteous ways,
Vindicate me and stop their gloating.
Do not let them say to themselves,
“Ah, yes, we got what we wanted.”
Or proclaim, “We have eaten him up!”

May those who take pleasure in my suffering
Be humiliated and put to shame.
May those who exalt themselves above me
Be covered with dishonor and disgrace.

But for those who favored my vindication,
Let them shout out in joyful jubilation
And repeat, “How great is Jehovah
Who takes pleasure in his servant’s success!”

Then I will proclaim your righteousness
And sing your praises all day long!