Psalms

¹ For the choir director: “Do Not Destroy.” A of David. Do you really speak righteously, you mighty ones? Do you judge people fairly?

² No, you practice injustice in your hearts; with your hands you weigh out violence in the land.

³ The wicked go astray from the womb; liars wander about from birth.

⁴ They have venom like the venom of a snake, like the deaf cobra that stops up its ears,

⁵ that does not listen to the sound of the charmers who skillfully weave spells.

⁶ God, knock the teeth out of their mouths; LORD, tear out the young lions’ fangs.

⁷ May they vanish like water that flows by; may they aim their blunted arrows.

⁸ Like a slug that moves along in slime, like a woman’s miscarried child, may they not see the sun.

⁹ Before your pots can feel the heat of the thorns — whether green or burning — he will sweep them away.

¹⁰ The righteous one will rejoice when he sees the retribution; he will wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.

¹¹ Then people will say, “Yes, there is a reward for the righteous! There is a God who judges on earth!”