Psalm 52-56

New Life Version

Trust in God’s Love

52 Why do you take pride in wrong-doing, O powerful man? The loving-kindness of God lasts all day long. ² Your tongue makes plans to destroy like a sharp knife, you who lie. ³ You love what is bad more than what is good, and you speak lies more than you speak the truth. ⁴ You love all words that destroy, O lying tongue.

⁵ But God will destroy you forever. He will pick you up and pull you away from your tent. He will pull up your roots from the land of the living. ⁶ And those who are right will see and be afraid. They will laugh at him, saying, ⁷ “Look, the man who would not make God his safe place, but trusted in his many riches and was strong in his sinful desire.”

⁸ But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the loving-kindness of God forever and ever. ⁹ I will give You thanks forever because of what You have done. And I will hope in Your name, for it is good to be where those who belong to You are.

Foolish Men

53 The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are sinful and have done bad things. There is no one who does good. ² God has looked down from heaven at the children of men to see if there is anyone who understands and looks for God. ³ They have all turned back. They have all turned to sin. There is no one who does good, not even one. ⁴ Have those who do wrong no understanding? They eat up My people like they eat bread. They have not called upon God. ⁵ There they were, in much fear, where there was nothing to be afraid of. For God has spread out the bones of those who come against you. You put them to shame, because God has turned away from them. ⁶ O, that the saving of Israel would come out of Zion! Jacob will be full of joy and Israel will be glad when God returns His people to their land.

Prayer for a Safe Place

54 Save me by Your name, O God. And stand with me by Your power. ² Hear my prayer, O God. Listen to the words of my mouth. ³ For strangers have risen against me. And men who hurt others want to take my life. They do not think about God.

⁴ See, God is my Helper. The Lord is the One Who keeps my soul alive. ⁵ He will punish those who hate me, for the wrong they have done. He will destroy them because He is faithful.

⁶ I will be glad to give You a gift on the altar. I will give thanks to Your name, O Lord, for it is good. ⁷ For He has taken me out of all trouble. And my eyes have looked without fear upon those who hate me.

Prayer of a Man Hurt by a Friend

55 Listen to my prayer, O God. Do not hide Yourself from what I ask. ² Hear me and answer me. My thoughts trouble me and I have no peace, ³ because of the voice of those who hate me and the power of the sinful. For they bring trouble upon me, and in anger they keep on having bad thoughts against me.

⁴ My heart is in pain within me. The fears of death have come upon me. ⁵ I have begun shaking with fear. Fear has power over me. ⁶ And I say, “If only I had wings like a dove, I would fly away and be at rest. ⁷ Yes, I would go far away. I would live in the desert. ⁸ I would hurry to my safe place, away from the wild wind and storm.”

⁹ Mix them up, O Lord. Divide their tongues. For I have seen fighting and trouble in the city. ¹⁰ They go around on its walls day and night. Sin and wrong-doing are within it. ¹¹ Destroying powers are in the city. Trouble and lies never leave its streets.

¹² I would be able to take it if one who hates me were putting me to shame. I could hide from him. It is not one who hates me who has put himself up against me. ¹³ But it is you, a man like myself, one who has gone with me, my close friend. ¹⁴ We shared together. And we walked with the people in the house of God. ¹⁵ Let death take them by surprise. Let them go down alive to the grave. For sin is with them where they live. ¹⁶ As for me, I will call on God and the Lord will save me. ¹⁷ I will cry out and complain in the evening and morning and noon, and He will hear my voice. ¹⁸ He will save my soul in peace from those who make war against me. For there are many who fight me. ¹⁹ God sits on His throne forever. And He will hear them and bring trouble upon them, because there has been no change in them. They do not fear God. ²⁰ He goes against those who were at peace with him. He has broken his agreement. ²¹ What he says is smoother than butter, but war is in his heart. His words are softer than oil, yet they are raised swords.

²² Give all your cares to the Lord and He will give you strength. He will never let those who are right with Him be shaken. ²³ But You, O God, will bring the sinful down into the hole that destroys. Men who kill and lie will not live out half their days. But I will trust in You.

Prayer of Trust in God

56 Show me Your loving-kindness, O God, for man has walked on me. All day long the one who tries to keep me down fights with me. ² All day long those who hate me have walked on me. For there are many who fight against me with pride. ³ When I am afraid, I will trust in You. ⁴ I praise the Word of God. I have put my trust in God. I will not be afraid. What can only a man do to me? ⁵ All day long they change my words to say what I did not say. They are always thinking of ways to hurt me. ⁶ They go after me as in a fight. They hide themselves. They watch my steps, as they have waited to take my life. ⁷ Because they are bad, do not let them get away. Bring down the people in Your anger, O God.

⁸ You have seen how many places I have gone. Put my tears in Your bottle. Are they not in Your book? ⁹ Then those who hate me will turn back when I call. I know that God is for me. ¹⁰ I praise the Word of God. I praise the Word of the Lord. ¹¹ In God I have put my trust. I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? ¹² I am under an agreement with You, O God. I will give You gifts of thanks. ¹³ For You have set my soul free from death. You have kept my feet from falling, so I may walk with God in the light of life.