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Psalm 140-142
Common English Bible
Psalm 140-142
Common English Bible
Psalm 140
For the music leader. A psalm of David.
140 Rescue me from evil people, Lord!
Guard me from violent people
2 who plot evil things in their hearts,
who pick fights every single day!
3 They sharpen their tongues like a snake’s;
spider poison[a] is on their lips. Selah
4 Protect me from the power of the wicked, Lord!
Guard me from violent people
who plot to trip me up!
5 Arrogant people have laid a trap for me with ropes.
They’ve spread out a net alongside the road.
They’ve set snares for me. Selah
6 I tell the Lord, “You are my God!
Listen to my request for mercy, Lord!”
7 My Lord God, my strong saving help—
you’ve protected my head on the day of battle.
8 Lord, don’t give the wicked what they want!
Don’t allow their plans to succeed,
or they’ll exalt themselves even more![b] Selah
9 Let the heads of the people surrounding me
be covered with the trouble their own lips caused![c]
10 Let burning coals fall on them!
Let them fall into deep pits and never get out again!
11 Let no slanderer be safe in the land.
Let calamity hunt down violent people—and quickly![d]
12 I know that the Lord will take up the case of the poor
and will do what is right for the needy.
13 Yes, the righteous will give thanks to your name,
and those who do right will live in your presence.
Psalm 141
A psalm of David.
141 I cry out to you, Lord: Come to me—quickly!
Listen to my voice when I cry out to you!
2 Let my prayer stand before you like incense;
let my uplifted hands be like the evening offering.
3 Set a guard over my mouth, Lord;
keep close watch over the door that is my lips.
4 Don’t let my heart turn aside to evil things
so that I don’t do wicked things with evildoers,
so I don’t taste their delicacies.
5 Instead, let the righteous discipline me;
let the faithful correct me!
Let my head never reject that kind of fine oil,
because my prayers are always against the deeds of the wicked.[e]
6 Their leaders will fall from jagged cliffs,
but my words will be heard because they are pleasing.[f]
7 Our bones[g] have been scattered at the mouth of the grave,[h]
just like when the ground is broken up and plowed.[i]
8 But my eyes are on you, my Lord God.
I take refuge in you; don’t let me die!
9 Protect me from the trap they’ve set for me;
protect me from the snares of the evildoers.
10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets—all together!—
but let me make it through safely.
Psalm 142
A maskil[j] of David, when he was in the cave. A prayer.
142 I cry out loud for help from the Lord.
I beg out loud for mercy from the Lord.
2 I pour out my concerns before God;
I announce my distress to him.
3 When my spirit is weak inside me, you still know my way.
But they’ve hidden a trap for me in the path I’m taking.
4 Look right beside me: See?
No one pays attention to me.
There’s no escape for me.
No one cares about my life.
5 I cry to you, Lord, for help.
“You are my refuge,” I say.
“You are all I have in the land of the living.”
6 Pay close attention to my shouting,
because I’ve been brought down so low!
Deliver me from my oppressors
because they’re stronger than me.
7 Get me out of this prison
so I can give thanks to your name.
Then the righteous will gather all around me
because of your good deeds to me.
Footnotes
- Psalm 140:3 LXX snake poison
- Psalm 140:8 Heb uncertain
- Psalm 140:9 Heb uncertain
- Psalm 140:11 Heb uncertain
- Psalm 141:5 Heb uncertain
- Psalm 141:6 Heb uncertain
- Psalm 141:7 LXX manuscripts, Syr their bones; DSS (11QPsa) my bones
- Psalm 141:7 Heb Sheol
- Psalm 141:7 Heb uncertain
- Psalm 142:1 Perhaps instruction
Psalm 140-142
New International Version
Psalm 140-142
New International Version
Psalm 140[a]
For the director of music. A psalm of David.
1 Rescue me,(A) Lord, from evildoers;
protect me from the violent,(B)
2 who devise evil plans(C) in their hearts
and stir up war(D) every day.
3 They make their tongues as sharp as(E) a serpent’s;
the poison of vipers(F) is on their lips.[b]
4 Keep me safe,(G) Lord, from the hands of the wicked;(H)
protect me from the violent,
who devise ways to trip my feet.
5 The arrogant have hidden a snare(I) for me;
they have spread out the cords of their net(J)
and have set traps(K) for me along my path.
6 I say to the Lord, “You are my God.”(L)
Hear, Lord, my cry for mercy.(M)
7 Sovereign Lord,(N) my strong deliverer,
you shield my head in the day of battle.
8 Do not grant the wicked(O) their desires, Lord;
do not let their plans succeed.
9 Those who surround me proudly rear their heads;
may the mischief of their lips engulf them.(P)
10 May burning coals fall on them;
may they be thrown into the fire,(Q)
into miry pits, never to rise.
11 May slanderers not be established in the land;
may disaster hunt down the violent.(R)
12 I know that the Lord secures justice for the poor(S)
and upholds the cause(T) of the needy.(U)
13 Surely the righteous will praise your name,(V)
and the upright will live(W) in your presence.(X)
Psalm 141
A psalm of David.
1 I call to you, Lord, come quickly(Y) to me;
hear me(Z) when I call to you.
2 May my prayer be set before you like incense;(AA)
may the lifting up of my hands(AB) be like the evening sacrifice.(AC)
3 Set a guard over my mouth,(AD) Lord;
keep watch over the door of my lips.(AE)
4 Do not let my heart(AF) be drawn to what is evil
so that I take part in wicked deeds(AG)
along with those who are evildoers;
do not let me eat their delicacies.(AH)
5 Let a righteous man strike me—that is a kindness;
let him rebuke me(AI)—that is oil on my head.(AJ)
My head will not refuse it,
for my prayer will still be against the deeds of evildoers.
6 Their rulers will be thrown down from the cliffs,(AK)
and the wicked will learn that my words were well spoken.
7 They will say, “As one plows(AL) and breaks up the earth,(AM)
so our bones have been scattered at the mouth(AN) of the grave.”
8 But my eyes are fixed(AO) on you, Sovereign Lord;
in you I take refuge(AP)—do not give me over to death.
9 Keep me safe(AQ) from the traps set by evildoers,(AR)
from the snares(AS) they have laid for me.
10 Let the wicked fall(AT) into their own nets,
while I pass by in safety.(AU)
Psalm 142[c]
A maskil[d] of David. When he was in the cave.(AV) A prayer.
1 I cry aloud(AW) to the Lord;
I lift up my voice to the Lord for mercy.(AX)
2 I pour out before him my complaint;(AY)
before him I tell my trouble.(AZ)
Footnotes
- Psalm 140:1 In Hebrew texts 140:1-13 is numbered 140:2-14.
- Psalm 140:3 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verses 5 and 8.
- Psalm 142:1 In Hebrew texts 142:1-7 is numbered 142:2-8.
- Psalm 142:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
Common English Bible (CEB)
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.