Psalm 31

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

¹In you, Lord, I have taken refuge;

let me never be put to shame;

deliver me in your righteousness.

²Turn your ear to me,

come quickly to my rescue;

be my rock of refuge,

a strong fortress to save me.

³Since you are my rock and my fortress,

for the sake of your name lead and guide me.

⁴Keep me free from the trap that is set for me,

for you are my refuge.

⁵Into your hands I commit my spirit;

deliver me, Lord, my faithful God.

⁶I hate those who cling to worthless idols;

as for me, I trust in the Lord.

⁷I will be glad and rejoice in your love,

for you saw my affliction

and knew the anguish of my soul.

⁸You have not given me into the hands of the enemy

but have set my feet in a spacious place.

⁹Be merciful to me, Lord, for I am in distress;

my eyes grow weak with sorrow,

my soul and body with grief.

¹⁰My life is consumed by anguish

and my years by groaning;

my strength fails because of my affliction,

and my bones grow weak.

¹¹Because of all my enemies,

I am the utter contempt of my neighbors

and an object of dread to my closest friends—

those who see me on the street flee from me.

¹²I am forgotten as though I were dead;

I have become like broken pottery.

¹³For I hear many whispering,

“Terror on every side!”

They conspire against me

and plot to take my life.

¹⁴But I trust in you, Lord;

I say, “You are my God.”

¹⁵My times are in your hands;

deliver me from the hands of my enemies,

from those who pursue me.

¹⁶Let your face shine on your servant;

save me in your unfailing love.

¹⁷Let me not be put to shame, Lord,

for I have cried out to you;

but let the wicked be put to shame

and be silent in the realm of the dead.

¹⁸Let their lying lips be silenced,

for with pride and contempt

they speak arrogantly against the righteous.

¹⁹How abundant are the good things

that you have stored up for those who fear you,

that you bestow in the sight of all,

on those who take refuge in you.

²⁰In the shelter of your presence you hide them

from all human intrigues;

you keep them safe in your dwelling

from accusing tongues.

²¹Praise be to the Lord,

for he showed me the wonders of his love

when I was in a city under siege.

²²In my alarm I said,

“I am cut off from your sight!”

Yet you heard my cry for mercy

when I called to you for help.

²³Love the Lord, all his faithful people!

The Lord preserves those who are true to him,

but the proud he pays back in full.

²⁴Be strong and take heart,

all you who hope in the Lord.