Psalm 12

¹Help, Lord; for there is no longer any that is godly;

for the faithful have vanished from among the sons of men.

²Every one utters lies to his neighbor;

with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

³May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,

the tongue that makes great boasts,

⁴those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,

our lips are with us; who is our master?”

⁵“Because the poor are despoiled, because the needy groan,

I will now arise,” says the Lord;

“I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”

⁶The promises of the Lord are promises that are pure,

silver refined in a furnace on the ground,

purified seven times.

⁷Do thou, O Lord, protect us,

guard us ever from this generation.

⁸On every side the wicked prowl,

as vileness is exalted among the sons of men.