Psalms 109

David cries out against enemies who repay his love with hatred and his friendship with lies, calling down detailed curses on the one who persecuted the poor and brokenhearted. He then turns to God for deliverance, declaring his own poverty and trusting that the LORD stands at the right hand of the needy.

v	King James Version	Modern English
1	Hold not thy peace, O God of my praise;	O God, whom I praise, do not remain silent,
2	For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me: they have spoken against me with a lying tongue.	for wicked and deceitful mouths have opened against me; they have spoken to me with lying tongues.
3	They compassed me about also with words of hatred; and fought against me without a cause.	With words of hatred they surround me; they attack me without cause.
4	For my love they are my adversaries: but I give myself unto prayer.	In return for my friendship they accuse me, but I am a man of prayer.
5	And they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love.	They repay me evil for good, and hatred for my friendship.
6	Set thou a wicked man over him: and let Satan stand at his right hand.	Appoint someone evil to oppose my enemy; let an accuser stand at His right hand.
7	When he shall be judged, let him be condemned: and let his prayer become sin.	When He is tried, let Him be found guilty, and may His prayers condemn Him.
8	Let his days be few; and let another take his office.	May His days be few; may another take His place of leadership.
9	Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow.	May His children be fatherless and his wife a widow.
10	Let his children be continually vagabonds, and beg: let them seek their bread also out of their desolate places.	May His children wander about and beg; may they be driven from their ruined homes.
11	Let the extortioner catch all that he hath; and let the strangers spoil his labour.	May a creditor seize all He has; may strangers plunder the fruits of His labor.
12	Let there be none to extend mercy unto him: neither let there be any to favour his fatherless children.	May no one extend kindness to him or take pity on his fatherless children.
13	Let his posterity be cut off; and in the generation following let their name be blotted out.	May His descendants be cut off, their names blotted out from the next generation.
14	Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered with the LORD; and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.	May the iniquity of His fathers be remembered before the LORD; may the sin of His mother never be blotted out.
15	Let them be before the LORD continually, that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth.	May their sins always remain before the LORD, that He may blot out their name from the earth.
16	Because that he remembered not to shew mercy, but persecuted the poor and needy man, that he might even slay the broken in heart.	For He never thought of doing a kindness, but hounded to death the poor, the needy, and the brokenhearted.
17	As he loved cursing, so let it come unto him: as he delighted not in blessing, so let it be far from him.	He loved to curse — may it come back on Him. He found no pleasure in blessing — may it be far from Him.
18	As he clothed himself with cursing like as with his garment, so let it come into his bowels like water, and like oil into his bones.	He wore cursing as His garment; it entered His body like water, like oil into His bones.
19	Let it be unto him as the garment which covereth him, and for a girdle wherewith he is girded continually.	May it be like a cloak wrapped about Him, like a belt tied forever around Him.
20	Let this be the reward of mine adversaries from the LORD, and of them that speak evil against my soul.	May this be the LORD's payment to my accusers, to those who speak evil against me.
21	But do thou for me, O GOD the Lord, for thy name's sake: because thy mercy is good, deliver thou me.	But do for me, O GOD the Lord, for Your name's sake; because Your mercy is good, deliver me.
22	For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.	For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.
23	I am gone like the shadow when it declineth; I am tossed up and down as the locust.	I fade away like an evening shadow; I am shaken off like a locust.
24	My knees are weak through fasting; and my flesh faileth of fatness.	My knees give way from fasting; my body is thin and gaunt.
25	I became also a reproach unto them: when they looked upon me they shaked their head.	I am an object of scorn to my accusers; when they see me, they shake their heads.
26	Help me, O LORD my God: O save me according to thy mercy:	Help me, LORD my God; save me according to Your mercy.
27	That they may know that this is thy hand; that thou, LORD, hast done it.	Let them know that it is Your hand, that You, LORD, have done it.
28	Let them curse, but bless thou: when they arise, let them be ashamed; but let thy servant rejoice.	While they curse, may You bless; may those who attack me be put to shame, but may Your servant rejoice.
29	Let mine adversaries be clothed with shame, and let them cover themselves with their own confusion, as with a mantle.	May my accusers be clothed with disgrace and wrapped in shame as in a cloak.
30	I will greatly praise the LORD with my mouth; yea, I will praise him among the multitude.	With my mouth I will greatly praise the LORD; in the midst of the crowd I will praise Him.
31	For he shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those that condemn his soul.	For He stands at the right hand of the needy, to save their lives from those who would condemn them.