PSALM VIII.

The greatness of the Creator, and his goodness to man.

For the leader of the music; to be accompanied with the gittith. A psalm of David.

1 O JEHOVAH, Our Lord,

How excellent is thy name in all the earth!
Thou hast set thy glory above the heavens!

2 Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou or

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dained praise;

To put thine adversaries to shame,

And to silence the enemy and avenger.

When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, The moon and the stars which thou hast ordained;

4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him,

And the son of man, that thou carest for him!

5 Yet thou hast made him little lower than God; Thou hast crowned him with glory and honor.

6 Thou hast given him dominion over the works of thy hands;

Thou hast put all things under his feet;

7 All sheep and oxen,

Yea, and the beasts of the forest;

8 The birds of the air, and the fishes of the sea,

And whatever passeth through the paths of the deep.

9 O Jehovah, our Lord,

How excellent is thy name in all the earth!

PSALM IX.

A thanksgiving ode for victory and deliverance from enemies; with prayers for future help. Supposed to have been composed after the wars mentioned in 2 Samuel, ch. viii.

For the leader of the music; to be sung in the manner or with the voice of virgins. To the Benites. A psalm of David.

1

I WILL praise thee, O Lord, with my whole heart;

I will show forth all thy marvellous works.

2 I will be glad and rejoice in thee;

I will sing praise to thy name, O thou Most High ! 3 All my enemies are turned back;

They fall and perish at thy presence!

Thou desti so the wicked;

Thou blottest their name for evermore!

Thou, O Lord, hast destroyed their cities!
Their memory itself has perished!

7 The Lord reigneth for ever;

He hath prepared his throne for judgment.

8 He judgeth the world in righteousness;

He administereth judgment to the nations with uprightness. 9 Yea, the Lord is the refuge of the oppressed;

A refuge in times of trouble.

10 They, who know thy name, put their trust in thee; For thou, O Lord, forsakest not them that seek thee!

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Sing praises to the Lord, who reigneth in Zion; Declare his doings among the people!

12 As the avenger of blood, he remembereth the distressed; He forgetteth not their complaint.

13

"Have pity upon me, [said I,] O Lord!

Look upon my affliction through them that hate me ;

Lift me up from the gates of death!

14 That I may show forth all thy praise in the gates of the daughter of Zion;

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That I may rejoice in salvation by thee."

The nations have sunk into the pit which they made ; In the net, which they hid, is their own foot taken.

16 Thus it is known that the Lord executeth judgment;

The wicked are ensnared in the work of their own

hands.

17 The wicked shall be driven into the underworld;

Yea, all the nations that forget God.

18 For the poor shall not always be forgotten;

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The hopes of the afflicted shall not perish for ever.

Arise, O Lord! Let not man prevail;

Let the nations be judged by thee!

20 Strike terror into them, O Lord!

Let the nations know that they are but men!

PSALM X.

A prayer against impious, deceitful, and blood-thirsty foreign enemies.

1 WHY standest thou afar off, O Lord?

Why hidest thou thyself in times of trouble?

2 Through the haughtiness of the wicked the poor are in

distress;

They are caught in the wiles which are contrived for

them.

3 The wicked boasteth of his heart's desire;

The rapacious renounceth and contemneth the Lord. 4 The wicked [saith] in his haughtiness," He careth not!" All his thoughts are, "There is no God."

5 His course is always prosperous; Thy judgments are far from him;

As for all his enemies, he puffeth at them. 6 He saith in his heart, "I shall never fall; "I shall never be in adversity."

7 His mouth is full of perjury, deceit, and oppression; Mischief and injustice are upon his tongue.

8 He sitteth in the lurking-places of the villages;
In secret places doth he murder the innocent;
His eyes are secretly fixed upon the poor.

9 He secretly lieth in wait, like a lion in a thicket;
He lieth in wait to seize upon the helpless;
He catcheth the poor, drawing him into his net.
10 He croucheth, and lowereth himself,

And the wretched fall into his paws.

11 He saith in his heart, " God doth forget; He hideth his face; he doth never see it."

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Arise, O Lord! O God, lift up thine hand! Forget not the distressed!

13 Wherefore doth the wicked contemn God,

And say in his heart," He careth not for it ?

14 Thou dost see it! yea, thou beholdest malice and oppression, And markest it upon thy hand!

The poor committeth himself to thee;

Thou art the helper of the fatherless.

15 Break thou the arm of the unjust and wicked man ; Seek out his wickedness, till thou canst find none !

16 The Lord is king for ever;

The gentiles shall perish out of his land.

17 Thou, O Lord, wilt hear the desires of the distressed; Thou wilt strengthen their hearts;

Thou wilt lend a listening ear!

18 Thou wilt maintain the cause of the fatherless and the oppressed,

That henceforth none may be driven from the land!

PSALM XI.

An expression of trust in God, as a security from the plots and assaults of enemies.

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66

For the leader of the music. A psalm of David.

IN the Lord do I put my trust. Why say ye to me,

Flee, like a bird, to your mountain?

2 For, lo, the wicked bend their bow;

They make ready their arrows on the string,

To shoot in secret at the upright in heart. 3 If the pillars be broken down, What can the righteous do?"

The Lord is in his holy palace; The Lord's throne is in heaven;

His eyes behold, his eyelids prove the children of men. 5 The Lord trieth the righteous;

But the wicked, and the lover of violence, his soul hateth.

6 Upon the wicked he will rain lightning;

Fire and brimstone and a burning wind shall be the por

tion of their cup.

7 For the Lord is righteous; he loveth righteousness; The upright shall see his face.