May Ten

~Good Morning~

 

• I love this verse because it gives such hope. We are not to take this literally, correct? We are to expect trials and tribulations, not all good?
  

³ Trust in the Lord and do good.
      Then you will live safely in the land and prosper.
 ⁴ Take delight in the Lord,
      and he will give you your heart's desires.

• I do not understand this. Are all the psychologists wrong about bad parents don't have to mean bad children?
  
• ²⁸ For the Lord loves justice,
        and he will never abandon the godly.
  
•    He will keep them safe forever,
        but the children of the wicked will die.
  

 

Psalm 35-38 (New Living Translation)

Psalm 35

A psalm of David.

 ¹ O Lord, oppose those who oppose me.
      Fight those who fight against me.
 ² Put on your armor, and take up your shield.
      Prepare for battle, and come to my aid.
 ³ Lift up your spear and javelin
      against those who pursue me.
   Let me hear you say,
      "I will give you victory!"
 ⁴ Bring shame and disgrace on those trying to kill me;
      turn them back and humiliate those who want to harm me.
 ⁵ Blow them away like chaff in the wind—
      a wind sent by the angel of the Lord.
 ⁶ Make their path dark and slippery,
      with the angel of the Lord pursuing them.
 ⁷ I did them no wrong, but they laid a trap for me.
      I did them no wrong, but they dug a pit to catch me.
 ⁸ So let sudden ruin come upon them!
      Let them be caught in the trap they set for me!
      Let them be destroyed in the pit they dug for me.

 ⁹ Then I will rejoice in the Lord.
      I will be glad because he rescues me.
 ¹⁰ With every bone in my body I will praise him:
      "Lord, who can compare with you?
   Who else rescues the helpless from the strong?
      Who else protects the helpless and poor from those who rob them?"

 ¹¹ Malicious witnesses testify against me.
      They accuse me of crimes I know nothing about.
 ¹² They repay me evil for good.
      I am sick with despair.
 ¹³ Yet when they were ill, I grieved for them.
      I denied myself by fasting for them,
      but my prayers returned unanswered.
 ¹⁴ I was sad, as though they were my friends or family,
      as if I were grieving for my own mother.
 ¹⁵ But they are glad now that I am in trouble;
      they gleefully join together against me.
   I am attacked by people I don't even know;
      they slander me constantly.
 ¹⁶ They mock me and call me names;
      they snarl at me.

 ¹⁷ How long, O Lord, will you look on and do nothing?
      Rescue me from their fierce attacks.
      Protect my life from these lions!
 ¹⁸ Then I will thank you in front of the great assembly.
      I will praise you before all the people.
 ¹⁹ Don't let my treacherous enemies rejoice over my defeat.
      Don't let those who hate me without cause gloat over my sorrow.
 ²⁰ They don't talk of peace;
      they plot against innocent people who mind their own business.
 ²¹ They shout, "Aha! Aha!
      With our own eyes we saw him do it!"

 ²² O Lord, you know all about this.
      Do not stay silent.
      Do not abandon me now, O Lord.
 ²³ Wake up! Rise to my defense!
      Take up my case, my God and my Lord.
 ²⁴ Declare me not guilty, O Lord my God, for you give justice.
      Don't let my enemies laugh about me in my troubles.
 ²⁵ Don't let them say, "Look, we got what we wanted!
      Now we will eat him alive!"

 ²⁶ May those who rejoice at my troubles
      be humiliated and disgraced.
   May those who triumph over me
      be covered with shame and dishonor.
 ²⁷ But give great joy to those who came to my defense.
      Let them continually say, "Great is the Lord,
      who delights in blessing his servant with peace!"
 ²⁸ Then I will proclaim your justice,
      and I will praise you all day long.

Psalm 36

For the choir director: A psalm of David, the servant of the Lord.

 ¹ Sin whispers to the wicked, deep within their hearts.
      They have no fear of God at all.
 ² In their blind conceit,
      they cannot see how wicked they really are.
 ³ Everything they say is crooked and deceitful.
      They refuse to act wisely or do good.
 ⁴ They lie awake at night, hatching sinful plots.
      Their actions are never good.
      They make no attempt to turn from evil.

 ⁵ Your unfailing love, O Lord, is as vast as the heavens;
      your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds.
 ⁶ Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains,
      your justice like the ocean depths.
   You care for people and animals alike, O Lord.
    ⁷ How precious is your unfailing love, O God!
   All humanity finds shelter
      in the shadow of your wings.
 ⁸ You feed them from the abundance of your own house,
      letting them drink from your river of delights.
 ⁹ For you are the fountain of life,
      the light by which we see.

 ¹⁰ Pour out your unfailing love on those who love you;
      give justice to those with honest hearts.
 ¹¹ Don't let the proud trample me
      or the wicked push me around.
 ¹² Look! Those who do evil have fallen!
      They are thrown down, never to rise again.

Psalm 37

A psalm of David.

 ¹ Don't worry about the wicked
      or envy those who do wrong.
 ² For like grass, they soon fade away.
      Like spring flowers, they soon wither.

 ³ Trust in the Lord and do good.
      Then you will live safely in the land and prosper.
 ⁴ Take delight in the Lord,
      and he will give you your heart's desires.

 ⁵ Commit everything you do to the Lord.
      Trust him, and he will help you.
 ⁶ He will make your innocence radiate like the dawn,
      and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun.

 ⁷ Be still in the presence of the Lord,
      and wait patiently for him to act.
   Don't worry about evil people who prosper
      or fret about their wicked schemes.

 ⁸ Stop being angry!
      Turn from your rage!
   Do not lose your temper—
      it only leads to harm.
 ⁹ For the wicked will be destroyed,
      but those who trust in the Lord will possess the land.

 ¹⁰ Soon the wicked will disappear.
      Though you look for them, they will be gone.
 ¹¹ The lowly will possess the land
      and will live in peace and prosperity.

 ¹² The wicked plot against the godly;
      they snarl at them in defiance.
 ¹³ But the Lord just laughs,
      for he sees their day of judgment coming.

 ¹⁴ The wicked draw their swords
      and string their bows
   to kill the poor and the oppressed,
      to slaughter those who do right.
 ¹⁵ But their swords will stab their own hearts,
      and their bows will be broken.

 ¹⁶ It is better to be godly and have little
      than to be evil and rich.
 ¹⁷ For the strength of the wicked will be shattered,
      but the Lord takes care of the godly.

 ¹⁸ Day by day the Lord takes care of the innocent,
      and they will receive an inheritance that lasts forever.
 ¹⁹ They will not be disgraced in hard times;
      even in famine they will have more than enough.

 ²⁰ But the wicked will die.
      The Lord's enemies are like flowers in a field—
      they will disappear like smoke.

 ²¹ The wicked borrow and never repay,
      but the godly are generous givers.
 ²² Those the Lord blesses will possess the land,
      but those he curses will die.

 ²³ The Lord directs the steps of the godly.
      He delights in every detail of their lives.
 ²⁴ Though they stumble, they will never fall,
      for the Lord holds them by the hand.

 ²⁵ Once I was young, and now I am old.
      Yet I have never seen the godly abandoned
      or their children begging for bread.
 ²⁶ The godly always give generous loans to others,
      and their children are a blessing.

 ²⁷ Turn from evil and do good,
      and you will live in the land forever.
 ²⁸ For the Lord loves justice,
      and he will never abandon the godly.

   He will keep them safe forever,
      but the children of the wicked will die.
 ²⁹ The godly will possess the land
      and will live there forever.

 ³⁰ The godly offer good counsel;
      they teach right from wrong.
 ³¹ They have made God's law their own,
      so they will never slip from his path.

 ³² The wicked wait in ambush for the godly,
      looking for an excuse to kill them.
 ³³ But the Lord will not let the wicked succeed
      or let the godly be condemned when they are put on trial.

 ³⁴ Put your hope in the Lord.
      Travel steadily along his path.
   He will honor you by giving you the land.
      You will see the wicked destroyed.

 ³⁵ I have seen wicked and ruthless people
      flourishing like a tree in its native soil.
 ³⁶ But when I looked again, they were gone!
      Though I searched for them, I could not find them!

 ³⁷ Look at those who are honest and good,
      for a wonderful future awaits those who love peace.
 ³⁸ But the rebellious will be destroyed;
      they have no future.

 ³⁹ The Lord rescues the godly;
      he is their fortress in times of trouble.
 ⁴⁰ The Lord helps them,
      rescuing them from the wicked.
   He saves them,
      and they find shelter in him.

Psalm 38

A psalm of David, asking God to remember him.

 ¹ O Lord, don't rebuke me in your anger
      or discipline me in your rage!
 ² Your arrows have struck deep,
      and your blows are crushing me.
 ³ Because of your anger, my whole body is sick;
      my health is broken because of my sins.
 ⁴ My guilt overwhelms me—
      it is a burden too heavy to bear.
 ⁵ My wounds fester and stink
      because of my foolish sins.
 ⁶ I am bent over and racked with pain.
      All day long I walk around filled with grief.
 ⁷ A raging fever burns within me,
      and my health is broken.
 ⁸ I am exhausted and completely crushed.
      My groans come from an anguished heart.

 ⁹ You know what I long for, Lord;
      you hear my every sigh.
 ¹⁰ My heart beats wildly, my strength fails,
      and I am going blind.
 ¹¹ My loved ones and friends stay away, fearing my disease.
      Even my own family stands at a distance.
 ¹² Meanwhile, my enemies lay traps to kill me.
      Those who wish me harm make plans to ruin me.
      All day long they plan their treachery.

 ¹³ But I am deaf to all their threats.
      I am silent before them as one who cannot speak.
 ¹⁴ I choose to hear nothing,
      and I make no reply.
 ¹⁵ For I am waiting for you, O Lord.
      You must answer for me, O Lord my God.
 ¹⁶ I prayed, "Don't let my enemies gloat over me
      or rejoice at my downfall."

 ¹⁷ I am on the verge of collapse,
      facing constant pain.
 ¹⁸ But I confess my sins;
      I am deeply sorry for what I have done.
 ¹⁹ I have many aggressive enemies;
      they hate me without reason.
 ²⁰ They repay me evil for good
      and oppose me for pursuing good.
 ²¹ Do not abandon me, O Lord.
      Do not stand at a distance, my God.
 ²² Come quickly to help me,
      O Lord my savior.