Scottish Psalter and Paraphrases

¹Blessed is he that wisely doth

the poor man’s case consider;

For when the time of trouble is,

the Lord will him deliver.

²God will him keep, yea, save alive;

on earth he bless’d shall live;

And to his enemies’ desire

thou wilt him not up give.

³God will give strength when he on bed

of languishing doth mourn;

And in his sickness sore, O Lord,

thou all his bed wilt turn.

⁴I said, O Lord, do thou extend

thy mercy unto me;

O do thou heal my soul; for why?

I have offended thee.

⁵Those that to me are enemies,

of me do evil say,

When shall he die, that so his name

may perish quite away?

⁶To see me if he comes, he speaks

vain words: but then his heart

Heaps mischief to it, which he tells,

when forth he doth depart.

⁷My haters jointly whispering,

’gainst me my hurt devise.

⁸Mischief, say they, cleaves fast to him;

he li’th, and shall not rise.

⁹Yea, ev’n mine own familiar friend,

on whom I did rely,

Who ate my bread, ev’n he his heel

against me lifted high.

¹⁰But, Lord, be merciful to me,

and up again me raise,

That I may justly them requite

according to their ways.

¹¹By this I know that certainly

I favour’d am by thee;

Because my hateful enemy

triumphs not over me.

¹²But as for me, thou me uphold’st

in mine integrity;

And me before thy countenance

thou sett’st continually.

¹³The Lord, the God of Israel,

be bless’d for ever then,

From age to age eternally.

Amen, yea, and amen.