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35. Psalm 35

¹ Contend, LORD, with those who contend with me;
   fight against those who fight against me.
² Take up shield and armor;
   arise and come to my aid.
³ Brandish spear and javelin Or and block the way
   against those who pursue me.
Say to me,
   “I am your salvation.”

    ⁴ May those who seek my life
   be disgraced and put to shame;
may those who plot my ruin
   be turned back in dismay.
⁵ May they be like chaff before the wind,
   with the angel of the LORD driving them away;
⁶ may their path be dark and slippery,
   with the angel of the LORD pursuing them.

    ⁷ Since they hid their net for me without cause
   and without cause dug a pit for me,
⁸ may ruin overtake them by surprise—
   may the net they hid entangle them,
   may they fall into the pit, to their ruin.
⁹ Then my soul will rejoice in the LORD
   and delight in his salvation.
¹⁰ My whole being will exclaim,
   “Who is like you, LORD?
You rescue the poor from those too strong for them,
   the poor and needy from those who rob them.”

    ¹¹ Ruthless witnesses come forward;
   they question me on things I know nothing about.
¹² They repay me evil for good
   and leave me like one bereaved.
¹³ Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth
   and humbled myself with fasting.
When my prayers returned to me unanswered,
    ¹⁴ I went about mourning
   as though for my friend or brother.
I bowed my head in grief
   as though weeping for my mother.
¹⁵ But when I stumbled, they gathered in glee;
   assailants gathered against me without my knowledge.
   They slandered me without ceasing.
¹⁶ Like the ungodly they maliciously mocked; Septuagint; Hebrew may mean Like an ungodly circle of mockers,
   they gnashed their teeth at me.

    ¹⁷ How long, Lord, will you look on?
   Rescue me from their ravages,
   my precious life from these lions.
¹⁸ I will give you thanks in the great assembly;
   among the throngs I will praise you.
¹⁹ Do not let those gloat over me
   who are my enemies without cause;
do not let those who hate me without reason
   maliciously wink the eye.
²⁰ They do not speak peaceably,
   but devise false accusations
   against those who live quietly in the land.
²¹ They sneer at me and say, “Aha! Aha!
   With our own eyes we have seen it.”

    ²² LORD, you have seen this; do not be silent.
   Do not be far from me, Lord.
²³ Awake, and rise to my defense!
   Contend for me, my God and Lord.
²⁴ Vindicate me in your righteousness, LORD my God;
   do not let them gloat over me.
²⁵ Do not let them think, “Aha, just what we wanted!”
   or say, “We have swallowed him up.”

    ²⁶ May all who gloat over my distress
   be put to shame and confusion;
may all who exalt themselves over me
   be clothed with shame and disgrace.
²⁷ May those who delight in my vindication
   shout for joy and gladness;
may they always say, “The LORD be exalted,
   who delights in the well-being of his servant.”

²⁸ My tongue will proclaim your righteousness,
your praises all day long.

27. Let those who favor my righteous cause rejoice and be glad. These two expressions, which are rendered in the optative mood, might have been translated with equal propriety in the future tense; but as this is a matter of little consequence, I leave it undecided. David here extols the deliverance which he asks of God, and exults in the results which should flow from it; namely, that it would be an occasion of general rejoicing and good hope to all the godly, while at the same time it would stir them up to celebrate the praises of God. He attributes to all the faithful the credit of desiring, that as an innocent man his righteous cause should be maintained. David, it is true, was the object of almost universal hatred among the simple and unsuspecting, who were imposed upon by false and unjust reports made concerning him; but it is certain that there were among the people some who formed a just and impartial estimate of things, and who were sorely grieved that a holy man, and one too whose benevolence was well known, should have been so unjustly and so wrongfully oppressed. And surely the common feelings of humanity require, that when we see men unjustly oppressed and afflicted, if we are not able to help them, we should at least pity them. When David uses the language, Jehovah be magnified, his design seems to be tacitly to set this in opposition to the pride of the wicked, of which he made mention above. As they presume in the pride, of their hearts, and by their insolent and overbearing conduct, to obscure, as far as in them lies, the divine glory, so may the faithful, on the other hand, with good reason present the prayer that God would shine forth in the majesty of his character, and demonstrate in very deed that he exercises a special care over all his servants, and takes a peculiar pleasure in their peace. Finally, the Psalmist again declares, in the conclusion of the psalm, his resolution to celebrate in appropriate praises the righteousness of God, by which he had been preserved and delivered.