Psalm 31 & 34

Psalm 31

1In you, Lord, I have taken refuge;

let me never be put to shame;

deliver me in your righteousness.

2Turn your ear to me,

come quickly to my rescue;

be my rock of refuge,

a strong fortress to save me.

3Since you are my rock and my fortress,

for the sake of your name lead and guide me.

4Keep me free from the trap that is set for me,

for you are my refuge.

5Into your hands I commit my spirit;

deliver me, Lord, my faithful God.

6I hate those who cling to worthless idols;

as for me, I trust in the Lord.

7I will be glad and rejoice in your love,

for you saw my affliction

and knew the anguish of my soul.

8You have not given me into the hands of the enemy

but have set my feet in a spacious place.

9Be merciful to me, Lord, for I am in distress;

my eyes grow weak with sorrow,

my soul and body with grief.

10My life is consumed by anguish

and my years by groaning;

my strength fails because of my affliction,

and my bones grow weak.

11Because of all my enemies,

I am the utter contempt of my neighbors

and an object of dread to my closest friends—

those who see me on the street flee from me.

12I am forgotten as though I were dead;

I have become like broken pottery.

13For I hear many whispering,

“Terror on every side!”

They conspire against me

and plot to take my life.

14But I trust in you, Lord;

I say, “You are my God.”

15My times are in your hands;

deliver me from the hands of my enemies,

from those who pursue me.

16Let your face shine on your servant;

save me in your unfailing love.

17Let me not be put to shame, Lord,

for I have cried out to you;

but let the wicked be put to shame

and be silent in the realm of the dead.

18Let their lying lips be silenced,

for with pride and contempt

they speak arrogantly against the righteous.

19How abundant are the good things

that you have stored up for those who fear you,

that you bestow in the sight of all,

on those who take refuge in you.

20In the shelter of your presence you hide them

from all human intrigues;

you keep them safe in your dwelling

from accusing tongues.

21Praise be to the Lord,

for he showed me the wonders of his love

when I was in a city under siege.

22In my alarm I said,

“I am cut off from your sight!”

Yet you heard my cry for mercy

when I called to you for help.

23Love the Lord, all his faithful people!

The Lord preserves those who are true to him,

but the proud he pays back in full.

24Be strong and take heart,

all you who hope in the Lord.

Psalm 34

1I will extol the Lord at all times;

his praise will always be on my lips.

2I will glory in the Lord;

let the afflicted hear and rejoice.

3Glorify the Lord with me;

let us exalt his name together.

4I sought the Lord, and he answered me;

he delivered me from all my fears.

5Those who look to him are radiant;

their faces are never covered with shame.

6This poor man called, and the Lord heard him;

he saved him out of all his troubles.

7The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him,

and he delivers them.

8Taste and see that the Lord is good;

blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.

9Fear the Lord, you his holy people,

for those who fear him lack nothing.

10The lions may grow weak and hungry,

but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.

11Come, my children, listen to me;

I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

12Whoever of you loves life

and desires to see many good days,

13keep your tongue from evil

and your lips from telling lies.

14Turn from evil and do good;

seek peace and pursue it.

15The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,

and his ears are attentive to their cry;

16but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil,

to blot out their name from the earth.

17The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them;

he delivers them from all their troubles.

18The Lord is close to the brokenhearted

and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

19The righteous person may have many troubles,

but the Lord delivers him from them all;

20he protects all his bones,

not one of them will be broken.

21Evil will slay the wicked;

the foes of the righteous will be condemned.

22The Lord will rescue his servants;

no one who takes refuge in him will be condemned.