Psalms 10

A Prayer for God to Throw down the Wicked

¹Why, O Yahweh, do you stand far off?

Why do you hide during times of distress?

²In arrogance the wicked persecutes the poor.[#Or “pursues”]

Let them be caught in the schemes that they devised,

³for the wicked boasts about the desire of his heart,[#Literally “soul”]

and the one greedy for gain curses and treats Yahweh with contempt.

⁴With bald-faced pride the wicked will not seek God.[#Literally “According to the height of his nose”]

There is no God in any of his thoughts.

⁵His ways endure at all times.[#According to the reading tradition (Qere); #Hebrew “time”]

Your judgments are aloof from him.

As for all his enemies, he scoffs at them.

⁶He says in his heart, “I shall not be moved

throughout all generations, during which I will have no trouble.”

⁷His mouth is filled with cursing,

with deceits and oppression;

under his tongue are trouble and evil.

⁸He sits in ambush in villages;

in the hiding places he kills the innocent.

His eyes lurk for the helpless.

⁹He lies in ambush secretly, like a lion in a thicket.[#Literally “in the secret places”]

He lies in ambush to seize the poor;

he seizes the poor by catching him in his net.

¹⁰He is crushed; he is bowed down;[#Or “and he the wicked stoops”; #Or “he the wicked crouches”]

so the helpless host falls by his might.

¹¹He says in his heart, “God has forgotten.

He has hidden his face.

He never sees.”

¹²Rise up, O Yahweh;

O God, lift up your hand.

Do not forget the afflicted.

¹³Why does the wicked treat God with contempt?

He says in his heart, “You will not call me to account.”

¹⁴But you have seen; indeed you have noted trouble and grief

to take it into your hand.

The helpless abandons himself upon you;

you have been the helper for the orphan.

¹⁵Break the arm of the wicked,

and as for the evil man—

seek out his wickedness until you find none.

¹⁶Yahweh is king forever and ever;

the nations have perished from his land.

¹⁷The longing of the afflicted you have heard, O Yahweh.

You will make their heart secure. You will listen attentively

¹⁸to render judgment for the fatherless and the oppressed

so that a mere mortal from the earth will no longer cause terror.