¹For the music director, a psalm of David. O God whom I praise, do not ignore me.²For they say cruel and deceptive things to me; they lie to me. ³They surround me and say hateful things; they attack me for no reason. ⁴They repay my love with accusations, but I continue to pray. ⁵They repay me evil for good and hate for love. ⁶ Appoint an evil man to testify against him. May an accuser stand at his right side. ⁷When he is judged, he will be found guilty. Then his prayer will be regarded as sinful.⁸May his days be few. May another take his job. ⁹May his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow. ¹⁰May his children roam around begging, asking for handouts as they leave their ruined home.¹¹May the creditor seize all he owns. May strangers loot his property. ¹²May no one show him kindness. May no one have compassion on his fatherless children.¹³May his descendants be cut off. May the memory of them be wiped out by the time the next generation arrives. ¹⁴May his ancestors’ sins be remembered by the Lord. May his mother’s sin not be forgotten. ¹⁵May the Lord be constantly aware of them and cut off the memory of his children from the earth. ¹⁶For he never bothered to show kindness; he harassed the oppressed and needy and killed the disheartened. ¹⁷He loved to curse others, so those curses have come upon him. He had no desire to bless anyone, so he has experienced no blessings. ¹⁸He made cursing a way of life, so curses poured into his stomach like water and seeped into his bones like oil. ¹⁹May a curse attach itself to him, like a garment one puts on, or a belt one wears continually. ²⁰May the Lord repay my accusers in this way, those who say evil things about me. ²¹O Sovereign Lord, intervene on my behalf for the sake of your reputation. Because your loyal love is good, deliver me.²²For I am oppressed and needy, and my heart beats violently within me.²³I am fading away like a shadow at the end of the day; I am shaken off like a locust. ²⁴I am so starved my knees shake; I have turned into skin and bones. ²⁵I am disdained by them. When they see me, they shake their heads. ²⁶Help me, O Lord my God. Because you are faithful to me, deliver me.²⁷Then they will realize this is your work and that you, Lord, have accomplished it.²⁸They curse, but you will bless. When they attack, they will be humiliated, but your servant will rejoice. ²⁹My accusers will be covered with shame and draped in humiliation as if it were a robe. ³⁰I will thank the Lord profusely. In the middle of a crowd I will praise him,³¹because he stands at the right hand of the needy to deliver him from those who threaten his life.