Hear a just cause, O Lord,
be attentive to my cry.
Give ear to my prayer,
it comes from lips that
are without fraud.
May my judgment issue forth
from your presence,
may your eyes see
my integrity.
You have tried my heart,
You have visited by night
and tested me,
and in me was found
no iniquity.
That my mouth might not speak
of the deeds of men,
due to words from your lips,
I kept to difficult ways.
Restore my steps
to your paths,
that my feet
may not falter.
I have invoked You
that You might hear me,
O God,
incline your ear
to me,
and hear
my words.
Make your mercy marvelous,
You who save
those who hope in You
from those who resist
your right hand.
Guard me as the
pupil of your eye,
protect me
in the shade
of your wings
from the wicked who
have afflicted me.
My enemies have surrounded me,
closing ranks with their bulk
and their bragging mouths,
they have taunted me,
advancing against me
they surround me,
their eyes set on
throwing me to the ground.
They are like a lion
ready to attack,
like the lion cub
who waits in hiding.
Rise up, O Lord,
meet and overthrow them,
save my soul
from the wicked
by your sword,
by your hand,
from these men,
dead in their depths,
whose portion
is this life.
But as for your protected ones,
you will fill their stomachs,
so that their sons will be satisfied
and they will send the rest
to their infants.
But I, justified,
shall behold your face:
when I have awakened,
I shall be filled
with the vision
of You.
Translation Copyright © 2023 by Donald C. Traxler.
