86

Prayer for Mercy, with Meditation on the Excellencies of the Lord

A Prayer of David.

¹Bow down Your ear, O Lord, hear me;
For I am poor and needy.
²Preserve my life, for I am holy;
You are my God;
Save Your servant who trusts in You!
³Be merciful to me, O Lord,
For I cry to You all day long.
⁴Rejoice the soul of Your servant,
⚓For to You, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
⁵For ⚓You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive,
And abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You.
⁶Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer;
And attend to the voice of my supplications.
⁷In the day of my trouble I will call upon You,
For You will answer me.
⁸⚓Among the gods there is none like You, O Lord;
Nor are there any works like Your works.
⁹All nations whom You have made
Shall come and worship before You, O Lord,
And shall glorify Your name.
¹⁰For You are great, and ⚓do wondrous things;
⚓You alone are God.
¹¹⚓Teach me Your way, O Lord;
I will walk in Your truth;
Unite my heart to fear Your name.
¹²I will praise You, O Lord my God, with all my heart,
And I will glorify Your name forevermore.
¹³For great is Your mercy toward me,
And You have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.
¹⁴O God, the proud have risen against me,
And a mob of violent men have sought my life,
And have not set You before them.
¹⁵But ⚓You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious,
Longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth.
¹⁶Oh, turn to me, and have mercy on me!
Give Your strength to Your servant,
And save the son of Your maidservant.
¹⁷Show me a sign for good,
That those who hate me may see it and be ashamed,
Because You, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.

86

A prayer of David.

¹Hear me, Lord, and answer me,
for I am poor and needy.
²Guard my life, for I am faithful to you;
save your servant who trusts in you.
You are my God; ³have mercy on me, Lord,
for I call to you all day long.
⁴Bring joy to your servant, Lord,
for I put my trust in you.

⁵You, Lord, are forgiving and good,
abounding in love to all who call to you.
⁶Hear my prayer, Lord;
listen to my cry for mercy.
⁷When I am in distress, I call to you,
because you answer me.

⁸Among the gods there is none like you, Lord;
no deeds can compare with yours.
⁹All the nations you have made
will come and worship before you, Lord;
they will bring glory to your name.
¹⁰For you are great and do marvelous deeds;
you alone are God.

¹¹Teach me your way, Lord,
that I may rely on your faithfulness;
give me an undivided heart,
that I may fear your name.
¹²I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart;
I will glorify your name forever.
¹³For great is your love toward me;
you have delivered me from the depths,
from the realm of the dead.

¹⁴Arrogant foes are attacking me, O God;
ruthless people are trying to kill me—
they have no regard for you.
¹⁵But you, Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God,
slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.
¹⁶Turn to me and have mercy on me;
show your strength in behalf of your servant;
save me, because I serve you
just as my mother did.
¹⁷Give me a sign of your goodness,
that my enemies may see it and be put to shame,
for you, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.