Day 259 of 365

¹ Hold not thy peace, O God of my praise;

² For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me: they have spoken against me with a lying tongue.

³ They compassed me about also with words of hatred; and fought against me without a cause.

⁴ For my love they are my adversaries: but I give myself unto prayer.

⁵ And they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love.

⁶ Set thou a wicked man over him: and let Satan stand at his right hand.

⁷ When he shall be judged, let him be condemned: and let his prayer become sin.

⁸ Let his days be few; and let another take his office.

⁹ Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow.

¹⁰ Let his children be continually vagabonds, and beg: let them seek their bread also out of their desolate places.

¹¹ Let the extortioner catch all that he hath; and let the strangers spoil his labour.

¹² Let there be none to extend mercy unto him: neither let there be any to favour his fatherless children.

¹³ Let his posterity be cut off; and in the generation following let their name be blotted out.

¹⁴ Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered with the LORD; and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.

¹⁵ Let them be before the LORD continually, that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth.

¹⁶ Because that he remembered not to shew mercy, but persecuted the poor and needy man, that he might even slay the broken in heart.

¹⁷ As he loved cursing, so let it come unto him: as he delighted not in blessing, so let it be far from him.

¹⁸ As he clothed himself with cursing like as with his garment, so let it come into his bowels like water, and like oil into his bones.

¹⁹ Let it be unto him as the garment which covereth him, and for a girdle wherewith he is girded continually.

²⁰ Let this be the reward of mine adversaries from the LORD, and of them that speak evil against my soul.

²¹ But do thou for me, O GOD the Lord, for thy name’s sake: because thy mercy is good, deliver thou me.

²² For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.

²³ I am gone like the shadow when it declineth: I am tossed up and down as the locust.

²⁴ My knees are weak through fasting; and my flesh faileth of fatness.

²⁵ I became also a reproach unto them: when they looked upon me they shaked their heads.

²⁶ Help me, O LORD my God: O save me according to thy mercy:

²⁷ That they may know that this is thy hand; that thou, LORD, hast done it.

²⁸ Let them curse, but bless thou: when they arise, let them be ashamed; but let thy servant rejoice.

²⁹ Let mine adversaries be clothed with shame, and let them cover themselves with their own confusion, as with a mantle.

³⁰ I will greatly praise the LORD with my mouth; yea, I will praise him among the multitude.

³¹ For he shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those that condemn his soul.

¹ A false balance is abomination to the LORD: but a just weight is his delight.

² When pride cometh, then cometh shame: but with the lowly is wisdom.

³ The integrity of the upright shall guide them: but the perverseness of transgressors shall destroy them.

⁴ Riches profit not in the day of wrath: but righteousness delivereth from death.

⁵ The righteousness of the perfect shall direct his way: but the wicked shall fall by his own wickedness.

⁶ The righteousness of the upright shall deliver them: but transgressors shall be taken in their own naughtiness.

⁷ When a wicked man dieth, his expectation shall perish: and the hope of unjust men perisheth.

⁸ The righteous is delivered out of trouble, and the wicked cometh in his stead.

⁹ An hypocrite with his mouth destroyeth his neighbour: but through knowledge shall the just be delivered.

¹⁰ When it goeth well with the righteous, the city rejoiceth: and when the wicked perish, there is shouting.

¹¹ By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted: but it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked.

¹² He that is void of wisdom despiseth his neighbour: but a man of understanding holdeth his peace.

¹³ A talebearer revealeth secrets: but he that is of a faithful spirit concealeth the matter.

¹⁴ Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.

¹⁵ He that is surety for a stranger shall smart for it: and he that hateth suretiship is sure.

¹⁶ A gracious woman retaineth honour: and strong men retain riches.

¹⁷ The merciful man doeth good to his own soul: but he that is cruel troubleth his own flesh.

¹⁸ The wicked worketh a deceitful work: but to him that soweth righteousness shall be a sure reward.

¹⁹ As righteousness tendeth to life: so he that pursueth evil pursueth it to his own death.

²⁰ They that are of a froward heart are abomination to the LORD: but such as are upright in their way are his delight.

²¹ Though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not be unpunished: but the seed of the righteous shall be delivered.

²² As a jewel of gold in a swine’s snout, so is a fair woman which is without discretion.

²³ The desire of the righteous is only good: but the expectation of the wicked is wrath.

²⁴ There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty.

²⁵ The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.

²⁶ He that withholdeth corn, the people shall curse him: but blessing shall be upon the head of him that selleth it.

²⁷ He that diligently seeketh good procureth favour: but he that seeketh mischief, it shall come unto him.

²⁸ He that trusteth in his riches shall fall; but the righteous shall flourish as a branch.

²⁹ He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind: and the fool shall be servant to the wise of heart.

³⁰ The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.

³¹ Behold, the righteous shall be recompensed in the earth: much more the wicked and the sinner.