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Psalm 11

Song of Trust in God

To the leader. Of David.
¹ In the Lord I take refuge; how can you say to me,
   ‘Flee like a bird to the mountains;^*
2 for look, the wicked bend the bow,
   they have fitted their arrow to the string,
   to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart.
³ If the foundations are destroyed,
   what can the righteous do?’

⁴ The Lord is in his holy temple;
   the Lord’s throne is in heaven.
   His eyes behold, his gaze examines humankind.
⁵ The Lord tests the righteous and the wicked,
   and his soul hates the lover of violence.
⁶ On the wicked he will rain coals of fire and sulphur;
   a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.
⁷ For the Lord is righteous;
he loves righteous deeds;
   the upright shall behold his face.

Psalm 12

Plea for Help in Evil Times

To the leader: according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.
¹ Help, O Lord, for there is no longer anyone who is godly;
   the faithful have disappeared from humankind.
² They utter lies to each other;
   with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

³ May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
   the tongue that makes great boasts,
⁴ those who say, ‘With our tongues we will prevail;
   our lips are our own—who is our master?’

⁵ ‘Because the poor are despoiled, because the needy groan,
   I will now rise up,’ says the Lord;
   ‘I will place them in the safety for which they long.’
⁶ The promises of the Lord are promises that are pure,
   silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
   purified seven times.

⁷ You, O Lord, will protect us;
   you will guard us from this generation for ever.
⁸ On every side the wicked prowl,
   as vileness is exalted among humankind.