For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be sung to the tune “Death of the Son.”

1I will praise you, LORD, with all my heart;

I will tell of all the marvelous things you have done.

2I will be filled with joy because of you.

I will sing praises to your name, O Most High.

3My enemies retreated;

they staggered and died when you appeared.

4For you have judged in my favor;

from your throne you have judged with fairness.

5You have rebuked the nations and destroyed the wicked;

you have erased their names forever.

6The enemy is finished, in endless ruins;

the cities you uprooted are now forgotten.

7But the LORD reigns forever,

executing judgment from his throne.

8He will judge the world with justice

and rule the nations with fairness.

9The LORD is a shelter for the oppressed,

a refuge in times of trouble.

10Those who know your name trust in you,

for you, O LORD, do not abandon those who search for you.

11Sing praises to the LORD who reigns in Jerusalem.a

Tell the world about his unforgettable deeds.

12For he who avenges murder cares for the helpless.

He does not ignore the cries of those who suffer.

13LORD, have mercy on me.

See how my enemies torment me.

Snatch me back from the jaws of death.

14Save me so I can praise you publicly at Jerusalem’s gates,

so I can rejoice that you have rescued me.

15The nations have fallen into the pit they dug for others.

Their own feet have been caught in the trap they set.

16The LORD is known for his justice.

The wicked are trapped by their own deeds.

Quiet Interludeb

17The wicked will go down to the grave.c

This is the fate of all the nations who ignore God.

18But the needy will not be ignored forever;

the hopes of the poor will not always be crushed.

19Arise, O LORD!

Do not let mere mortals defy you!

Judge the nations!

20Make them tremble in fear, O LORD.

Let the nations know they are merely human.

Interlude