7
A psalm that David sang to Yahweh because of David’s enemy, Cush 
1  Yahweh my God, I come to you to protect me. 
Rescue me, save me from all those who are pursuing me  in order to harm me. 
2  If you do not do that, they will tear me into pieces 
like a lion does  when it attacks the animals it wants to kill, 
and no one will save me  from them. 
   
3  Yahweh my God, if I have done anything that is wrong, 
4  if I have done evil to some friend who did good things to me, 
or if, for no good reason, I have spared (OR, acted violently toward) those who were my enemies, 
5  allow my enemies to pursue me and capture me. 
Allow them to trample me into the ground 
and leave me [SYN]  lying dead in the dirt. 
(Think about that!) 
   
6  But Yahweh, because you are  very angry  with those who pursue me, 
arise and attack/defeat my enemies who are furiously/angrily  attacking me 
Do to them what is just! 
7  Gather around you the people of  all nations, 
and rule them from where you are in heaven [MTY]. 
8  Yahweh, judge the people of  all nations! 
And, Yahweh, show that I have done nothing that is wrong. 
9  God, you know what every person is thinking, 
and because you are righteous, you  always do what is just/right. 
 So now stop evil people from doing wicked  deeds, 
and defend  all of us who are righteous! 
   
10  God, you protect me like a shield  protects soldiers [MET]; 
you protect all those who are righteous in their inner being. 
11  You judge  everyone correctly, 
and every day you punish  wicked people. 
12  Whenever your enemies do not ◄repent/change their behavior►, 
 it is as though [MET] you sharpen your sword and put a string on your bow  to get ready to kill them. 
13  You are preparing your weapons that kill those whom they strike; 
the arrows that you will shoot have flaming tips. 
14  Wicked people tell lies, 
and they think that they surely will be able to do [MET] the evil things that they are planning to do 
 just as surely as a pregnant woman  knows that she is going to give birth to a child [MET]. 
15  But when they dig a deep pit  to trap others, 
they themselves will fall into it. 
16  They themselves will experience the trouble that they want to cause others to have; 
they will hurt themselves by the violent things that they want to do to others. 
   
17  I praise Yahweh because he  always acts righteously/justly; 
I sing to praise Yahweh, the one who is much greater than any other god.