Psalm 141
Prayer for Protection against Evildoers
1 A psalm of David.
O Lord, I call to you; come quickly to my aid;
listen to my plea when I call out to you.
2 May my prayer be like incense before you,
the lifting up of my hands like the evening sacrifice.
3 Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord;
keep watch over the door of my lips.
4 Do not permit my heart to be drawn to evil,
or to the pursuit of wicked deeds
in the company of those who do evil;
let me not share in their corruption.
5 If a righteous man strikes me, I regard it as kindness;
if he rebukes me, it is oil on my head.
But never let the oil of the wicked anoint my head,
for my prayer is always opposed to their evil deeds.
6 When their leaders are flung down in stony places,
they will learn that my prayers were heard.
7 As the soil is shattered when the ground is plowed,
so our bones are scattered at the mouth of the netherworld.
8 But my eyes are turned to you, O Lord God;
in you I seek refuge;
do not take my life away.
9 Keep me safe from the traps they have laid for me,
from the snares of evildoers.
10 Let the wicked tumble into their own nets all together
while I pass by unharmed.
Footnotes
- Psalm 141:1
- Psalm 141:1
- Psalm 141:2
- Psalm 141:3
- Psalm 141:5
- Psalm 141:5
- Psalm 141:6
- Psalm 141:8
- Psalm 141:10
