Psalms  ◦   Chapter 109

1O God, I adore and praise you,
do not remain silent,

2for self-centered liars slander me;
they say all manner of falsehood against me.

3Everywhere I turn I hear their hateful words;
they attack me for no reason.

4I pour my love upon them but they resist it,
yet I keep praying for them.

5They misrepresent my good as evil
and hate my love.

6Place their wickedness back upon them;
let all see it is Satan, the evil one, at their right hand who leads them.

7When they are examined, they will be found incurable;
their selfish prayers confirm their terminal condition.

8Their lives will be cut short
and others will take their place.

9Their children will be orphans
and their spouses widowed.

10Their families wander aimlessly
begging for handouts, evicted from their dilapidated homes.

11Creditors seize their property;
strangers take all they worked for.

12They accept love from no one
nor mercy for their orphaned children.

13Their descendants who cling to selfishness will die incurable,
their corrupt characters purged from future generations.

14The Lord diagnoses accurately the sin-sickness of their fathers;
their mothers refused to allow sinfulness to be cut out of their hearts.

15The Lord will always remember their choice for selfishness
but on earth they will be forgotten.

16They never gave to benefit others; they were never kind;
they exploited the poor, the suffering, and the brokenhearted,
driving them to an early death.

17They filled their hearts with judgmentalism and curses
and will reap the curses they sowed;
their hearts never chose to bless others,
thus, no blessing ever took root within them.

18They adorned their characters with curses —
like water hydrates the body
or oil saturates dry bones.

19Their selfishness is a curse covering their entire being —
a binding that constantly enslaves them.

20May the Lord let my adversaries reap the harvest they have sown —
all those who speak evil about me.

21But you, O Creator God,
heal my brokenness with your character of love;
because you are goodness and love, transform me.

22For I am afflicted, poor, and crushed down,
and my heart is deeply wounded.

23I am fading away like shadow at dusk;
I am withering quickly like a locust.

24My knees are weak from fasting;
my body is skin and bones.

25My accusers ridicule me;
when they see me, they shake their heads with scorn.

26Help me, O Lord my God;
as the outworking of your faithful love, save me.

27Then they will know that it is by your power of love
that you, O Creator God, have done it.

28They may curse, but you will bless;
when they attack, they will expose their terminal condition and be ashamed,
but your suffering-servant will rejoice.

29My accusers cover themselves with disgrace
and wrap themselves in shame.

30With my mouth I will pour out thanks to the Lord;
among the eternal throng I will praise him.

31For he stands right next to those in need
to heal them from their terminal sin-sick condition.