⁴ Knowest thou not this of old, since man was placed upon earth,
⁵ That the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite but for a moment?
⁶ Though his excellency mount up to the heavens, and his head reach unto the clouds;
⁷ Yet he shall perish for ever like his own dung: they which have seen him shall say, Where is he?
⁸ He shall fly away as a dream, and shall not be found: yea, he shall be chased away as a vision of the night.
⁹ The eye also which saw him shall see him no more; neither shall his place any more behold him.
¹⁰ His children shall seek to please the poor, and his hands shall restore their goods.
¹¹ His bones are full of the sin of his youth, which shall lie down with him in the dust.
¹² Though wickedness be sweet in his mouth, though he hide it under his tongue;
¹³ Though he spare it, and forsake it not; but keep it still within his mouth:
¹⁴ Yet his meat in his bowels is turned, it is the gall of asps within him.
¹⁵ He hath swallowed down riches, and he shall vomit them up again: God shall cast them out of his belly.
¹⁶ He shall suck the poison of asps: the viper’s tongue shall slay him.
¹⁷ He shall not see the rivers, the floods, the brooks of honey and butter.
¹⁸ That which he laboured for shall he restore, and shall not swallow it down: according to his substance shall the restitution be, and he shall not rejoice therein.
¹⁹ Because he hath oppressed and hath forsaken the poor; because he hath violently taken away an house which he builded not;
²⁰ Surely he shall not feel quietness in his belly, he shall not save of that which he desired.
²¹ There shall none of his meat be left; therefore shall no man look for his goods.
²² In the fulness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits: every hand of the wicked shall come upon him.
²³ When he is about to fill his belly, God shall cast the fury of his wrath upon him, and shall rain it upon him while he is eating.
²⁴ He shall flee from the iron weapon, and the bow of steel shall strike him through.
²⁵ It is drawn, and cometh out of the body; yea, the glittering sword cometh out of his gall: terrors are upon him.
²⁶ All darkness shall be hid in his secret places: a fire not blown shall consume him; it shall go ill with him that is left in his tabernacle.
²⁷ The heaven shall reveal his iniquity; and the earth shall rise up against him.
²⁸ The increase of his house shall depart, and his goods shall flow away in the day of his wrath.
²⁹ This is the portion of a wicked man from God, and the heritage appointed unto him by God.
 

¹ Deliver me, O LORD, from the evil man: preserve me from the violent man;
² Which imagine mischiefs in their heart; continually are they gathered together for war.
³ They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; adders’ poison is under their lips. Selah.
⁴ Keep me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from the violent man; who have purposed to overthrow my goings.
⁵ The proud have hid a snare for me, and cords; they have spread a net by the wayside; they have set gins for me. Selah.
⁶ I said unto the LORD, Thou art my God: hear the voice of my supplications, O LORD.
⁷ O GOD the Lord, the strength of my salvation, thou hast covered my head in the day of battle.
⁸ Grant not, O LORD, the desires of the wicked: further not his wicked device; lest they exalt themselves. Selah.
⁹ As for the head of those that compass me about, let the mischief of their own lips cover them.
¹⁰ Let burning coals fall upon them: let them be cast into the fire; into deep pits, that they rise not up again.
¹¹ Let not an evil speaker be established in the earth: evil shall hunt the violent man to overthrow him.
¹² I know that the LORD will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and the right of the poor.
¹³ Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name: the upright shall dwell in thy presence.
 

¹ Hold not thy peace, O God of my praise;
² For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me: they have spoken against me with a lying tongue.
³ They compassed me about also with words of hatred; and fought against me without a cause.
⁴ For my love they are my adversaries: but I give myself unto prayer.
⁵ And they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love.
⁶ Set thou a wicked man over him: and let Satan stand at his right hand.
⁷ When he shall be judged, let him be condemned: and let his prayer become sin.
⁸ Let his days be few; and let another take his office.
⁹ Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow.
¹⁰ Let his children be continually vagabonds, and beg: let them seek their bread also out of their desolate places.
¹¹ Let the extortioner catch all that he hath; and let the strangers spoil his labour.
¹² Let there be none to extend mercy unto him: neither let there be any to favour his fatherless children.
¹³ Let his posterity be cut off; and in the generation following let their name be blotted out.
¹⁴ Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered with the LORD; and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.
¹⁵ Let them be before the LORD continually, that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth.
¹⁶ Because that he remembered not to shew mercy, but persecuted the poor and needy man, that he might even slay the broken in heart.
¹⁷ As he loved cursing, so let it come unto him: as he delighted not in blessing, so let it be far from him.
¹⁸ As he clothed himself with cursing like as with his garment, so let it come into his bowels like water, and like oil into his bones.
¹⁹ Let it be unto him as the garment which covereth him, and for a girdle wherewith he is girded continually.
²⁰ Let this be the reward of mine adversaries from the LORD, and of them that speak evil against my soul.
²¹ But do thou for me, O GOD the Lord, for thy name’s sake: because thy mercy is good, deliver thou me.
²² For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.
²³ I am gone like the shadow when it declineth: I am tossed up and down as the locust.
²⁴ My knees are weak through fasting; and my flesh faileth of fatness.
²⁵ I became also a reproach unto them: when they looked upon me they shaked their heads.
²⁶ Help me, O LORD my God: O save me according to thy mercy:
²⁷ That they may know that this is thy hand; that thou, LORD, hast done it.
²⁸ Let them curse, but bless thou: when they arise, let them be ashamed; but let thy servant rejoice.
²⁹ Let mine adversaries be clothed with shame, and let them cover themselves with their own confusion, as with a mantle.
³⁰ I will greatly praise the LORD with my mouth; yea, I will praise him among the multitude.
³¹ For he shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those that condemn his soul.