Psalm 10

¹Why do you stand so far off, O Lord, *and hide yourself in time of trouble?

²The wicked arrogantly persecute the poor, *but they are trapped in the schemes they have devised.

³The wicked boast of their heart’s desire; *the covetous curse and revile the Lord.

⁴The wicked are so proud that they care not for God; *their only thought is, “God does not matter.”

⁵Their ways are devious at all times; your judgments are far above out of their sight; *they defy all their enemies.

⁶They say in their heart, “I shall not be shaken; *no harm shall happen to me ever.”

⁷Their mouth is full of cursing, deceit, and oppression; *under their tongue are mischief and wrong.

⁸They lurk in ambush in public squares and in secret places they murder the innocent; *they spy out the helpless.

⁹They lie in wait, like a lion in a covert; they lie in wait to seize upon the lowly; *they seize the lowly and drag them away in their net.

¹⁰The innocent are broken and humbled before them; *the helpless fall before their power.

¹¹They say in their heart, “God has forgotten; *he hides his face; he will never notice.”

¹²Rise up, O Lord; lift up your hand, O God; *do not forget the afflicted.

¹³Why should the wicked revile God? *why should they say in their heart, “You do not care”?

¹⁴Surely, you behold trouble and misery; *you see it and take it into your own hand.

¹⁵The helpless commit themselves to you, *for you are the helper of orphans.

¹⁶Break the power of the wicked and evil; *search out their wickedness until you find none.

¹⁷The Lord is King for ever and ever; *the ungodly shall perish from his land.

¹⁸The Lord will hear the desire of the humble; *you will strengthen their heart and your ears shall hear;

¹⁹To give justice to the orphan and oppressed, *so that mere mortals may strike terror no more.