A psalm that David sang to Yahweh because of David’s enemy, Cush

1Yahweh 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.

2If 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.

3Yahweh my God, if I have done anything that is wrong,

4if 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,

5allow 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!)

6But 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!

7Gather around you the people of all nations, and rule them from where you are in heaven [MTY].

8Yahweh, judge the people of all nations! And, Yahweh, show that I have done nothing that is wrong.

9God, 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!

10God, you protect me like a shield protects soldiers [MET]; you protect all those who are righteous in their inner being.

11You judge everyone correctly, and every day you punish wicked people.

12Whenever 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.

13You are preparing your weapons that kill those whom they strike; the arrows that you will shoot have flaming tips.

14Wicked 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].

15But when they dig a deep pit to trap others, they themselves will fall into it.

16They 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.

17I praise Yahweh because he always acts righteously/justly; I sing to praise Yahweh, the one who is much greater than any other god.