Psalms 69:1-12, 30-36

Save me, O God, For the waters have threatened my life [they have come up to my neck]. I have sunk in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, where a flood overwhelms me. I am weary with my crying; my throat is parched; My eyes fail while I wait [with confident expectation] for my God. Those who hate me without cause are more than the hairs of my head; Those who would destroy me are powerful, being my enemies wrongfully; I am forced to restore what I did not steal. [John 15:25] ¶O God, You know my folly; My wrongs are not hidden from You. Do not let those who wait [confidently] for You be ashamed through me, O Lord GOD of hosts; Do not let those who seek You [as necessary for life itself] be dishonored through me, O God of Israel, Because for Your sake I have borne reproach; Confusion and dishonor have covered my face. I have become estranged from my brothers And an alien to my mother’s sons. [John 7:3-5] For zeal for Your house has consumed me, And the [mocking] insults of those who insult You have fallen on me. [John 2:17; Rom 15:3] When I wept and humbled myself with fasting, It became my reproach. When I made sackcloth my clothing [as one in mourning], I became a byword [a mere object of scorn] to them. They who sit in the [city’s] gate talk about me and mock me, And I am the song of the drunkards.

I will praise the name of God with song And magnify Him with thanksgiving. And it will please the LORD better than an ox Or a young bull with horns and hoofs. The humble have seen it and are glad; You who seek God [requiring Him as your greatest need], let your heart revive and live. [Ps 22:26; 42:1] For the LORD hears the needy And does not despise His who are prisoners. ¶Let heaven and earth praise Him, The seas and everything that moves in them. For God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah, That His servants may remain there and possess it. The descendants of His servants will inherit it, And those who love His name will dwell in it.