Today's praises: I will praise you forever for what you have done; in your name I will hope, for your name is good. I will praise you in the presence of your saints

Psalm 52

1

Psalm 52 For the director of music. A maskil ^[1] of David. When Doeg the Edomite had gone to Saul and told him: "David has gone to the house of Ahimelech."

1

Why do you boast of evil, you mighty man? Why do you boast all day long, you who are a disgrace in the eyes of God?

2

Your tongue plots destruction; it is like a sharpened razor, you who practice deceit.

3

You love evil rather than good, falsehood rather than speaking the truth. Selah

4

You love every harmful word, O you deceitful tongue!

5

Surely God will bring you down to everlasting ruin: He will snatch you up and tear you from your tent; he will uproot you from the land of the living. Selah

6

The righteous will see and fear; they will laugh at him, saying,

7

"Here now is the man who did not make God his stronghold but trusted in his great wealth and grew strong by destroying others!"

8

But I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in God's unfailing love for ever and ever.

9

I will praise you forever for what you have done; in your name I will hope, for your name is good. I will praise you in the presence of your saints.

Today's bible teaching: Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress.

Psalm 107

1

Psalm 107

1

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.

2

Let the redeemed of the LORD say this-- those he redeemed from the hand of the foe,

3

those he gathered from the lands, from east and west, from north and south. ^[1]

4

Some wandered in desert wastelands, finding no way to a city where they could settle.

5

They were hungry and thirsty, and their lives ebbed away.

6

Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.

7

He led them by a straight way to a city where they could settle.

8

Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men,

9

for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.

10

Some sat in darkness and the deepest gloom, prisoners suffering in iron chains,

11

for they had rebelled against the words of God and despised the counsel of the Most High.

12

So he subjected them to bitter labor; they stumbled, and there was no one to help.

13

Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress.

14

He brought them out of darkness and the deepest gloom and broke away their chains.

15

Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men,

16

for he breaks down gates of bronze and cuts through bars of iron.

17

Some became fools through their rebellious ways and suffered affliction because of their iniquities.

18

They loathed all food and drew near the gates of death.

19

Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress.

20

He sent forth his word and healed them; he rescued them from the grave.

21

Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men.

22

Let them sacrifice thank offerings and tell of his works with songs of joy.

23

Others went out on the sea in ships; they were merchants on the mighty waters.

24

They saw the works of the LORD, his wonderful deeds in the deep.

25

For he spoke and stirred up a tempest that lifted high the waves.

26

They mounted up to the heavens and went down to the depths; in their peril their courage melted away.

27

They reeled and staggered like drunken men; they were at their wits' end.

28

Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress.

29

He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed.

30

They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven.

31

Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men.

32

Let them exalt him in the assembly of the people and praise him in the council of the elders.

33

He turned rivers into a desert, flowing springs into thirsty ground,

34

and fruitful land into a salt waste, because of the wickedness of those who lived there.

35

He turned the desert into pools of water and the parched ground into flowing springs;

36

there he brought the hungry to live, and they founded a city where they could settle.

37

They sowed fields and planted vineyards that yielded a fruitful harvest;

38

he blessed them, and their numbers greatly increased, and he did not let their herds diminish.

39

Then their numbers decreased, and they were humbled by oppression, calamity and sorrow;

40

he who pours contempt on nobles made them wander in a trackless waste.

41

But he lifted the needy out of their affliction and increased their families like flocks.

42

The upright see and rejoice, but all the wicked shut their mouths.

43

Whoever is wise, let him heed these things and consider the great love of the LORD.

Today's prayer: Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness because of my enemies-- make straight your way before me

Psalm 5

1

Psalm 5 For the director of music. For flutes. A psalm of David.

1

Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my sighing.

2

Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray.

3

In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.

4

You are not a God who takes pleasure in evil; with you the wicked cannot dwell.

5

The arrogant cannot stand in your presence; you hate all who do wrong.

6

You destroy those who tell lies; bloodthirsty and deceitful men the LORD abhors.

7

But I, by your great mercy, will come into your house; in reverence will I bow down toward your holy temple.

8

Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness because of my enemies-- make straight your way before me.

9

Not a word from their mouth can be trusted; their heart is filled with destruction. Their throat is an open grave; with their tongue they speak deceit.

10

Declare them guilty, O God! Let their intrigues be their downfall. Banish them for their many sins, for they have rebelled against you.

11

But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you.

12

For surely, O LORD, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield.

Today's prayer: Have mercy on us, O LORD, have mercy on us, for we have endured much contempt.

Psalm 123

1

Psalm 123 A song of ascents.

1

I lift up my eyes to you, to you whose throne is in heaven.

2

As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maid look to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the LORD our God, till he shows us his mercy.

3

Have mercy on us, O LORD, have mercy on us, for we have endured much contempt.

4

We have endured much ridicule from the proud, much contempt from the arrogant.

Today's bible teaching: Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall

Psalm 55

1

Psalm 55 For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A maskil ^[1] of David.

1

Listen to my prayer, O God, do not ignore my plea;

2

hear me and answer me. My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught

3

at the voice of the enemy, at the stares of the wicked; for they bring down suffering upon me and revile me in their anger.

4

My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death assail me.

5

Fear and trembling have beset me; horror has overwhelmed me.

6

I said, "Oh, that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest--

7

I would flee far away and stay in the desert; Selah

8

I would hurry to my place of shelter, far from the tempest and storm."

9

Confuse the wicked, O Lord, confound their speech, for I see violence and strife in the city.

10

Day and night they prowl about on its walls; malice and abuse are within it.

11

Destructive forces are at work in the city; threats and lies never leave its streets.

12

If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if a foe were raising himself against me, I could hide from him.

13

But it is you, a man like myself, my companion, my close friend,

14

with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship as we walked with the throng at the house of God.

15

Let death take my enemies by surprise; let them go down alive to the grave, ^[2] for evil finds lodging among them.

16

But I call to God, and the LORD saves me.

17

Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears my voice.

18

He ransoms me unharmed from the battle waged against me, even though many oppose me.

19

God, who is enthroned forever, will hear them and afflict them-- Selah men who never change their ways and have no fear of God.

20

My companion attacks his friends; he violates his covenant.

21

His speech is smooth as butter, yet war is in his heart; his words are more soothing than oil, yet they are drawn swords.

22

Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.

23

But you, O God, will bring down the wicked into the pit of corruption; bloodthirsty and deceitful men will not live out half their days. But as for me, I trust in you.

Today's bible teaching: For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Psalm 100

1

Psalm 100 A psalm. For giving thanks.

1

Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.

2

Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.

3

Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his ^[1] ; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

4

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.

5

For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Today's bible teaching: He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heapq

Psalm 113

1

Psalm 113

1

Praise the LORD. ^[1] Praise, O servants of the LORD, praise the name of the LORD.

2

Let the name of the LORD be praised, both now and forevermore.

3

From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the LORD is to be praised.

4

The LORD is exalted over all the nations, his glory above the heavens.

5

Who is like the LORD our God, the One who sits enthroned on high,

6

who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth?

7

He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap;

8

he seats them with princes, with the princes of their people.

9

He settles the barren woman in her home as a happy mother of children. Praise the LORD.