Psalms 10

1LORD, why do you keep so far away? Why do you hide yourself when trouble comes? 2In their arrogance the wicked hunt down the poor. Let them be trapped in the very schemes they have dreamed up! 3The wicked brag about what they crave; the greedy bless themselves while they treat the LORD with contempt. 4With their noses in the air, the wicked never seek God. All their scheming says, “There is no God.” 5Their ways always seem to succeed; your judgments are high above them, out of their sight; they sneer at all their enemies. 6“Nothing can shake me,” they tell themselves; “I will never come to harm, now or ever.” 7Their mouths are full of curses, lies and threats; they keep mischief and wrongdoing ready under the tongue. 8They lie in wait near the villages and murder the innocent from hiding; their eyes are on the lookout for the helpless. 9They crouch in hiding like a lion in its thicket, waiting to grab the poor; they grab them and haul them away in their nets. 10The weak are crushed and bowed down; the helpless fall into their strong grip. 11They tell themselves, “God has forgotten; he has turned his face away and will never see.” 12Rise up, LORD! God, raise your hand! Do not forget those who suffer. 13Why do the wicked treat God with contempt and tell themselves, “You will not call us to account”? 14But you do see! You take note of trouble and grief and take the matter into your own hands. The helpless entrust themselves to you; you have always helped the orphan. 15Break the power of the wicked and the evildoer; hunt down their wickedness until there is none left to find. 16The LORD reigns as King for all time; the nations are gone from his land. 17LORD, you have heard what the humble long for; you steady their hearts and bend down to listen, 18to give justice to the orphan and the oppressed, so that mere mortals made of earth will strike terror no more.