[1] LORD, avenging God—avenging God, show yourself! [2] Rise up, judge of the earth! Pay back the arrogant exactly what they deserve! [3] How long will the wicked—oh, LORD!—how long will the wicked win? [4] They spew arrogant words; all the evildoers are bragging. [5] They crush your own people, LORD! They abuse your very own possession. [6] They kill widows and immigrants; they murder orphans, [7] saying all the while, “The LORD can’t see it; Jacob’s God doesn’t know what’s going on!” [8] You ignorant people better learn quickly. You fools—when will you get some sense? [9] The one who made the ear, can’t he hear? The one who formed the eye, can’t he see? [10] The one who disciplines nations, can’t he punish? The one who teaches humans, doesn’t he know? [11] The LORD does indeed know human thoughts, knows that they are nothing but a puff of air. [12] The people you discipline, LORD, are truly happy—the ones you teach from your Instruction— [13] giving them relief from troubling times until a pit is dug for the wicked. [14] The LORD will not reject his people; he will not abandon his very own possession. [15] No, but justice will once again meet up with righteousness, and all whose heart is right will follow after. [16] Who will stand up for me against the wicked? Who will help me against evildoers? [17] If the LORD hadn’t helped me, I would live instantly in total silence. [18] Whenever I feel my foot slipping, your faithful love steadies me, LORD. [19] When my anxieties multiply, your comforting calms me down. [20] Can a wicked ruler be your ally; one who wreaks havoc by means of the law? [21] The wicked gang up against the lives of the righteous. They condemn innocent blood. [22] But the LORD is my fortress; my God is my rock of refuge. [23] He will repay them for their wickedness, completely destroy them because of their evil. Yes, the LORD our God will completely destroy them.
