17.14 Prayer of Innocent

(Psalm 17)

Listen, O LORD, to my plea for justice;
pay attention to my cry for help!
Listen to my honest prayer.
You will judge in my favor,
because you know what is right.
You know my heart.
You have come to me at night;
you have examined me completely
and found no evil desire in me.
I speak no evil, as others do;
I have obeyed your command
and have not followed paths of violence.
I have always walked in your way
and have never strayed from it.

I pray to you, O God, because you answer me;
so turn to me and listen to my words.
Reveal your wonderful love and save me;
at your side I am safe from my enemies.

Protect me as you would your very eyes;
hide me in the shadow of your wings
from the attacks of the wicked.

Deadly enemies surround me;
they have no pity and speak proudly.
They are around me now, wherever I turn,
watching for a chance to pull me down.
They are like lions, waiting for me,
wanting to tear me to pieces.

Come, LORD! Oppose my enemies and defeat them!
Save me from the wicked by your sword;
save me from those who in this life have all they want.
Punish them with the sufferings you have stored up
for them;
may there be enough for their children
and some left over for their children’s children!

But I will see you, because I have done no wrong;
and when I awake, your presence will fill me with joy.

17.13 The Wicked Man Cannot Survive

(Job 15:20-29)

A wicked man who oppresses others
will be in torment as long as he lives.
Voices of terror will scream in his ears,
and robbers attack when he thinks he is safe.
He has no hope of escaping from darkness,
for somewhere a sword is waiting to kill him,
and vultures are waiting to eat his corpse.
He knows his future is dark;
disaster like a powerful king,
is waiting to attack him.

That is the fate of a man
who shakes his fist at God
and defies the Almighty.
That man is proud and rebellious,
he stubbornly holds up his shield
and rushes to fight against God.

That is the man who captured cities
and seized houses whose owners had fled,
but war will destroy those cities and houses.
He will not remain rich for long;
nothing he owns will last.
Even his shadow will vanish.

17.2 The Unjust Are Destroyed by God

(Job 12:16.21)

God is strong and always victorious;
both deceived and deceiver are in his power.
He takes away the wisdom of rulers
and makes leaders act like fools.
He dethrones kings and makes them prisoners;
he humbles priests and men of power.
He silences men who are trusted,
and takes the wisdom of old men away.
He disgraces those in power
and puts an end to the strength of rulers.

17.1 God Is Almighty

(Job 9:3-10)

How can anyone argue with God?
He can ask a thousand questions
that no one could ever answer.
God is so wise and powerful;
no man can stand up against him.
Without waning he moves mountains
and in anger he destroys them.
God sends earthquakes and shakes the ground;
he rocks the pillars that support the earth.
He can keep the sun from rising,
and the stars from shining at night.
No one helped God spread out the heavens
or trample the sea monster’s back.
God hung the stars in the sky- the Dipper,
Orion, the Pleiades, and the stars of the south.
We cannot understand the great things he does,
and to his miracles there is no end.