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Psalm 58

This is for the music leader, and he should use special music.

David wrote this prayer.

God will judge all people [ a ]

58 Do you rulers really say what is right?
Do you judge people in a fair way?
2 No! You do not!
You like to think of evil things to do.
You make cruel things happen
everywhere in the land.
3 Wicked people do wrong things from their birth.
As soon as they are born,
they start telling lies.
4 Their words hurt people
like a snake's poison.
They listen to nobody,
like a deaf cobra.
5 It does not obey the voice of the magician,
even if he sings very well! [ b ]
6 God, break the teeth of my enemies!
Yes, Lord , break into pieces
the teeth of those lions!
7 Cause them to run away like water and disappear.
Cause them to die like dry grass in hot weather.
8 Cause them to be like a worm that melts as it moves along.
Cause them to be like a child that is born dead
and never sees the light of day.
9 Remove them quickly,
more quickly than pots become hot over a fire of thorn bushes. [ c ]
10 When God punishes those wicked people,
righteous people will be very happy.
They will wash their feet in the blood of the wicked people!
11 People who see it will say,
‘It is true! God helps good people!
There is a God who judges people on earth in a fair way.’

Footnotes

  1. 58:1 In this psalm, David asks God to punish his enemies. He knows that God is fair. He always does what is right. God is the one who judges everybody in a fair way. The Hebrew in some of the verses is very hard to understand. If you read other Bible translations, you will find that some of the verses seem different.
  2. 58:5 These wicked people will not listen to God. Some magicians can make snakes obey them when they sing or make music. The wicked people are like snakes that are deaf and they cannot obey.
  3. 58:9 David asks God to punish these bad people. David wants God to remove them very quickly. He used pictures of different things to say what he means.

To the director: To the tune “Don’t Destroy.” A miktam of David.

58 You judges are not being fair in your decisions.
You are not judging people fairly.
2 No, you only think of evil things to do.
You do violent crimes in this country.
3 Those wicked people started doing wrong as soon as they were born.
They have been liars from birth.
4 Their anger is as deadly as the poison of a snake. [ a ]
They shut their ears like a deaf cobra
5 that does not listen to the music of the snake charmers,
no matter how well they play.

6 God, they are like lions.
So, Lord , break their teeth.
7 May they disappear like water down a drain.
May they be crushed like weeds on a path. [ b ]
8 May they be like snails melting away as they move.
May they be like a baby born dead, who never saw the light of day.
9 May they be destroyed suddenly,
like the thorns that are burned to quickly heat a pot.

10 Good people will be happy
when they see the wicked getting the punishment they deserve.
They will feel like soldiers
walking through the blood of their enemies! [ c ]
11 Then people will say, “Good people really are rewarded.
Yes, there is a God judging the world!” [ d ]

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 58:4 anger … snake A wordplay in Hebrew. The word meaning “anger” can also mean “venom” (poison).
  2. Psalm 58:7 Or “May he shoot his arrows, cutting them down as if they were withering grass .”
  3. Psalm 58:10 They … enemies Literally, “They will wash their feet in the blood of the wicked.”
  4. Psalm 58:11 Yes … world Or “There really are judges in this land doing their job.”

58 Do ye indeed speak righteousness, O congregation? do ye judge uprightly, O ye sons of men?

2 Yea, in heart ye work wickedness; ye weigh the violence of your hands in the earth.

3 The wicked are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies.

4 Their poison is like the poison of a serpent: they are like the deaf adder that stoppeth her ear;

5 Which will not hearken to the voice of charmers, charming never so wisely.

6 Break their teeth, O God, in their mouth: break out the great teeth of the young lions, O Lord .

7 Let them melt away as waters which run continually: when he bendeth his bow to shoot his arrows, let them be as cut in pieces.

8 As a snail which melteth, let every one of them pass away: like the untimely birth of a woman, that they may not see the sun.

9 Before your pots can feel the thorns, he shall take them away as with a whirlwind, both living, and in his wrath.

10 The righteous shall rejoice when he seeth the vengeance: he shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.

11 So that a man shall say, Verily there is a reward for the righteous: verily he is a God that judgeth in the earth.

Prayer for the Punishment of the Wicked.

For the music director; set to [ a ] Al-tashheth. A [ b ] Mikhtam of David.

58 Do you indeed [ c ] speak righteousness, you [ d ] gods?
Do you ( A ) judge [ e ] fairly, you sons of mankind?
2 No, in heart you ( B ) practice injustice;
On earth you ( C ) clear a way for the violence of your hands.
3 The wicked have turned away ( D ) from the womb;
These who speak lies ( E ) go astray from [ f ] birth.
4 They have venom like the ( F ) venom of a serpent;
Like a deaf cobra that stops up its ear,
5 So that it ( G ) does not hear the voice of [ g ] ( H ) charmers,
Or a skillful caster of spells.

6 God, ( I ) shatter their teeth in their mouth;
Break out the fangs of the young lions, Lord .
7 May they ( J ) flow away like water that runs off;
When he [ h ] ( K ) aims his arrows, may they be as [ i ] headless shafts.
8 May they be like a snail which goes along in slime,
Like the ( L ) miscarriage of a woman that never sees the sun.
9 Before your ( M ) pots can feel the fire of thorns
He will ( N ) sweep them away with a whirlwind, the [ j ] green and the burning alike.

10 The ( O ) righteous will rejoice when he ( P ) sees vengeance;
He will ( Q ) wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.
11 And people will say, “There certainly is [ k ] ( R ) a reward for the righteous;
There certainly is a God who ( S ) judges on the earth!”

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 58 Title Lit Do Not Destroy
  2. Psalm 58 Title Possibly Epigrammatic Poem or Atonement Psalm
  3. Psalm 58:1 Another reading is speak righteousness in silence
  4. Psalm 58:1 Or mighty ones ; or judges
  5. Psalm 58:1 Or mankind fairly ?
  6. Psalm 58:3 Lit the womb
  7. Psalm 58:5 Or whisperers
  8. Psalm 58:7 Lit bends
  9. Psalm 58:7 Lit though they were cut off
  10. Psalm 58:9 Lit living
  11. Psalm 58:11 Lit fruit

Psalm 58 [ a ]

For the director of music. To the tune of “Do Not Destroy.” Of David. A miktam. [ b ]

1 Do you rulers indeed speak justly? ( A )
Do you judge people with equity?
2 No, in your heart you devise injustice, ( B )
and your hands mete out violence on the earth. ( C )

3 Even from birth the wicked go astray;
from the womb they are wayward, spreading lies.
4 Their venom is like the venom of a snake, ( D )
like that of a cobra that has stopped its ears,
5 that will not heed ( E ) the tune of the charmer, ( F )
however skillful the enchanter may be.

6 Break the teeth in their mouths, O God; ( G )
Lord , tear out the fangs of those lions! ( H )
7 Let them vanish like water that flows away; ( I )
when they draw the bow, let their arrows fall short. ( J )
8 May they be like a slug that melts away as it moves along, ( K )
like a stillborn child ( L ) that never sees the sun.

9 Before your pots can feel the heat of the thorns ( M ) —
whether they be green or dry—the wicked will be swept away. [ c ] ( N )
10 The righteous will be glad ( O ) when they are avenged, ( P )
when they dip their feet in the blood of the wicked. ( Q )
11 Then people will say,
“Surely the righteous still are rewarded; ( R )
surely there is a God who judges the earth.” ( S )

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 58:1 In Hebrew texts 58:1-11 is numbered 58:2-12.
  2. Psalm 58:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
  3. Psalm 58:9 The meaning of the Hebrew for this verse is uncertain.
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