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Monday, October 25, 2010

Psalm 4 - a conversation of Solomon with those trying to impress people

Psalm of Solomon 4: 1 - 25 (R.B. Wright translation, 1985)
Why are you sitting in the council of the devout, you profaner?
And your heart is far from the Lord,
provoking the God of Israel by lawbreaking;
Excessive in words, excessive in appearance above everyone,
he who is harsh in words in condemnig sinners at judgment.
And his hand is the first one against him as if in zeal,
yet he himself is guilty of a variety of sins and intemperance.
His eyes are on every woman indiscriminately,
his tongue lies when swearing a contract.
At night and in hiding he sins as if no one saw.
With his eyes he speaks to every woman of illict affairs,
he is quick to enter graciously every house as though innocent.
May God remove from the devout those who live in hypocrisy,
may his flesh decay and his life be impoverished.
May God expose the deeds of those who try to impress people,
(and expose) their deeds with ridicule and contempt.
And the devout will prove their God's judgment to be right
when sinners are driven out from the presence of the righteous, those who please men,
who deceitfully quote the Law.
And their eyes are on a man's peaceful house,
as a serpent destroys the wisdom of others with criminal words.
His words are deceitful that (he) may accomplish (his) evil desires;
he did not stop until he succeeded in scattering (them) as orphans.
He devastated a house because of his criminal desire;
he deceived with words; (as if) there were no one to see and to judge.
He is satiated with lawless actions at one (place), and (then) his eyes are on another house
to destroy it with agitating words.
With all this his soul, like Hades, is not satisfied.
Lord, let his part be in disgrace before you;
may he go out graoning and return cursing.
Lord, may his life be in pain and poverty and anxiety;
may his sleep be painful and his awakening be anxious.
May sleep be taken away from his temples at night;
may he fall disgracefully in all the work of his hands.
May he return to his house empty-handed;
may his house lack everything; let it not satisfy his soul.
May his old age be in lonely childlessness until his removal.
May the flesh of those who try to impress people be scattered by wild animlas,
and the bones of the criminals (lie) dishonored out in the sun.
Let crows peck out the eyes of the hypocrites,
for they disgracefully empty many people's houses and greedily scatter (them).
They have not remembered God,
nor have they feared God in all these things;
but they have angered God, and provoked him.
May he banish them from the earth, for they defrauded innocent people by pretense.

Blessed are those who fear God in their innocence;
the Lord shall save them from deceitful and sinful people and save us from every evil snare.
May God banish those who arrogantly commit all (kinds of) unrighteousness,
for the Lord our God is a great and powerful judge in righteousness.
Lord, let Your mercy be upon all those who love You!

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