1Why, Lord, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?2In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak, who are caught in the schemes he devises.3He boasts about the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord.4In his pride the wicked man does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.5His ways are always prosperous; your laws are rejected by[1] him; he sneers at all his enemies.6He says to himself, ‘Nothing will ever shake me.’ He swears, ‘No-one will ever do me harm.’7His mouth is full of lies and threats; trouble and evil are under his tongue.8He lies in wait near the villages; from ambush he murders the innocent. His eyes watch in secret for his victims;9like a lion in cover he lies in wait. He lies in wait to catch the helpless; he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net.10His victims are crushed, they collapse; they fall under his strength.11He says to himself, ‘God will never notice; he covers his face and never sees.’12Arise, Lord! Lift up your hand, O God. Do not forget the helpless.13Why does the wicked man revile God? Why does he say to himself, ‘He won’t call me to account’?14But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted; you consider their grief and take it in hand. The victims commit themselves to you; you are the helper of the fatherless.15Break the arm of the wicked man; call the evildoer to account for his wickedness that would not otherwise be found out.16The Lord is King for ever and ever; the nations will perish from his land.17You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry,18defending the fatherless and the oppressed, so that mere earthly mortals will never again strike terror.
Psalm 10
English Standard Version
Why Do You Hide Yourself?
1Why, O Lord, do you stand far away? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? (Ps 9:9; Ps 13:1; Ps 22:1; Ps 22:11; Ps 22:19; Ps 35:22; Ps 38:21)2In arrogance the wicked hotly pursue the poor; let them be caught in the schemes that they have devised. (Ps 7:15)3For the wicked boasts of the desires of his soul, and the one greedy for gain curses[1] and renounces the Lord. (Job 1:5; Job 1:11; Ps 10:13; Ps 94:4; Isa 3:9)4In the pride of his face[2] the wicked does not seek him;[3] all his thoughts are, “There is no God.” (Ps 10:3; Ps 14:1; Ps 53:1)5His ways prosper at all times; your judgments are on high, out of his sight; as for all his foes, he puffs at them. (Ps 12:5; Isa 26:11)6He says in his heart, “I shall not be moved; throughout all generations I shall not meet adversity.” (Ps 10:11; Ps 10:13; Re 18:7)7His mouth is filled with cursing and deceit and oppression; under his tongue are mischief and iniquity. (Job 20:12; Ps 5:5; Ps 6:8; Ps 7:14; Ps 36:3; Ps 55:11; Ps 72:14; Ps 140:3; So 4:11; Ro 3:14)8He sits in ambush in the villages; in hiding places he murders the innocent. His eyes stealthily watch for the helpless; (Ps 17:12; Ps 64:4; Hab 3:14)9he lurks in ambush like a lion in his thicket; he lurks that he may seize the poor; he seizes the poor when he draws him into his net. (Job 38:40; Ps 9:15; Ps 17:12; Ps 59:3; Mic 7:2)10The helpless are crushed, sink down, and fall by his might.11He says in his heart, “God has forgotten, he has hidden his face, he will never see it.” (Job 22:13; Ps 73:11; Ps 94:7; Eze 8:12; Eze 9:9; Zep 1:12)12Arise, O Lord; O God, lift up your hand; forget not the afflicted. (Ps 3:7; Ps 9:12; Ps 9:18; Mic 5:9)13Why does the wicked renounce God and say in his heart, “You will not call to account”? (Ps 9:12; Ps 10:3)14But you do see, for you note mischief and vexation, that you may take it into your hands; to you the helpless commits himself; you have been the helper of the fatherless. (Ps 33:13; Ps 68:5; Ps 146:9; Ho 14:3; 2Ti 1:12; 1Pe 4:19)15Break the arm of the wicked and evildoer; call his wickedness to account till you find none. (Ps 37:17; Ps 37:36; Isa 41:12)16The Lord is king forever and ever; the nations perish from his land. (Ex 15:18; De 8:20; Ps 29:10; Jer 10:10; La 5:19; Da 4:34; Da 6:26; 1Ti 1:17; Re 11:15)17O Lord, you hear the desire of the afflicted; you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear (1Ch 29:18)18to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed, so that man who is of the earth may strike terror no more. (Ps 9:9; Ps 9:19; Ps 17:14; Ps 74:21; Ps 82:3; Isa 1:17; Isa 11:4)