Psa 141 | HCSB | STEP | A Davidic psalm . Lord , I call on You; hurry to help me. Listen to my voice when I call on You.

Psalms 141

Protection from Sin and Sinners

1 A Davidic psalm.

Lord, I call on You; hurry to help me.
Listen to my voice when I call on You. ^a
2 May my prayer be set before You as incense, ^b
the raising of my hands as the evening offering. ^c

3 Lord, set up a guard for my mouth;
keep watch at the door of my lips. ^d
4 Do not let my heart turn to any evil thing
or perform wicked acts
with men who commit sin.
Do not let me feast on their delicacies. ^e
5 Let the righteous one strike me –
it is an act of faithful love;
let him rebuke me –
it is oil for my head;
let me ^{▼▼Lit my head} not refuse it. ^g
Even now my prayer is against
the evil acts of the wicked. ^{▼▼Lit of them
,} ⁱ
6 When their rulers ^{▼▼Or judges} will be thrown off
the sides of a cliff,
the people ^{▼▼Lit cliff, and they} will listen to my words,
for they are pleasing. ^l

7 As when one plows and breaks up the soil,
turning up rocks,
so our ^{▼▼DSS reads my; some LXX mss, Syr read their} bones have been scattered
at the mouth of ^{▼▼Sheol: A Hebrew word for either the grave or the realm of the dead}Sheol. ^o

8 But my eyes look to You, Lord God.
I seek refuge in You; do not let me die. ^{▼▼Or not pour out my life
,} ^q
9 Protect me from ^{▼▼Lit from the hands of} the trap they have set for me,
and from the snares of evildoers. ^s
10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets,
while I pass by safely. ^t