God says, ¹  “I will bring down all the power of the wicked; the godly will be victorious.” ² 

A crooked witness ¹  scorns justice, and the mouth of the wicked devours ²  iniquity.

But avoid profane chatter, ¹  because those occupied with it will stray further and further into ungodliness, ² 

and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man in anguish over the debauched lifestyle of lawless ¹  men, ² 

the prophet ¹  Jehu son of Hanani confronted him; ²  he said to King Jehoshaphat, “Is it right to help the wicked and be an ally of those who oppose the Lord? ³  Because you have done this the Lord is angry with you! ⁴ 

But they were unfaithful to the God of their ancestors ¹  and worshiped instead ²  the gods of the native peoples ³  whom God had destroyed before them.

May the evil deeds of the wicked ¹  come to an end! ²  But make the innocent ³  secure, ⁴  O righteous God, you who examine ⁵  inner thoughts and motives! ⁶ 

For the music director; written by the Lord’s servant, David; an oracle. ²  An evil man is rebellious to the core. ³  He does not fear God, ⁴ 

Then he said, “I am going to inform you about what will happen in the latter time of wrath, for the vision ¹  pertains to the appointed time of the end.

I will overthrow royal thrones and shatter the might of earthly kingdoms. ¹  I will overthrow chariots and those who ride them, and horses and their riders will fall as people kill one another. ² 

He said to them, “The secret ¹  of the kingdom of God has been given ²  to you. But to those outside, everything is in parables,

I have ¹  a hope in God (a hope ²  that ³  these men ⁴  themselves accept too) that there is going to be a resurrection of both the righteous and the unrighteous. ⁵ 

When any of you has a legal dispute with another, does he dare go to court before the unrighteous rather than before the saints?

So I say this, and insist ¹  in the Lord, that you no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility ²  of their thinking. ³ 

– if so, ¹  then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from their trials, ²  and to reserve the unrighteous for punishment ³  at the day of judgment,

For the music director, Jeduthun; a psalm of David. I decided, ²  “I will watch what I say and make sure I do not sin with my tongue. ³  I will put a muzzle over my mouth while in the presence of an evil man.” ⁴ 

They are absolutely terrified, ¹  even by things that do not normally cause fear. ²  For God annihilates ³  those who attack you. ⁴  You are able to humiliate them because God has rejected them. ⁵ 

I sent him ¹  against a godless ²  nation, I ordered him to attack the people with whom I was angry, ³  to take plunder and to carry away loot, to trample them down ⁴  like dirt in the streets.

For a fool speaks disgraceful things; ¹  his mind plans out sinful deeds. ²  He commits godless deeds ³  and says misleading things about the Lord; he gives the hungry nothing to satisfy their appetite ⁴  and gives the thirsty nothing to drink. ⁵ 

So the sovereign master was not pleased ¹  with their young men, he took no pity ²  on their orphans and widows; for the whole nation was godless ³  and did wicked things, ⁴  every mouth was speaking disgraceful words. ⁵  Despite all this, his anger does not subside, and his hand is ready to strike again. ⁶