ש (Sin/Shin) They have heard ¹  that I groan, yet there is no one to comfort me. All my enemies have heard of my trouble; they are glad that you ²  have brought it about. ³  Bring about ⁴  the day of judgment ⁵  that you promised ⁶  so that ⁷  they may end up ⁸  like me!

ד (Dalet) He prepared his bow ¹  like an enemy; his right hand was ready to shoot. ²  Like a foe he killed everyone, even our strong young men; ³  he has poured out his anger like fire on the tent ⁴  of Daughter Zion.

פ (Pe) All your enemies gloated over you. ¹  They sneered and gnashed their teeth; they said, “We have destroyed ²  her! Ha! We have waited a long time for this day. We have lived to see it!” ³ 

ע (Ayin) The Lord has done what he planned; he has fulfilled ¹  his promise ²  that he threatened ³  long ago: ⁴  He has overthrown you without mercy ⁵  and has enabled the enemy to gloat over you; he has exalted your adversaries’ power. ⁶ 

Twist and strain, ¹  Daughter Zion, as if you were in labor! For you will leave the city and live in the open field. You will go to Babylon, but there you will be rescued. There the Lord will deliver ²  you from the power ³  of your enemies.

But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing back. ¹  Then ²  your reward will be great, and you will be sons ³  of the Most High, ⁴  because he is kind to ungrateful and evil people. ⁵ 

For the music director; by the Lord’s servant David, who sang ²  to the Lord the words of this song when ³  the Lord rescued him from the power ⁴  of all his enemies, including Saul. ⁵  He said: ⁶  “I love ⁷  you, Lord, my source of strength! ⁸ 

The nations will know that the house of Israel went into exile due to their iniquity, ¹  for they were unfaithful to me. So I hid my face from them and handed them over to their enemies; all of them died by the sword.

David’s men said to him, “This is the day about which the Lord said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hand, and you can do to him whatever seems appropriate to you.’” ¹  So David got up and quietly cut off an edge of Saul’s robe.

I was embarrassed to request soldiers and horsemen from the king to protect us from the enemy ¹  along the way, because we had said to the king, “The good hand of our God is on everyone who is seeking him, but his great anger ²  is against everyone who forsakes him.”

You will lose your hold on the land ¹  which I gave to you as a permanent possession. I will make you serve your enemies in a land that you know nothing about. For you have made my anger burn like a fire that will never be put out.” ² 

For the Lord says, ‘I will make both you and your friends terrified of what will happen to you. ¹  You will see all of them die by the swords of their enemies. ²  I will hand all the people of Judah over to the king of Babylon. He will carry some of them away into exile in Babylon and he will kill others of them with the sword.

So as Joab kept watch on the city, he stationed Uriah at the place where he knew the best enemy soldiers ¹  were.

He is secure at all times. ¹  He has no regard for your commands; ²  he disdains all his enemies. ³ 

Those who anticipate my defeat ¹  attack me all day long. Indeed, ²  many are fighting against me, O Exalted One. ³ 

I gloat in triumph over those who tried to ambush me; ¹  I hear the defeated cries of the evil foes who attacked me. ² 

But the horde of invaders will be like fine dust, the horde of tyrants ¹  like chaff that is blown away. It will happen suddenly, in a flash.

Therefore,” says the sovereign Lord, “an enemy will encircle the land. ¹  He will take away your power; ²  your fortresses will be looted.”

And you were at one time strangers and enemies in your ¹  minds ²  as expressed through ³  your evil deeds,

‘Surely our enemies ¹  are destroyed, and fire consumes their wealth.’