Rely ¹  on the Lord! Obey his commands! ²  Then he will permit you ³  to possess the land; you will see the demise of evil men. ⁴ 

I will continually ¹  thank you when ²  you execute judgment; ³  I will rely ⁴  on you, ⁵  for your loyal followers know you are good. ⁶ 

They stalk ¹  and lurk; ²  they watch my every step, ³  as ⁴  they prepare to take my life. ⁵ 

Their insults are painful ¹  and make me lose heart; ²  I look ³  for sympathy, but receive none, ⁴  for comforters, but find none.

Yes, as your judgments unfold, ¹  O Lord, we wait for you. We desire your fame and reputation to grow. ² 

Lord, be merciful to us! We wait for you. Give us strength each morning! ¹  Deliver us when distress comes. ² 

We all growl like bears, we coo mournfully like doves; we wait for deliverance, ¹  but there is none, for salvation, but it is far from us.

When you performed awesome deeds that took us by surprise, ¹  you came down, and the mountains trembled ²  before you.

But you must return ¹  to your God, by maintaining love and justice, and by waiting ²  for your God to return to you. ³ 

God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place ¹  and let dry ground appear.” ²  It was so.

Let none who rely on you be disgraced because of me, O sovereign Lord and king! ¹  Let none who seek you be ashamed because of me, O God of Israel!

He built a hedge around it, ¹  removed its stones, and planted a vine. He built a tower in the middle of it, and constructed a winepress. He waited for it to produce edible grapes, but it produced sour ones instead. ² 

What more can I do for my vineyard beyond what I have already done? When I waited for it to produce edible grapes, why did it produce sour ones instead?

Indeed ¹  Israel ²  is the vineyard of the Lord who commands armies, the people ³  of Judah are the cultivated place in which he took delight. He waited for justice, but look what he got – disobedience! ⁴  He waited for fairness, but look what he got – cries for help! ⁵ 

But those who wait for the Lord’s help ¹  find renewed strength; they rise up as if they had eagles’ wings, ²  they run without growing weary, they walk without getting tired.

I am ready to vindicate, ¹  I am ready to deliver, ²  I will establish justice among the nations. ³  The coastlands ⁴  wait patiently for me; they wait in anticipation for the revelation of my power. ⁵ 

For this reason deliverance ¹  is far from us ²  and salvation does not reach us. We wait for light, ³  but see only darkness; ⁴  we wait for ⁵  a bright light, ⁶  but live ⁷  in deep darkness. ⁸ 

Show the Lord your God the respect that is due him. ¹  Do it before he brings the darkness of disaster. ²  Do it before you stumble ³  into distress like a traveler on the mountains at twilight. ⁴  Do it before he turns the light of deliverance you hope for into the darkness and gloom of exile. ⁵ 

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 

Kings will be your children’s ¹  guardians; their princesses will nurse your children. ²  With their faces to the ground they will bow down to you and they will lick the dirt on ³  your feet. Then you will recognize that I am the Lord; those who wait patiently for me are not put to shame.