Psalms 55:1-17

1Listen to my prayer, O God, do not ignore my plea;

2hear me and answer me. My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught

3because of what my enemy is saying, because of the threats of the wicked; for they bring down suffering on me and assail me in their anger.

4My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death have fallen on me.

5Fear and trembling have beset me; horror has overwhelmed me.

6I said, “Oh, that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest.

7I would flee far away and stay in the desert;

8I would hurry to my place of shelter, far from the tempest and storm.”

9Lord, confuse the wicked, confound their words, for I see violence and strife in the city.

10Day and night they prowl about on its walls; malice and abuse are within it.

11Destructive forces are at work in the city; threats and lies never leave its streets.

12If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if a foe were rising against me, I could hide.

13But it is you, a man like myself, my companion, my close friend,

14with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship at the house of God, as we walked about among the worshipers.

15Let death take my enemies by surprise; let them go down alive to the realm of the dead, for evil finds lodging among them.

16As for me, I call to God, and the Lord saves me.

17Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears my voice.