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1 Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me;
fight against those who fight against me.
2 Take up shield and buckler;
arise and come to my aid.
3 Brandish spear and javelin[a]
against those who pursue me.
Say to my soul,
‘I am your salvation.’
4 May those who seek my life
be disgraced and put to shame;
may those who plot my ruin
be turned back in dismay.
5 May they be like chaff before the wind,
with the angel of the Lord driving them away;
6 may their path be dark and slippery,
with the angel of the Lord pursuing them.
7 Since they hid their net for me without cause
and without cause dug a pit for me,
8 may ruin overtake them by surprise –
may the net they hid entangle them,
may they fall into the pit, to their ruin.
9 Then my soul will rejoice in the Lord
and delight in his salvation.
10 My whole being will exclaim,
‘Who is like you, Lord?
You rescue the poor from those too strong for them,
the poor and needy from those who rob them.’
11 Ruthless witnesses come forward; they question me on things I know nothing about.
12 They repay me evil for good
and leave my soul forlorn.
13 Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth
and humbled myself with fasting.
When my prayers returned to me unanswered,
14 I went about mourning
as though for my friend or brother.
I bowed my head in grief
as though weeping for my mother.
15 But when I stumbled, they gathered in glee;
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attackers gathered against me when I was unaware
They slandered me without ceasing.
16 Like the ungodly they maliciously mocked;[b]
they gnashed their teeth at me.
17 Lord, how long, will you look on?
Rescue me from their ravages,
my precious life from these lions.
18 I will give you thanks in the great assembly;
among the throngs I will praise you.
19 Let not those gloat over me
who are my enemies without cause;
let not those who hate me without reason
maliciously wink the eye.
20 They do not speak peaceably,
but devise false accusations
against those who live quietly in the land.
21 They gape at me and say, ‘Aha! Aha!
With our own eyes we have seen it.’
22 Lord, you have seen this; be not silent.
Do not be far from me, O Lord.
23 Awake, and rise to my defence!
Contend for me, my God and Lord.
24 Vindicate me in your righteousness, O Lord my God;
do not let them gloat over me.
25 Do not let them think, ‘Aha, just what we wanted!’
or say, ‘We have swallowed him up.’
26 May all who gloat over my distress
be put to shame and confusion;
may all who exalt themselves over me
be clothed with shame and disgrace.
27 May those who delight in my vindication
shout for joy and gladness;
may they always say, ‘The Lord be exalted,
who delights in the well-being of his servant.’
28 My tongue will speak of your righteousness,
and of your praises all day long.
(NIV)
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Psalm 35 is a Psalm of David. Three times in the psalm David cries out for help from God.
Verses 1-10, 11-18, 19-28. Each time he ends with a vow to praise God.
Commentaries say they have found it difficult in interpreting the psalm.
They say it is difficult to say, when, where and who the psalmist is talking about.
Verses 1-3 Speaks his feelings against the psalmist enemies. The psalmist feels he is about to be attacked, and he cries out for help.
Verses 11-18 David renews the cry for help against the false witness and lies that is being said against him
Verses 19-28 Is the mockery David was expecting, and he prays to God for justice and judgement
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I wonder what our response would be in similar circumstances.
• Do we publicly praise God and give testimony for God’s help? Or do we just forget at the end of the day.
• How often do we remember daily to give our thanks to God for what He has done?
• Do we thank God for helping us get well from a sickness?
• Do we thank Him for saving us from a difficult time in our life?
• Or for helping us through the bad times in our life?
• Do we forget and only remember when the next disaster happens, that God was with us before?
We need to praise God every day,
for giving us each new day,
for our family and friends who support us
and all who are there to help us in our difficulties.
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