Psalm 5 Good News Translation (GNT)

5 Listen to my words, O Lord,
    and hear my sighs.
² Listen to my cry for help,
    my God and king!

I pray to you, O Lord;
³     you hear my voice in the morning;
at sunrise I offer my prayer
    and wait for your answer.

⁴ You are not a God who is pleased with wrongdoing;
    you allow no evil in your presence.
⁵ You cannot stand the sight of the proud;
    you hate all wicked people.
⁶ You destroy all liars
    and despise violent, deceitful people.

⁷ But because of your great love
    I can come into your house;
I can worship in your holy Temple
    and bow down to you in reverence.
⁸ Lord, I have so many enemies!
    Lead me to do your will;
    make your way plain for me to follow.

⁹ What my enemies say can never be trusted;
    they only want to destroy.
Their words are flattering and smooth,
    but full of deadly deceit.
¹⁰ Condemn and punish them, O God;
    may their own plots cause their ruin.
Drive them out of your presence
    because of their many sins
    and their rebellion against you.

¹¹ But all who find safety in you will rejoice;
    they can always sing for joy.
Protect those who love you;
    because of you they are truly happy.
¹² You bless those who obey you, Lord;
    your love protects them like a shield.

Psalm 4 New International Version (NIV)

For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of David.

¹ Answer me when I call to you,
    my righteous God.
Give me relief from my distress;
    have mercy on me and hear my prayer.

² How long will you people turn my glory into shame?
    How long will you love delusions and seek false gods?
³ Know that the Lord has set apart his faithful servant for himself;
    the Lord hears when I call to him.

⁴ Tremble and do not sin;
    when you are on your beds,
    search your hearts and be silent.
⁵ Offer the sacrifices of the righteous
    and trust in the Lord.

⁶ Many, Lord, are asking, “Who will bring us prosperity?”
    Let the light of your face shine on us.
⁷ Fill my heart with joy
    when their grain and new wine abound.

⁸ In peace I will lie down and sleep,
    for you alone, Lord,
    make me dwell in safety.

Psalm 3 The Voice (VOICE)

Psalm 3

A song of David composed while fleeing from his son Absalom.

This Davidic psalm recalls the time when David fled from Jerusalem after Absalom, his son, rebelled and claimed the throne (2 Samuel 15–17).

¹ Eternal One, my adversaries are many, too many to count.
    Now they have taken a stand against me!
² Right to my face they say,
    “God will not save you!”

[pause]

³ But You, Eternal One, wrap around me like an impenetrable shield.
    You give me glory and lift my eyes up to the heavens.
⁴ I lift my voice to You, Eternal One,
    and You answer me from Your sacred heights.

[pause]

⁵ I lie down at night and fall asleep.
    I awake in the morning—healthy, strong, vibrant—because the Eternal supports me.
⁶ No longer will I fear my tens of thousands of enemies
    who have surrounded me!

⁷ Rise up, O Eternal One!
    Rescue me, O God!
For You have dealt my enemies a strong blow to the jaw!
    You have shattered their teeth! Do so again.

⁸ Liberation truly comes from the Eternal.
    Let Your blessings shower down upon Your people.

[pause]

Psalm 2 The Message (MSG)

2 ^1-6 Why the big noise, nations?
Why the mean plots, peoples?
Earth-leaders push for position,
Demagogues and delegates meet for summit talks,
The God-deniers, the Messiah-defiers:
“Let’s get free of God!
Cast loose from Messiah!”
Heaven-throned God breaks out laughing.
At first he’s amused at their presumption;
Then he gets good and angry.
Furiously, he shuts them up:
“Don’t you know there’s a King in Zion? A coronation banquet
Is spread for him on the holy summit.”

^7-9 Let me tell you what God said next.
He said, “You’re my son,
And today is your birthday.
What do you want? Name it:
Nations as a present? continents as a prize?
You can command them all to dance for you,
Or throw them out with tomorrow’s trash.”

^10-12 So, rebel-kings, use your heads;
Upstart-judges, learn your lesson:
Worship God in adoring embrace,
Celebrate in trembling awe. Kiss Messiah!
Your very lives are in danger, you know;
His anger is about to explode,
But if you make a run for God—you won’t regret it!