Psalm 144 Good News Translation

144 Praise the Lord, my protector!
He trains me for battle
    and prepares me for war.
² He is my protector and defender,
    my shelter and savior,
    in whom I trust for safety.
He subdues the nations under me.

³ Lord, what are mortals, that you notice them;
    mere mortals, that you pay attention to us?
⁴ We are like a puff of wind;
    our days are like a passing shadow.

⁵ O Lord, tear the sky open and come down;
    touch the mountains, and they will pour out smoke.
⁶ Send flashes of lightning and scatter your enemies;
    shoot your arrows and send them running.
⁷ Reach down from above,
    pull me out of the deep water, and rescue me;
    save me from the power of foreigners,
⁸     who never tell the truth
    and lie even under oath.

⁹ I will sing you a new song, O God;
    I will play the harp and sing to you.
¹⁰ You give victory to kings
    and rescue your servant David.
¹¹ Save me from my cruel enemies;
    rescue me from the power of foreigners,
    who never tell the truth
    and lie even under oath.

¹² May our sons in their youth
    be like plants that grow up strong.
May our daughters be like stately columns
    which adorn the corners of a palace.
¹³ May our barns be filled
    with crops of every kind.
May the sheep in our fields
    bear young by the tens of thousands.
¹⁴ May our cattle reproduce plentifully
    without miscarriage or loss.
May there be no cries of distress in our streets.

¹⁵ Happy is the nation of whom this is true;
    happy are the people whose God is the Lord!

Psalm 143 New Revised Standard Version

A Psalm of David.

¹ Hear my prayer, O Lord;
    give ear to my supplications in your faithfulness;
    answer me in your righteousness.
² Do not enter into judgment with your servant,
    for no one living is righteous before you.

³ For the enemy has pursued me,
    crushing my life to the ground,
    making me sit in darkness like those long dead.
⁴ Therefore my spirit faints within me;
    my heart within me is appalled.

⁵ I remember the days of old,
    I think about all your deeds,
    I meditate on the works of your hands.
⁶ I stretch out my hands to you;
    my soul thirsts for you like a parched land.Selah

⁷ Answer me quickly, O Lord;
    my spirit fails.
Do not hide your face from me,
    or I shall be like those who go down to the Pit.
⁸ Let me hear of your steadfast love in the morning,
    for in you I put my trust.
Teach me the way I should go,
    for to you I lift up my soul.

⁹ Save me, O Lord, from my enemies;
    I have fled to you for refuge.
¹⁰ Teach me to do your will,
    for you are my God.
Let your good spirit lead me
    on a level path.

¹¹ For your name’s sake, O Lord, preserve my life.
    In your righteousness bring me out of trouble.
¹² In your steadfast love cut off my enemies,
    and destroy all my adversaries,
    for I am your servant.

Psalm 142 New International Version

A maskil of David. When he was in the cave. A prayer.

¹ I cry aloud to the Lord;
    I lift up my voice to the Lord for mercy.
² I pour out before him my complaint;
    before him I tell my trouble.

³ When my spirit grows faint within me,
    it is you who watch over my way.
In the path where I walk
    people have hidden a snare for me.
⁴ Look and see, there is no one at my right hand;
    no one is concerned for me.
I have no refuge;
    no one cares for my life.

⁵ I cry to you, Lord;
    I say, “You are my refuge,
    my portion in the land of the living.”

⁶ Listen to my cry,
    for I am in desperate need;
rescue me from those who pursue me,
    for they are too strong for me.
⁷ Set me free from my prison,
    that I may praise your name.
Then the righteous will gather about me
    because of your goodness to me.