1  To victory, the psalm of David. God, hold thou not still my praising;

2 for the mouth of the sinner, and the mouth of the guileful man, is opened on me. They spake against me with a guileful [or treacherous] tongue,

3 and they encompassed me with words of hatred; and fought against me without cause.

4 For that thing that they should love me, they backbited me; but I prayed for them.

5 And they setted against me evils for goods; and hatred for my love.

6 Ordain thou a sinner on him; and the devil stand on his right half.

7 When he is deemed, go he out condemned; and his prayer be made into sin.

8 His days be made few; and another take his bishopric.

9 His sons be made fatherless; and his wife a widow.

10 His sons trembling be borne over, and beg; and be they cast out of their habitations.

11 An usurer seek all his chattel; and aliens ravish his travails.

12 None helper be to him; neither any be that have mercy on his motherless children.

13 His sons be made into perishing; the name of him be done away in one generation.

14 The wickedness of his fathers come again into mind in the sight of the Lord; and the sin of his mother be not done away.

15 Be they made ever[more] against the Lord; and the mind of them perish from earth.

16 For that thing that he thought not to do mercy, and he pursued a poor man and a beggar; and to slay a man compunct in heart.

17 And he loved cursing, and it shall come to him; and he would not give blessing, and it shall be made far from him.

18 And he clothed cursing as a cloth, and it entered as water into his inner things; and as oil in his bones.

19 Be it made to him as a cloth, with which he is covered; and as a girdle, with which he is ever[more] girded.

20 This is the work of them that back-bite me with the Lord; and that speak evils against my life.

21 And thou, Lord God, do with me for thy name; for thy mercy is sweet. Deliver thou me,

22 for I am needy and poor; and mine heart is troubled within me.

23 I am taken away as a shadow, when it boweth away; and I am shaken away as locusts.

24 My knees be made feeble with fasting; and my flesh was changed for oil.

25 And I am made a shame to them; they saw me, and moved their heads.

26 My Lord God, help thou me; make thou me safe by thy mercy.

27 And they shall know, that this is thine hand; and thou, Lord, hast done it.

28 And they shall curse, and thou shalt bless, they that rise against me, be shamed; but thy servant shall be glad.

29 They that backbite me, be clothed with shame; and be they covered with their shame, as with a double cloth.

30 I shall acknowledge to the Lord greatly with my mouth; and I shall praise him in the middle of many men.

31 Which stood nigh on the right half of a poor man; to make safe my soul from pursuers.