Psalms 34

• 1. I will praise the LORD at all times. I will constantly speak his praises.
• 2. I will boast only in the LORD; let all who are discouraged take heart.
• 3. Come, let us tell of the LORD's greatness; let us exalt his name together.
• 4. I prayed to the LORD, and he answered me, freeing me from all my fears.
• 5. Those who look to him for help will be radiant with joy; no shadow of shame will darken their faces.
• 6. I cried out to the LORD in my suffering, and he heard me. He set me free from all my fears.
• 7. For the angel of the LORD guards all who fear him, and he rescues them.
• 8. Taste and see that the LORD is good. Oh, the joys of those who trust in him!
• 9. Let the LORD's people show him reverence, for those who honor him will have all they need.
• 10. Even strong young lions sometimes go hungry, but those who trust in the LORD will never lack any good thing.
• 11. Come, my children, and listen to me, and I will teach you to fear the LORD.
• 12. Do any of you want to live a life that is long and good?
• 13. Then watch your tongue! Keep your lips from telling lies!
• 14. Turn away from evil and do good. Work hard at living in peace with others.
• 15. The eyes of the LORD watch over those who do right; his ears are open to their cries for help.
• 16. But the LORD turns his face against those who do evil; he will erase their memory from the earth.
• 17. The LORD hears his people when they call to him for help. He rescues them from all their troubles.
• 18. The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those who are crushed in spirit.
• 19. The righteous face many troubles, but the LORD rescues them from each and every one.
• 20. For the LORD protects them from harm--not one of their bones will be broken!
• 21. Calamity will surely overtake the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be punished.
• 22. But the LORD will redeem those who serve him. Everyone who trusts in him will be freely pardoned.

Psalms 35

• 1. O LORD, oppose those who oppose me. Declare war on those who are attacking me.
• 2. Put on your armor, and take up your shield. Prepare for battle, and come to my aid.
• 3. Lift up your spear and javelin and block the way of my enemies. Let me hear you say, "I am your salvation!"
• 4. Humiliate and disgrace those trying to kill me; turn them back in confusion.
• 5. Blow them away like chaff in the wind--a wind sent by the angel of the LORD.
• 6. Make their path dark and slippery, with the angel of the LORD pursuing them.
• 7. Although I did them no wrong, they laid a trap for me. Although I did them no wrong, they dug a pit for me.
• 8. So let sudden ruin overtake them! Let them be caught in the snare they set for me! Let them fall to destruction in the pit they dug for me.
• 9. Then I will rejoice in the LORD. I will be glad because he rescues me.
• 10. I will praise him from the bottom of my heart: "LORD, who can compare with you? Who else rescues the weak and helpless from the strong? Who else protects the poor and needy from those who want to rob them?"
• 11. Malicious witnesses testify against me. They accuse me of things I don't even know about.
• 12. They repay me with evil for the good I do. I am sick with despair.
• 13. Yet when they were ill, I grieved for them. I even fasted and prayed for them, but my prayers returned unanswered.
• 14. I was sad, as though they were my friends or family, as if I were grieving for my own mother.
• 15. But they are glad now that I am in trouble; they gleefully join together against me. I am attacked by people I don't even know; they hurl slander at me continually.
• 16. They mock me with the worst kind of profanity, and they snarl at me.
• 17. How long, O Lord, will you look on and do nothing? Rescue me from their fierce attacks. Protect my life from these lions!
• 18. Then I will thank you in front of the entire congregation. I will praise you before all the people.
• 19. Don't let my treacherous enemies rejoice over my defeat. Don't let those who hate me without cause gloat over my sorrow.
• 20. They don't talk of peace; they plot against innocent people who are minding their own business.
• 21. They shout that they have seen me doing wrong. "Aha," they say. "Aha! With our own eyes we saw him do it!"
• 22. O LORD, you know all about this. Do not stay silent. Don't abandon me now, O Lord.
• 23. Wake up! Rise to my defense! Take up my case, my God and my Lord.
• 24. Declare me "not guilty," O LORD my God, for you give justice. Don't let my enemies laugh about me in my troubles.
• 25. Don't let them say, "Look! We have what we wanted! Now we will eat him alive!"
• 26. May those who rejoice at my troubles be humiliated and disgraced. May those who triumph over me be covered with shame and dishonor.
• 27. But give great joy to those who have stood with me in my defense. Let them continually say, "Great is the LORD, who enjoys helping his servant."
• 28. Then I will tell everyone of your justice and goodness, and I will praise you all day long.

Psalms 36

• 1. Sin whispers to the wicked, deep within their hearts. They have no fear of God to restrain them.
• 2. In their blind conceit, they cannot see how wicked they really are.
• 3. Everything they say is crooked and deceitful. They refuse to act wisely or do what is good.
• 4. They lie awake at night, hatching sinful plots. Their course of action is never good. They make no attempt to turn from evil.
• 5. Your unfailing love, O LORD, is as vast as the heavens; your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds.
• 6. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the ocean depths. You care for people and animals alike, O LORD.
• 7. How precious is your unfailing love, O God! All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of your wings.
• 8. You feed them from the abundance of your own house, letting them drink from your rivers of delight.
• 9. For you are the fountain of life, the light by which we see.
• 10. Pour out your unfailing love on those who love you; give justice to those with honest hearts.
• 11. Don't let the proud trample me; don't let the wicked push me around.
• 12. Look! They have fallen! They have been thrown down, never to rise again.

New Living Translation: 178 of 324 days.