1 Plead my cause, O Lord, with them that strive with me: fight against them that fight against me.
2 Take hold of shield and buckler, and stand up for mine help.
3 Draw out also the spear, and stop the way against them that persecute me: say unto my soul, I am thy salvation.
4 Let them be confounded and put to shame that seek after my soul: let them be turned back and brought to confusion that devise my hurt.
5 Let them be as chaff before the wind: and let the angel of the Lord chase them.
6 Let their way be dark and slippery: and let the angel of the Lord persecute them.
7 For without cause have they hid for me their net in a pit, which without cause they have digged for my soul.
8 Let destruction come upon him at unawares; and let his net that he hath hid catch himself: into that very destruction let him fall.
9 And my soul shall be joyful in the Lord: it shall rejoice in his salvation.
10 All my bones shall say, Lord, who is like unto thee, which deliverest the poor from him that is too strong for him, yea, the poor and the needy from him that spoileth him?
11 False witnesses did rise up; they laid to my charge things that I knew not.
12 They rewarded me evil for good to the spoiling of my soul.
13 But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth: I humbled my soul with fasting; and my prayer returned into mine own bosom.
14 I behaved myself as though he had been my friend or brother: I bowed down heavily, as one that mourneth for his mother.
15 But in mine adversity they rejoiced, and gathered themselves together: yea, the abjects gathered themselves together against me, and I knew it not; they did tear me, and ceased not:
16 With hypocritical mockers in feasts, they gnashed upon me with their teeth.
17 Lord, how long wilt thou look on? rescue my soul from their destructions, my darling from the lions.
18 I will give thee thanks in the great congregation: I will praise thee among much people.
19 Let not them that are mine enemies wrongfully rejoice over me: neither let them wink with the eye that hate me without a cause.
20 For they speak not peace: but they devise deceitful matters against them that are quiet in the land.
21 Yea, they opened their mouth wide against me, and said, Aha, aha, our eye hath seen it.
22 This thou hast seen, O Lord: keep not silence: O Lord, be not far from me.
23 Stir up thyself, and awake to my judgment, even unto my cause, my God and my Lord.
24 Judge me, O Lord my God, according to thy righteousness; and let them not rejoice over me.
25 Let them not say in their hearts, Ah, so would we have it: let them not say, We have swallowed him up.
26 Let them be ashamed and brought to confusion together that rejoice at mine hurt: let them be clothed with shame and dishonour that magnify themselves against me.
27 Let them shout for joy, and be glad, that favour my righteous cause: yea, let them say continually, Let the Lord be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant.
28 And my tongue shall speak of thy righteousness and of thy praise all the day long.
<html><b>O Lord, strive with those who strive against me</b> Make a quarrel with those who make quarrels with me. <b>battle</b> Heb. לחם an expression of war (מלחמה), and so לחמי, battle those who battle with me.</html>
<html><b>And arm Yourself with a spear</b> Heb. והרק. Arm Yourself, as (in Exod. 15:9) “I will arm myself (אריק) with my sword”; (Gen. 14:14), “And he armed (וירק) his trained men.” <b>and bar the way before my pursuers</b> Protect between me and them, as a barrier. <b>to my soul</b> A moi meme in French, to myself, as (in Jer. 18:20): “for they have dug a pit for me (לנפשי).”</html>
<html><b>dark and slippery</b> Both together, so that their feet should slip on the slippery places and the darkness should not allow them to beware of the slippery places, as it is written (in Jer. 23: 12): “Therefore, their way shall be for them like slippery places in the dark: ‘let them be thrust and fall therein.’ “</html>
<html><b>they have dug it for my soul</b> they have dug a pit into which I should fall.</html>
<html><b>darkness</b> Heb. שואה, darkness, broine in Old French, obscurity. <b>and his net that he hid</b> So is the custom to hide the net and to cover it with straw or with earth, in order that the one who passes over it should not notice it until he is trapped in it.</html>
<html><b>And my soul shall exult</b> when I see their downfall.</html>
<html><b>All my bones</b> will praise You for everything, for now…</html>
<html><b>False witnesses rise up</b> constantly against me, etc.</html>
<html><b>and may my prayer return upon my bosom</b> That is to say: If they say that I afflicted myself only for their detriment, that their illness should become more serious, may my prayer that I prayed for them return to me.</html>
<html><b>I walked about as though it were a friend or as though it were my own brother</b> As though it were my brother or my friend; I walked about depressed because of their distress. <b>as the mourning of a mother</b> As a son who mourns for his mother or as a mother who mourns for her son. <b>with gloom</b> Heb. קדר, an expression of blackness. <b>I was bowed</b> An expression of humility.</html>
<html><b>And, when I limped, they rejoiced and gathered</b> And when I limped because I suffered a fracture, they rejoiced and gathered [around me]. <b>lame people gathered about me</b> Heb. נכים, lame people, as we translate “Pharaoh-neco,” חגירא, lame. Menachem (p. 122f.) associated it with (Isa. 16: 7), נכאים, broken-hearted, amenuyze in Old French, crushed. <b>Were they to tear, they would not draw blood</b> Were they to tear my flesh, my blood would not flow to the ground when they embarrass me [lit. make my face white].</html>
<html><b>Because of the flattery of scorn for food, they gnash, etc.</b> Because of the flattery of scorn of eating and drinking, that they flatter Saul in order that he give them to eat and drink, they gnash their teeth against me. <b>food</b> Heb. מעוג, an expression of eating, as (in I Kings 17:12): “if I have food (מעוג),” written regarding Elijah, but Menachem (p. 130) interpreted it as an expression of a loaf of bread, and so “if I have a cake (מעוג).”</html>
<html><b>how long will You look on?</b> How much patience do You have to look upon all these? <b>from their darkness</b> Heb. משאיהם, from their darkness. <b>my only one from young lions</b> This refers to “Return my soul.” Return my only one from young lions.</html>
<html><b>those who are my enemies for an unjust cause</b> who hate me because of a false matter, that they testify against me what never entered my mind. Let them not rejoice at my downfall. <b>who hate me</b> Let those who hate me not wink their eyes at me, to mock my downfall with their eyes.
h.יקרצו means seynt in Old French, signal.</html>
<html><b>and against the crushed people of the earth</b> Heb. רגעי, on the crushed people of the earth, and so (in Jer. 31:34): “Who stirs up (רגע) the sea”; (Job 7:5), “my skin wrinkled (רגע).” And so did Dunash explain it.</html>
<html><b>Aha! Aha!</b> Heb. האח, an expression of joy of one who boasts with the lust of his heart, out of their [sic] great joy, that they see their lust gratified.</html>
<html><b>Arouse Yourself and awaken</b> the heavenly retinue to judge my cause from my enemies.</html>