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The Unbelieving Fool

For the director of music. Of David.

14 Fools say to themselves,
    “There is no God.”
Fools are evil and do terrible things;
    there is no one who does anything good.

The Lord looked down from heaven on all people
    to see if anyone understood,
    if anyone was looking to God for help.
But all have turned away.
    Together, everyone has become evil.
There is no one who does anything good,
    not even one.

Don’t the wicked understand?
They destroy my people as if they were eating bread.
    They do not ask the Lord for help.
But the wicked are filled with terror,
    because God is with those who do what is right.
The wicked upset the plans of the poor,
    but the Lord will protect them.

I pray that victory will come to Israel from Mount Zion!
    May the Lord bring them back.
Then the people of Jacob will rejoice,
    and the people of Israel will be glad.

Psalm 14(A)

For the director of music. Of David.

The fool[a] says in his heart,
    “There is no God.”(B)
They are corrupt, their deeds are vile;
    there is no one who does good.

The Lord looks down from heaven(C)
    on all mankind
to see if there are any who understand,(D)
    any who seek God.(E)
All have turned away,(F) all have become corrupt;(G)
    there is no one who does good,(H)
    not even one.(I)

Do all these evildoers know nothing?(J)

They devour my people(K) as though eating bread;
    they never call on the Lord.(L)
But there they are, overwhelmed with dread,
    for God is present in the company of the righteous.
You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor,
    but the Lord is their refuge.(M)

Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!(N)
    When the Lord restores(O) his people,
    let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 14:1 The Hebrew words rendered fool in Psalms denote one who is morally deficient.