Psalm 40

New International Reader's Version

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

40 I was patient while I waited for the Lord.
    He turned to me and heard my cry for help.
²I was sliding down into the pit of death, and he pulled me out.
    He brought me up out of the mud and dirt.
He set my feet on a rock.
    He gave me a firm place to stand on.
³He gave me a new song to sing.
    It is a hymn of praise to our God.
Many people will see and have respect for the Lord.
    They will put their trust in him.

⁴Blessed is the person
    who trusts in the Lord.
They don’t trust in proud people.
    Those proud people worship statues of gods.
⁵Lord my God,
    no one can compare with you.
You have done many wonderful things.
    You have planned to do these things for us.
There are too many of them
    for me to talk about.

⁶You didn’t want sacrifices and offerings.
    You didn’t require burnt offerings and sin offerings.
    You opened my ears so that I could hear you and obey you.
⁷Then I said, “Here I am.
    It is written about me in the book.
⁸My God, I have come to do what you want.
    Your law is in my heart.”

⁹I have told the whole community of those who worship you.
    I have told them what you have done to save me.
Lord, you know
    that I haven’t kept quiet.
¹⁰I haven’t kept to myself that what you did for me was right.
    I have spoken about how faithful you were when you saved me.
I haven’t hidden your love and your faithfulness
    from the whole community.

¹¹Lord, don’t hold back your mercy from me.
    May your love and faithfulness always keep me safe.
¹²There are more troubles all around me than I can count.
    My sins have caught up with me, and I can’t see any longer.
My sins are more than the hairs of my head.
    I have lost all hope.

¹³Lord, please save me.
    Lord, come quickly to help me.
¹⁴Let all those who are trying to kill me be put to shame.
    Let them lose their way.
Let all those who want to destroy me
    be turned back in shame.
¹⁵Some people make fun of me.
    Let them be shocked when their plans fail.
¹⁶But let all those who seek you
    be joyful and glad because of what you have done.
Let those who count on you to save them always say,
    “The Lord is great!”