Psalm 12

English Standard Version

The Faithful Have Vanished

To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith.^[a] A Psalm of David.

12 Save, O Lord, for ^(A)the godly one is gone;
for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.
²Everyone ^(B)utters lies to his neighbor;
with ^(C)flattering lips and ^(D)a double heart they speak.

³May the Lord cut off all ^(E)flattering lips,
the tongue that makes ^(F)great boasts,
⁴those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
our lips are with us; who is master over us?”

⁵“Because ^(G)the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
    ^(H)I will now arise,” says the Lord;
    “I will place him in the ^(I)safety for which he longs.”
⁶^(J)The words of the Lord are pure words,
    like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
    purified seven times.

⁷You, O Lord, will keep them;
you will guard us^[b] from this generation forever.
⁸On every side the wicked prowl,
as vileness is exalted among the children of man.