1 ① Why, O Lord, do you stand afar? Why hide from us in times of distress?
2The wicked are in power; the weak suffer harassment; the poor become victims of evil schemes.
3Exploiters boast in their power and greed; the covetous blasphemes and defies God.
4In their pride the wicked say, “There is no God.” They see no further.
5The wicked prosper in their ways, your laws are far from their minds; haughtily they sneer at their rivals, 6all of them saying in their heart, “Nothing will trouble me. I am secure, powerful and happy.”
7Their mouths are filled with cursing, deceit and threats; spite and mischief are under their tongues.
8They lie in ambush near the villages, murdering the innocent and the unfortunate, spying upon their next victim.
9The evil one lurks in secret, like a lion in its covert, waiting to seize his prey and drag him off in a net.
10Lying prone or crouching, he waits and the unfortunate falls into his power.
11He thinks to himself: “God has forgotten; he has hidden his face and will never see this.”
12Rise, Lord, O God, raise your hand, do not forget the lowly.
13Why do the wicked revile God and say, “He can not make me account”?
14But you see those in misery, O God, and you take it in hand. The unfortunate commits himself to you; the orphan turns to you for help.
15Break the power of the wicked – seek out their wickedness till there is none to be found.
16The Lord is king forever and the pagans have vanished from his land.
17For you hear, O Lord, the longings of the lowly, and you strengthen their hearts; 18you give heed to the orphans and the oppressed. Let no human raise from earth and strike terror.
- The rich and the powerful may think that God is far away, that he is passive, and that perhaps, he does not exist. But God hears the cry of the oppressed. It is very easy to become rich in spirit in a consumer world: every Christian must ask himself to what extent he is not responsible for the injustice and discrimination which we witness.
