Psalm 35

¹ Contend, LORD, with those who contend with me. Fight against those who fight against me.

² Take hold of shield and buckler, and stand up for my help.

³ Brandish the spear and block those who pursue me. Tell my soul, “I am your salvation.”

⁴ Let those who seek after my soul be disappointed and brought to dishonor. Let those who plot my ruin be turned back and confounded.

⁵ Let them be as chaff before the wind, the LORD’s angel driving them on.

⁶ Let their way be dark and slippery, the LORD’s angel pursuing them.

⁷ For without cause they have hidden their net in a pit for me. Without cause they have dug a pit for my soul.

⁸ Let destruction come on him unawares. Let his net that he has hidden catch himself. Let him fall into that destruction.

⁹ My soul shall be joyful in the LORD. It shall rejoice in his salvation.

¹⁰ All my bones shall say, “LORD, who is like you, who delivers the poor from him who is too strong for him; yes, the poor and the needy from him who robs him?”

¹¹ Unrighteous witnesses rise up. They ask me about things that I don’t know about.

¹² They reward me evil for good, to the bereaving of my soul.

¹³ But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth. I afflicted my soul with fasting. My prayer returned into my own bosom.

¹⁴ I behaved myself as though it had been my friend or my brother. I bowed down mourning, as one who mourns his mother.

¹⁵ But in my adversity, they rejoiced, and gathered themselves together. The attackers gathered themselves together against me, and I didn’t know it. They tore at me, and didn’t cease.

¹⁶ Like the profane mockers in feasts, they gnashed their teeth at me.

¹⁷ Lord, how long will you look on? Rescue my soul from their destruction, my precious life from the lions.

¹⁸ I will give you thanks in the great assembly. I will praise you among many people.

¹⁹ Don’t let those who are my enemies wrongfully rejoice over me; neither let those who hate me without a cause wink their eyes.

²⁰ For they don’t speak peace, but they devise deceitful words against those who are quiet in the land.

²¹ Yes, they opened their mouth wide against me. They said, “Aha! Aha! Our eye has seen it!”

²² You have seen it, LORD. Don’t keep silent. Lord, don’t be far from me.

²³ Wake up! Rise up to defend me, my God! My Lord, contend for me!

²⁴ Vindicate me, LORD my God, according to your righteousness. Don’t let them gloat over me.

²⁵ Don’t let them say in their heart, “Aha! That’s the way we want it!” Don’t let them say, “We have swallowed him up!”

²⁶ Let them be disappointed and confounded together who rejoice at my calamity. Let them be clothed with shame and dishonor who magnify themselves against me.

²⁷ Let those who favor my righteous cause shout for joy and be glad. Yes, let them say continually, “May the LORD be magnified, who has pleasure in the prosperity of his servant!”

²⁸ My tongue shall talk about your righteousness and about your praise all day long.

Around Psalm 35

Book context

PsalmsEditorial draft

Psalms is a collection of 150 songs and prayers used in Israel’s worship, written by several people over a long period. Headings name David most often, along with Asaph, the sons of Korah and others. The collection falls into five books, each ending with a short blessing of the LORD (41:13, 72:19, 89:52, 106:48), and it closes with a call for everything that has breath to praise the LORD (150:6). The psalms hold praise, lament, thanksgiving, confession and trust, so readers find words for nearly every season of life.

Why we say this

HisFullGlory editorial · broad consensus · not yet reviewed by a theological reader

From the text itself

Sources

Notes summarise their sources in our own words. Where Christians or scholars disagree, the note says so. Notes are not original-language evidence and do not replace the text.

AI explanation

About Psalms as a whole · Written by an AI model · Not reviewed by a theological reader

This explanation was written by an AI model to help you get started. It names no sources and can contain mistakes. Scripture comes first, and context with sources is shown separately on this page.

What this book is about

“How long, LORD? Will you forget me forever?” A prayer can begin like that, and in the Psalms it does. Four times the poet asks how long, and then, in the same short song, comes the turn: “But I trust in your loving kindness.”

That honesty runs through the whole book. Psalms is a collection of 150 songs and prayers, and it holds praise, thanksgiving, lament, confession, songs for the king, and reflections on wisdom and on God's law. It is arranged in five books and moves, on the whole, from many laments at the start to pure praise at the end.

Joy, fear, anger, guilt and doubt are all spoken to God directly.

Background

The psalms were written and gathered over several centuries. Their headings link about half of them with David and others with Asaph, the sons of Korah, Solomon and Moses. They were sung in the worship of the temple and later in synagogues and churches.

How Christians read it

Jews and Christians have prayed the Psalms daily for well over two thousand years. The New Testament quotes them more than any other book and reads many as speaking of Christ, among them Psalms 2, 22 and 110. The psalms that call for judgment on enemies are hard to read. Many understand them as handing vengeance over to God instead of taking it oneself.

About this explanation

Written by Claude Sonnet 5.5, an AI model, on 19 October 2026. It draws on the WEB text and general knowledge and was not checked against sources by a person. Every quotation from Scripture is checked automatically against the WEB text.

Report a mistake