1 D o you indeed speak righteousness, O gods? Do you judge uprightly, O sons of men?

2 N o, in heart you work unrighteousness; On earth you weigh out the violence of your hands.

3 T he wicked are estranged from the womb; These who speak lies go astray from birth.

4 T hey have venom like the venom of a serpent; Like a deaf cobra that stops up its ear,

5 S o that it does not hear the voice of charmers, Or a skillful caster of spells.

6 O God, shatter their teeth in their mouth; Break out the fangs of the young lions, O Lord.

7 L et them flow away like water that runs off; When he aims his arrows, let them be as headless shafts.

8 L et them be as a snail which melts away as it goes along, Like the miscarriages of a woman which never see the sun.

9 B efore your pots can feel the fire of thorns He will sweep them away with a whirlwind, the green and the burning alike.

10 T he righteous will rejoice when he sees the vengeance; He will wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.

11 A nd men will say, “Surely there is a reward for the righteous; Surely there is a God who judges on earth!”