1 D o you speak what is right and good, O you powerful ones? Are you always right in how you judge, O sons of men?

Do you indeed speak righteousness, silent ones? Do you judge blamelessly, you sons of men?

2 N o, in your heart you do what is wrong. You use your hands to hurt and destroy in the land.

No, in your heart you plot injustice. You measure out the violence of your hands in the earth.

3 T he sinful go wrong as soon as they are born. Those who speak lies go the wrong way from birth.

The wicked go astray from the womb. They are wayward as soon as they are born, speaking lies.

4 T heir poison is like the poison of a snake. They are like a cobra that cannot or will not listen.

Their poison is like the poison of a snake; like a deaf cobra that stops its ear,

5 I t does not hear the voice of the man who has power over it, even if the man is very good in his work.

which doesn’t listen to the voice of charmers, no matter how skillful the charmer may be.

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

Break their teeth, God, in their mouth. Break out the great teeth of the young lions, Yahweh.

7 L et them flow away like water that pours. When he uses his arrows, let them have no heads.

Let them vanish like water that flows away. When they draw the bow, let their arrows be made blunt.

8 L et them be like a snail that melts away as it goes. Like a baby born dead, may they never see the sun.

Let them be like a snail which melts and passes away, like the stillborn child, who has not seen the sun.

9 B efore your pots can feel the fire of thorns, He will blow them away with a storm, both the green and the burning ones.

Before your pots can feel the heat of the thorns, he will sweep away the green and the burning alike.

10 T he one who is right and good will be full of joy when he sees the sinful punished. He will wash his feet in their blood.

The righteous shall rejoice when he sees the vengeance. He shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked;

11 A nd men will say, “For sure there is pay for those who are right and good. For sure there is a God Who says who is guilty or not on the earth.”

so that men shall say, “Most certainly there is a reward for the righteous. Most certainly there is a God who judges the earth.”