Psalm 94

W. van der Kamp, 1967

1. O LORD of vengeance, show Thy glory;
   Judge of the earth, call all before Thee.
   Rise up, reveal Thy justice, LORD,
   And give the proud their just reward!
   Thine is the vengeance, Thine the might;
   Put Thou my enemies to flight.
   
2. How long yet shall the wicked flourish,
   The godless all their evil nourish?
   They bluster and they boast aloud;
   Of all their misdeeds they are proud.
   They crush Thy people in their rage,
   And they afflict Thy heritage.
   
3. They slay the widow, and they curse me;
   They kill the alien without mercy
   And put to death the fatherless.
   All those who trust Thee they oppress;
   They say, “The LORD, He does not see;
   The God of Jacob, where is He?”
   
4. O dullest of the people, mark this,
   You fools whose mind perverse and dark is.
   Shall He who made the ear not hear,
   And shall He not in wrath appear?
   Shall He who formed the eye not see
   And fight for us and set us free?
   
5. Shall He who chastens all the nations
   Forget your sins and provocations?
   Shall He who teaches men not know
   The hidden thoughts of friend and foe?
   The LORD knows that the thoughts of man
   Are but a breath and short of span.
   
6. Blest is the man whom Thou dost chasten:
   To soothe his anguish Thou shalt hasten.
   Blest he whom Thou dost teach Thy ways
   To give relief from troubled days,
   Till for the wicked, one and all,
   A pit is dug in which they fall.
   
7. God’s people will not be forsaken;
   His heritage cannot be shaken,
   For to the righteous will return
   The equity for which they yearn.
   The light of justice will be lit;
   All upright men will follow it.
   
8. Who will, when wicked men attack me,
   Be on my side, stand up and back me?
   Who will defend me when my foes
   Delight in my distress and woes?
   Had not the LORD my cause upheld,
   In silence would I soon have dwelt.
   
9. O LORD, with songs of praise I hail Thee,
   For when I thought, “My feet will fail me,”
   Didst Thou stretch out Thy mighty hand,
   And by Thy stead fast love I stand.
   ‘Tis God who in my cares and fears
   My soul with consolation cheers.
   
10. Can wicked rulers share Thy favor
    And be Thy allies, O my Savior?
    They frame their mischief by decree;
    They band together and agree.
    To kill the just is their intent,
    And they condemn the innocent.
    
11. The LORD has been my strong Defender;
    God is my rock, to Him I render
    My thankful praise, my triumph songs.
    He will repay them for their wrongs,
    And all the wicked He shall rout.
    The LORD our God will wipe them out.