God Speaks
1 O Lord, why do you stand so far away?
Why do you hide when I am in trouble?
2 The wicked arrogantly hunt down the poor.
Let them be caught in the evil they plan for others.
3 For they brag about their evil desires;
they praise the greedy and curse the Lord.
4 The wicked are too proud to seek God.
They seem to think that God is dead.
5 Yet they succeed in everything they do.
They do not see your punishment awaiting them.
They sneer at all their enemies.
6 They think, “Nothing bad will ever happen to us!
We will be free of trouble forever!”
7 Their mouths are full of cursing, lies, and threats.
Trouble and evil are on the tips of their tongues.
8 They lurk in ambush in the villages,
waiting to murder innocent people.
They are always searching for helpless victims.
9 Like lions crouched in hiding,
they wait to pounce on the helpless.
Like hunters they capture the helpless
and drag them away in nets.
10 Their helpless victims are crushed;
they fall beneath the strength of the wicked.
11 The wicked think, “God isn’t watching us!
He has closed his eyes and won’t even see what we do!”
12 Arise, O Lord!
Punish the wicked, O God!
Do not ignore the helpless!
13 Why do the wicked get away with despising God?
They think, “God will never call us to account.”
14 But you see the trouble and grief they cause.
You take note of it and punish them.
The helpless put their trust in you.
You defend the orphans.
15 Break the arms of these wicked, evil people!
Go after them until the last one is destroyed.
16 The Lord is king forever and ever!
The godless nations will vanish from the land.
17 Lord, you know the hopes of the helpless.
Surely you will hear their cries and comfort them.
18 You will bring justice to the orphans and the oppressed,
so mere people can no longer terrify them.
Source: New Living Translation: BibleGateway.com
We Respond
Reflection: In Hebrew (the original language of the Psalms), Psalm 10 is a continuation of Psalm 9. They were originally one longer poem with each verse beginning with a consecutive letter of the Hebrew alphabet, much like Psalm 119. Some translations (mostly in English) separate the two, while others (mostly in Hebrew) follow the original pattern. The prayers will address the specific verses, while the reflections will be the same or similar.
Prayer: Dear God who knows the heart and mind of every person living on earth, thank You that even though the wicked think that they will get by with their evil schemes, You will hold them to account in Your perfect time and way. LORD, please take action against the wicked people who are plotting and carrying out evil against those who cannot defend themselves. These wicked ones are proud and arrogant. They no longer consider You relevant to their lives. They think that You don’t exist or if You do, You are powerless to stop them. They are full of lies, cursing, threats, and intimidation. They spy on innocent people who are trying to live in peace and follow You. They pounce on, capture, drag away, and crush the helpless who have no strength to resist. Come to their rescue, O LORD. Don’t let the wicked get by with despising You. You are the sovereign Lord reigning forever and ever. You are the only hope for the helpless. Surely You will hear their cries and comfort them. You will bring justice for those scheduled for abortion, those who are being abused in any way, and those who are being harassed. Then they will know what it means to trust You and not be terrified. Bring glory to Your name, LORD. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)
• I will encourage a believer to share how the LORD God has helped them to stand up for what is true and right, especially of behalf of someone else.
• I will tell a not-yet believer how the LORD God has helped me to stand up for what is true and right, especially of behalf of someone else.
• I will pray for and support, in any way I can, those who are working to assist people like the Falun Gong, the Uyghurs, the people of North Korea, or other persecuted people groups.
• I will use social media to stand up for what is true and right, especially of behalf of someone else.
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __.