לַמְנַצֵּחַ לְדָוִד בַּה' חָסִיתִי אֵיךְ תֹּאמְרוּ לְנַפְשִׁי נוּדִי הַרְכֶם צִפּוֹר

For the chief musician, by David. In the Lord I take refuge. How can you say to me: Wander away, bird, to your mountain? How can you speak to me so harshly, with words that seem to say: Take off, bird, fly to the hills, get away from here?

כִּי הִנֵּה הָרְשָׁעִים יִדְרְכוּן קֶשֶׁת כּוֹנְנוּ חִצָּם עַל יֶתֶר לִירוֹת בְּמוֹ אֹפֶל לְיִשְׁרֵי לֵב

The world is full of menace: For behold, the wicked bend the bow; they have fixed their arrow on the string to shoot, in darkness, when they cannot be detected, at the upright of heart, whom they intend to kill.

כִּי הַשָּׁתוֹת יֵהָרֵסוּן צַדִּיק מַה פָּעָל

If the moral and societal foundations of the world are destroyed, what can the righteous man do? When the moral foundations of society are in ruins, what good can possibly come of the individual deeds of a righteous person?

ה'בְּהֵיכַל קָדְשׁוֹ ה' בַּשָּׁמַיִם כִּסְאוֹ עֵינָיו יֶחֱזוּ עַפְעַפָּיו יִבְחֲנוּ בְּנֵי אָדָם

And yet, there are grounds for a different kind of contemplation, one imbued with faith and hope: The Lord is in His Holy Temple. He has not abandoned His earthly abode. The Lord’s throne is in heaven, and He rules over the world. His eyes behold all that occurs on earth; He puts His gaze on the sons of man.

ה' צַדִּיק יִבְחָן וְרָשָׁע וְאֹהֵב חָמָס שָׂנְאָה נַפְשׁוֹ

The Lord attends to the righteous, but He hates the wicked and the lover of violence.

יַמְטֵר עַל רְשָׁעִים פַּחִים אֵשׁ וְגָפְרִית וְרוּחַ זִלְעָפוֹת מְנָת כּוֹסָם

He will rain burning coal upon the wicked; fire and brimstone and windstorm will be their lot.

כִּי צַדִּיק ה' צְדָקוֹת אָהֵב; יָשָׁר יֶחֱזוּ פָנֵימוֹ

For the Lord is righteous and He therefore loves righteousness. Their faces, the faces of the virtuous, will behold the Upright One.