May he restrain and calm our tongue,
lest voices clash in dreaded strife
and shield our sight with loving care,
lest eyes be lured by vain delights.

And let our inmost heart be pure,
let senseless ignorance depart;
may sparing use of food and drink
wear down the lustful pride of flesh,

That, when the daylight hours have gone
and night in turn has come once more,
with hearts kept pure by self-restraint,
we may extol him with our song.

To God the Father, endless praise,
all glory to his only Son,
who with the Spirit Paraclete
now reign for all eternity. Amen.

Why do you stand so far off, O Lord,
and hide yourself in time of trouble?
The wicked arrogantly persecute the poor,
but they are trapped in the schemes they have devised.

The wicked boast of their heart’s desire;
the covetous curse and revile the Lord.
The wicked are so proud that they care not for God;
their only thought is, “God does not matter.”

Their ways are devious at all times;
your judgments are far above out of their sight;
they defy all their enemies.
They say in their heart, “I shall not be shaken;
no harm shall happen to me ever.”

Their mouth is full of cursing, deceit, and oppression;
under their tongue are mischief and wrong.
They lurk in ambush in public squares
and in secret places they murder the innocent;
they spy out the helpless.

They lie in wait, like a lion in a covert;
they lie in wait to seize upon the lowly;
they seize the lowly and drag them away in their net.

The innocent are broken and humbled before them;
the helpless fall before their power.
They say in their heart, “God has forgotten;
he hides his face; he will never notice.”

Rise up, O Lord;
lift up your hand, O God;
do not forget the afflicted.
Why should the wicked revile God?
why should they say in their heart, “You do not care”?

Surely, you behold trouble and misery;
you see it and take it into your own hand.
The helpless commit themselves to you,
for you are the helper of orphans.

Break the power of the wicked and evil;
search out their wickedness until you find none.
The Lord is King for ever and ever;
the ungodly shall perish from his land.

The Lord will hear the desire of the humble;
you will strengthen their heart and your ears shall hear;
to give justice for the orphan and oppressed,
so that mere mortals may strike terror no more.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be for ever. Amen.

For see how the wicked bend the bow
and fit their arrows to the string,
to shoot from ambush at the true of heart.
When the foundations are being destroyed,
what can the righteous do?”

The Lord is in his holy temple;
the Lord’s throne is in heaven.
His eyes behold the inhabited world;
his piercing eye weighs our worth.

The Lord weighs the righteous as well as the wicked,
but those who delight in violence he abhors.
Upon the wicked he shall rain coals of fire and burning sulphur;
a scorching wind shall be their lot.

For the Lord is righteous;
he delights in righteous deeds;
and the just shall see his face.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be for ever. Amen.

Oh, that the Lord would cut off all smooth tongues,
and close the lips that utter proud boasts!
Those who say, “With our tongue will we prevail;
our lips are our own; who is lord over us?”

“Because the needy are oppressed,
and the poor cry out in misery,
I will rise up,” says the Lord,
“and give them the help they long for.”
The words of the Lord are pure words,
like silver refined from ore
and purified seven times in the fire.

O Lord, watch over us
and save us from this generation for ever.
The wicked prowl on every side,
and that which is worthless is highly prized by everyone.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be for ever. Amen.