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12 [1] **For the chief musician, on the eight-stringed harp **(see 6:1; 92:4),** a psalm by David. **
[2] **Help, Lord, for the faithful man is no more, for trustworthiness has disappeared from among men. **There are no more righteous men; they are all gone, lost to mankind. Truth and loyalty have disappeared; only evil is left.
[3] **People speak falsehood to one another. **Their words mean nothing, and their promises are worthless. **They speak with flattering lips and a double heart. **They are duplicitous; they do not reveal their true thoughts. They speak falsely, hiding their real intentions.
[4] The psalmist pleads: **May the Lord cut off all flattering lips and the tongue that boasts. **Although flattery may be pleasing to those in power, to those who lack influence it is indicative of haughtiness and bravado.
[5] And punish **those who say: With our tongue we will prevail; our lips are our own. Who is master over us? **Flatterers believe they can continue to deceive and threaten with impunity. What follows is a prayer and a message of good tidings:
[6] God will not allow this situation to go on indefinitely. **Because of the robbery of the poor and the groans of the needy, the Lord says: Now I will arise **and reveal Myself to avenge these injustices.** I will bring deliverance; it, **this deliverance,** will be revealed to him, **the oppressed person, when he is rescued from the clutches of those who seek to harm him.** **
[7] **The words of the Lord are pure words, **devoid of all pollutants. They are** like silver purified in the furnace of the earth. ***Alil*, translated here as “furnace,” can also mean “in plain view.”** **The silver is** refined seven times, **so that it is completely free of impurities. That is to say, the words of God are utterly pure and perfect.
[8] **You, Lord, will preserve them, **all the unfortunate and afflicted. **You will keep them secure from this generation, **which seems poised to endure **forever. **
[9] God’s protection is needed because** the wicked roam about, as lowliness [*****kerum zulut*****] is exalted among men.** Some*** ***translate *kerum zulut* as “leeches,” which suck the blood of man. According to this reading, the wicked surround the downtrodden and exploit them, as if sucking their blood.
Version: The Steinsaltz Tanakh - English
Source: https://korenpub.com/collections/the-steinsaltz-tanakh/products/steinsaltz-tanakh
License: Copyright: Steinsaltz Center