2Preserve my soul, for I am a godly man;
         O You my God, save Your servant who trusts in You.

3Be gracious to me, O Lord,
         For to You I cry all day long.

4Make glad the soul of Your servant,
         For to You, O Lord, I lift up my soul.

5For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive,
         And abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You.

6Give ear, O LORD, to my prayer;
         And give heed to the voice of my supplications!

7In the day of my trouble I shall call upon You,
         For You will answer me.

8There is no one like You among the gods, O Lord,
         Nor are there any works like Yours.

9All nations whom You have made shall come and worship before You, O Lord,
         And they shall glorify Your name.

10For You are great and do wondrous deeds;
         You alone are God.

11Teach me Your way, O LORD;
         I will walk in Your truth;
         Unite my heart to fear Your name.

12I will give thanks to You, O Lord my God, with all my heart,
         And will glorify Your name forever.

13For Your lovingkindness toward me is great,
         And You have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.

14O God, arrogant men have risen up against me,
         And a band of violent men have sought my life,
         And they have not set You before them.

15But You, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious,
         Slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness and truth.

16Turn to me, and be gracious to me;
         Oh grant Your strength to Your servant,
         And save the son of Your handmaid.

17Show me a sign for good,
         That those who hate me may see it and be ashamed,
         Because You, O LORD, have helped me and comforted me.

NASB ©1995

American Standard Version
Preserve my soul; for I am godly: O thou my God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Preserve my soul, for I am holy: save thy servant, O my God, that trusteth in thee.

Darby Bible Translation
Keep my soul, for I am godly; O thou my God, save thy servant who confideth in thee.

English Revised Version
Preserve my soul; for I am godly: O thou my God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee.

Webster's Bible Translation
Preserve my soul; for I am holy: O thou my God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee.

World English Bible
Preserve my soul, for I am godly. You, my God, save your servant who trusts in you.

Young's Literal Translation
Keep my soul, for I am pious, Save Thy servant -- who is trusting to Thee, O Thou, my God.A Sheaf of Prayer Arrows
'Bow down Thine ear, O Lord, hear me; for I am poor and needy. 2. Preserve my soul, for I am holy: O Thou my God, save Thy servant that trusteth in Thee. 3. Be merciful unto me, O Lord: for I cry unto Thee daily. 4. Rejoice the soul of Thy servant: for unto Thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. 5. For Thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon Thee.'--PSALM lxxxvi. 1-5. We have here a sheaf of arrows out of a good man's quiver, shot into heaven. …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

My Savior Whose Infinite Grace
"Thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon Thee." -- Psalm 86:5. My Savior whose infinite grace Most kindly encompasses me, Whose goodness more brightly I trace, The more of my life that I see. -- The sins that I mournfully own, Thy meekness and mercy exalt, -- And sweet is the voice from Thy throne, That tenderly shows me a fault. Even now, while my praises arise, A sorrowful spirit is mine; A spirit Thou wilt not despise, For O! it is mourning …
Miss A. L. Waring—Hymns and Meditations

"Behold Your God!"
In Isaiah's day the spiritual understanding of mankind was dark through misapprehension of God. Long had Satan sought to lead men to look upon their Creator as the author of sin and suffering and death. Those whom he had thus deceived, imagined that God was hard and exacting. They regarded Him as watching to denounce and condemn, unwilling to receive the sinner so long as there was a legal excuse for not helping him. The law of love by which heaven is ruled had been misrepresented by the archdeceiver …
Ellen Gould White—The Story of Prophets and Kings

That it is Profitable to Communicate Often
The Voice of the Disciple Behold I come unto Thee, O Lord, that I may be blessed through Thy gift, and be made joyful in Thy holy feast which Thou, O God, of Thy goodness hast prepared for the poor.(1) Behold in Thee is all that I can and ought to desire, Thou art my salvation and redemption, my hope and strength, my honour and glory. Therefore rejoice the soul of Thy servant this day, for unto Thee, O Lord Jesus, do I lift up my soul.(2) I long now to receive Thee devoutly and reverently, I desire …
Thomas A Kempis—Imitation of Christ

The Truth of God
The next attribute is God's truth. A God of truth and without iniquity; just and right is he.' Deut 32:4. For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds.' Psa 57:10. Plenteous in truth.' Psa 86:15. I. God is the truth. He is true in a physical sense; true in his being: he has a real subsistence, and gives a being to others. He is true in a moral sense; he is true sine errore, without errors; et sine fallacia, without deceit. God is prima veritas, the pattern and prototype …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

Sermons of St. Bernard on the Passing of Malachy
Sermon I (November 2, 1148.)[1005] 1. A certain abundant blessing, dearly beloved, has been sent by the counsel of heaven to you this day; and if it were not faithfully divided, you would suffer loss, and I, to whom of a surety this office seems to have been committed, would incur danger. I fear therefore your loss, I fear my own damnation,[1006] if perchance it be said, The young children ask bread, and no man offereth it unto them.[1007] For I know how necessary for you is the consolation which …
H. J. Lawlor—St. Bernard of Clairvaux's Life of St. Malachy of Armagh

The Mercy of God
The next attribute is God's goodness or mercy. Mercy is the result and effect of God's goodness. Psa 33:5. So then this is the next attribute, God's goodness or mercy. The most learned of the heathens thought they gave their god Jupiter two golden characters when they styled him good and great. Both these meet in God, goodness and greatness, majesty and mercy. God is essentially good in himself and relatively good to us. They are both put together in Psa 119:98. Thou art good, and doest good.' This …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

The Third Commandment
Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain: For the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.' Exod 20: 7. This commandment has two parts: 1. A negative expressed, that we must not take God's name in vain; that is, cast any reflections and dishonour on his name. 2. An affirmative implied. That we should take care to reverence and honour his name. Of this latter I shall speak more fully, under the first petition in the Lord's Prayer, Hallowed be thy name.' I shall …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments

Psalms
The piety of the Old Testament Church is reflected with more clearness and variety in the Psalter than in any other book of the Old Testament. It constitutes the response of the Church to the divine demands of prophecy, and, in a less degree, of law; or, rather, it expresses those emotions and aspirations of the universal heart which lie deeper than any formal demand. It is the speech of the soul face to face with God. Its words are as simple and unaffected as human words can be, for it is the genius …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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