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Dhammapada · narration sample

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The Bible · 495 of 1189

Psalms 17

1.Hear the right, O LORD, attend unto my cry, give ear unto my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips.

2.Let my sentence come forth from thy presence; let thine eyes behold the things that are equal.

3.Thou hast proved mine heart; thou hast visited me in the night; thou hast tried me, and shalt find nothing; I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.

4.Concerning the works of men, by the word of thy lips I have kept me from the paths of the destroyer.

5.Hold up my goings in thy paths, that my footsteps slip not.

6.I have called upon thee, for thou wilt hear me, O God: incline thine ear unto me, and hear my speech.

7.Shew thy marvellous lovingkindness, O thou that savest by thy right hand them which put their trust in thee from those that rise up against them.

8.Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings,

9.From the wicked that oppress me, from my deadly enemies, who compass me about.

10.They are inclosed in their own fat: with their mouth they speak proudly.

11.They have now compassed us in our steps: they have set their eyes bowing down to the earth;

12.Like as a lion that is greedy of his prey, and as it were a young lion lurking in secret places.

13.Arise, O LORD, disappoint him, cast him down: deliver my soul from the wicked, which is thy sword:

14.From men which are thy hand, O LORD, from men of the world, which have their portion in this life, and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure: they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes.

15.As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.

Asked of Guide

Why does the psalmist ask to be kept “as the apple of the eye” and hidden under wings?

The psalmist uses two intimate images to ask for protective, attentive care: being kept “as the apple of the eye” means treasured centrality and constant guarding, and being “hid… under the shadow of thy wings” evokes shelter and refuge from danger. These images frame the plea in verses 8–9 as trust that God will preserve him from “the wicked that oppress me” and the surrounding threats described earlier.

The petition follows the psalmist’s claims of innocence and trials (verses 2–5) and leads into a call for God’s direct intervention against pursuers (verses 12–14); protection is both vindication and deliverance. This pairing of nearness and shelter recalls the trust language in Psalms like 91, where hiding under God’s wings signals safety amid hostility.

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