Psalm 35 is the 35th psalm of the

Book of Psalms The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived f ...

, beginning in English in the

King James Version The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an Bible translations into English, English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and publis ...

: "Plead my cause, O LORD, with them that strive with me: fight against them that fight against me." It is titled there: ''The Lord the Avenger of His People''.: NKJV The Book of Psalms is part of the

third section The Third Section of His Imperial Majesty's Own Chancellery (russian: Tretiye Otdeleniye, or ''III otdeleniye sobstvennoy E.I.V. kantselyarii'' - in full: Третье отделение Собственной Его Императорского В ...

of the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. Hebrew: ''Tān ...

, and a book of the

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

. In the slightly different numbering system used in the Greek

Septuagint The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond th ...

and Latin

Vulgate The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...

translations of the Bible, this psalm is Psalm 34. In Latin, it is known by the

incipit The incipit () of a text is the first few words of the text, employed as an identifying label. In a musical composition, an incipit is an initial sequence of notes, having the same purpose. The word ''incipit'' comes from Latin and means "it beg ...

, "". It is generally attributed to King

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

, although some commentators attribute it to the

prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the s ...

Jeremiah Jeremiah, Modern: , Tiberian: ; el, Ἰερεμίας, Ieremíās; meaning " Yah shall raise" (c. 650 – c. 570 BC), also called Jeremias or the "weeping prophet", was one of the major prophets of the Hebrew Bible. According to Jewish ...

.Kirkpatrick, Alexander (1906)
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
on Psalm 35, accessed 30 October 2021 Psalm 35 is used in both Jewish and Christian liturgies. It has been set to music, in German by

Heinrich Schütz Heinrich Schütz (; 6 November 1672) was a German early Baroque composer and organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach, as well as one of the most important composers of the 17th century. He ...

and in Latin by

Marc-Antoine Charpentier Marc-Antoine Charpentier (; 1643 – 24 February 1704) was a French Baroque composer during the reign of Louis XIV. One of his most famous works is the main theme from the prelude of his ''Te Deum'', ''Marche en rondeau''. This theme is still us ...

, among others.

Text

Hebrew Bible version

The following is the Hebrew text of Psalm 35:

King James Version

# Plead my cause, O LORD, with them that strive with me: fight against them that fight against me. # Take hold of shield and buckler, and stand up for mine help. # Draw out also the spear, and stop the way against them that persecute me: say unto my soul, I am thy salvation. # Let them be confounded and put to shame that seek after my soul: let them be turned back and brought to confusion that devise my hurt. # Let them be as chaff before the wind: and let the angel of the LORD chase them. # Let their way be dark and slippery: and let the angel of the LORD persecute them. # For without cause have they hid for me their net in a pit, which without cause they have digged for my soul. # Let destruction come upon him at unawares; and let his net that he hath hid catch himself: into that very destruction let him fall. # And my soul shall be joyful in the LORD: it shall rejoice in his salvation. # All my bones shall say, LORD, who is like unto thee, which deliverest the poor from him that is too strong for him, yea, the poor and the needy from him that spoileth him? # False witnesses did rise up; they laid to my charge things that I knew not. # They rewarded me evil for good to the spoiling of my soul. # But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth: I humbled my soul with fasting; and my prayer returned into mine own bosom. # I behaved myself as though he had been my friend or brother: I bowed down heavily, as one that mourneth for his mother. # But in mine adversity they rejoiced, and gathered themselves together: yea, the abjects gathered themselves together against me, and I knew it not; they did tear me, and ceased not: # With hypocritical mockers in feasts, they gnashed upon me with their teeth. # Lord, how long wilt thou look on? rescue my soul from their destructions, my darling from the lions. # I will give thee thanks in the great congregation: I will praise thee among much people. # Let not them that are mine enemies wrongfully rejoice over me: neither let them wink with the eye that hate me without a cause. # For they speak not peace: but they devise deceitful matters against them that are quiet in the land. # Yea, they opened their mouth wide against me, and said, Aha, aha, our eye hath seen it. # This thou hast seen, O LORD: keep not silence: O Lord, be not far from me. # Stir up thyself, and awake to my judgment, even unto my cause, my God and my Lord. # Judge me, O LORD my God, according to thy righteousness; and let them not rejoice over me. # Let them not say in their hearts, Ah, so would we have it: let them not say, We have swallowed him up. # Let them be ashamed and brought to confusion together that rejoice at mine hurt: let them be clothed with shame and dishonour that magnify themselves against me. # Let them shout for joy, and be glad, that favour my righteous cause: yea, let them say continually, Let the LORD be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant. # And my tongue shall speak of thy righteousness and of thy praise all the day long.

Structure

The

Evangelical Heritage Version The Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV) is a translation of the Bible into the English language. The translation project was called The Wartburg Project and the group of translators consisted of pastors, professors, and teachers from the Wisconsin ...

divides the psalm into an opening prayer (verses 1–3), an account of "the attacks of the wicked" against its author (verses 11–16), three petitions (verses 4–8, 17, and 19–27), and three vows (verses 9–10, 18 and 28).

Summary

Relentless enemies are seeking the psalmist's life. Their hostility is groundless, and its maliciousness is aggravated by their ingratitude. He appeals to God to do him justice and deliver him. Each of these points is illustrated by the narrative of David's persecution by

Saul Saul (; he, , ; , ; ) was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the first monarch of the United Kingdom of Israel. His reign, traditionally placed in the late 11th century BCE, supposedly marked the transition of Israel and Judah from a scattered tri ...

in the

First Book of Samuel The Book of Samuel (, ''Sefer Shmuel'') is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Samuel) in the Old Testament. The book is part of the narrative history of Ancient Israel called the Deuteronomistic history, a series of books (Josh ...

; however, it is not against Saul himself that the psalm is directed, but against the men who fomented his insane jealousy.

Uses

Judaism

* Verse 10 is part of

Nishmat Nishmat ( he, נִשְׁמַת or 'the soul of every living thing') is a Jewish prayer that is recited during Pesukei D'Zimrah between the Song of the Sea and Yishtabach on Shabbat and Yom Tov. It is also recited during the Passover seder. Sho ...

Christianity

New Testament

* In the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

, verse 19b, ''They hated me without cause'', is quoted in

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

, where Jesus states that the words are 'fulfilled' in himself.

Book of Common Prayer

In the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

's ''

Book of Common Prayer The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the name given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The original book, published in 1549 in the reign ...

'', this psalm is appointed to be read on the morning of the seventh day of the month.

Catholic Church

Beginning in 1912, Psalm 35 has become part of the

Tenebrae Tenebrae (—Latin for "darkness") is a religious service of Western Christianity held during the three days preceding Easter Day, and characterized by gradual extinguishing of candles, and by a "strepitus" or "loud noise" taking place in total ...

liturgy during the

Holy Week Holy Week ( la, Hebdomada Sancta or , ; grc, Ἁγία καὶ Μεγάλη Ἑβδομάς, translit=Hagia kai Megale Hebdomas, lit=Holy and Great Week) is the most sacred week in the liturgical year in Christianity. In Eastern Churches, w ...

Historical usage

The first prayer when the American

First Continental Congress The First Continental Congress was a meeting of delegates from 12 of the 13 British colonies that became the United States. It met from September 5 to October 26, 1774, at Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, after the British Navy ...

met in early September 1774 was taken from Psalm 35:1.Taylor, Justin
"What America’s Founders Really Thought About the Bible"
The Gospel Coalition. January 10, 2017.

Musical settings

wrote a setting of a paraphrase of Psalm 35 in German, "Herr, hader mit den Hadrern mein",

SWV SWV (Sisters with Voices) is an American R&B vocal trio from New York City whose members are Cheryl (Coko) Gamble, Tamara (Taj) Johnson, and Leanne (Lelee) Lyons. Formed in 1988 as a gospel group, SWV became one of the most successful R&B g ...

132, for the ''

Becker Psalter The ''Becker Psalter'' is a German metrical psalter authored by the Leipzig theologian Cornelius Becker and first published by Jakob Apel in Leipzig in 1602 under the title ''Der Psalter Davids Gesangweis''. Several composers set the psalms contai ...

'', published first in 1628.

wrote a

motet In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the pre-eminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to Margar ...

in Latin, ''Judica Domine nocentes me'', H. 201, for two voices, two treble instruments and continuo. and

François Giroust François Giroust (10 April 1737 – 28 April 1799) was a French composer. He was born in Paris, where he was the last ''maître'' of the Chapelle royale before the French Revolution. He died, aged 62, at Versailles (city), Versailles.John E ...

References

External links

* * * in Hebrew and English - Mechon-mamre * Text of Psalm 35 according to th
1928 Psalter

Of David. / Oppose, O LORD, those who oppose me; war upon those who make war upon me.
text and footnotes, usccb.org United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

introduction and text, biblestudytools.com
Psalm 35 – “Awake to My Vindication”
enduringword.com
Psalm 33 / Refrain: Give me justice, O Lord my God, according to your righteousness.

Psalm 35
at biblegateway.com
Hymns for Psalm 35
hymnary.org {{Psalms

035 35 or XXXV may refer to: * 35 (number), the natural number following 34 and preceding 36 * one of the years 35 BC, AD 35, 1935, 2035 * ''XXXV'' (album), a 2002 album by Fairport Convention * ''35xxxv'', a 2015 album by One Ok Rock * "35" (song), ...

Works attributed to David