How good God is to the just,
how faithful to the honest!
Yet I almost slipped,
came close to stumbling.

I envied the arrogant
as I watched them succeed.
Their bodies are perfect,
well-fed and healthy.

They remain untouched
by the troubles we bear.
They adorn themselves with pride,
wrap themselves in violence.

Decadent and slick,
they scheme recklessly,
mocking and snarling,
spewing out threats.

They boast the heavens are theirs,
lay claim to all the world,
pulling people after them,
who swallow what they say.

They ask, "How would God know?
Does the Most High know anything?"
These, then are the wicked,
always richer, always stronger.

What did I gain by my clean hands,
by keeping my conscience clear?
I suffered day after day,
each down brought me pain.

But, to talk like them
would betray your people.
I tried to fathom this,
but it all tormented me
until I went to your holy place.
Now I understand their fate.

You set them on a slippery path,
making them fall to their ruin.
How soon they are destroyed,
swept away in terror.
Like images from a dream,
you, Lord, let them fade.

I became embittered,
my feelings numb;
I was dull, obtuse,
stupid as an ox.
But I stayed close to you,
and you took my hand.

You teach me wisdom,
leading me to glory.
What more would I have in heaven?
Who else delights me on earth?
If mind and body fail,
you, God, are my rock,
my support for ever.