Judaism
Psalms 5
Text
For the Leader; upon the Nehiloth. A Psalm of David.
Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my meditation.
Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God; For unto Thee do I pray.
O LORD, in the morning shalt Thou hear my voice; In the morning will I order my prayer unto Thee, and will look forward.
For Thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness; Evil shall not sojourn with Thee.
The boasters shall not stand in Thy sight; Thou hatest all workers of iniquity.
Thou destroyest them that speak falsehood; The LORD abhorreth the man of blood and of deceit.
But as for me, in the abundance of Thy lovingkindness will I come into Thy house; I will bow down toward Thy holy temple in the fear of Thee.
O LORD, lead me in Thy righteousness because of them that lie in wait for me; Make Thy way straight before my face.
For there is no sincerity in their mouth; Their inward part is a yawning gulf, Their throat is an open sepulchre; They make smooth their tongue.
Hold them guilty, O God, Let them fall by their own counsels; Cast them down in the multitude of their transgressions; For they have rebelled against Thee.
So shall all those that take refuge in Thee rejoice, They shall ever shout for joy, And Thou shalt shelter them; Let them also that love Thy name exult in Thee.
For Thou dost bless the righteous; O LORD, Thou dost encompass him with favour as with a shield.
Text: The Holy Scriptures, Jewish Publication Society (1917), public domain, via Sefaria.
✦ Connected Across Traditions
The Golden Rule
Matthew 7:12
“Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them.”
Hadith (An-Nawawi 13)
“None of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.”
Mahabharata 5.1517
“One should never do to another what one regards as injurious to oneself.”
Dhammapada 129 (trans. Bhikkhu Sujato)
“All tremble at the rod, all fear death. Treating others like oneself, neither kill nor incite to kill.”
Good vs Evil / Light vs Darkness
Yasna 30:3
“Now the two primal Spirits, who reveal themselves as Twins, are the Better and the Bad, in thought and word and action.”
John 1:5
“And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.”
Dhammapada 2 (trans. Bhikkhu Sujato)
“Intention is the leader of things; intention is first, they’re made by intention. If with pure intent you speak or act, happiness follows you like a shadow that never leaves.”
Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 16 (trans. Edwin Arnold)
“The Doors of Hell Are threefold, whereby men to ruin pass, The door of Lust, the door of Wrath, the door Of Avarice. Let a man shun those three!”