The [uncompromisingly] righteous is delivered out of trouble, and the wicked gets into it instead.
But the salvation of the [consistently] righteous is of the Lord; He is their Refuge and secure Stronghold in the time of trouble.
When the wicked man dies, his hope [for the future] perishes; and the expectation of the godless comes to nothing.
With his mouth the godless man destroys his neighbor, but through knowledge and superior discernment shall the righteous be delivered.
The wicked is [dangerously] snared by the transgression of his lips, but the [uncompromisingly] righteous shall come out of trouble.
The wicked become a ransom for the [uncompromisingly] righteous, and the treacherous for the upright [because the wicked themselves fall into the traps and pits they have dug for the good].
Then King Darius wrote to all peoples, nations, and languages [in his realm] that dwelt in all the earth: May peace be multiplied to you!