You have been a refuge for the poor, a refuge for the needy in their distress, a shelter from the rain, and shade from the heat. (A tyrant’s breath is like a rainstorm against a wall,
All my bones will say, “O Lord, who can compare with you? You rescue the weak person from the one who is too strong for him and weak and needy people from the one who robs them.”
He will judge the poor justly. He will make fair decisions for the humble people on earth. He will strike the earth with a rod from his mouth. He will kill the wicked with the breath from his lips.
How should we answer the messengers from the nations? ⌞Tell them that⌟ the Lord has laid Zion’s foundation, and his humble people will find refuge in it.
You have forgotten the God of your salvation. You haven’t remembered the rock, your stronghold. Instead, you have planted the best plants and have set out the imported grapevines.
Then each ruler will be like a shelter from the wind and a hiding place from the rain. They will be like streams on parched ground and the shade of a large rock in a weary land.
This is what the Lord says: Prisoners will be freed from mighty men. Loot will be taken away from tyrants. I will fight your enemies, and I will save your children.
When you cry for help, let your collection of idols save you. A wind will carry them all away. A breath will take them away. But whoever trusts me will possess the land and inherit my holy mountain.
I have made all these things. “That is why all these things have come into being,” declares the Lord. I will pay attention to those who are humble and sorry ⌞for their sins⌟ and who tremble at my word.
He will be a place of safety for you. But he will be a rock that makes people trip and a stumbling block for both kingdoms of Israel. He will be a trap and a snare for those who live in Jerusalem.
The Lord is my strength and my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble. Nations come to you from the most distant parts of the world and say, “Our ancestors have inherited lies, worthless and unprofitable gods.”
Listen, my dear brothers and sisters! Didn’t God choose poor people in the world to become rich in faith and to receive the kingdom that he promised to those who love him?