1: No doubt about it! God is good--good to good people, good to the good--hearted.
2: But I nearly missed it, missed seeing his goodness.
3: I was looking the other way, looking up to the people
4: At the top, envying the wicked who have it made,
5: Who have nothing to worry about, not a care in the whole wide world.
6: Pretentious with arrogance, they wear the latest fashions in violence,
7: Pampered and overfed, decked out in silk bows of silliness.
8: They jeer, using words to kill; they bully their way with words.
9: They're full of hot air, loudmouths disturbing the peace.
10: People actually listen to them--can you believe it? Like thirsty puppies, they lap up their words.
11: What's going on here? Is God out to lunch? Nobody's tending the store.
12: The wicked get by with everything; they have it made, piling up riches
13: I've been stupid to play by the rules; what has it gotten me?
14: A long run of bad luck, that's what--a slap in the face every time I walk out the door.
15: If I'd have given in and talked like this, I would have betrayed your dear children.
16: Still, when I tried to figure it out, all I got was a splitting headache...
17: Until I entered the sanctuary of God. Then I saw the whole picture:
18: The slippery road you've put them on, with a final crash in a ditch of delusions.
19: In the blink of an eye, disaster! A blind curve in the dark, and--nightmare!
20: We wake up and rub our eyes.... Nothing. There's nothing to them. And there never was.
21: When I was beleaguered and bitter, totally consumed by envy,
22: I was totally ignorant, a dumb ox in your very presence.
23: I'm still in your presence, but you've taken my hand.
24: You wisely and tenderly lead me, and then you bless me.
25: You're all I want in heaven! You're all I want on earth!
26: When my skin sags and my bones get brittle, GOD is rock-firm and faithful.
27: Look! Those who left you are falling apart! Deserters, they'll never be heard from again.
28: But I'm in the very presence of God--oh, how refreshing it is! I've made Lord GOD my home. God, I'm telling the world what you do! An Asaph psalm