The Battle of Words (Psalm 12:1-8)

Save, O Lord, for the godly one is gone; for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man. ² Everyone utters lies to his neighbor; with flattering lips and a double heart they speak. ³ May the Lord cut off all flattering lips, the tongue that makes great boasts, ⁴ those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail, our lips are with us; who is master over us?” ⁵ “Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan, I will now arise,” says the Lord; “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.” ⁶ The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times. ⁷ You, O Lord, will keep them; You will guard us from this generation forever. ⁸ On every side the wicked prowl, as vileness is exalted among the children of man.