Psalms 37
37
PSALM 37
Common Meter: 8,6,8,6
A Psalm of David.
1For evil-doers fret thou not
thyself unquietly;
Nor do thou envy bear to those
that work iniquity.
2For, even like unto the grass,
soon be cut down shall they;
And, like the green and tender herb,
they wither shall away.
3Set thou thy trust upon the Lord,
and be thou doing good;
And so thou in the land shalt dwell,
and verily have food.
4Delight thyself in God; he'll give
thine heart's desire to thee.
5Thy way to God commit, him trust,
it bring to pass shall he.
6And, like unto the light, he shall
thy righteousness display;
And he thy judgment shall bring forth
like noon-tide of the day.
7Rest in the Lord, and patiently
wait for him: do not fref
For him who, prosp'ring in his way,
success in sin doth get.
8Do thou from anger cease, and wrath
see thou forsake also:
Fret not thyself in any wise,
that evil thou should'st do.
9For those that evil doers are
shall be cut off and fall:
But those that wait upon the Lord
the earth inherit shall.
10For yet a little while, and then
the wicked shall not be;
His place thou shalt consider well,
but it thou shalt not see.
11But by inheritance the earth
the meek ones shall possess:
They also shall delight themselves
in an abundant peace.
12The wicked plots against the just,
and at him whets his teeth:
13The Lord shall laugh at him, because
his day he coming seeth.
14The wicked have drawn out the sword,
and bent their bow, to slay
The poor and needy, and to kill
men of an upright way.
15But their own sword, which they have drawn,
shall enter their own heart:
Their bows which they have bent shall break,
and into pieces part.
16A little that a just man hath
is more and better far
Than is the wealth of many such
as lewd and wicked are.
17For sinners' arms shall broken be;
but God the just sustains.
18God knows the just man's days, and still
their heritage remains.
19They shall not be asham'd when they
the evil time do see;
And when the days of famine are,
they satisfy'd shall be.
20But wicked men, and foes of God,
as fat of lambs, decay;
They shall consume, yea, into smoke
they shall consume away.
21The wicked borrows, but the same
again he doth not pay;
Whereas the righteous mercy shews,
and gives his own away.
22For such as blessed be of him
the earth inherit shall;
And they that cursed are of him
shall be destroyed all.
23A good man's footsteps by the Lord
are ordered aright;
And in the way wherein he walks
he greatly doth delight.
24Although he fall, yet shall he not
be cast down utterly;
Because the Lord with his own hand
upholds him mightily.
25I have been young, and now am old,
yet have I never seen
The just man left, nor that his seed
for bread have beggars been.
26He's ever merciful, and lends:
his seed is bless'd therefore.
27Depart from evil, and do good,
and dwell for evermore.
28For God loves judgment, and his saints
leaves not in any case;
They are kept ever: but cut off
shall be the sinner's race.
29The just inherit shall the land,
and ever in it dwell:
30The just man's mouth doth wisdom speak;
his tongue doth judgment tell.
31In's heart the law is of his God,
his steps slide not away.
32The wicked man doth watch the just,
and seeketh him to slay.
33Yet him the Lord will not forsake,
nor leave him in his hands:
The righteous will he not condemn,
when he in judgment stands.
34Wait on the Lord, and keep his way,
and thee exalt shall he
Th' earth to inherit; when cut off
the wicked thou shalt see.
35I saw the wicked great in pow'r,
spread like a green bay-tree:
36He pass'd, yea, was not; him I sought,
but found he could not be.
37Mark thou the perfect, and behold
the man of uprightness;
Because that surely of this man
the latter end is peace.
38But those men that transgressors are
shall be destroy'd together;
The latter end of wicked men
shall be cut off for ever.
39But the salvation of the just
is from the Lord above;
He in the time of their distress
their stay and strength doth prove.
40The Lord shall help, and them deliver:
he shall them free and save
From wicked men; because in him
their confidence they have.
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Psalms 37: MP1650
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maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society
Psalms 37
37
Psalm 37#This psalm is an acrostic poem, the stanzas of which begin with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet.
Of David.
1Do not fret because of those who are evil
or be envious of those who do wrong;
2for like the grass they will soon wither,
like green plants they will soon die away.
3Trust in the Lord and do good;
dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
4Take delight in the Lord,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
5Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him and he will do this:
6he will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn,
your vindication like the noonday sun.
7Be still before the Lord
and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when people succeed in their ways,
when they carry out their wicked schemes.
8Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;
do not fret – it leads only to evil.
9For those who are evil will be destroyed,
but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land.
10A little while, and the wicked will be no more;
though you look for them, they will not be found.
11But the meek will inherit the land
and enjoy peace and prosperity.
12The wicked plot against the righteous
and gnash their teeth at them;
13but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
for he knows their day is coming.
14The wicked draw the sword
and bend the bow
to bring down the poor and needy,
to slay those whose ways are upright.
15But their swords will pierce their own hearts,
and their bows will be broken.
16Better the little that the righteous have
than the wealth of many wicked;
17for the power of the wicked will be broken,
but the Lord upholds the righteous.
18The blameless spend their days under the Lord’s care,
and their inheritance will endure for ever.
19In times of disaster they will not wither;
in days of famine they will enjoy plenty.
20But the wicked will perish:
though the Lord’s enemies are like the flowers of the field,
they will be consumed, they will go up in smoke.
21The wicked borrow and do not repay,
but the righteous give generously;
22those the Lord blesses will inherit the land,
but those he curses will be destroyed.
23The Lord makes firm the steps
of the one who delights in him;
24though he may stumble, he will not fall,
for the Lord upholds him with his hand.
25I was young and now I am old,
yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken
or their children begging bread.
26They are always generous and lend freely;
their children will be a blessing.#37:26 Or freely; / the names of their children will be used in blessings (see Gen. 48:20); or freely; / others will see that their children are blessed
27Turn from evil and do good;
then you will dwell in the land for ever.
28For the Lord loves the just
and will not forsake his faithful ones.
Wrongdoers will be completely destroyed#37:28 See Septuagint; Hebrew They will be protected for ever;
the offspring of the wicked will perish.
29The righteous will inherit the land
and dwell in it for ever.
30The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom,
and their tongues speak what is just.
31The law of their God is in their hearts;
their feet do not slip.
32The wicked lie in wait for the righteous,
intent on putting them to death;
33but the Lord will not leave them in the power of the wicked
or let them be condemned when brought to trial.
34Hope in the Lord
and keep his way.
He will exalt you to inherit the land;
when the wicked are destroyed, you will see it.
35I have seen a wicked and ruthless man
flourishing like a luxuriant native tree,
36but he soon passed away and was no more;
though I looked for him, he could not be found.
37Consider the blameless, observe the upright;
a future awaits those who seek peace.#37:37 Or upright; / those who seek peace will have posterity
38But all sinners will be destroyed;
there will be no future#37:38 Or posterity for the wicked.
39The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord;
he is their stronghold in time of trouble.
40The Lord helps them and delivers them;
he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
because they take refuge in him.
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