Psalms 37

A psalm of David.

1Don't be upset over wicked people, or be jealous of those who do wrong.

2For like grass, they will quickly dry up; like plants, they will soon wither away.

3Trust in the Lord, and do good. Live in the land and feed on faithfulness.

4Find your happiness in the Lord, and he will give you what you want the most.

5Entrust all that you do to the Lord. Place your confidence in him and he will help you.

6He will make your vindication shine like a light, the rightness of your cause like the noonday sun.

7Be still in God's presence; wait patiently for him. Don't be upset over people who prosper when they carry out their evil schemes.

8Give up your anger! Let go of your rage! Don't get mad—it only results in evil!

9For the wicked will be destroyed, and those who trust in the Lord will take possession of the land.

10In a little while the wicked will be no more—though you look for them you won't find them.

11The humble will own the land; they will live there happily, in peace and prosperity.

12The wicked plot evil against those who do good, gnashing their teeth at them.

13But the Lord laughs at them, for he sees their coming day of judgment.

14The wicked draw their swords, and bend their bows to destroy the poor and needy, to kill those who live right.

15But the swords of the wicked#37:15. Implied. will slice through their own hearts, and their bows will be broken.

16It's better to do right and only have a little, than to be wicked and rich.

17For the power of the wicked will be broken, but the Lord supports those who do right.

18The Lord knows what is happening to the innocent and grants them an eternal inheritance.

19They will not be humiliated in bad times; even in days of famine they will have plenty to eat.

20But the wicked will die. The enemies of the Lord are like the flowers of the field—they will vanish like smoke.

21The wicked borrow, but don't repay; while those who do right give generously.

22Those who are blessed by God will own the land, but those he curses will die.

23The Lord shows the right path to those who follow him, and is happy with the way they live.

24Though they may trip up, they will not fall to the ground, for the Lord holds their hand.

25Once I was young, and now I've grown old, yet I've never seen those who do right abandoned, nor their children having to beg for bread.

26They are always kind, and generous with their loans; their children are a blessing.

27Reject evil, do what is good, and you will live forever in the land.

28For the Lord loves fairness and he will never abandon those who are trustworthy. He will protect them forever. But the children of the wicked will die.

29Those who do right will own the land and will live there forever.

30People who do right give good advice, explaining what is fair.

31God's law lives in their minds, so they will not slip from his way.

32The wicked lie in wait for those who do good, intending to kill them.

33But the Lord will not let them fall into the hands of the wicked, and he will not let those who do good be condemned when they are put on trial.

34Trust in the Lord, and stay on his path. He will lift you up and give you the land to own. You will see when the wicked are destroyed.

35I have watched the wicked acting brutally, spreading like a large tree in its native land.

36But when I passed that way the next time, they were gone. I searched for them but couldn't find them.

37Observe the innocent, look at those who do right! Those who love peace have a future!

38But those who are rebellious will be altogether destroyed; the wicked have no future.

39The Lord saves those who live right; he is their protection in times of trouble.

40The Lord helps them and rescues them from the wicked. He saves them because they go to him for protection.

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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com

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Psalms 37

A Song of Wisdom

Poetic praise by King David # 37 Psalm 37 is an acrostic psalm, in which every other verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

1Don’t follow after the wicked ones or be jealous of their wealth.

Don’t think for a moment they’re better off than you.

2They and their short-lived success

will soon shrivel up and quickly fade away,

like grass clippings in the hot sun.

3Keep trusting in the Lord and do what is right in his eyes.

Fix your heart on the promises of God, and you will dwell in the land,

feasting on his faithfulness.

4Find your delight # 37:4 The word delight means “to be soft or tender.” and true pleasure in Yahweh,

and he will give you what you desire the most.

5Give # 37:5 The Hebrew word used here can be translated “commit,” which means “to roll over your burdens on the Lord.” God the right to direct your life,

and as you trust him along the way,

you’ll find he pulled it off perfectly!

6He will appear # 37:6 The Hebrew verb found here is also used for giving birth. Perhaps this is a reference to the birth of Christ, our righteousness. as your righteousness,

as sure as the dawning of a new day.

He will manifest as your justice,

as sure and strong as the noonday sun.

7Quiet your heart in his presence

and wait # 37:7 The root word of the word for “wait” can mean “to whirl” or “to be in labor [give birth].” What an unusual concept for waiting on God. We may feel like we’re being whirled around by our circumstances, but in the end, our season of waiting gives birth to greater things. patiently for Yahweh.

And don’t think for a moment that the wicked, in their prosperity,

are better off than you.

8Stay away from anger and revenge.

Keep envy far from you, for it only leads you into lies.

9For one day the wicked will be destroyed,

but those who trust in the Lord

will inherit the land.

10Just a little while longer and the ungodly will vanish;

you will look for them in vain.

11But the humble of heart will inherit every promise # 37:11 See Matt. 5:5.

and enjoy abundant peace.

12Let the wicked keep plotting against the godly

with all their sneers and arrogant jeers.

13God laughs at the wicked and their plans,

for he knows their day is coming!

14Evil ones take aim at the poor and helpless;

they are ready to slaughter those who do right.

15But the Lord will turn all their weapons of wickedness back on themselves,

piercing their pride-filled hearts until they are helpless.

16It is much better to have little

combined with much of God

than to have the fabulous wealth of the wicked and nothing else.

17For the Lord takes care of all his forgiven ones

while the strength of evil men will surely slip away.

18Day by day the Lord watches the good deeds of the godly,

and he prepares for them his forever-reward.

19Even in a time of disaster he will watch over them,

and they will always have more than enough

no matter what happens.

20All the enemies of God will perish.

For the wicked have only a momentary value, a fading glory.

Then one day they vanish! Here today, gone tomorrow.

21They break their promises, borrowing money

but never paying it back.

The good man returns what he owes with some extra besides.

22Yahweh’s blessed ones receive the land,

but the cursed ones will be cut off

with nothing to show for themselves.

23When Yahweh delights in how you live your life,

he establishes your every step.

24If they stumble badly they will still survive,

for the Lord lifts them up with his hands.

25I was once inexperienced, # 37:25 Or “immature.” The Hebrew word na’ar has a homonym that means “to be driven out,” which may be a reference to David being driven out of Jerusalem by Absalom. but now I’m old.

Not once have I found a lover of God forsaken by him,

nor have any of their children gone hungry.

26Instead, I’ve found the godly ones

to be the generous ones who give freely to others.

Their children are blessed and become a blessing.

27If you truly want to dwell forever in God’s presence,

forsake evil and do what is right in his eyes.

28The Lord loves it when he sees us walking in his justice.

He will never desert his devoted lovers;

they will be kept forever in his faithful care,

but the descendants of the wicked will be banished.

29The faithful lovers of God will inherit the earth

and enjoy every promise of God’s care,

dwelling in peace forever.

30God-lovers make the best counselors.

Their words possess wisdom and are right and trustworthy.

31The ways of God are in their hearts

and they won’t swerve from the paths of steadfast righteousness.

32Evil ones spy on the godly ones, stalking them

to find something they could use to accuse them.

They’re out for the kill!

33But God will foil all their plots.

The godly will not stand condemned when brought to trial.

34So don’t be impatient for Yahweh to act;

keep moving forward steadily in his ways,

and he will exalt you to possess the land.

You’ll watch with your own eyes

and see the wicked lose everything.

35I’ve already seen this happen.

Once I saw a wicked and violent man

overpower all who were around him,

a domineering tyrant with his prideful and oppressive ways.

36Then he died and was forgotten.

Now no one cares that he is gone forever.

37But you can tell who are the blameless and spiritually mature.

What a different story with them!

The godly ones will have a peaceful, prosperous future

with a happy ending.

38Every evil sinner will be destroyed, obliterated.

They’ll be utter failures with no future!

39But the Lord will be the Savior of all who love him.

Even in their time of trouble, God will live in them as strength.

40Because of their faith in him, their daily portion will be

a Father’s help and deliverance from evil.

This is true for all who turn to hide themselves in him!

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