Psalms37
New Living Translation
1 Don’t worry about the wicked or envy those who do wrong.
2 For like grass, they soon fade away. Like spring flowers, they soon wither.
3 Trust in the Lord and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper.
4 Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires.
5 Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you.
6 He will make your innocence radiate like the dawn, and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun.
7 Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act. Don’t worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes.
8 Stop being angry! Turn from your rage! Do not lose your temper— it only leads to harm.
9 For the wicked will be destroyed, but those who trust in the Lord will possess the land.
10 Soon the wicked will disappear. Though you look for them, they will be gone.
11 The lowly will possess the land and will live in peace and prosperity.
12 The wicked plot against the godly; they snarl at them in defiance.
13 But the Lord just laughs, for he sees their day of judgment coming.
14 The wicked draw their swords and string their bows to kill the poor and the oppressed, to slaughter those who do right.
15 But their swords will stab their own hearts, and their bows will be broken.
16 It is better to be godly and have little than to be evil and rich.
17 For the strength of the wicked will be shattered, but the Lord takes care of the godly.
18 Day by day the Lord takes care of the innocent, and they will receive an inheritance that lasts forever.
19 They will not be disgraced in hard times; even in famine they will have more than enough.
20 But the wicked will die. The Lord’s enemies are like flowers in a field— they will disappear like smoke.
21 The wicked borrow and never repay, but the godly are generous givers.
22 Those the Lord blesses will possess the land, but those he curses will die.
23 The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.
24 Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand.
25 Once I was young, and now I am old. Yet I have never seen the godly abandoned or their children begging for bread.
26 The godly always give generous loans to others, and their children are a blessing.
27 Turn from evil and do good, and you will live in the land forever.
28 For the Lord loves justice, and he will never abandon the godly. He will keep them safe forever, but the children of the wicked will die.
29 The godly will possess the land and will live there forever.
30 The godly offer good counsel; they teach right from wrong.
31 They have made God’s law their own, so they will never slip from his path.
32 The wicked wait in ambush for the godly, looking for an excuse to kill them.
33 But the Lord will not let the wicked succeed or let the godly be condemned when they are put on trial.
34 Put your hope in the Lord. Travel steadily along his path. He will honor you by giving you the land. You will see the wicked destroyed.
35 I have seen wicked and ruthless people flourishing like a tree in its native soil.
36 But when I looked again, they were gone! Though I searched for them, I could not find them!
37 Look at those who are honest and good, for a wonderful future awaits those who love peace.
38 But the rebellious will be destroyed; they have no future.
39 The Lord rescues the godly; he is their fortress in times of trouble.
40 The Lord helps them, rescuing them from the wicked. He saves them, and they find shelter in him.
Study
Psalms 37Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Psalms 37. The full AI study guide (summary, themes, context) has its own page.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: David persuades to patience and confidence in God, by the state of the godly and of the wicked..
vv1-6
When we look abroad we see the world full of evil-doers, that flourish and live in ease. So it was seen of old, therefore let us not marvel at the matter. We are tempted to fret at this, to think them the only happy people, and so we are prone to do like them: but this we are warned against. Outward prosperity is fading. When we look forward, with an eye of faith, we shall see no reason to envy the wicked. Their weeping and wailing will be everlasting. The life of religion is a believing trust in the Lord, and diligent care to serve him according to his will. It is not trusting God, but tempting him, if we do not make conscience of our duty to him. A man's life consists not in abundance, but, Thou shalt have food convenient for thee. This is more than we deserve, and it is enough for one that is going to heaven. To delight in God is as much a privilege as a duty. He has not promised to gratify the appetites of the body, and the humours of the fancy, but the desires of the renewed, sanctified soul. What is the desire of the heart of a good man? It is this, to know, and love, and serve God. Commit thy way unto the Lord; roll thy way upon the Lord, so the margin reads it. Cast thy burden upon the Lord, the burden of thy care. We must roll it off ourselves, not afflict and perplex ourselves with thoughts about future events, but refer them to God. By prayer spread thy case and all thy cares before the Lord, and trust in him. We must do our duty, and then leave the event with God. The promise is very sweet: He shall bring that to pass, whatever it is, which thou has committed to him.
vv7-20
Let us be satisfied that God will make all to work for good to us. Let us not discompose ourselves at what we see in this world. A fretful, discontented spirit is open to many temptations. For, in all respects, the little which is allotted to the righteous, is more comfortable and more profitable than the ill-gotten and abused riches of ungodly men. It comes from a hand of special love. God provides plentifully and well, not only for his working servants, but for his waiting servants. They have that which is better than wealth, peace of mind, peace with God, and then peace in God; that peace which the world cannot give, and which the world cannot have. God knows the believer's days. Not one day's work shall go unrewarded. Their time on earth is reckoned by days, which will soon be numbered; but heavenly happiness shall be for ever. This will be a real support to believers in evil times. Those that rest on the Rock of ages, have no reason to envy the wicked the support of their broken reeds.
vv21-33
The Lord our God requires that we do justly, and render to all their due. It is a great sin for those that are able, to deny the payment of just debts; it is a great misery not to be able to pay them. He that is truly merciful, will be ever merciful. We must leave our sins; learn to do well, and cleave to it. This is true religion. The blessing of God is the spring, sweetness, and security of all earthly enjoyments. And if we are sure of this, we are sure not to want any thing good for us in this world. By his grace and Holy Spirit, he directs the thoughts, affections, and designs of good men. By his providence he overrules events, so as to make their way plain. He does not always show them his way for a distance, but leads them step by step, as children are led. God will keep them from being ruined by their falls, either into sin or into trouble, though such as fall into sin will be sorely hurt. Few, if any, have known the consistent believer, or his children, reduced to abject, friendless want. God forsakes not his saints in affliction; and in heaven only the righteous shall dwell for ever; that will be their everlasting habitation. A good man may fall into the hands of a messenger of Satan, and be sorely buffeted, but God will not leave him in his enemy's hands.
Key Words
דָּוִד: David, the youngest son of Jesse
חָרָה: to glow or grow warm; figuratively (usually) to blaze up, of anger, zeal, jealousy
רָעַע: properly, to spoil (literally, by breaking to pieces); figuratively, to make (or be) good fornothing, i.e. bad (physically, socially or morally)
קָנָא: to be (causatively, make) zealous, i.e. (in a bad sense) jealous or envious
מְהֵרָה: properly, a hurry; hence (adverbially) promptly
נָמַל: to become clipped or (specifically) circumcised
חָצִיר: grass; also a leek (collectively)
נָבֵל: to wilt; generally, to fall away, fail, faint; figuratively, to be foolish or (morally) wicked; causatively, to despise, disgrace
יֶרֶק: properly, pallor, i.e. hence, the yellowish green of young and sickly vegetation; concretely, verdure, i.e. grass or vegetation
דֶּשֶׁא: a sprout; by analogy, grass
Cross References
Psalms 37Jesus directly quotes the Greek equivalent of verse 11: 'the meek shall inherit the earth.'
Supported by Matthew Poole, John Calvin, JFB
Parallel exhortation to commit/roll one's works and ways onto the Lord, trusting Him.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Verbal link in Hebrew for 'rolling' or committing oneself to the Lord.
Supported by JFB
Echoes the core covenant promise that those who wait on God inherit the earth.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Parallel imagery of the Lord laughing in derision at the plots of the wicked.
Supported by JFB
Intra-psalm parallel confirming the total disappearance of the wicked ('he was not').
Supported by JFB
Reinforces the command not to fret over those who prosper in wicked devices.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Thematic match: the wicked fall into the very destruction they designed for others.
Supported by JFB
Contrasts the wicked who borrow and pay not with the merciful, lending righteous.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Fulfillment of the promise that God will not condemn the righteous, but acquits them.
Supported by JFB
Jeremiah's classic struggle with the exact question of the prosperity of the wicked.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Asaph confesses to the very envy of the foolish/wicked warned against here.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
New Testament assurance of the promise that God will never leave nor forsake His own.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Connects the Lord's love of judgment to His execution of equity and righteousness.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Parallel of having God's law hidden in the heart to preserve one's steps.
Supported by Matthew Henry