Psalm 37

1 Fret not thyself because of evil-doers, Neither be thou envious against them that work unrighteousness.

2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, And wither as the green herb.

3 Trust in Jehovah, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on his faithfulness.

4 Delight thyself also in Jehovah; And he will give thee the desires of thy heart.

5 Commit thy way unto Jehovah; Trust also in him, and he will bring it to pass.

6 And he will make thy righteousness to go forth as the light, And thy justice as the noon-day.

7 Rest in Jehovah, and wait patiently for him: Fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, Because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.

8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: Fret not thyself, it tendeth only to evil-doing.

9 For evil-doers shall be cut off; But those that wait for Jehovah, they shall inherit the land.

10 For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: Yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and he shall not be.

11 But the meek shall inherit the land, And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

12 The wicked plotteth against the just, And gnasheth upon him with his teeth.

13 The Lord will laugh at him; For he seeth that his day is coming.

14 The wicked have drawn out the sword, and have bent their bow, To cast down the poor and needy, To slay such as are upright in the way.

15 Their sword shall enter into their own heart, And their bows shall be broken.

16 Better is a little that the righteous hath Than the abundance of many wicked.

17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken; But Jehovah upholdeth the righteous.

18 Jehovah knoweth the days of the perfect; And their inheritance shall be for ever.

19 They shall not be put to shame in the time of evil; And in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.

20 But the wicked shall perish, And the enemies of Jehovah shall be as the fat of lambs: They shall consume; In smoke shall they consume away.

21 The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again; But the righteous dealeth graciously, and giveth.

22 For such as are blessed of him shall inherit the land; And they that are cursed of him shall be cut off.

23 A man’s goings are established of Jehovah; And he delighteth in his way.

24 Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; For Jehovah upholdeth him with his hand.

25 I have been young, and now am old; Yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his seed begging bread.

26 All the day long he dealeth graciously, and lendeth; And his seed is blessed.

27 Depart from evil, and do good; And dwell for evermore.

28 For Jehovah loveth justice, And forsaketh not his saints; They are preserved for ever: But the seed of the wicked shall be cut off.

29 The righteous shall inherit the land, And dwell therein for ever.

30 The mouth of the righteous talketh of wisdom, And his tongue speaketh justice.

31 The law of his God is in his heart; None of his steps shall slide.

32 The wicked watcheth the righteous, And seeketh to slay him.

33 Jehovah will not leave him in his hand, Nor condemn him when he is judged.

34 Wait for Jehovah, and keep his way, And he will exalt thee to inherit the land: When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.

35 I have seen the wicked in great power, And spreading himself like a green tree in its native soil.

36 But one passed by, and, lo, he was not: Yea, I sought him, but he could not be found.

37 Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright; For there is a happy end to the man of peace.

38 As for transgressors, they shall be destroyed together; The end of the wicked shall be cut off.

39 But the salvation of the righteous is of Jehovah; He is their stronghold in the time of trouble.

40 And Jehovah helpeth them, and rescueth them; He rescueth them from the wicked, and saveth them, Because they have taken refuge in him.

Psalm 37

By David.

1 Do not fret when wicked men seem to succeed!
Do not envy evildoers!

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

3 Trust in the Lord and do what is right!
Settle in the land and maintain your integrity!

4 Then you will take delight in the Lord,
and he will answer your prayers.

5 Commit your future to the Lord!
Trust in him, and he will act on your behalf.

6 He will vindicate you in broad daylight,
and publicly defend your just cause.

7 Wait patiently for the Lord!
Wait confidently for him!
Do not fret over the apparent success of a sinner,
a man who carries out wicked schemes!

8 Do not be angry and frustrated!
Do not fret! That only leads to trouble!

9 Wicked men will be wiped out,
but those who rely on the Lord are the ones who will possess the land.

10 Evil men will soon disappear;
you will stare at the spot where they once were, but they will be gone.

11 But the oppressed will possess the land
and enjoy great prosperity.

12 Evil men plot against the godly
and viciously attack them.

13 The Lord laughs in disgust at them,
for he knows that their day is coming.

14 Evil men draw their swords
and prepare their bows,
to bring down the oppressed and needy,
and to slaughter those who are godly.

15 Their swords will pierce their own hearts,
and their bows will be broken.

16 The little bit that a godly man owns is better than
the wealth of many evil men,

17 for evil men will lose their power,
but the Lord sustains the godly.

18 The Lord watches over the innocent day by day
and they possess a permanent inheritance.

19 They will not be ashamed when hard times come;
when famine comes they will have enough to eat.

20 But evil men will die;
the Lord’s enemies will be incinerated –
they will go up in smoke.

21 Evil men borrow, but do not repay their debt,
but the godly show compassion and are generous.

22 Surely those favored by the Lord will possess the land,
but those rejected by him will be wiped out.

23 The Lord grants success to the one
whose behavior he finds commendable.

24 Even if he trips, he will not fall headlong,
for the Lord holds his hand.

25 I was once young, now I am old.
I have never seen a godly man abandoned,
or his children forced to search for food.

26 All day long he shows compassion and lends to others,
and his children are blessed.

27 Turn away from evil! Do what is right!
Then you will enjoy lasting security.

28 For the Lord promotes justice,
and never abandons his faithful followers.
They are permanently secure,
but the children of evil men are wiped out.

29 The godly will possess the land
and will dwell in it permanently.

30 The godly speak wise words
and promote justice.

31 The law of their God controls their thinking;
their feet do not slip.

32 Evil men set an ambush for the godly
and try to kill them.

33 But the Lord does not surrender the godly,
or allow them to be condemned in a court of law.

34 Rely on the Lord! Obey his commands!
Then he will permit you to possess the land;
you will see the demise of evil men.

35 I have seen ruthless evil men
growing in influence, like a green tree grows in its native soil.

36 But then one passes by, and suddenly they have disappeared!
I looked for them, but they could not be found.

37 Take note of the one who has integrity! Observe the godly!
For the one who promotes peace has a future.

38 Sinful rebels are totally destroyed;
evil men have no future.

39 But the Lord delivers the godly;
he protects them in times of trouble.

40 The Lord helps them and rescues them;
he rescues them from evil men and delivers them,
for they seek his protection.