Psalms 37

Delight Yourself in the LORD

Of David.

¹For they wither quickly like grass and wilt like tender plants.

²Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.

³Delight yourself in the LORD, and He will give you the desires of your heart.

⁴Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him, and He will do it.

⁵He will bring forth your righteousness like the dawn, your justice like the noonday sun.

⁶Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for Him; do not fret when men prosper in their ways, when they carry out wicked schemes.

⁷Refrain from anger and abandon wrath; do not fret— it can only bring harm.

⁸For the evildoers will be cut off, but those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land.

⁹Yet a little while, and the wicked will be no more; though you look for them, they will not be found.

¹⁰But the meek will inherit the land and delight in abundant prosperity.

¹¹The wicked scheme against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them,

¹²but the Lord laughs, seeing that their day is coming.

¹³The wicked have drawn the sword and bent the bow to bring down the poor and needy, to slay those whose ways are upright.

¹⁴But their swords will pierce their own hearts, and their bows will be broken.

¹⁵Better is the little of the righteous than the abundance of many who are wicked.

¹⁶For the arms of the wicked will be broken, but the LORD upholds the righteous.

¹⁷The LORD knows the days of the blameless, and their inheritance will last forever.

¹⁸In the time of evil they will not be ashamed, and in the days of famine they will be satisfied.

¹⁹But the wicked and enemies of the LORD will perish like the glory of the fields. They will vanish; like smoke they will fade away.

²⁰The wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous are gracious and giving.

²¹Surely those He blesses will inherit the land, but the cursed will be destroyed.

²²The steps of a man are ordered by the LORD who takes delight in his journey.

²³Though he falls, he will not be overwhelmed, for the LORD is holding his hand.

²⁴I once was young and now am old, yet never have I seen the righteous abandoned or their children begging for bread.

²⁵They are ever generous and quick to lend, and their children are a blessing.

²⁶Turn away from evil and do good, so that you will abide forever.

²⁷For the LORD loves justice and will not forsake His saints. They are preserved forever, but the offspring of the wicked will be cut off.

²⁸The righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it forever.

²⁹The mouth of the righteous man utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks justice.

³⁰The law of his God is in his heart; his steps do not falter.

³¹Though the wicked lie in wait for the righteous, and seek to slay them,

³²the LORD will not leave them in their power or let them be condemned under judgment.

³³Wait for the LORD and keep His way, and He will raise you up to inherit the land. When the wicked are cut off, you will see it.

³⁴I have seen a wicked, ruthless man flourishing like a well-rooted native tree,

³⁵yet he passed away and was no more; though I searched, he could not be found.

³⁶Consider the blameless and observe the upright, for posterity awaits the man of peace.

³⁷But the transgressors will all be destroyed; the future of the wicked will be cut off.

³⁸The salvation of the righteous is from the LORD; He is their stronghold in time of trouble.

³⁹The LORD helps and delivers them; He rescues and saves them from the wicked, because they take refuge in Him.