Psalm 37
The full text of Psalm 37 in the Trinity Bible Version — clear modern English, translated from the original Hebrew. Free to read.
Of David.
1 Fret not yourself because of evildoers;
be not envious of wrongdoers!
2 For they will soon fade like the grass
and wither like the green herb.
3 Trust in the LORD, and do good;
dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself in the LORD,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the LORD;
trust in him, and he will act.
6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
and your justice as the noonday.
7 Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;
fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,
over the man who carries out evil devices!
8 Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!
Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.
9 For the evildoers shall be cut off,
but those who wait for the LORD shall inherit the land.
10 In just a little while, the wicked will be no more;
though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there.
11 But the meek shall inherit the land
and delight themselves in abundant peace.
12 The wicked plots against the righteous
and gnashes his teeth at him,
13 but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
for he sees that his day is coming.
14 The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows
to bring down the poor and needy,
to slay those whose way is upright;
15 their sword shall enter their own heart,
and their bows shall be broken.
16 Better is the little that the righteous has
than the abundance of many wicked.
17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
but the LORD upholds the righteous.
18 The LORD knows the days of the blameless,
and their heritage will remain forever.
19 They are not put to shame in evil times;
in the days of famine they have abundance.
20 But the wicked shall perish;
the enemies of the LORD are like the glory of the pastures;
they vanish—like smoke they vanish away.
21 The wicked borrows but does not pay back,
but the righteous is generous and gives;
22 for those blessed by the LORD shall inherit the land,
but those cursed by him shall be cut off.
23 The steps of a man are established by the LORD,
when he delights in his way;
24 though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,
for the LORD upholds his hand.
25 I have been young, and now am old,
yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
or his children begging for bread.
26 He is ever lending generously,
and his children become a blessing.
27 Turn away from evil and do good;
so shall you dwell forever.
28 For the LORD loves justice;
he will not forsake his saints.
They are preserved forever,
but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.
29 The righteous shall inherit the land
and dwell upon it forever.
30 The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
and his tongue speaks justice.
31 The law of his God is in his heart;
his steps do not slip.
32 The wicked watches for the righteous
and seeks to put him to death.
33 The LORD will not abandon him to his power
or let him be condemned when he is brought to trial.
34 Wait for the LORD and keep his way,
and he will exalt you to inherit the land;
you will look on when the wicked are cut off.
35 I have seen a wicked, ruthless man,
spreading himself like a green laurel tree.
36 But he passed away, and behold, he was no more;
though I sought him, he could not be found.
37 Mark the blameless and behold the upright,
for there is a future for the man of peace.
38 But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed;
the future of the wicked shall be cut off.
39 The salvation of the righteous is from the LORD;
he is their stronghold in the time of trouble.
40 The LORD helps them and delivers them;
he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
because they take refuge in him.
Translation notes (8)
- Psalm 37:3a The idiom re'eh emunah (רְעֵה אֱמוּנָה) turns on a verb meaning both 'to shepherd' or 'graze' and 'to keep company with', the latter sense visible in Proverbs 13:20, 'a companion of fools'. The phrase may thus be read 'feed on faithfulness' or, as rendered here, 'befriend faithfulness', making faithfulness either the psalmist's pasture or his chosen companion in the land.
- Psalm 37:9a Hebrew erets (אֶרֶץ) may mean either 'land' or 'earth'; in this psalm the primary reference is the promised land of Israel as covenant inheritance. The phrase recurs as a refrain in verses 11, 22, 29, and 34, and verse 11 is echoed in Matthew 5:5, where the Greek gē carries the same range of meaning.
- Psalm 37:11a Hebrew erets (אֶרֶץ) can mean either 'land' or 'earth'; in this psalm it denotes the land promised to Israel, which the anavim, 'the meek' or 'the lowly', will possess. Jesus quotes this line in the third Beatitude (Matthew 5:5), where the Greek gē carries the broader sense 'earth'. The 'abundant peace' translates rov shalom, peace in its full sense of wholeness and well-being.
- Psalm 37:20a The Hebrew kiqar karim (כִּיקַר כָּרִים) means literally 'like the splendor of the pastures', an image of grass that flourishes briefly and withers. Because karim can also mean 'lambs', the King James tradition rendered the phrase 'as the fat of lambs', taking the smoke as that of sacrifice; the pastoral reading better suits the psalm's imagery of fading grass (verse 2).
- Psalm 37:25a The psalmist speaks as a personal observation within an acrostic wisdom psalm, articulating the covenant conviction that the LORD provides for the righteous. Like the general maxims of Proverbs, the statement describes the normal order of covenant blessing rather than asserting a universal claim; Job and other laments record apparent exceptions.
- Psalm 37:28a Psalm 37 is an alphabetic acrostic, but the expected ayin line is obscured here in the Masoretic Text, which reads le'olam nishmaru, 'they are preserved forever'. The Septuagint's 'the lawless shall be banished' points to an underlying awwalim nishmedu, 'the unjust are destroyed', which would restore the acrostic. This translation follows the Masoretic Text.
- Psalm 37:35a The Hebrew phrase "like a native/indigenous tree, luxuriant" describes something deeply rooted but temporary.
- Psalm 37:37a Hebrew acharit (אַחֲרִית), 'end' or 'what comes after', can denote posterity as well as future prospect, so the promise may be descendants who outlast the man of peace or a destiny that endures. The same word recurs in the next verse, where the acharit of the wicked is cut off, framing the psalm's closing contrast.
About this translation
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