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Delight Yourself in Yahweh

Of David.

Aleph

37 (A)Do not fret because of evildoers,
Be not (B)envious toward doers of unrighteousness.
For they will (C)wither quickly like the grass
And (D)fade like the green herb.

Beth

(E)Trust in Yahweh and do good;
(F)Dwell in the land and [a](G)cultivate faithfulness.
(H)Delight yourself in Yahweh;
And He will (I)give you the desires of your heart.

Gimel

(J)Commit your way to Yahweh,
Trust in Him, and He will do it.
He will bring forth (K)your righteousness as the light
And your judgment (L)as the noonday.

Daleth

Be still in Yahweh and (M)wait [b]patiently for Him;
(N)Do not fret because of him who (O)prospers in his way,
Because of the man who carries out schemes of wickedness.

He

Cease from anger and (P)forsake wrath;
Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing.
For (Q)evildoers will be cut off,
But those who hope for Yahweh, they will (R)inherit the land.

Vav

10 Yet (S)a little while and the wicked man will be no more;
You will look carefully at (T)his place, and he will not be there.
11 But (U)the lowly will inherit the land
And will delight themselves in (V)abundant peace.

Zayin

12 The wicked (W)schemes against the righteous
And (X)gnashes at him with his teeth.
13 The Lord (Y)laughs at him,
For He sees that (Z)his day is coming.

Heth

14 The wicked have drawn the sword and (AA)bent their bow
To cast down the (AB)afflicted and the needy,
To (AC)slay those who are upright in conduct.
15 Their sword will enter their own heart,
And their (AD)bows will be broken.

Teth

16 (AE)Better is the little of the righteous
Than the abundance of many wicked.
17 For the (AF)arms of the wicked will be broken,
But Yahweh (AG)sustains the righteous.

Yodh

18 Yahweh (AH)knows the days of the [c]blameless,
And their (AI)inheritance will be forever.
19 They will not be ashamed in the time of evil,
And (AJ)in the days of famine they will be satisfied.

Kaph

20 But the (AK)wicked will perish;
And the enemies of Yahweh will be like the [d]glory of the pastures,
They vanish—(AL)in smoke they vanish away.

Lamedh

21 The wicked borrows and does not pay back,
But the righteous (AM)is gracious and gives.
22 For (AN)those blessed by Him will (AO)inherit the land,
But those (AP)cursed by Him will be cut off.

Mem

23 (AQ)The footsteps of a man are established by Yahweh,
And He (AR)delights in his way.
24 When (AS)he falls, he will not be hurled headlong,
Because (AT)Yahweh is the One [e]who sustains his hand.

Nun

25 I was young and now I am old,
Yet (AU)I have not seen the righteous forsaken
Or (AV)his seed begging bread.
26 All day long (AW)he is gracious and lends,
And (AX)his seed is a blessing.

Samekh

27 (AY)Depart from evil and do good,
So you will dwell (AZ)forever.

Ayin

28 For Yahweh (BA)loves [f]justice
And (BB)will not forsake His holy ones;
They are (BC)kept forever,
But the (BD)seed of the wicked will be cut off.
29 The righteous will (BE)inherit the land
And (BF)dwell in it forever.

Pe

30 The mouth of the righteous (BG)utters wisdom,
And his tongue (BH)speaks justice.
31 The (BI)law of his God is in his heart;
His (BJ)steps do not slip.

Tsadhe

32 The (BK)wicked spies upon the righteous
And (BL)seeks to put him to death.
33 Yahweh will (BM)not forsake him in his hand;
(BN)He will not condemn him when he is judged.

Qoph

34 (BO)Hope for Yahweh and keep His way,
And He will exalt you to inherit the land;
When the (BP)wicked are cut off, you will see it.

Resh

35 I have (BQ)seen a wicked, ruthless man
Spreading himself like a (BR)luxuriant [g]tree in its native soil.
36 Then [h]he passed away, and behold, he (BS)was no more;
I sought for him, but he could not be found.

Shin

37 Observe the [i](BT)blameless man, and behold the (BU)upright;
For the man of peace will have [j]a (BV)posterity.
38 But transgressors will be altogether (BW)destroyed;
The [k]posterity of the wicked will be (BX)cut off.

Tav

39 But the (BY)salvation of the righteous is from Yahweh;
He is their strength (BZ)in time of distress.
40 (CA)Yahweh helps them and protects them;
He (CB)protects them from the wicked and saves them,
Because they (CC)take refuge in Him.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 37:3 Or feed securely, feed on His faithfulness
  2. Psalm 37:7 Or longingly
  3. Psalm 37:18 Lit complete, perfect
  4. Psalm 37:20 Flowers
  5. Psalm 37:24 Or who sustains him with His hand
  6. Psalm 37:28 Lit judgment
  7. Psalm 37:35 Native plant; lit native
  8. Psalm 37:36 Ancient versions I passed by
  9. Psalm 37:37 Or perfect; lit complete
  10. Psalm 37:37 Lit an end
  11. Psalm 37:38 Lit end

Psalm 37[a]

Of David.

37 Don’t get upset over evildoers;
    don’t be jealous of those who do wrong,
    because they will fade fast, like grass;
    they will wither like green vegetables.
Trust the Lord and do good;
    live in the land, and farm faithfulness.
Enjoy the Lord,
    and he will give what your heart asks.
Commit your way to the Lord!
    Trust him! He will act
    and will make your righteousness shine like the dawn,
    your justice like high noon.
Be still before the Lord,
    and wait[b] for him.
Don’t get upset when someone gets ahead—
    someone who invents evil schemes.

Let go of anger and leave rage behind!
    Don’t get upset—it will only lead to evil.
Because evildoers will be eliminated,
    but those who hope in the Lord
    they will possess the land.
10 In just a little while the wicked won’t exist!
    If you go looking around their place,
    they won’t be there.
11 But the weak will inherit the land;
    they will enjoy a surplus of peace.
12 The wicked plot against the righteous,
    grinding their teeth at them.
13 But my Lord just laughs at them
    because he knows that their day is coming.
14 The wicked draw their swords and bend their bows
    to bring down the weak and the needy,
    to slaughter those whose way is right.
15 But the sword of the wicked will enter their own hearts!
    Their bows will be broken!

16 Better is the little that the righteous have
    than the overabundant wealth of the wicked.[c]
17 The arms of the wicked will be broken,
    but the Lord supports the righteous.
18 The Lord is intimately acquainted
    with the lives of the blameless;
    their heritage will last forever.
19 They won’t be ashamed in troubling times,
    and in a period of famine they will eat their fill.
20 But the wicked will die,
    the Lord’s enemies will disappear—
    disappear like the beauty of a meadow—in smoke.
21 The wicked borrow and don’t pay it back, but the righteous are generous and giving.
22 Those blessed by God will possess the land,
    but those cursed by God will be cut off.

23 A person’s steps are made secure by the Lord
    when they delight in his way.
24 Though they trip up, they won’t be thrown down,
    because the Lord holds their hand.
25 I was young and now I’m old,
    but I have never seen the righteous left all alone,
    have never seen their children begging for bread.
26 They are always gracious and generous.
    Their children are a blessing.

27 Turn away from evil! Do good!
    Then you will live in the land forever.
28 The Lord loves justice.
    He will never leave his faithful all alone.
    They are guarded forever,
        but the children of the wicked are eliminated.
29 The righteous will possess the land;
    they will live on it forever.

30 The mouths of the righteous recite wisdom;
    their tongues discuss justice.
31 The Instruction of their God is in their hearts;
    they don’t miss a step.
32 The wicked, on the other hand, target the righteous,
    seeking to kill them.
33 But the Lord won’t leave the righteous
    to the power of the wicked,
    and won’t let the righteous
    be found guilty when they are judged.

34 Hope in the Lord and keep his way!
    He will lift you up so you can possess the land.
        When the wicked are eliminated,
        you will see it for yourself!
35 I myself have seen wicked powerful people,
    exalting themselves like a stately cedar.[d]
36 But when I[e] came back, they were gone!
    I looked all over for them,
    but they couldn’t be found!

37 Observe those who have integrity
    and watch those whose heart is right
    because the future belongs to persons of peace.
38 But wrongdoers will be destroyed all together;
    the future of the wicked will be cut short.
39 The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord;
    he is their refuge in times of trouble.
40 The Lord will help them and rescue them—
    rescue them from the wicked—and he will save them
    because they have taken refuge in him.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 37:1 Ps 37 is an alphabetic acrostic poem; see the note at Pss 9–10.
  2. Psalm 37:7 Correction with LXX, Vulg
  3. Psalm 37:16 LXX, Vulg, Syr; MT abundant wealth of many wicked
  4. Psalm 37:35 LXX
  5. Psalm 37:36 LXX, Syr, Vulg