Psalm 37

New King James Version

The Heritage of the Righteous and the Calamity of the Wicked

A Psalm of David.

37 Do^(A) not fret because of evildoers,
Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity.
²For they shall soon be cut down ^(B)like the grass,
And wither as the green herb.

³Trust in the Lord, and do good;
Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
⁴^(C)Delight yourself also in the Lord,
And He shall give you the desires of your ^(D)heart.

⁵^(E)Commit^[a] your way to the Lord,
Trust also in Him,
And He shall bring it to pass.
⁶^(F)He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light,
And your justice as the noonday.

⁷Rest in the Lord, ^(G)and wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who ^(H)prospers in his way,
Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.
⁸^(I)Cease from anger, and forsake wrath;
^(J)Do not fret—it only causes harm.

⁹For evildoers shall be ^[b]cut off;
But those who wait on the Lord,
They shall ^(K)inherit the earth.
¹⁰For ^(L)yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more;
Indeed, ^(M)you will look carefully for his place,
But it shall be no more.
¹¹^(N)But the meek shall inherit the earth,
And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

¹²The wicked plots against the just,
^(O)And gnashes at him with his teeth.
¹³^(P)The Lord laughs at him,
For He sees that ^(Q)his day is coming.
¹⁴The wicked have drawn the sword
And have bent their bow,
To cast down the poor and needy,
To slay those who are of upright conduct.
¹⁵Their sword shall enter their own heart,
And their bows shall be broken.

¹⁶^(R)A little that a righteous man has
Is better than the riches of many wicked.
¹⁷For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
But the Lord upholds the righteous.

¹⁸The Lord knows the days of the upright,
And their inheritance shall be forever.
¹⁹They shall not be ashamed in the evil time,
And in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.
²⁰But the wicked shall perish;
And the enemies of the Lord,
Like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish.
Into smoke they shall vanish away.

²¹The wicked borrows and does not repay,
But ^(S)the righteous shows mercy and gives.
²²^(T)For those blessed by Him shall inherit the earth,
But those cursed by Him shall be ^[c]cut off.

²³^(U)The steps of a good man are ^[d]ordered by the Lord,
And He delights in his way.
²⁴^(V)Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down;
For the Lord upholds him with His hand.

²⁵I have been young, and now am old;
Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken,
Nor his descendants begging bread.
²⁶^(W)He is ^[e]ever merciful, and lends;
And his descendants are blessed.

²⁷Depart from evil, and do good;
And dwell forevermore.
²⁸For the Lord loves justice,
And does not forsake His saints;
They are preserved forever,
But the descendants of the wicked shall be cut off.
²⁹^(X)The righteous shall inherit the land,
And dwell in it forever.

³⁰^(Y)The mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom,
And his tongue talks of justice.
³¹The law of his God is in his heart;
None of his steps shall ^[f]slide.

³²The wicked ^(Z)watches the righteous,
And seeks to slay him.
³³The Lord ^(AA)will not leave him in his hand,
Nor condemn him when he is judged.

³⁴^(AB)Wait on the Lord,
And keep His way,
And He shall exalt you to inherit the land;
When the wicked are cut off, you shall see it.
³⁵I have seen the wicked in great power,
And spreading himself like a native green tree.
³⁶Yet ^[g]he passed away, and behold, he was no more;
Indeed I sought him, but he could not be found.

³⁷Mark the blameless man, and observe the upright;
For the future of that man is peace.
³⁸^(AC)But the transgressors shall be destroyed together;
The future of the wicked shall be cut off.

³⁹But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
He is their strength ^(AD)in the time of trouble.
⁴⁰And ^(AE)the Lord shall help them and deliver them;
He shall deliver them from the wicked,
And save them,
^(AF)Because they trust in Him.