Psalm 37–39

The Protection of the Righteous and the Destruction of the Wicked

37Of David.^a

¹Do not fret because of evildoers;

do not be envious of doers of wickedness.

²For like the grass they will dry up quickly,

and like green vegetation they will wither.

³Trust Yahweh and do good.

Abide in the land and feed on faithfulness.^b

⁴Take pleasure in Yahweh as well,

and he will give to you the requests of your heart.

⁵Commit to^c Yahweh your way;

Trust also on him and he will act.

⁶Then he will bring forth your righteousness like the light,

and your justice like the noonday.

⁷Be quiet before Yahweh and wait for him.

Do not fret about one who succeeds in his way,

about a man making plots.

⁸Refrain from anger and forsake wrath.

Do not fret; it only brings evil.

⁹For evildoers will be cut off,

but those who wait for Yahweh—

they will possess the land.

¹⁰And^d yet a little while and the wicked will not be,

and you will look carefully upon his place, but he will not be.

¹¹But the afflicted will possess the land,

and they will take pleasure in an abundance of peace.

¹²The wicked plans evil against the righteous,

and gnashes at him with his teeth.

¹³The Lord laughs at him,

for he sees that his day is coming.

¹⁴The wicked have drawn the sword and have bent their bow

to throw down the poor and the needy,

to kill those upright in their way.

¹⁵Their sword will enter into their own heart,

and their bows shall be broken.

¹⁶The little belonging to the righteous is better

than the wealth of many wicked.

¹⁷For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,

but Yahweh supports the righteous.

¹⁸Yahweh knows the days of the blameless,

and their inheritance will be forever.

¹⁹They will not be put to shame in distressing times,^e

and in the days of famine they will be satisfied.

²⁰But the wicked will perish,

and the enemies of Yahweh will be like the splendor of the pastures.

They vanish; in smoke they vanish.

²¹The wicked borrows and does not repay,

but the righteous is gracious and gives.

²²For those blessed by him shall possess the land,

but those cursed by him shall be cut off.

²³The steps of a man are established by Yahweh,

and he takes pleasure in his way.

²⁴Though he fall, he will not be cast headlong,

for Yahweh supports him with his hand.

²⁵I was a youth, but I am now old;

yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken

or his children begging for^f bread.

²⁶All the day he is gracious and lends,

and his children are a blessing.

²⁷Turn aside from evil and do good

and so abide forever.

²⁸For Yahweh loves justice

and will not forsake his faithful ones.

They are protected forever.

But the children of the wicked will be cut off.

²⁹The righteous will possess the land

and abide in it forever.

³⁰The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,

and his tongue speaks justice.

³¹The law of his God is in his heart.

His steps will not slip.

³²The wicked watches for the righteous

and seeks to kill him.

³³Yahweh will not abandon him into his hand,

and he will not let him be condemned when he is judged.

³⁴Wait for Yahweh and keep his way,

and he will exalt you to possess the land.

When the wicked are cut off, you will see it.

³⁵I have seen the wicked acting violently

and spreading himself out

like a luxuriant native tree.

³⁶Then he passed on^g and behold, he was not.

And I sought him, but he could not be found.

³⁷Observe the blameless and look at the upright,

for there is a future for a man of peace.

³⁸But transgressors shall be destroyed altogether.

The future of the wicked shall be cut off.

³⁹And^h the salvation of the righteous is from Yahweh,

their refuge in the time of trouble.

⁴⁰And Yahweh helps them and he rescues them.

He rescues them from the wicked and saves them,

because they take refuge in him.

A Prayer of Repentance

38A psalm of David. To bring to remembrance.^a

¹O Yahweh, do not rebuke me in your anger

or chastise me in your wrath.

²For your arrows have sunk into me,

and your hand has pressed down on me.

³There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation.

There is no health in my bones because of my sin.

⁴For my iniquities have passed over my head;

like a heavy burden they are too heavy for me.

⁵My wounds start to stink; they rot

because of my foolishness.

⁶I am bowed down; I am bent over greatly.

All the day I go about mourning.

⁷For my loins are full of burning,

and there is no soundness in my flesh.

⁸I am faint and crushed greatly;

I groan because of the roaring of my heart.

⁹O Lord, all my longing is before you,

and my sighing is not hidden from you.

¹⁰My heart throbs violently, my strength leaves me;

and the light of my eyes, that also is not with me.

¹¹My friends and companions stand aloof from my affliction,

and my relatives stand afar off.

¹²Those who seek my life lay snares as well,

and those intent on my harm speak threats.

They also plot deceit all day.

¹³But as for me, like the deaf I cannot hear,

and I am like the mute who cannot open his mouth.

¹⁴And so I am like a man who hears not,

and in whose mouth there are no retorts.

¹⁵Rather for you I wait, O Yahweh.

You will answer, O Lord my God.

¹⁶For I said, “Help, lest they rejoice over me,

lest they boast against me when my foot slips.”

¹⁷For I am ready to stumble,

and my pain is before me continually.

¹⁸For my iniquity I confess;

I am anxious because of my sin.

¹⁹And my enemies without cause^b are numerous,

and those who hate me wrongfully^c are many.

²⁰And those who repay evil in return for good

accuse me in return for my pursuing good.

²¹Do not forsake me, O Yahweh.

O my God, do not be far from me.

²²Hurry to help me,

O Lord, my salvation.

The Brevity of Human Life

39For the music director. For Jeduthun.^a A psalm of David.^b

¹I said, “I will guard my ways

that I may not sin^c with my tongue.

I will keep a muzzle over my mouth

as long as the wicked are before me.”

²I was mute with silence. I was silent even from saying good things,

and my pain was stirred up.

³My heart grew hot inside me;

in my sighing a fire burned.

Then I spoke with my tongue,

⁴“Let me know, O Yahweh, my end,

and what is the measure of my days.

Let me know how transient I am.”

⁵Look, you have made my days mere handbreadths,

and my lifespan as nothing next to you.

Surely every person standing firm is complete vanity. Selah

⁶Surely a man walks about as a mere shadow;^d

surely in vain they bustle about.

He heaps up possessions but does not know who will gather them in.

⁷And now, O Lord, for what do I wait?

My hope is for you.

⁸From all my transgressions deliver me;

do not make me the taunt of the fool.

⁹I am mute. I do not open my mouth,

for you, yourself, have done it.

¹⁰Remove from me your affliction.

By the opposition of your hand I perish.

¹¹When with rebukes you chastise a man for sin,

you^e consume^f like a moth his delightful things.

Surely everyone is a mere vapor.^g Selah

¹²Hear my prayer, O Yahweh, and listen to my cry for help;

do not be deaf to my tears.

For I am an alien^h with you,

a sojourner like all my ancestors.ⁱ

¹³Look away from me that I may be cheerful,

before I depart and I am no more.