Psalm 73

Should the Wicked Be Rich?

A psalm of Asaph.

73God is truly good to Israel,

to those who have pure hearts.

²But I had almost stopped believing;

I had almost lost my faith

³because I was jealous of proud people.

I saw wicked people doing well.

⁴They are not suffering;

they are healthy and strong.

⁵They don’t have troubles like the rest of us;

they don’t have problems like other people.

⁶They wear pride like a necklace

and put on violence as their clothing.

⁷They are looking for profits

and do not control their selfish desires.

⁸They make fun of others and speak evil;

proudly they speak of hurting others.

⁹They brag to the sky.

They say that they own the earth.

¹⁰So their people turn to them

and give them whatever they want.

¹¹They say, “How can God know?

What does God Most High know?”

¹²These people are wicked,

always at ease, and getting richer.

¹³So why have I kept my heart pure?

Why have I kept my hands from doing wrong?

¹⁴I have suffered all day long;

I have been punished every morning.

¹⁵God, if I had decided to talk like this,

I would have let your people down.

¹⁶I tried to understand all this,

but it was too hard for me to see

¹⁷until I went to the Temple of God.

Then I understood what will happen to them.

¹⁸You have put them in danger;

you cause them to be destroyed.

¹⁹They are destroyed in a moment;

they are swept away by terrors.

²⁰It will be like waking from a dream.

Lord, when you rise up, they will disappear.

²¹When my heart was sad

and I was angry,

²²I was senseless and stupid.

I acted like an animal toward you.

²³But I am always with you;

you have held my hand.

²⁴You guide me with your advice,

and later you will receive me in honor.

²⁵I have no one in heaven but you;

I want nothing on earth besides you.

²⁶My body and my mind may become weak,

but God is my strength.

He is mine forever.

²⁷Those who are far from God will die;

you destroy those who are unfaithful.

²⁸But I am close to God, and that is good.

The Lord God is my protection.

I will tell all that you have done.