Psalm 37

The Heritage of the Righteous and the Calamity of the Wicked

A Psalm of David.

1 Do anot fret because of evildoers,

Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity.

2 For they shall soon be cut down blike the grass,

And wither as the green herb.

3 Trust in the Lord, and do good;

Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.

4 cDelight yourself also in the Lord,

And He shall give you the desires of your dheart.

5 eCommit 1your way to the Lord,

Trust also in Him,

And He shall bring it to pass.

6 fHe shall bring forth your righteousness as the light,

And your justice as the noonday.

7 Rest in the Lord, gand wait patiently for Him;

Do not fret because of him who hprospers in his way,

Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.

8 iCease from anger, and forsake wrath;

jDo not fret—it only causes harm.

9 For evildoers shall be 2cut off;

But those who wait on the Lord,

They shall kinherit the earth.

10 For lyet a little while and the wicked shall be no more;

Indeed, myou will look carefully for his place,

But it shall be no more.

11 nBut the meek shall inherit the earth,

And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

12 The wicked plots against the just,

oAnd gnashes at him with his teeth.

13 pThe Lord laughs at him,

For He sees that qhis day is coming.

14 The 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.

15 Their sword shall enter their own heart,

And their bows shall be broken.

16 rA little that a righteous man has

Is better than the riches 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 upright,

And their inheritance shall be forever.

19 They shall not be ashamed in the evil time,

And in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.

20 But the wicked shall perish;

And the enemies of the Lord,

Like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish.

Into smoke they shall vanish away.

21 The wicked borrows and does not repay,

But sthe righteous shows mercy and gives.

22 tFor those blessed by Him shall inherit the earth,

But those cursed by Him shall be 3cut off.

23 uThe steps of a good man are 4ordered by the Lord,

And He delights in his way.

24 vThough he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down;

For the Lord upholds him with His hand.

25 I have been young, and now am old;

Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken,

Nor his descendants begging bread.

26 wHe is 5ever merciful, and lends;

And his descendants are blessed.

27 Depart from evil, and do good;

And dwell forevermore.

28 For 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 xThe righteous shall inherit the land,

And dwell in it forever.

30 yThe mouth of the righteous speaks wisdom,

And his tongue talks of justice.

31 The law of his God is in his heart;

None of his steps shall 6slide.

32 The wicked zwatches the righteous,

And seeks to slay him.

33 The Lord awill not leave him in his hand,

Nor condemn him when he is judged.

34 bWait 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.

35 I have seen the wicked in great power,

And spreading himself like a native green tree.

36 Yet 7he passed away, and behold, he was no more;

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

37 Mark the blameless man, and observe the upright;

For the future of that man is peace.

38 cBut the transgressors shall be destroyed together;

The future of the wicked shall be cut off.

39 But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;

He is their strength din the time of trouble.

40 And ethe Lord shall help them and deliver them;

He shall deliver them from the wicked,

And save them,

fBecause they trust in Him.

Psalm 38

Prayer in Time of Chastening

A Psalm of David. aTo Bring to Remembrance.

1 O Lord, do not brebuke me in Your wrath,

Nor chasten me in Your hot displeasure!

2 For Your arrows pierce me deeply,

And Your hand presses me down.

3 There is no soundness in my flesh

Because of Your anger,

Nor any health in my bones

Because of my sin.

4 For my iniquities have gone over my head;

Like a heavy burden they are too heavy for me.

5 My wounds are foul and festering

Because of my foolishness.

6 I am 1troubled, I am bowed down greatly;

I go mourning all the day long.

7 For my loins are full of inflammation,

And there is no soundness in my flesh.

8 I am feeble and severely broken;

I groan because of the turmoil of my heart.

9 Lord, all my desire is before You;

And my sighing is not hidden from You.

10 My heart pants, my strength fails me;

As for the light of my eyes, it also has gone from me.

11 My loved ones and my friends cstand aloof from my plague,

And my relatives stand afar off.

12 Those also who seek my life lay snares for me;

Those who seek my hurt speak of destruction,

And plan deception all the day long.

13 But I, like a deaf man, do not hear;

And I am like a mute who does not open his mouth.

14 Thus I am like a man who does not hear,

And in whose mouth is no response.

15 For 2in You, O Lord, dI hope;

You will 3hear, O Lord my God.

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

Lest, when my foot slips, they exalt themselves against me.”

17 eFor I am ready to fall,

And my sorrow is continually before me.

18 For I will fdeclare my iniquity;

I will be gin 4anguish over my sin.

19 But my enemies are vigorous, and they are strong;

And those who hate me wrongfully have multiplied.

20 Those also hwho render evil for good,

They are my adversaries, because I follow what is good.

21 Do not forsake me, O Lord;

O my God, ibe not far from me!

22 Make haste to help me,

O Lord, my salvation!

Psalm 39

Prayer for Wisdom and Forgiveness

To the Chief Musician. To Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.

1 I said, “I will guard my ways, Lest I sin with my atongue;

I will restrain my mouth with a muzzle,

While the wicked are before me.”

2 bI was mute with silence,

I held my peace even from good;

And my sorrow was stirred up.

3 My heart was hot within me;

While I was 1musing, the fire burned.

Then I spoke with my tongue:

4 “Lord, cmake me to know my end,

And what is the measure of my days,

That I may know how frail I am.

5 Indeed, You have made my days as handbreadths,

And my age is as nothing before You;

Certainly every man at his best state is but dvapor.

Selah

6 Surely every man walks about like a shadow;

Surely they 2busy themselves in vain;

He heaps up riches,

And does not know who will gather them.

7 “And now, Lord, what do I wait for?

My ehope is in You.

8 Deliver me from all my transgressions;

Do not make me fthe reproach of the foolish.

9 gI was mute, I did not open my mouth,

Because it was hYou who did it.

10 iRemove Your plague from me;

I am consumed by the blow of Your hand.

11 When with rebukes You correct man for iniquity,

You make his beauty jmelt away like a moth;

Surely every man is vapor.

Selah

12 “Hear my prayer, O Lord,

And give ear to my cry;

Do not be silent at my tears;

For I am a stranger with You,

A sojourner, kas all my fathers were.

13 lRemove Your gaze from me, that I may regain strength,

Before I go away and mam no more.”