Psalms 37

1 Of David. Do not be angry because of the wrongdoers, or have envy of the workers of evil.

[A Psalm] of David. Fret not thyself because of evil-doers, and be not envious of them that work unrighteousness;

2 For they will quickly be cut down like grass, and become dry like the green plants.

for they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and fade as the green herb.

3 Have faith in the Lord, and do good; be at rest in the land, and go after righteousness.

Confide in Jehovah, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on faithfulness;

4 So will your delight be in the Lord, and he will give you your heart's desires.

and delight thyself in Jehovah, and he will give thee the desires of thy heart.

5 Put your life in the hands of the Lord; have faith in him and he will do it.

Commit thy way unto Jehovah, and rely upon him: he will bring [it] to pass;

6 And he will make your righteousness be seen like the light, and your cause like the shining of the sun.

and he will bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.

7 Take your rest in the Lord, waiting quietly for him; do not be angry because of the man who does well in his evil ways, and gives effect to his bad designs.

Rest in Jehovah, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him that prospereth in his way, because of the man that bringeth mischievous devices to pass.

8 Put an end to your wrath and be no longer bitter; do not give way to angry feeling which is a cause of sin.

Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; fret not thyself: it [would be] only to do evil.

9 For the evil-doers will be cut off: but those who have faith in the Lord will have the earth for their heritage.

For evil-doers shall be cut off; but those that wait on Jehovah, they shall possess the land.

10 For in a short time the evil-doer will be gone: you will go searching for his place, and it will not be there.

For yet a little while, and the wicked is not; and thou considerest his place, but he is not.

11 But the gentle will have the earth for their heritage; they will take their delight in peace without measure.

But the meek shall possess the land, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of prosperity.

12 The sinner has evil designs against the upright, lifting up the voice of wrath against him.

The wicked plotteth against the righteous, and gnasheth his teeth against him.

13 He will be laughed at by the Lord, who sees that his day is coming.

The Lord laugheth at him; for he seeth that his day is coming.

14 The evil-doers have taken out their swords, their bows are bent; for crushing the poor, and to put to death those who are upright in their ways.

The wicked have drawn out the sword, and have bent their bow, to cast down the afflicted and needy, to slay those that are upright in [the] way:

15 But their swords will be turned into their hearts, and their bows will be broken.

their sword shall enter into their own heart, and their bows shall be broken.

16 The little which the good man has is better than the wealth of evil-doers.

The little that the righteous hath is better than the abundance of many wicked;

17 For the arms of the evil-doers will be broken: but the Lord is the support of the good.

for the arms of the wicked shall be broken, but Jehovah upholdeth the righteous.

18 The days of the upright are numbered by the Lord, and their heritage will be for ever.

Jehovah knoweth the days of the perfect; and their inheritance shall be for ever:

19 They will not be shamed in the evil time, and in the days when all are in need of food they will have enough.

they shall not be ashamed in the time of evil, and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.

20 But the wrongdoers will come to destruction, and the haters of the Lord will be like the fat of lambs, they will be burned up; they will go up in smoke, and never again be seen.

For the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of Jehovah shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume, like smoke shall they consume away.

21 The sinner takes money and does not give it back; but the upright man has mercy, and gives to others.

The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again; but the righteous is gracious and giveth:

22 Those who have his blessing will have the earth for their heritage; but those who are cursed by him will be cut off.

for those blessed of him shall possess the land, and they that are cursed of him shall be cut off.

23 The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and he takes delight in his way.

The steps of a man are established by Jehovah, and he delighteth in his way:

24 Even if he has a fall he will not be without help: for the hand of the Lord is supporting him.

though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down, for Jehovah upholdeth his hand.

25 I have been young, and now am old, but I have not seen the good man without help, or his children looking for bread.

I have been young, and now am old, and I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed seeking bread:

26 All the day he is ready to have mercy and to give; his children are a blessing.

all the day he is gracious and lendeth, and his seed shall be a blessing.

27 Be turned from evil, and do good; and your place will be for ever.

Depart from evil, and do good, and dwell for evermore;

28 For the Lord is a lover of righteousness, and takes care of his saints; they will be kept safe for ever; but the seed of the evil-doers will be cut off.

for Jehovah loveth judgment, and will not forsake his saints: They are preserved for ever; but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off.

29 The upright will have the earth for their heritage, and will go on living there for ever.

The righteous shall possess the land, and dwell therein for ever.

30 The mouth of the good man says words of wisdom; the talk of his tongue is of righteousness.

The mouth of the righteous proffereth wisdom, and his tongue speaketh judgment;

31 The law of his God is in his heart; he will never make a false step.

the law of his God is in his heart; his goings shall not slide.

32 The sinners are watching the upright man, desiring to put him to death.

The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him:

33 The Lord will not give him into their hands, or be against him when he is judged.

Jehovah will not leave him in his hand, nor condemn him when he is judged.

34 Be waiting for the Lord, and keep his way; and you will be lifted up, and have the land for your heritage: when the evil-doers are cut off, you will see it.

Wait for Jehovah, and keep his way, and he will exalt thee to possess the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see [it].

35 I have seen the evil-doer in great power, covering the earth like a great tree.

I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading like a green tree in its native soil:

36 But he came to an end, and there was no sign of him; I made a search for him and he was not there.

but he passed away, and behold, he was not; and I sought him, but he was not found.

37 Give attention to the good man, and take note of the upright; because the end of that man is peace.

Mark the perfect, and behold the upright, for the end of [that] man is peace;

38 But as for the sinners, they will be cut off together; the end of the wrongdoers is destruction.

but the transgressors shall be destroyed together; the future of the wicked shall be cut off.

39 But the Lord is the saviour of the upright: he is their strength in the time of trouble.

But the salvation of the righteous is of Jehovah: he is their strength in the time of trouble.

40 And the Lord will be their help, and keep them safe: he will take them out of the hands of the evil-doers, and be their saviour, because they had faith in him.

And Jehovah will help them and deliver them: he will deliver them from the wicked, and save them; for they trust in him.