Psalms 37

1 A psalm of David. Don't be upset over wicked people, or be jealous of those who do wrong.

“Of David.” Do not fret thyself because of the evil-doers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity.

2 For like grass, they will quickly dry up; like plants, they will soon wither away.

For like the grass they shall soon be mowed down, and like the green herb shall they wither.

3 Trust in the Lord, and do good. Live in the land and feed on faithfulness.

Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed [thyself] with truthfulness.

4 Find your happiness in the Lord, and he will give you what you want the most.

And delight thyself in the Lord, and he will give thee the wishes of thy heart.

5 Entrust all that you do to the Lord. Place your confidence in him and he will help you.

Commit thy way unto the Lord, and trust in him: and he will accomplish it.

6 He will make your vindication shine like a light, the rightness of your cause like the noonday sun.

And he will bring forth as the light thy righteousness, and the justice of thy [cause] as the noonday.

7 Be still in God's presence; wait patiently for him. Don't be upset over people who prosper when they carry out their evil schemes.

Be silent before the Lord, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who practices wicked devices.

8 Give up your anger! Let go your rage! Don't get mad—it only results in evil!

Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.

9 For the wicked will be destroyed, and those who trust in the Lord will take possession of the land.

For evil-doers shall be cut off; but those that wait upon the Lord, these—shall truly inherit the land.

10 In a little while the wicked will be no more—though you look for them you won't find them.

For yet but for a little while, and the wicked shall be no more: yea, thou wilt look carefully at his place, and he shall not be there.

11 The humble will own the land; they will live there happily, in peace and prosperity.

But the meek shall inherit the land, and shall delight themselves because of the abundance of peace.

12 The wicked plot evil against those who do good, gnashing their teeth at them.

The wicked purposeth evil against the just, and gnasheth against him with his teeth.

13 But the Lord laughs at them, for he sees their coming day of judgment.

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

14 The wicked draw their swords, and bend their bows to destroy the poor and needy, to kill those who live right.

The wicked have drawn out the sword, and have bent their bow, to cause the poor and needy to fall, and to slaughter such as are of an upright course [of life].

15 But the swords of the wicked will slice through their own hearts, and their bows will be broken.

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

16 It's better to do right and only have a little, than to be wicked and rich.

Better is the little that the righteous hath, than the great riches of many wicked.

17 For the power of the wicked will be broken, but the Lord supports those who do right.

For the arms of the wicked shall be broken: but the upholder of the righteous is the Lord.

18 The Lord knows what is happening to the innocent and grants them an eternal inheritance.

The Lord regardeth the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall endure for ever.

19 They will not be humiliated in bad times; even in days of famine they will have plenty to eat.

They shall not be made ashamed in the time of unhappiness; and in the days of famine shall they be satisfied.

20 But the wicked will die. The enemies of the Lord are like the flowers of the field—they will vanish like smoke.

But the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the Lord shall be as the beauty of the meadow: they pass away; in smoke they pass away.

21 The wicked borrow, but don't repay; while those who do right give generously.

The wicked borroweth, and repayeth not; but the righteous is beneficent, and giveth.

22 Those who are blessed by God will own the land, but those he curses will die.

For those blessed of him shall inherit the land; and those cursed of him shall be cut off.

23 The Lord shows the right path to those who follow him, and is happy with the way they live.

By the Lord are the steps of the righteous man established; and he findeth pleasure in his course [of life].

24 Though they may trip up, they will not fall to the ground, for the Lord holds their hand.

Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the Lord upholdeth his hand.

25 Once I was young, and now I've grown old, yet I've never seen those who do right abandoned, nor their children having to beg for bread.

I have been young, and I am also grown old: yet have I never seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed seeking for bread.

26 They are always kind, and generous with their loans; their children are a blessing.

He is all the time beneficent, and lendeth: and his seed will be for a blessing.

27 Reject evil, do what is good, and you will live forever in the land.

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

28 For the Lord loves fairness and he will never abandon those who are trustworthy. He will protect them forever. But the children of the wicked will die.

For the Lord loveth justice, and never forsaketh his pious servants: they are for ever preserved; but the seed of the wicked will be cut off.

29 Those who do right will own the land and will live there forever.

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

30 People who do right give good advice, explaining what is fair.

The mouth of the righteous uttereth wisdom, and his tongue speaketh what is just.

31 God's law lives in their minds, so they will not slip from his way.

The law of his God is in his heart: none of his steps shall slip.

32 The wicked lie in wait for those who do good, intending to kill them.

The wicked looketh out for the righteous, and seeketh to slay him.

33 But the Lord will not let them fall into the hands of the wicked, and he will not let those who do good be condemned when they are put on trial.

The Lord will not leave him in his hand, and will not condemn him when he is judged.

34 Trust in the Lord, and stay on his path. He will lift you up and give you the land to own. You will see when the wicked are destroyed.

Wait on the Lord, and keep his way, and he will exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, shalt thou look on.

35 I have watched the wicked acting brutally, spreading like a large tree in its native land.

I have seen the wicked terrible in power, and striking root like a green tree in its native soil.

36 But when I passed that way the next time, they were gone. I searched for them but couldn't find them.

Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was no more: and I sought him, but he could not be found.

37 Observe the innocent, look at those who do right! Those who love peace have a future!

Observe the perfect man, and behold the upright; for there is a [happy] future for the man of peace.

38 But those who are rebellious will be altogether destroyed; the wicked have no future.

But the transgressors are destroyed together: the future of the wicked is cut off.

39 The Lord saves those who live right; he is their protection in times of trouble.

And the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord: he is their strong-hold in the time of distress.

40 The Lord helps them and rescues them from the wicked. He saves them because they go to him for protection.

And the Lord helpeth them, and delivereth them; he will deliver them from the wicked, and save them; because they have put their trust in him.