Psalms 37

1 [A Psalm] of David. Fret not yourself because of evil-doers, neither be envious of them that do iniquity.

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

2 For they shall soon be withered as the grass, and shall soon fall away as the green herbs.

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

3 Hope in the Lord, and do good; and dwell on the land, and you shall be fed with the wealth of it.

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

4 Delight [yourself] in the Lord; and he shall grant you the requests of your heart.

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

5 Disclose your way to the Lord, and hope in him; and he shall bring [it] to pass.

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

6 And he shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your judgment as the noon-day.

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

7 Submit yourself to the Lord, and supplicate him: fret not yourself because of him that prospers in his way, at the man that does unlawful deeds.

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 ease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not yourself so as to do evil.

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

9 For evil-doers shall be destroyed: but they that wait on the Lord, they shall inherit the land.

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

10 And yet a little while, and the sinner shall not be, and you shall seek for his place, and shall not find [it].

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 But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight [themselves] in the abundance of peace.

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

12 The sinner will watch for the righteous, and gnash his teeth upon him.

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

13 But the Lord shall laugh at him: for he foresees that his day will come.

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

14 Sinners have drawn their swords, they have bent their bow, to cast down the poor and needy one, [and] to kill the upright in heart.

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

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

16 A little is better to the righteous than abundant wealth of sinners.

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

17 For the arms of sinners shall be broken; but the Lord supports the righteous.

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

18 The Lord knows the ways of the perfect; and their inheritance shall be for ever.

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

19 They shall not be ashamed in an evil time; and in days of famine they shall be satisfied.

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

20 For the sinners shall perish; and the enemies of the Lord at the moment of their being honored and exalted have utterly vanished 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 sinner borrows, and will not pay again: but the righteous has compassion, and gives.

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

22 For they that bless him shall inherit the earth; and they that curse him shall be utterly destroyed.

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

23 The steps of a man are rightly ordered by the Lord: and he will take pleasure in his way.

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

24 When he falls, he shall not be ruined: for the Lord supports his hand.

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

25 I was [once] young, indeed I am now old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed seeking 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 He is merciful, and lends continually; and his seed shall be blessed.

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

27 Turn aside from evil, and do good; and dwell for ever.

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

28 For the Lord loves judgment, and will not forsake his saints; they shall be preserved for ever: the blameless shall be avenged, but the seed of the ungodly shall be utterly destroyed.

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 But the righteous shall inherit the earth, and dwell upon it for ever.

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

30 The mouth of the righteous will meditate wisdom, and his tongue will speak of judgment.

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

31 The law of his God is in his heart; and his steps shall not slide.

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

32 The sinner watches the righteous, and seeks to kill him.

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

33 But the Lord will not leave him in his hands, nor by any means condemn him when he is judged.

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

34 Wait on the Lord, and keep his way, and he shall exalt you to inherit the land: when the wicked are destroyed, you shall see [it].

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 saw the ungodly very highly exalting himself, and lifting himself up like the cedars of Libanus.

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

36 Yet I passed by, and behold! he was not: and I sought him, but his place was not found.

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

37 Maintain innocence, and behold uprightness: for there is a remnant to the peaceful man.

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

38 But the transgressors shall be utterly destroyed together: the remnants of the ungodly shall be utterly destroyed.

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

39 But the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord; and he is their defender in the time of affliction.

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

40 And the Lord shall help them, and deliver them: and he shall rescue them from sinners, and save them, because they have hoped in him.

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.