Psalms 37

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

A psalm for David himself. Be not emulous of evildoers; nor envy them that work iniquity.

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

For they shall shortly wither away as grass, and as the green herbs shall quickly fall.

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

Trust in the Lord, and do good, and dwell in the land, and thou shalt be fed with its riches.

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

Delight in the Lord, and he will give thee the requests of thy heart.

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

Commit thy way to the Lord, and trust in him, and he will do it.

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

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

7 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.

Be subject to the Lord and pray to him Envy not the man who prospereth in his way; the man who doth unjust things.

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

Cease from anger, and leave rage; have no emulation to do evil.

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

For the evildoers shall be cut off: but they that wait upon the Lord shall inherit the land.

10 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.

For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: and thou shalt seek his place, and shalt not find it.

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

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

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

The sinner shall watch the just man: and shall gnash upon him with his teeth.

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

But the Lord shall laugh at him: for he foreseeth that his day shall come.

14 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].

The wicked have drawn out the sword: they have bent their bow. To cast down the poor and needy, to kill the upright of heart.

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

Let their sword enter into their own hearts, and let their bow be broken.

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

Better is a little to the just, than the great riches of the wicked.

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

For the arms of the wicked shall be broken in pieces; but the Lord strengtheneth the just.

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

The Lord knoweth the days of undefiled; and their inheritance shall be for ever.

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

They shall not be confounded in the evil time; and in the days of famine they shall be filled:

20 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.

Because the wicked shall perish. And the enemies of the Lord, presently after they shall be honoured and exalted, shall come to nothing and vanish like smoke.

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

The sinner shall borrow, and not pay again; but the just sheweth mercy and shall give.

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

For such as bless him shall inherit the land: but such as curse him shall perish.

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

With the Lord shall the steps of a man be directed, and he shall like well his way.

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

When he shall fall he shall not be bruised, for the Lord putteth his hand under him.

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

I have been young, and now am old; and I have not seen the just forsaken, nor his seed seeking bread.

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

He sheweth mercy, and lendeth all the day long; and his seed shall be in blessing.

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

Decline from evil and do good, and dwell for ever and ever.

28 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.

For the Lord loveth judgment, and will not forsake his saints: they shall be preserved for ever. The unjust shall be punished, and the seed of the wicked shall perish.

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

But the just shall inherit the land, and shall dwell therein for evermore.

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

The mouth of the just shall meditate wisdom: and his tongue shall speak judgment.

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

The law of his God is in his heart, and his steps shall not be supplanted.

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

The wicked watcheth the just man, and seeketh to put him to death,

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

But the Lord will not leave in his hands; nor condemn him when he shall be judged.

34 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.

Expect the Lord and keep his way: and he will exalt thee to inherit the land: when the sinners shall perish thou shalt see.

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

I have seen the wicked highly exalted, and lifted up like the cedars of Libanus.

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

And I passed by, and lo, he was not: and I sought him and his place was not found.

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

Keep innocence, and behold justice: for there are remnants for the peaceable man.

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

But the unjust shall be destroyed together: the remnants of the wicked shall perish.

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

But the salvation of the just is from the Lord, and he is their protector in the time of trouble.

40 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.

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