Psalm 37 (New American Standard)

Security of Those Who Trust in the LORD, and Insecurity of the Wicked.

A Psalm of David.

1 ¹Do not fret because of evildoers, Be not ²envious toward wrongdoers. 2 For they will ³wither quickly like the grass And ⁴fade like the green herb. 3 ⁵Trust in the LORD and do good ; ⁶Dwell in the land and ^a7cultivate faithfulness. 4 ⁸Delight yourself in the LORD ; And He will ⁹give you the desires of your heart. 5 ¹⁰Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, and He will do it. 6 He will bring forth ¹¹your righteousness as the light And your judgment ¹²as the noonday. 7 ^bRest in the LORD and ¹³wait ^cpatiently for Him; ¹⁴Do not fret because of him who ¹⁵prospers in his way, Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes. 8 Cease from anger and ¹⁶forsake wrath ; Do not fret ; it leads only to evildoing. 9 For ¹⁷evildoers will be cut off, But those who wait for the LORD, they will ¹⁸inherit the land. 10 Yet ¹⁹a little while and the wicked man will be no more ; And you will look carefully for ²⁰his place and he will not be there. 11 But ²¹the humble will inherit the land And will delight themselves in ²²abundant prosperity. 12 The wicked ²³plots against the righteous And ²⁴gnashes at him with his teeth. 13 The Lord ²⁵laughs at him, For He sees ²⁶his day is coming. 14 The wicked have drawn the sword and ²⁷bent their bow To cast down the ²⁸afflicted and the needy, To ²⁹slay those who are upright in conduct. 15 Their sword will enter their own heart, And their ³⁰bows will be broken. 16 ³¹Better is the little of the righteous Than the abundance of many wicked. 17 For the ³²arms of the wicked will be broken, But the LORD ³³sustains the righteous. 18 The LORD ³⁴knows the days of the ^dblameless, And their ³⁵inheritance will be forever. 19 They will not be ashamed in the time of evil, And ³⁶in the days of famine they will have abundance. 20 But the ³⁷wicked will perish ; And the enemies of the LORD will be like the ^eglory of the pastures, They vanish -³⁸like smoke they vanish away. 21 The wicked borrows and does not pay back, But the righteous ³⁹is gracious and gives. 22 For ⁴⁰those blessed by Him will ⁴¹inherit the land, But those ⁴²cursed by Him will be cut off. 23 ⁴³The steps of a man are established by the LORD, And He ⁴⁴delights in his way. 24 When ⁴⁵he falls, he will not be hurled headlong, Because ⁴⁶the LORD is the One ^fwho holds his hand. 25 I have been young and now I am old, Yet ⁴⁷I have not seen the righteous forsaken Or ⁴⁸his ^gdescendants begging bread. 26 All day long ⁴⁹he is gracious and lends, And ⁵⁰his ^hdescendants are a blessing. 27 ⁵¹Depart from evil and do good, ⁱSo you will abide ⁵²forever. 28 For the LORD ⁵³loves ^jjustice And ⁵⁴does not forsake His godly ones ; They are ⁵⁵preserved forever, But the ^k56descendants of the wicked will be cut off. 29 The righteous will ⁵⁷inherit the land And ⁵⁸dwell in it forever. 30 The mouth of the righteous ⁵⁹utters wisdom, And his tongue ⁶⁰speaks justice. 31 The ⁶¹law of his God is in his heart ; His ⁶²steps do not slip. 32 The ⁶³wicked spies upon the righteous And ⁶⁴seeks to kill him. 33 The LORD will ⁶⁵not leave him in his hand Or ⁶⁶let him be condemned when he is judged. 34 ⁶⁷Wait for the LORD and keep His way, And He will exalt you to inherit the land ; When the ⁶⁸wicked are cut off, you will see it. 35 I have ⁶⁹seen a wicked, violent man Spreading himself like a ⁷⁰luxuriant ^ltree in its native soil. 36 Then ^mhe passed away, and lo, he ⁷¹was no more ; I sought for him, but he could not be found. 37 Mark the ⁿ⁷²blameless man, and behold the ⁷³upright ; For the man of peace will have a ^o74posterity. 38 But transgressors will be altogether ⁷⁵destroyed ; The ^pposterity of the wicked will be ⁷⁶cut off. 39 But the ⁷⁷salvation of the righteous is from the LORD ; He is their strength ⁷⁸in time of trouble. 40 ⁷⁹The LORD helps them and delivers them; He ⁸⁰delivers them from the wicked and saves them, Because they ⁸¹take refuge in Him.