Psalms 37:16-26

16 A little that a righteous man has Is better than the riches of many wicked.

17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, But the Lord upholds the righteous.

18 The Lord knows the days of the upright, And their inheritance shall be forever.

19 They shall not be ashamed in the evil time, And in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.

20 But the wicked shall perish; And the enemies of the Lord, Like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish. Into smoke they shall vanish away.

21 The wicked borrows and does not repay, But the righteous shows mercy and gives.

22 For those blessed by Him shall inherit the earth, But those cursed by Him shall be cut off.

23 The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, And He delights in his way.

24 Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; For the Lord upholds him with His hand.

25 I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread.

26 He is ever merciful, and lends; And his descendants are blessed.

Psalms 37:16-26 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 37

\\<<[A Psalm] of David>>\\. This psalm, it is very probable, was written at the same time, and upon the same occasion, with the former; and describes the different states of good and bad men; and is full of exhortations, instructions, and advice to the people of God; intermixed with various encouraging promises. A late learned writer {h} thinks it was written for Mephibosheth's consolation under Ziba's calumny. {h} Delaney's Life of King David, vol. 2. p. 219.