Psalm 37:6-16

6 He will bring forth ¹your righteousness as the light And your judgment ²as the noonday.

7 Rest in the LORD and ³wait patiently for Him; ⁴Do not fret because of him who ⁵prospers in his way, Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.

8 Cease from anger and ⁶forsake wrath; Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing.

9 For ⁷evildoers will be cut off, But those who wait for the LORD, they will ⁸inherit the land.

10 Yet ⁹a little while and the wicked man will be no more; And you will look carefully for ¹⁰his place and he will not be there.

11 But ¹¹the humble will inherit the land And will delight themselves in ¹²abundant prosperity.

12 The wicked ¹³plots against the righteous And ¹⁴gnashes at him with his teeth.

13 The Lord ¹⁵laughs at him, For He sees ¹⁶his day is coming.

14 The wicked have drawn the sword and ¹⁷bent their bow To cast down the ¹⁸afflicted and the needy, To ¹⁹slay those who are upright in conduct.

15 Their sword will enter their own heart, And their ²⁰bows will be broken.

16 ²¹Better is the little of the righteous Than the abundance of many wicked.

Psalm 37:6-16 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.

Cross References

• 1. Psalms 97:11; Isaiah 58:8, 10; Micah 7:9
• 2. Job 11:17
• 3. Psalms 40:1; Psalms 62:5; Lamentations 3:26
• 4. Psalms 37:1, 8
• 5. Jeremiah 12:1
• 6. Ephesians 4:31; Colossians 3:8
• 7. Psalms 37:2, 22
• 8. Psalms 25:13; Proverbs 2:21; Isaiah 57:13; Isaiah 60:21; Matthew 5:5
• 9. Job 24:24
• 10. Job 7:10; Psalms 37:35, 36
• 11. Matthew 5:5
• 12. Psalms 72:7
• 13. Psalms 31:13, 20
• 14. Psalms 35:16
• 15. Psalms 2:4
• 16. 1 Samuel 26:10; Job 18:20
• 17. Psalms 11:2; Lamentations 2:4
• 18. Psalms 35:10; Psalms 86:1
• 19. Psalms 11:2
• 20. 1 Samuel 2:4; Psalms 46:9
• 21. Proverbs 15:16; Proverbs 16:8

Footnotes

• [a] Or "Be still"
• [b] Or "longingly"