Read Psalm 37
Of David.
1 Do not fret because of those who are evil
or be envious of those who do wrong;
2 for like the grass they will soon wither,
like green plants they will soon die away.
3 Trust in the Lord and do good;
dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
4 Take delight in the Lord,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him and he will do this:
6 He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn,
your vindication like the noonday sun.
7 Be still before the Lord
and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when people succeed in their ways,
when they carry out their wicked schemes.
8 Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;
do not fret—it leads only to evil.
9 For those who are evil will be destroyed,
but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land.
10 A little while, and the wicked will be no more;
though you look for them, they will not be found.
11 But the meek will inherit the land
and enjoy peace and prosperity.
12 The wicked plot against the righteous
and gnash their teeth at them;
13 but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
for he knows their day is coming.
14 The wicked draw the sword
and bend the bow
to bring down the poor and needy,
to slay those whose ways are upright.
15 But their swords will pierce their own hearts,
and their bows will be broken.
16 Better the little that the righteous have
than the wealth of many wicked;
17 for the power of the wicked will be broken,
but the Lord upholds the righteous.
18 The blameless spend their days under the Lord’s care,
and their inheritance will endure forever.
19 In times of disaster they will not wither;
in days of famine they will enjoy plenty.
20 But the wicked will perish:
Though the Lord’s enemies are like the flowers of the field,
they will be consumed, they will go up in smoke.
21 The wicked borrow and do not repay,
but the righteous give generously;
22 those the Lord blesses will inherit the land,
but those he curses will be destroyed.
23 The Lord makes firm the steps
of the one who delights in him;
24 though he may stumble, he will not fall,
for the Lord upholds him with his hand.
25 I was young and now I am old,
yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken
or their children begging bread.
26 They are always generous and lend freely;
their children will be a blessing.
27 Turn from evil and do good;
then you will dwell in the land forever.
28 For the Lord loves the just
and will not forsake his faithful ones.
Wrongdoers will be completely destroyed;
the offspring of the wicked will perish.
29 The righteous will inherit the land
and dwell in it forever.
30 The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom,
and their tongues speak what is just.
31 The law of their God is in their hearts;
their feet do not slip.
32 The wicked lie in wait for the righteous,
intent on putting them to death;
33 but the Lord will not leave them in the power of the wicked
or let them be condemned when brought to trial.
34 Hope in the Lord
and keep his way.
He will exalt you to inherit the land;
when the wicked are destroyed, you will see it.
35 I have seen a wicked and ruthless man
flourishing like a luxuriant native tree,
36 but he soon passed away and was no more;
though I looked for him, he could not be found.
37 Consider the blameless, observe the upright;
a future awaits those who seek peace.
38 But all sinners will be destroyed;
there will be no future for the wicked.
39 The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord;
he is their stronghold in time of trouble.
40 The Lord helps them and delivers them;
he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
because they take refuge in him.
Go Deeper
In today’s reading we see the clear and repeated theme of how we should respond when it seems like the bad guys win. We are reminded that it is God that created the universe and it is God who has the final word in every situation. David, in his older years, writes to us after years of witnessing the bad guy come out on top. We, of course, see this all too often in our own lives. So, how do we keep the faith and be content in our current circumstances? Psalm 37 describes that a life of doing good reaps abundant peace while a life of evil leads to destruction.
Verses 1-11 tell us to submit to God, to do good, and then we will inherit the land. Verses 12-26 tell us to be content in God and let Him be the judge. Verses 27-40 tell us to act justly even when others wrong us. David writes with such conviction because he is writing from first hand experience. King Saul tried to kill David time and time again. David had the opportunity to kill Saul many times, yet spared his life only to watch Saul return to his comfortable palace. David, on the other hand, went back to a cold, dark cave. David abided in God, and in return, God cultivated in him a right perspective of justice. This perspective allowed David to be content in every circumstance, because he knew God would be the ultimate judge.
Like David, when we see evildoers prosper, we must submit to God, fully trusting that He will judge righteously. Psalm 37 repeatedly tells us that the righteous will “inherit the land” (verses 9, 11, 22, 29, and 34). David is saying that God will bless those who stand firm in His promises and that the righteous will be given what they need as long as they trust in the Lord. These promises are what we can cling to when hope seems lost, when we have been wronged, and when justice feels distant.
It would be easy to fall into the mindset of those who are evil, especially when outwardly they find success. Let us remember, though, that at the end of the day, we serve a God who has the final word. Even if the bad guys win every time here on earth, God has the ultimate victory and those who follow Him will reap the ultimate reward of being with Him forever.
Questions
- What would it look like for you to submit to God? What is standing in the way of you doing that?
- Have you witnessed the “evildoer” win in your own life? What happened?
- How can you remain content in unjust situations?
Pray this
God, I ask for strength to push past my doubt, for wisdom to know that you have me right where you want me, and for patience when I feel wronged. Increase my belief that when the “bad guy” wins, you are still in control and want what is best for me. Thank you for going before me and leading me, help me to draw near, even when the odds are stacked against me. You win every time, and for that, I am grateful.
6 thoughts on “Wisdom Psalms: Psalm 37”
I read this quietly and then I read it aloud and sobbed … literally in my cry out to The Lord for Him to vindicate me. I walk at noon for an hour moat days. i say most days because I pick the sunniest days there are to do this. If it wont be sunny out, I go super early. i pick noon for the brightest sun so I get a little tan. To think of vindication at the “noonday sun” spoke very personally to me knowing the emphasis I put my day based on this time It will be the brightest, strongest sunshine and this felt personal. Even the prayer to “push back my doubt” ministered to me to pray for this. The fight for good for my children has been a battle It hurts the deepest when I think on who the deepest hurts come from. Ultimately – the noon sun is coming
Vs 13 God laughs
I know what this chapter is about but that just gave me such delight, God laughs. I guess I have always just thought of a stern, stauch, loving God but not really ever smiling and certainly not laughing.
He will conquer our enemies. He will defeat our foes. He will laugh with us. He will give us the delight of our hearts. The salvation of the righteous is from the LORD; He is their stronghold in the time of trouble. It is difficult to understand why the evil is prospering. I struggle to see how the bad guys are getting away with corruption, deceit, and manipulation right in front of God’s eyes. This psalm is showing us as faithful believers that we will struggle with this truth. It’s not a matter of if the bad guys show up but when. BUT GOD wins and gives us victory, when we rely on Him. 1 Trust in the Lord and do good. 2. Be patient and don’t worry about the wicked. God’s desire is for us to trust and rely on Him in every, good , happy, sad, mean, bad, ugly situation that comes our way. Live our life so others can see that it is God who is truly directing our paths.
God thank You for me putting my trust implicitly, completely, and totallly in every situation, good or bad. God thank You for my patience in letting You take care of all the wrongs of my world. God thank You for loving me. Thank You for laughing. Thank You for guiding me in these minutes of this day that I may glorify You with my thoughts, words and deeds in Jesus name amen
WOOHOO!!!!!
I noted the character traits of the righteous in this Psalm. They:
•trust in the Lord
•do good
•delight in the Lord
•commit all their ways to the Lord
•are still in God’s presence
•wait patiently for him to act
•are gentle and lowly
•are innocent
•are generous
•offer good counsel
•know right from wrong
•fill their heart with God’s word
•are steadfast on his path
•are honest
•love peace
•find shelter in God
I’m sensing God’s call to take inventory of my life. In what areas do I need to grow and change? If I were to pick just one of these traits it would be remaining still in God’s presence. The hurry, worry and bustle tend to crowd him out. I will start here today.
This Psalm was sobering. Living in a world where the “bad guy” usually wins or “nice guys finish last” makes it easy to think that doing what’s right may not bring reward or blessing – it’s what culture has taught us. BUT GOD! The God of our lives is telling us the exact opposite of what the world tries to teach us.
I want to do everything in accordance to God’s world – COMMIT YOUR WAYS TO THE LORD (vs 5) is commanding me to do just that. I want to meditate on that verse today as I go forward with my job, my interactions with others, my actions/words, all of it.
4 “Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
Let me delight in you, Lord! May your desires be placed in my heart and become my desires, Lord!
Humility: when you encounter evil, humble yourself before God.
“Commit everything you do unto the Lord. Trust him and he will help you.” Psalm 37:5
I have learned and still practice this behavior as opposed to what I’ve done in the past. I used to play sin police and try to right every wrong in my life and others. I would go into defense mode over injustices. Thankfully, Holy Spirit showing me through God’s Word that He will take our burdens gladly because He has the strength to handle them. Remaining still in His presence calms, quiets and brings me peace. Therefore, I will delight in the Lord all the days of my life.
“Take delight in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4