# Psalm 37 📖: Do Not Fret [[📚 Explore the Bible Books]] [[-Psalm Overview]] | [[Psalm 36]] | [[Psalm 38]] > [!info] Table of Contents > [[#📜 Scripture Text (NET)]] > [[#📖 Verse-by-Verse Commentary]] > [[#🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights]] > [[#🧠 Chapter Summary]] > [[#✝️ Christ in This Chapter]] > [[#🔎 Key Observations / 🛟 Life Application]] > [[#💬 Discussion Questions]] > [[#✍️ Key Verses to Remember]] > [[#🔗 Related Passages]] > [[#🙏 Devotional Reflection]] > [[#📂 Internal Notes]] ## 📜 Scripture Text (NET) (The NET Bible: New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, 2005) **Author**: David **Title**: Instruction in Wisdom [[#Verse 01.]] By David. Do not fret when wicked men seem to succeed. Do not envy evildoers. [[#Verse 02.]] For they will quickly dry up like grass, and wither away like plants. [[#Verse 03.]] Trust in the Lord and do what is right. Settle in the land and maintain your integrity. [[#Verse 04.]] Then you will take delight in the Lord, and he will answer your prayers. [[#Verse 05.]] Commit your future to the Lord. Trust in him, and he will act on your behalf. [[#Verse 06.]] He will vindicate you in broad daylight, and publicly defend your just cause. [[#Verse 07.]] Wait patiently for the Lord! Wait confidently for him! Do not fret over the apparent success of a sinner, a man who carries out wicked schemes. [[#Verse 08.]] Do not be angry and frustrated. Do not fret. That only leads to trouble. [[#Verse 09.]] Wicked men will be wiped out, but those who rely on the Lord are the ones who will possess the land. [[#Verse 10.]] Evil men will soon disappear; you will stare at the spot where they once were, but they will be gone. [[#Verse 11.]] But the oppressed will possess the land and enjoy great prosperity. [[#Verse 12.]] Evil men plot against the godly and viciously attack them. [[#Verse 13.]] The Lord laughs in disgust at them, for he knows that their day is coming. [[#Verse 14.]] Evil men draw their swords and prepare their bows, to bring down the oppressed and needy, and to slaughter those who are godly. [[#Verse 15.]] Their swords will pierce their own hearts, and their bows will be broken. [[#Verse 16.]] The little bit that a godly man owns is better than the wealth of many evil men, [[#Verse 17.]] for evil men will lose their power, but the Lord sustains the godly. [[#Verse 18.]] The Lord watches over the innocent day by day, and they possess a permanent inheritance. [[#Verse 19.]] They will not be ashamed when hard times come; when famine comes they will have enough to eat. [[#Verse 20.]] But evil men will die; the Lord’s enemies will be incinerated— they will go up in smoke. [[#Verse 21.]] Evil men borrow, but do not repay their debt, but the godly show compassion and are generous. [[#Verse 22.]] Surely those favored by the Lord will possess the land, but those rejected by him will be wiped out. [[#Verse 23.]] The Lord grants success to the one whose behavior he finds commendable. [[#Verse 24.]] Even if he trips, he will not fall headlong, for the Lord holds his hand. [[#Verse 25.]] I was once young, now I am old. I have never seen the godly abandoned, or their children forced to search for food. [[#Verse 26.]] All day long they show compassion and lend to others, and their children are blessed. [[#Verse 27.]] Turn away from evil. Do what is right. Then you will enjoy lasting security. [[#Verse 28.]] For the Lord promotes justice, and never abandons his faithful followers. They are permanently secure, but the children of the wicked are wiped out. [[#Verse 29.]] The godly will possess the land and will dwell in it permanently. [[#Verse 30.]] The godly speak wise words and promote justice. [[#Verse 31.]] The law of their God controls their thinking; their feet do not slip. [[#Verse 32.]] The wicked set an ambush for the godly and try to kill them. [[#Verse 33.]] But the Lord does not surrender the godly, or allow them to be condemned in a court of law. [[#Verse 34.]] Rely on the Lord. Obey his commands. Then he will permit you to possess the land; you will see the demise of the wicked. [[#Verse 35.]] I have seen ruthless, wicked people growing in influence, like a green tree grows in its native soil. [[#Verse 36.]] But then one passes by, and suddenly they have disappeared. I looked for them, but they could not be found. [[#Verse 37.]] Take note of the one who has integrity. Observe the upright. For the one who promotes peace has a future. [[#Verse 38.]] Sinful rebels are totally destroyed; the wicked have no future. [[#Verse 39.]] But the Lord delivers the godly; he protects them in times of trouble. [[#Verse 40.]] The Lord helps them and rescues them; he rescues them from the wicked and delivers them, for they seek his protection. #### Footnotes 1. [37:3](https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+37&version=CSB#en-CSB-14454 "Go to Psalm 37:3") Or _and cultivate faithfulness_, or _and befriend faithfulness_ 2. [37:14](https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+37&version=CSB#en-CSB-14465 "Go to Psalm 37:14") Lit _their_ 3. [37:35](https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+37&version=CSB#en-CSB-14486 "Go to Psalm 37:35") Hb obscure 4. [37:36](https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+37&version=CSB#en-CSB-14487 "Go to Psalm 37:36") LXX, Syr, Vg, Jer; MT reads _he_ 5. [37:37](https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+37&version=CSB#en-CSB-14488 "Go to Psalm 37:37") Or _posterity_, also in v. 38 ## 📖 Verse-by-Verse Commentary ###### Overall. ###### Verse 01. ###### Verse 02. ###### Verse 03. ###### Verse 04. ###### Verse 05. ###### Verse 06. ###### Verse 07. ###### Verse 08. ###### Verse 09. ###### Verse 10. ###### Verse 11. ###### Verse 12. ###### Verse 13. ###### Verse 14. ###### Verse 15. ###### Verse 16. ###### Verse 17. ###### Verse 18. ###### Verse 19. ###### Verse 20. ###### Verse 21. ###### Verse 22. ###### Verse 23. ###### Verse 24. ###### Verse 25. ###### Verse 26. ###### Verse 27. ###### Verse 28. ###### Verse 29. ###### Verse 30. ###### Verse 31. ###### Verse 32. ###### Verse 33. ###### Verse 34. ###### Verse 35. ###### Verse 36. ###### Verse 37. ###### Verse 38. ###### Verse 39. ###### Verse 40. ## 🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights 1. Psalm 37 is an acrostic, with most letters of the Hebrew alphabet beginning a pair of verses. 2. It is a wisdom psalm, mostly addressed to people rather than to God, much like Proverbs. 3. Jesus quotes 37:11 in the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:5). 4. The promise of possessing or inheriting the land appears five times (37:9, 11, 22, 29, 34). 5. The Hebrew word for "fret" means to grow hot or burn, picturing anger that smolders inside. 6. David writes as an old man looking back on a lifetime (37:25). 7. "Commit your future" (37:5) literally means "roll your way" onto the Lord, like rolling a heavy load off yourself. 8. Grass and green plants (37:2) wither fast under the hot sun in Israel's dry season. 9. A commentary on Psalm 37 was found among the Dead Sea Scrolls at Qumran. 10. The wicked man's sword and bow end up turning on himself (37:15), a common theme in the Psalms. ## 🧠 Chapter Summary > [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way. ## ✝️ Christ in This Chapter Christ is the gentle King who said the meek will inherit the earth, quoting 37:11 (Matthew 5:5). He Himself is gentle and humble in heart (Matthew 11:29). ## 🔎 Key Observations / 🛟 Life Application > [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way. ## 💬 Discussion Questions 1. David says three times not to fret (37:1, 7, 8). What usually makes you fret, and what does this psalm offer instead? 2. What does it mean to delight yourself in the Lord (37:4), and how does that change our desires? 3. An older David says he has never seen the godly abandoned (37:25). How have you seen God's faithfulness over the years? ## ✍️ Key Verses to Remember - 📖 verse 4: Take delight in the Lord and He will answer your prayers. - 📖 verse 5: Commit your future to the Lord and trust Him, and He will act. - 📖 verse 11: The humble will possess the land and enjoy great prosperity. ## 🔗 Related Passages - 🔗 [[Matthew 05#Verse 05.|Matthew 5:5]] - Blessed are the meek. - 🔗 [[Proverbs 16#Verse 03.|Proverbs 16:3]] - Commit your works to the Lord. - 🔗 [[Philippians 04#Verse 06.|Philippians 4:6-7]] - Do not be anxious about anything. - 🔗 [[Psalm 73|Psalm 73]] - Asaph struggles with the prosperity of the wicked. - 🔗 [[Galatians 06#Verse 09.|Galatians 6:9]] - Do not grow weary in doing good. ## 🙏 Devotional Reflection 📝 SOAP: [[Psalm 37- SOAP|Two Keys for the Good Life]] ## 📂 Internal Notes