Psalm 37-39

Complete Jewish Bible

37 ⁽⁰⁾By David:

⁽¹⁾Don’t be upset by evildoers
or envious of those who do wrong,
²for soon they will wither like grass
and fade like the green in the fields.
³Trust in Adonai, and do good;
settle in the land, and feed on faithfulness.
⁴Then you will delight yourself in Adonai,
and he will give you your heart’s desire.

⁵Commit your way to Adonai;
trust in him, and he will act.
⁶He will make your vindication shine forth like light,
the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.

⁷Be still before Adonai;
wait patiently till he comes.
Don’t be upset by those whose way
succeeds because of their wicked plans.
⁸Stop being angry, put aside rage,
and don’t be upset — it leads to evil.

⁹For evildoers will be cut off,
but those hoping in Adonai will inherit the land.
¹⁰Soon the wicked will be no more;
you will look for his place, and he won’t be there.
¹¹But the meek will inherit the land
and delight themselves in abundant peace.

¹²The wicked plots against the righteous
and grinds his teeth at him;
¹³but Adonai laughs at the wicked,
knowing his day will come.
¹⁴The wicked have unsheathed their swords,
they have strung their bows
to bring down the poor and needy,
to slaughter those whose way is upright.
¹⁵But their swords will pierce their own hearts,
and their bows will be broken.

¹⁶Better the little that the righteous has
than the wealth of all the wicked.
¹⁷For the arms of the wicked will be broken,
but Adonai upholds the righteous.
¹⁸Adonai knows what the wholehearted suffer,
but their inheritance lasts forever.
¹⁹They will not be distressed when times are hard;
when famine comes, they will have plenty.

²⁰For the wicked will perish;
Adonai’s enemies will be like sheep fat,
ending up as smoke, finished.
²¹The wicked borrows and doesn’t repay,
but the righteous is generous and gives.
²²For those blessed by [Adonai] will inherit the land,
but those cursed by him will be cut off.

²³Adonai directs a person’s steps,
and he delights in his way.
²⁴He may stumble, but he won’t fall headlong,
for Adonai holds him by the hand.

²⁵I have been young; now I am old;
yet not once have I seen the righteous abandoned
or his descendants begging for bread.
²⁶All day long he is generous and lends,
and his descendants are blessed.

²⁷If you turn from evil and do good,
you will live safely forever.
²⁸For Adonai loves justice
and will not abandon his faithful;
they are preserved forever.
But the descendants of the wicked will be cut off.

²⁹The righteous will inherit the land
and live in it forever.
³⁰The mouth of the righteous articulates wisdom,
his tongue speaks justice.
³¹The Torah of his God is in his heart;
his footsteps do not falter.

³²The wicked keeps his eye on the righteous,
seeking a chance to kill him.
³³But Adonai will not leave him in his power
or let him be condemned when judged.
³⁴Put your hope in Adonai, keep to his way,
and he will raise you up to inherit the land.

When the wicked are cut off, you will see it.
³⁵I have seen a wicked man wielding great power,
flourishing like a shade tree in its native soil.
³⁶But I passed by again, and he was no longer there;
I looked for him, but he could not be found.

³⁷Observe the pure person, consider the upright;
for the peaceful person will have posterity.
³⁸But transgressors will all be destroyed;
the posterity of the wicked will be cut off.
³⁹Adonai is the one who saves the righteous;
he is their stronghold in time of trouble.
⁴⁰Adonai helps them and rescues them,
rescues them from the wicked and saves them;
because they take refuge in him.

38 ⁽⁰⁾A psalm of David, serving as a reminder:

²⁽¹⁾Adonai, don’t rebuke me when you are angry
or discipline me when you are enraged,
³⁽²⁾for your arrows penetrate me deeply,
and your hand is pressing me down.

⁴⁽³⁾Your indignation left no part of me intact;
my sin made my whole body sick;
⁵⁽⁴⁾for my iniquities loom high over my head
as a heavy burden, too heavy for me.

⁶⁽⁵⁾I have stinking, festering wounds
because of my foolishness.
⁷⁽⁶⁾I am bent down, prostrate completely;
I go about mourning all day long.

⁸⁽⁷⁾For my insides burn with fever,
and my whole body is sick.
⁹⁽⁸⁾I am numb, completely crushed;
my anguished heart makes me groan aloud.

¹⁰⁽⁹⁾Adonai, all my longing is known to you;
my sighing is not hidden from you.
¹¹⁽¹⁰⁾My heart is throbbing, my strength is gone,
and the light in my eyes has left me.

¹²⁽¹¹⁾My friends and companions shun my disease;
even the closest keep their distance.
¹³⁽¹²⁾Those seeking my life lay snares for me,
those seeking to harm me speak of disaster
and think up deceptions all day long.

¹⁴⁽¹³⁾But I’m like a deaf man — I don’t hear it;
and, like a mute, I don’t say a word.
¹⁵⁽¹⁴⁾Yes, I’ve become like a man who doesn’t hear
and in whose mouth are no defenses.

¹⁶⁽¹⁵⁾For it is in you, Adonai, that I hope.
You will answer, Adonai my God.
¹⁷⁽¹⁶⁾I said, “Don’t let them gloat over me
or boast against me when my foot slips.”

¹⁸⁽¹⁷⁾For I am about to fall,
and my pain is always with me.
¹⁹⁽¹⁸⁾I acknowledge my guilt,
I am anxious because of my sin.

²⁰⁽¹⁹⁾But my enemies are alive and well,
those who wrongfully hate me increase their numbers;
²¹⁽²⁰⁾and, since they repay good with evil,
they oppose me because I pursue good.

²²⁽²¹⁾Don’t abandon me, Adonai!
My God, don’t be far from me!
²³⁽²²⁾Come quickly to help me,
Adonai, my salvation!

39 ⁽⁰⁾For the leader. Set in the style of Y’dutun. A psalm of David:

²⁽¹⁾I said, “I will watch how I behave,
so that I won’t sin with my tongue;
I will put a muzzle on my mouth
whenever the wicked confront me.”

³⁽²⁾I was silent, said nothing, not even good;
but my pain kept being stirred up.
⁴⁽³⁾My heart grew hot within me;
whenever I thought of it, the fire burned.
Then, [at last,] I let my tongue speak:

⁵⁽⁴⁾“Make me grasp, Adonai, what my end must be,
what it means that my days are numbered;
let me know what a transient creature I am.
⁶⁽⁵⁾You have made my days like handbreadths;
for you, the length of my life is like nothing.”

Yes, everyone, no matter how firmly he stands,
is merely a puff of wind. (Selah)
⁷⁽⁶⁾Humans go about like shadows;
their turmoil is all for nothing.
They accumulate wealth, not knowing
who will enjoy its benefits.

⁸⁽⁷⁾Now, Adonai, what am I waiting for?
You are my only hope.
⁹⁽⁸⁾Rescue me from all my transgressions;
don’t make me the butt of fools.
¹⁰⁽⁹⁾I am silent, I keep my mouth shut,
because it is you who have done it.

¹¹⁽¹⁰⁾Stop raining blows on me;
the pounding of your fist is wearing me down.
¹²⁽¹¹⁾With rebukes you discipline people for their guilt;
like a moth, you destroy what makes them attractive;
yes, everyone is merely a puff of wind. (Selah)

¹³⁽¹²⁾Hear my prayer, Adonai, listen to my cry,
don’t be deaf to my weeping;
for with you, I am just a traveler
passing through, like all my ancestors.
¹⁴⁽¹³⁾Turn your gaze from me, so I can smile again
before I depart and cease to exist.