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Psalm 37 Commentary and Bible Study

Psalm 37 Commentary and Bible Study

Last updated on: September 23, 2015 at 2:20 pm by Jack Wellman

Psalm 37 Commentary and Bible Study 2015-09-23T14:20:26-05:00 Jack Wellman

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This ranks among my favorite of all psalms and you’ll hopefully see why after you read the commentary on Psalm 37.

Psalm 37:1-3 “Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb. Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness”

This psalm, like many of the other psalms, helps us deal with the trials and tribulations of today by relying on, trusting in, and leaning against the Lord our God and His Word. The thoughts behind this psalm are that God will not forget His saints and the unrighteous will be judged but all in due time, therefore, we have no reason to fret (worry) about it. God is faithful to His Word.

Psalm 37:4-5 “Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act.”

What does it mean to delight ourselves in the Lord? If you are delighted about something, you have great joy over it and if we are delighting ourselves in the Lord, then we are seeking to please Him by living a life of holiness. If we do, He will grant us the desires of our hearts; not necessarily what we want, but what we need and that is always best for us. God always knows what best for us better than we do, just as any parent knows not to give their children everything they want.

Psalm 37:6-7 “He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices.”

Here are two things we can expect from God; His righteousness, His justice. The key is we must be patient and wait before the Lord. Be still and don’t worry about the one who is evil and yet prospers. Their day is coming (Rev 21:8).

Psalm 37:8-9 “Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath! Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil. For the evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land.”

This is a command to not seek revenge or try for vengeance because justice will eventually be served (Rom 12:19). We already know the future of the wicked (Rev 20:12-15) so we simply must wait for the Lord’s timing in His judgment because the children of God “shall inherit the land.”

Psalm 37:10-11 “In just a little while, the wicked will be no more; though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there. But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace.”

This phrase “in just a little while” ties in with verses 8 and 9 where, in time, “the wicked will be no more.” Again we are told that the righteous will inherit the land and their delight will be in God and in God’s own time, we will inherit the land, and then, there will be “abundant peace.”

Psalm 37:12-15 “The wicked plots against the righteous and gnashes his teeth at him, but the Lord laughs at the wicked, for he sees that his day is coming. The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows to bring down the poor and needy, to slay those whose way is upright; their sword shall enter their own heart, and their bows shall be broken.”

The phrase “gnashing of teeth” reminds me of the many times that Jesus mentioned that there will be “weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Luke 13:28) for the wicked who reject Him. Gnashing of teeth expressed anger in a way that few words do. By the way, God “sees that [the wicked’s] day is coming” so we must trust God to ensure totally justice.

Psalm 37:18-20a “The Lord knows the days of the blameless, and their heritage will remain forever; they are not put to shame in evil times; in the days of famine they have abundance. But the wicked will perish.”

We know that we all have an appointed day of our death and then comes the judgment (Heb 9:27) but thankfully, our sins were judged at the cross and God knows the heritage of the blameless and that they “will remain forever” meaning that they have eternal life. There will be no shame like those facing Christ at the time of judgment.

37:21, 22-24 “The wicked borrows but does not pay back, but the righteous is generous and gives. The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in his way; though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the Lord upholds his hand.”

If we give to the poor only to expect it to be repaid, we are no better than the pagans who loan only to receive their payments and interest back, however God will establish (make sure) the steps of a righteous man or woman who delights in His ways. Even though we will all fall at times, the Lord upholds us in His hand.

Psalm 37:25-26 “I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread. He is ever lending generously, and his children become a blessing.”

This is such an amazing promise that few even know it’s in the Bible. The promise is that God will not forsake the righteous to the point that they or their children will have to beg for bread. He lends to His children without needing to be repaid.

Psalm 37:27-29 “Turn away from evil and do good; so shall you dwell forever. For the Lord loves justice; he will not forsake his saints. They are preserved forever, but the children of the wicked shall be cut off. The righteous shall inherit the land and dwell upon it forever.”

The word “turn” is very much like the idea of repentance. Repentance means to turn away from and forsake our sins. God will not forsake those who forsake their sins. His saints are preserved forever, once again indicating that they already have eternal life but the wicked, not so. God gives us even more reassurance about our eternity by saying “The righteous shall inherit the land and dwell upon it forever.”

Psalm 37:34a, 37-38 “Wait for the Lord and keep his way, and he will exalt you to inherit the land; Mark the blameless and behold the upright, for there is a future for the man of peace. But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed; the future of the wicked shall be cut off.”

Waiting upon the Lord is a key to living a joy-filled life. God will, in due time, exalt the land and those who will inherit it. He will set aside (or mark) the blameless and He says to the upright “there is a future for the man (or woman) of peace.” The transgressors of God’s law, that’s a different story; they will be cut off from the presence of God forever (Matt 25:41).

Psalm 37:39-40 “The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; he is their stronghold in the time of trouble. The Lord helps them and delivers them he delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in him.”

There are not many paths to God (Acts 4:12) but it is only through Jesus Christ and Him alone. Salvation is also fully a work of God (Eph 2:8-9) since we know that “The Lord helps them and delivers them” but not only that, He will save them and they can take refuge in Him.

Conclusion

Key words in this psalm are that we trust, wait, rest, delight, and commit, but we’ll also have patience, peace, stability, and the knowledge that the Lord will deliver His own and bring swift judgment to those who refuse to repent and trust in Christ.

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.

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