Psalm 1/Notes/Verbal.v. 3.527210
From Psalms: Layer by Layer
The tense of the verb translated and he will become (וְהָיָה) could be present ("he is," so NIV, NLT, ESV, CSB, CEV, GNT, NET, NEB) or future ("he will be[come]," so KJV, ASV, NASB, JPS, ISV). According to the present-tense interpretation, the waw prefixed form וְהָיָה "carries the same characteristic force as the imperfect in the preceding verse."[1] But if the poet wanted to see "he is like a tree," then he could have used a simple verbless clause. Furthermore, when וְֽהָיָה functions as an ordinary verb (rather than a discourse marker), "reference is typically to events that are projected in the future."[2]