Psalm 37/Notes/Verbal.v. 12.314980

It is not clear whether the participles in vv. 12, 21, 32 are continuous or habitual. Participles usually indicate continuous action, but see BHRG §20.3.3, which says that "the participle may refer to habitual events" and JM §121b who list some examples of the participle with "frequentive aspect." Similarly, Joosten 2020, 5, says that "in other usages, the verbalized participle expresses functions that can also be expressed with yiqtol. Both forms can refer to habitual processes..." (citing Exod 13:15 as an example). The author of Ps 37 might have used the participle instead of yiqtol because a yiqtol would not have fit the acrostic (cf. Ps 34:8, 21, 23). So most English translations: "the wicked plot(s)" (NLT, NIV, ESV, GNT, REB; cf. Jerome: cogitat). On the other hand, continuous aspect would work well in the context. Each of the participles in vv. 12, 21, 32 occurs at the beginning of a new poetic section (see poetic structure). Each section begins, in other words, with the speaker pointing to some current situation about which the hearer is worried (cf. v. 1) and then proceeding to address the issue.