Psalm 37/Story Behind/Assumptions

V.	Text (Hebrew)	Text (CBC)	Proposition (Story Behind)	common ground	local ground	playground
ss	לְדָוִד	By David.
1	אַל־תִּתְחַר בַּמְּרֵעִים	Do not get upset about those who act wickedly;	Person gets upset about those who act wickedly.	• YHWH is the judge of all the earth who rewards the righteous and punishes the wicked (cf. Gen 18:25). | "The prosperity of the wicked exposes divine injustice" (Hernández 2022, 1; cf. Walton's article on "Retribution" 2008, 647-655) (cf. Jer 12:1; Mal 3:14-15; Ps 73; Job 20-21). Cf. The Babylonian Theodicy VII (COS 1.154): "Those who seek not after a god can go the road of favor, Those who pray to a goddess have grown poor and destitute... (XXIII) "I have looked around in society, indications are the contrary: God does not block the progress of a demon... What has it profited me that I knelt before my god?" Response (VIII): "Your logic is perverse, You have cast off justice, you have scorned divine design. In your emotional state you have an urge to disregard divine ordinances... (XX) You have let your mind wander, [...] you have overthrown wisdom. You have spurned propriety, you have besmirched (every) code... Follow in the way of a god, observe his rites [...] be ready for good fortune! (XXIV) You blaspheme in the anguish of your thoughts. Divine purpose is as remote as innermost heaven, It is too difficult to understand, people cannot understand it. • "	• People act wickedly.
	אַל־תְּקַנֵּא בְּעֹשֵׂי עַוְלָֽה׃	Do not be jealous of those who do wrong.	Person is jealous of those who do wrong.	• "The word קנאה is the primary Hebrew label for negative affective responses to a relative loss in status to a rival. קנאה could be aroused by rivalry over virtually any facet of human life, from material possessions, to political power, to the affec­ tions of loved ones" (Ellis 2023, 393). Cf. Babylonian Theodicy XXIII (COS 1.154): "I have looked around in society, indications are the contrary: God does not block the progress of a demon... What has it profited me that I knelt before my god? It is I who must (now) bow before my inferior! The riffraff despise me as much as the rich and proud. • " | Jealousy leads to emulation: "the envious party does not attempt to destroy the evil [but see Cain and Abel!] but rather to vie with that individual by imitation" (Ellis 2023, 398). Cf. Prov 3:31; 24:1. Also Ps 37:7.	• People do wrong.	• Person is tempted to join those who do wrong (cf. Prov 3:31; 24:1).
2	כִּי כֶחָצִיר מְהֵרָה יִמָּלוּ	For they will soon wither like grass,	The wicked wither like grass.	• "Grass withers (יָבֵשׁ חָצִיר); flowers fade (נָבֵל צִיץ)" (Isa 40:8); grass is "weak, vulnerable, and short-lived" (SDBH). | The wicked are like plants that quickly wither (cf. Job 15:30-33; 18:16-17, 19; Amos 2:9; Hos 9:16; see Hernández 2022, 293-294). Cf. Amenemope ch. 4 (COS 1.47): "As for the heated man in the temple, He is like a tree frowing indoors; A moment lasts its growth of shoots. Its end comes about in the woodshed. • "	• Grass withers.	• "The ‘solution’ offered in Ps. 37 by its exhortations and reassurances is based on the experience that the wicked are both temporary and unsubstantial (Ps. 37:2, 10, 20, 36)" (Lindström 2003, 297).
	וּכְיֶרֶק דֶּשֶׁא יִבּוֹלֽוּן׃	and they will fade like green leaves on plants.	The wicked fade like green leaves on plants.		• Green leaves fade.
3	בְּטַח בַּֽיהוָה	Trust in YHWH	Person trusts in YHWH.	• YHWH has created and actively sustains the world order in such a way that wickedness has negative consequences. Cf. Proverbs, which "presents a 'world order' involving 'deed and destiny,' that is to say, 'What you do now will determine what will happen then.' A more precise formulation is a character > conduct > consequence connection—that is, what you are determines what you will become... • " (Waltke 2004, VII. • B.4, p. 73). But this world order is personally and actively sustained by YHWH. Thus, "it is more appropriate to speak of personal divine retribution in Proverbs than of an impersonal world order. The sages believed in and taught a harmonious world order created and sustained by the LORD, but not an impersonal one. In that world order justice will finally be meted out, but they assign that justice to the LORD without specifying the time or the manner" (cf. Waltke 2004, VII. • B.4, pp. 73, 75). Thus, trusting in YHWH—note the exhortation is not to trust in an impersonal world order—means believing that YHWH is good and just and waiting for him to execute justice. "Nowhere can a principle of righteousness or an idea of retribution—standing as it were above God or representing him—be recognized in the wisdom poem. So also, the exhortations do not call us to faith in righteous retribution but to trust in YHWH" (Kraus 1988, 408).
	וַעֲשֵׂה־טוֹב	and do good!	Person does good.	• "Doing good" (i.e., practicing covenant faithfulness) is part of what it means to fear/worship YHWH (Ps 34:13-15)
	שְׁכָן־אֶרֶץ	Reside in the land	Person resides in the land.	• YHWH promised to give the land of Canaan to Abraham and his descendants (see Gen 12:7; 15:7, 18-21), and in the conquest of Canaan under Joshua, YHWH fulfilled his promise (see Josh 21:43-45; Jdg 2:6; 1 Kgs 8:56). But Israel's continued possession of the land depended on their faithfulness to the covenant (see Lev 26; Deut 28; cf. Ezra 9:12; 1 Chron 28:8) (cf. Martin 2013).
	וּרְעֵה אֱמוּנָֽה׃	and graze securely!	Person grazes securely.	• YHWH is the shepherd of his people, and his people are the sheep of his pasture (cf. Pss 23; 100) (cf. subtle sheep imagery in v. 14 [טבח] and possible also in v. 20 [כר]). • Sheep graze, and sheep under the care of a good shepherd can graze securely.
4	וְהִתְעַנַּג עַל־יְהוָה	And then you will delight yourself in YHWH,	Person delights himself in YHWH.	• Delighting oneself in YHWH means enjoying the benefits of the land which YHWH has given to his people (cf. v. 11), perhaps with particular reference to the food of the land (cf. ענג in Isa 55:2). Deut 8:7-10—"For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land—a land with brooks, streams, and deep springs gushing out into the valleys and hills; a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills. When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you. • "
	וְיִֽתֶּן־לְךָ מִשְׁאֲלֹת לִבֶּֽךָ׃	and he will give you your heart's desires.	YHWH gives person his heart's desires.	• The "heart" (לב) is "one’s inner self, seat of feeling and emotions" (HALOT) and the seat of "desire" (SDBH).	• Person has desires.
5	גּוֹל עַל־יְהוָה דַּרְכֶּךָ	Commit your way to YHWH,	Person commits his way to YHWH.	• To "commit one's way>>actions to God" is an "action by which humans show their confidence in a deity by putting difficult matters in that deity's hands, ◄ like a heavy stone is rolled on to someone else who is more able to carry it" (SDBH). • Cf. Prov 16:2-3: "All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirit. Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established" (ESV).
	וּבְטַח עָלָיו	and trust in him,	Person trusts in YHWH.
	וְהוּא יַעֲשֶֽׂה׃	and he will act,	YHWH acts.
6	וְהוֹצִיא כָאוֹר צִדְקֶךָ	and he will make your righteousness known like the light,	YHWH makes person's righteousness known like the light.	• Light is something that is visible to all. To bring something out like the light is to make that thing visible. Cf. Luke 8:17—"For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light" (ESV). On the image of light and darkness in Job, see Hernández 2022, 292-293. Darkness is an image of folly and death; darkness is the consequence of wickedness (cf. Job 5:14; 15:22-23, 30; 20:26).	• Person is righteous
	וּמִשְׁפָּטֶךָ כַּֽצָּהֳרָֽיִם׃	and [he will make] your justice [known] like midday.	YHWH makes person's justice known like midday.	• Midday, noon, is "the time of the day when the sun is at its highest point" (SDBH).	• Person is just.
7	דּוֹם׀ לַיהוָה	Be silent before YHWH	Person is silent before YHWH.
	וְהִתְחוֹלֵל לוֹ	and wait for him!	Person waits for YHWH.
	אַל־תִּתְחַר בְּמַצְלִיחַ דַּרְכּוֹ בְּאִישׁ עֹשֶׂה מְזִמּֽוֹת׃	Do not get upset about someone who makes his way successful, about a person carrying out schemes.	Person gets upset about someone who makes his way successful, about a person carrying out schemes.	• "Schemes" are not good—"when used for humans, only used in a negative sense" (SDBH).	• Someone makes their way successful; someone carries out schemes.
8	הֶרֶף מֵאַף	Let go of anger	Person lets go of anger.		• Person is angry.
	וַעֲזֹב חֵמָה	and leave wrath behind!	Person leaves wrath behind.		• Person is full of wrath.
	אַל־תִּתְחַר אַךְ־לְהָרֵעַ	Do not get upset only to act wickedly!	Person gets upset only to act wickedly.	• Getting upset about the wicked can lead to forsaking the service of one's god (see note on v. 1). Cf. the Babylonian Theodicy VII, XIII (COS 1.154): "In my youth I tried to find out the will of (my) god, With prayer and supplication I besought my goddess. I bore a yoke of profitless servitude... I will ignore (my) god's regulations, [I will] trample on his rites. • "	• Person acts wickedly.	• "The wrath that leads to evil is potentially ‘anger against God’. Thus, the affliction, or rather the problem, is here of a completely different nature compared to that of the individual complaint psalms. The faithful is afflicted by his emotional reactions to the lack of a just world order, and the distress is thus of a moral and religious nature" (Lindström 2003, 297).
9	כִּֽי־מְרֵעִים יִכָּרֵתוּן	For those who act wickedly will be destroyed;	Those who act wickedly are destroyed.	• The wicked are like plants and trees (cf. vv. 1, 20, 35), and trees are "cut down" (כרת, see 1 Kgs 5:20; Jer 6:6). | People who refuse to observe YHWH's covenant are "cut off" from YHWH's people (e.g., Gen 17:14 [circumcision]; Exod 12:15 [feast of unleavened bread]; 31:14 [Sabbath]; Num 9:13 [Passover]; 15:30 [sinning with a high hand]; etc.).
	וְקֹוֵי יְהוָה הֵמָּה יִֽירְשׁוּ־אָֽרֶץ׃	but those who hope in YHWH—they will possess the land.	Those who hope in YHWH possess the land.	• (On the "land," see note on v. 3.)
10	וְעוֹד מְעַט	And just a little bit longer,	A little bit of time goes by.	• On the theme of "The ephemerality of the existence of the wicked and their public demise" in the speeches of Job's friends, see Job 15:23 [Eliphaz]; 18:5-6, 18 [Bildad]; 20:6-8, 23, 26, 28 [Zophar]) (Hernandez 2022, 287-291). Cf. Babylonian Theodicy XXII (COS 1.154): "As for the rascal whose good will you wanted, The ... of his feet will soon disappear. • "	• The amount of time after which the wicked will be destroyed is "just a little bit"
	וְאֵין רָשָׁע	and the wicked person will be gone;	The wicked person is gone.
	וְהִתְבּוֹנַנְתָּ עַל־מְקוֹמוֹ	And you will look closely at the place where he was,	Person looks closely at the place where the wicked person was.			• Even close inspection will not be able to uncover any trace of the wicked person
	וְאֵינֶֽנּוּ׃	and he will not be there.	The wicked person is not there.
11	וַעֲנָוִים יִֽירְשׁוּ־אָרֶץ	But the humble will possess the land	The humble possess the land.	• (On the "land," see note on v. 3.)
	וְהִתְעַנְּגוּ עַל־רֹב שָׁלֽוֹם׃	and delight themselves in great prosperity.	The humble delight themselves in great prosperity.	• (See note on v. 4)	• The prosperity will be great.
12	זֹמֵם רָשָׁע לַצַּדִּיק	The wicked person is plotting against the righteous person	The wicked person plots against the righteous person.	• Oppressing the poor and vulnerable for unjust gain was a persistent problem in Israel (Zeph 3; Job 24:14; Hab 3:14; Amos) (note taken from Ps 10 story behind)
	וְחֹרֵק עָלָיו שִׁנָּֽיו׃	and grinding his teeth at him.	The wicked person grinds his teeth at the righteous person.	• Grinding teeth is an expression of "hostility" (SDBH) and "derision" (DBI "Teeth") (cf. Pss. 35:16; 37:12; Job 16:9; Lam. 2:16). "Gnashing teeth is an expression of strong and often violent anger, rage, or future that can boil over into an all-out attack, usually physical, at any moment" (DBI "Teeth").
13	אֲדֹנָי יִשְׂחַק־לוֹ	The Lord laughs at him,	The Lord laughs at the wicked person.	• Laughing at someone is an expression of contempt and a form of mockery (cf. Ps 2:4)
	כִּֽי־רָאָה כִּֽי־יָבֹא יוֹמֽוֹ׃	because he sees that his time will come.	The Lord sees that the wicked person's time will come.	• Cf. Job 15:20-24—"The wicked man writhes in pain all his days, through all the years that are laid up for the ruthless. Dreadful sounds are in his ears; in prosperity the destroyer will come upon him. He does not believe that he will return out of darkness, and he is marked for the sword. He wanders abroad for bread, saying, ‘Where is it?’ He knows that a day of darkness is ready at his hand; distress and anguish terrify him; they prevail against him, like a king ready for battle" (ESV).	• The wicked person's time will come.
14	חֶרֶב׀ פָּֽתְחוּ רְשָׁעִים	The wicked have drawn swords	The wicked draw swords.	• "Because of the sword's capacity to inflict wounds, it is used to symbolize anything that causes harm and injury to people" (DBI, 835). Cf. Prov 30:14—"They have teeth like swords and fangs like knives. They devour the poor from the earth and the needy from among humanity" (NLT).	• The wicked are like deadly sword-wielding warriors.
	וְדָרְכוּ קַשְׁתָּם	and strung their bows	The wicked string their bows.	• The bow is a weapon of war.	• The wicked are like deadly bow-shooting warriors.
	לְהַפִּיל עָנִי וְאֶבְיוֹן	in order to bring down the one who is afflicted and poor,	The wicked bring down the one who is afflicted and poor.	• Bringing down (lit.: causing to fall) is a "causative process or action by which humans or deities cause (other) humans to be killed or severely wounded by enemies" (SDBH)
	לִטְבוֹחַ יִשְׁרֵי־דָֽרֶךְ׃	in order to slaughter those whose conduct is upright.	The wicked slaughter those whose conduct is upright.	• Lambs are slaughtered (Exod 21:37; Jer 11:19; 51:40; cf. sheep imagery in v. 3 and possible also in v. 20).
15	חַרְבָּם תָּבוֹא בְלִבָּם	Their swords will go into their hearts,	The swords of the wicked go into their own hearts.	• Cf. Ps 7:15-17—"Behold, the wicked man conceives evil and is pregnant with mischief and gives birth to lies. He makes a pit, digging it out, and falls into the hole that he has made. His mischief returns upon his own head, and on his own skull his violence descends" (ESV). See also Ps 9:16
	וְקַשְּׁתוֹתָם תִּשָּׁבַֽרְנָה׃	and their bows will be broken.	The bows of the wicked are broken.
16	טוֹב־מְעַט לַצַּדִּיק מֵהֲמוֹן רְשָׁעִים רַבִּֽים׃	A little belonging to the righteous person is better than the abundance of many wicked people.	A little belonging to the righteous person is better than the abundance of many wicked people.	• The wealth of the wicked is temporary. On the theme of "Temporality of wealth and impending poverty" for the wicked in the speechs of Job's friends, see Job 15:27-35 [Eliphaz]; 20:4-11 [Zophar] (Hernández 2022, 287-291). Cf. Amenempe: "Better is a bushel given you by the god, Than five thousand through wrongdoing. They stay not a day in bin and barn, They make no food for the beer jar A moment is their stay in the granary, Comes morning they have vanished... • If riches come to you by tehft, They will not stay the night with you. Comes day they are not in your house. Their place is seen but they're not there... • " (Amenemope ch. 6-7 [COS 1.47]).	• The wicked sometimes have an abundance. • The righteous sometimes have little.
17	כִּי זְרוֹעוֹת רְשָׁעִים תִּשָּׁבַרְנָה	For the arms of the wicked will be broken,	The arms of the wicked are broken.	• The arm is "directly associated with strength and power" (SDBH). To break someone's arm is to remove their strength and power, i.e., in this context, their ability to oppress others and gain wealth.	• The wicked are unable to obtain wealth anymore.
	וְסוֹמֵךְ צַדִּיקִים יְהוָֽה׃	but YHWH is upholding the righteous.	YHWH upholds the righteous.
18	יוֹדֵעַ יְהוָה יְמֵי תְמִימִם	YHWH knows the days of the blameless,	YHWH knows the days of the blameless.
	וְנַחֲלָתָם לְעוֹלָם תִּהְיֶֽה׃	and their inheritance will be forever.	The inheritance of the blameless will be forever.	• The land is the inheritance (נַחֲלָה) of the YHWH's people (cf. Num 26:35; Deut 4:21; Ps 105:11; etc.)	• The blameless have an inheritance.
19	לֹֽא־יֵבֹשׁוּ בְּעֵת רָעָה	They will not come to shame during hard times,	The blameless come to shame during hard times.		• Hard times come.
	וּבִימֵי רְעָבוֹן יִשְׂבָּֽעוּ׃	and they will eat their fill during times of famine.	The blameless eat their fill during times of famine.	• During times of famine, people need to leave the land (their "inheritance") to seek provision elsewhere (e.g., Ruth 1:1).	• Famine comes.
20	כִּי רְשָׁעִים׀ יֹאבֵדוּ	For the wicked will perish,	The wicked perish.
	וְאֹיְבֵי יְהוָה כִּיקַר כָּרִים	and YHWH's enemies [will perish] like flowers in a pasture.	YHWH's enemies perish like flowers in a field.	• (See note on v. 2)	• Flowers in a field perish.
	כָּלוּ בֶעָשָׁן	They are finished like smoke!	YHWH's enemies are finished like smoke.	• (See imagery chart)
	כָּֽלוּ׃	They are finished!	YHWH's enemies are finished.
21	לֹוֶה רָשָׁע	The wicked person is borrowing	The wicked person borrows.	• Borrowing implies a promise to repay what is borrowed (with or without interest). Refusing to pay back what is owed is a form of lying and theft.		• "The wicked person borrows in his time of need and does not repay his debt. The righteous man is gracious and gives money to the wicked because he has pity on him" (Ibn Ezra, trans. 2009). • (Alternative interpretation: the wicked will not be able to repay their debts, because they will be destroyed (cf. Baethgen 1904, 106))
	וְלֹא יְשַׁלֵּם	and will not repay,	The wicked person repays.
	וְצַדִּיק חוֹנֵן וְנוֹתֵֽן׃	but the righteous person is giving generously.	The righteous person gives generously.		• The righteous are generous
22	כִּי מְבֹרָכָיו יִירְשׁוּ אָרֶץ	For those blessed by him will possess the land,	Those whom YHWH blesses possess the land.		• YHWH blesses people.
	וּמְקֻלָּלָיו יִכָּרֵֽתוּ׃	and those cursed by him will be destroyed.	Those whom YHWH curses are destroyed.		• YHWH curses people.
23	מֵיְהוָה מִֽצְעֲדֵי־גֶבֶר כּוֹנָנוּ	When a person's steps are made steadfast by YHWH,	YHWH makes a person's steps steadfast.	• To "make a person's steps steadfast" is a "causative action by which deities cause the activities of humans to be faithful and in line with the will of God" (SDBH). See lexical semantics.
	וְדַרְכּוֹ יֶחְפָּֽץ׃	then he will be pleased with his way.	YHWH is pleased with a person's way.
24	כִּֽי־יִפֹּל	When he falls,	A person falls.	• Falling is "associated with failure and loss of face" (SDBH)
	לֹֽא־יוּטָל	he will not fall flat.	A person falls flat.	• Falling flat, or falling headlong, is a "process by which humans completely fail in their intentions" (SDBH)
	כִּֽי־יְהוָה סוֹמֵךְ יָדֽוֹ׃	because YHWH is supporting his hand.	YHWH upholds the person's hand.
25	נַעַר׀ הָיִיתִי	I was once a young man;	David is a young man.
	גַּם־זָקַנְתִּי	and now I am old,	David is old.
	וְֽלֹא־רָאִיתִי צַדִּיק נֶעֱזָב וְזַרְעוֹ מְבַקֶּשׁ־לָֽחֶם׃	and I have not seen a righteous person abandoned or his children looking for food.	David sees a righteous person abandoned and his children looking for food.
26	כָּל־הַיּוֹם חוֹנֵן וּמַלְוֶה	He is always lending generously,	The righteous always lends generously.	• The ability to lend generously requires wealth, which implies God's abundant provision (cf. Deut 28:12) | Lending without interest is an act of generosity (cf. Ex. 22:25; Deut. 15:8; Ps. 37:26). Thus, "willingness to lend was a sign of righteous graciousness (Ps. 112:5)" (TWOT #1088). | "The fundamental meaning of lending is the extension of provision and generosity to someone in need... Ancient Near Eastern culture was not a society in which loans for commercial or business purposes would have occurred. Borrowers were men and women in desperate situations unable to provide food, clothing or shelter for themselves" (DBI, "Lend, Lending"). | "In the OT lending is a means of the rich helping the poor, not helping themselves, and not making them the recipients of charity but giving them means of reestablishing themselves, after which they would pay back the loan (see, e.g., Exod. 22:25–27)" (Goldingay 2008; cf. Goldingay Ethics in the Old Testament, 2019, ch. 32).
	וְזַרְעוֹ לִבְרָכָֽה׃	and his children will become a blessing.	The children of the righteous become a blessing.			• "after his death his children will be blessed, for the • meaning of li-verakhah is, all who see them will bless them" (Ibn Ezra, trans. 2009)
27	סוּר מֵרָע	Turn away from evil	Person turns away from evil.
	וַעֲשֵׂה־טוֹב	and do good,	Person does good.
	וּשְׁכֹן לְעוֹלָֽם׃	and you will reside forever!	Person resides forever.
28a*	כִּי יְהוָה׀ אֹהֵב מִשְׁפָּט	For YHWH loves justice,	YHWH loves justice.
28b*	וְלֹא־יַעֲזֹב אֶת־חֲסִידָיו	and he will not abandon those who are loyal to him.	YHWH abandons those who are loyal to him.		• People are loyal to YHWH.
30*	פִּֽי־צַדִּיק יֶהְגֶּה חָכְמָה	A righteous person's mouth utters what is wise,	A righteous person's mouth utters what is wise.	• "Mouth" stands for the person speaking (metonymy).
	וּלְשׁוֹנוֹ תְּדַבֵּר מִשְׁפָּֽט׃	and his tongue speaks what is just.	A righteous person's tongue speaks what is just.	• "Tongue" stands for the person speaking (metonymy).
31*	תּוֹרַת אֱלֹהָיו בְּלִבּוֹ	The instruction of his God is in his heart.	The instruction of God is in the righteous person's heart.
	לֹא תִמְעַד אֲשֻׁרָיו׃	His steps will not slip.	The righteous person's steps slip.	• Ps 73:2-3—"But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled, my steps had nearly slipped. For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked" (ESV).
28b*	*עַוָּלִים נִשְׁמָדוּ*	Wrong-doers are exterminated,	Wrong-doers are exterminated.
	וְזֶרַע רְשָׁעִים נִכְרָֽת׃	and the children of the wicked are destroyed!	The children of wicked people are destroyed.	• On the theme of the "absence of offspring and infertility of the impious" in the speeches of Job's friends, see Job 15:32-35 [Eliphaz]; 18:16-19 [Bildad] (Hernández 2022).
29*	צַדִּיקִים יִֽירְשׁוּ־אָרֶץ	The righteous will possess the land	The righteous possess the land.
	וְיִשְׁכְּנוּ לָעַד עָלֶֽיהָ׃	and reside on it forever.	The righteous reside on the land forever.
32	צוֹפֶה רָשָׁע לַצַּדִּיק	The wicked person is watching for the righteous person	The wicked person is watching for the righteous person.	• Cf. Ps 10:8—"He lies in wait near the villages; from ambush he murders the innocent. His eyes watch in secret for his victims. • "
	וּמְבַקֵּשׁ לַהֲמִיתוֹ׃	and trying to kill him.	The wicked try to kill the righteous.
33	יְהוָה לֹא־יַעַזְבֶנּוּ בְיָדוֹ	YHWH will not abandon him into his hand,	YHWH abandons the righteous into the hand of the wicked.
	וְלֹא יַרְשִׁיעֶנּוּ בְּהִשָּׁפְטֽוֹ׃	and he will not let him be condemned as guilty when he enters into judgment.	YHWH lets the righteous person be condemned as guilty when he enters into judgment.	• In a legal dispute (רִיב), one person brings "a charge against the other. Such a dispute can involve two individuals (unspecified cause [Deut 19:17]; over insults [1 Sam 25:39]), an individual and a group (over discrimination [Judg 8:1]; over treason [Jer 26]), two groups (over water rights [Gen 26:20-22]... Resolution could be through... a legal tribunal (Deut 25:1)... • " (Baker 2018, 497). When the "dispute" (רִיב) cannot be resolved amicably, then it moves to a formal legal setting (משׁפט), where the accuser and the accused present their cases before a judge, and the judge determines who is in the right and who is in the wrong. See Bovati 1994.	• The righteous person enters into judgment.	• "God will demonstrate the righteousness of the righteous. Scripture says the aforementioned because when the wicked see that they in their jealous fits cannot kill the righteous, they seek to invent claims against the righteous. They claim that the righteous man owes them money or that the righteous person has committed an act of violence against them" • (Ibn Ezra, trans. 2009).
34	קַוֵּה אֶל־יְהוָה׀	Hope in YHWH	Person hopes in YHWH.
	וּשְׁמֹר דַּרְכּוֹ	and keep his way,	Person keeps YHWH's way.
	וִֽירוֹמִמְךָ לָרֶשֶׁת אָרֶץ	and he will exalt you to possess the land.	YHWH exalts person to possess the land.	• Possessing the land is something 'high' (i.e., good, desirable), something to which you must be exalted.	• Person possess the land.
	בְּהִכָּרֵת רְשָׁעִים תִּרְאֶֽה׃	You will see when the wicked are destroyed.	Person sees when the wicked are destroyed.		• The wicked are destroyed.
35	רָאִיתִי רָשָׁע עָרִיץ	I once saw a ruthless wicked person,	David sees a ruthless wicked person.		• The wicked person is ruthless
	וּמִתְעָרֶה כְּאֶזְרָח רַעֲנָֽן׃	and he was ascending like a native tree.	Wicked person flourishes like a native tree.	• Trees growing in their native climate and soil grow especially well and last a long time
36	וָאֶעֲבֹר	Then I passed by,	David passes by.
	וְהִנֵּה אֵינֶנּוּ	and—get this!—he was gone;	The wicked person is gone.
	וָֽאֲבַקְשֵׁהוּ	then I looked for him,	David looks for the wicked person.
	וְלֹא נִמְצָֽא׃	and he was not found.	The wicked person is not found.
37	שְׁמָר־תָּם	Pay attention to the blameless one	Person pays attention to the blameless one.
	וּרְאֵה יָשָׁר	and look at the upright one,	Person looks at the upright one.
	כִּֽי־אַחֲרִית לְאִישׁ שָׁלֽוֹם׃	because the future of a [blameless] person is peace.	The future of a blameless person is peace.
38	וּֽפֹשְׁעִים נִשְׁמְדוּ יַחְדָּו	But those who rebel are completely exterminated!	But those who rebel are completely exterminated.
	אַחֲרִית רְשָׁעִים נִכְרָֽתָה׃	The future of the wicked is destroyed!	The future of the wicked is destroyed.
39	וּתְשׁוּעַת צַדִּיקִים מֵיְהוָה מָעוּזָּם בְּעֵת צָרָה	But the salvation of the righteous comes from YHWH, their fortress during times of trouble,	The salvation of the righteous comes from YHWH, their fortress during times of trouble.	• (See imagery chart)
40	וַֽיַּעְזְרֵם יְהוָה	and YHWH helps them	YHWH helps the righteous.
	וַֽיְפַלְּטֵם	and rescues them.	YHWH rescues the righteous.
	יְפַלְּטֵם מֵרְשָׁעִים	He will rescue them from the wicked	YHWH rescues the righteous from the wicked.
	וְיוֹשִׁיעֵם	and save them,	YHWH saves the righteous.
	כִּי־חָסוּ בֽוֹ׃	because they have sought refuge in him.	The righteous seek refuge in YHWH.