Psalm 37 Discourse

Psalm Overview

• Grammar
• Semantics
• Story behind the Psalm
• Discourse
• Poetics

About the Discourse Layer

Our Discourse layer includes four analyses: macrosyntax, speech act analysis, emotional analysis, and participant analysis. (For more information, click 'Expand' to the right.)

Macrosyntax

The macrosyntax layer rests on the belief that human communicators desire their addressees to receive a coherent picture of their message and will cooperatively provide clues to lead the addressee into a correct understanding. So, in the case of macrosyntax of the Psalms, the psalmist has explicitly left syntactic clues for the reader regarding the discourse structure of the entire psalm. Here we aim to account for the function of these elements, including the identification of conjunctions which either coordinate or subordinate entire clauses (as the analysis of coordinated individual phrases is carried out at the phrase-level semantics layer), vocatives, other discourse markers, direct speech, and clausal word order.

For a detailed explanation of our method, see the Macrosyntax Creator Guidelines.

Speech Act Analysis

The Speech Act layer presents the text in terms of what it does, following the findings of Speech Act Theory. It builds on the recognition that there is more to communication than the exchange of propositions. Speech act analysis is particularly important when communicating cross-culturally, and lack of understanding can lead to serious misunderstandings, since the ways languages and cultures perform speech acts varies widely.

For a detailed explanation of our method, see the Speech Act Analysis Creator Guidelines.

Emotional Analysis

This layer explores the emotional dimension of the biblical text and seeks to uncover the clues within the text itself that are part of the communicative intent of its author. The goal of this analysis is to chart the basic emotional tone and/or progression of the psalm.

For a detailed explanation of our method, see the Emotional Analysis Creator Guidelines.

Participant Analysis

Participant Analysis focuses on the characters in the psalm and asks, “Who are the main participants (or characters) in this psalm, and what are they saying or doing? It is often helpful for understanding literary structure, speaker identification, etc.

For a detailed explanation of our method, see the Participant Analysis Creator Guidelines.

Discourse Visuals for Psalm 37

Macrosyntax

• *Emendations*:
  • v. 20: For the emendation כֶעָשָׁן, see Grammar (MT: בֶעָשָׁ֣ן).
  • v. 28B: For the emendation עַוָּלִים נִצְמָתוּ, see The Text of Ps 37:28.
  • vv. 28-31: For the rearrangement of the strophes/letters, see Poetic Structure.
  • v. 36: For the emendation וָאֶעֲבֹר, see Grammar (MT: וַ֭יַּֽעֲבֹר).

Notes

Discourse Markers

• The speaker's use of הִנֵּה in v. 35 invites the addressee to see the surprising situation for himself. Cf. BHRG §40.22.4.1(2): "וְהִנֵּה is used by a narrator (sometimes a speaker) to put the addressee in the perspective of the observing character... Typically, one or another type of movement and/or change of scene is involved so that the the observers are confronted with a new situation which is surprising to them" (e.g., Gen 8:13; 37:29; 42:27; 43:21; Num 17:7; Jdg 3:24; 1 Kgs 3:21; cf. van der Merwe and Miller-Naudé 2011, §3.2; see also Zewi 1996, 21).

Conjunctions

• The כִּי in v. 2 indicates that the two clauses in v. 2 ground the exhortations in v. 1 (speech act כִּי; see Locatell 2019).
• The כִּי in v. 9 indicates that the two clauses in v. 2 ground the exhortations in v. 8 (speech act כִּי; see Locatell 2019).
• The waw at the beginning of v. 10 is necessary for the acrostic structure. (Note that every clause in the waw strophe begins with waw.)
• The כִּי clause in v. 20 probably grounds the entire first half of the psalm (vv. 1-19, see Poetic Structure) (cf. the כִּי clauses at the end of Pss 1; 5; 11; 100). Alternatively, the כִּי might be adversative ("but"), creating a contrast with the description of the righteous in the previous strophe (vv. 18-19).
• The waw in v. 21a might indicate a circumstantial clause (cf. GKC §156): "he is borrowing without the intention of repaying."
• The כִּי in v. 22a is difficult to interpret, and modern translations give a variety of options: "for" (ESV); "surely" (NET); null (NIV, NLT, GNT, CEV). The כִּי clause is probably causal ("for"), and it explains why the righteous are so generous (cf. Hossfeld and Zenger 1993, 236, who argue that v. 21 is about contrasting the behavior of the righteous and the wicked). They are generous because they (who have been blessed by YHWH with material things to share with others) know that in the end they will possess the land (cf. Abraham's generosity in Gen 13). Because they know that wealth awaits them in future, they are motivated to generosity in the present.
• The כִּי + yiqtol in v. 24 is either concessive ("even if", so Locatell 2017, 254; cf. JM §171b "even though"; so most English translations) or temporal ("when", so LXX [ὅταν]; Jerome [cum] NASB). If temporal, then the clause assumes that the righteous will occasionally stumble, and the idea is probably similar to Ps 34:20—"The hardships of the righteous are many, but YHWH rescues him from all of them."
• The waw in v. 35b introduces a circumstantial clause (cf. Baethgen 1904, 107-108; cf. GKC §156c).
• The waw at the beginning of v. 39 (וּתְשׁוּעַת) is unexpected and somewhat disrupts the acrostic structure. The waw probably coordinates with the previous clause, and so it reinforces the contrast between the wicked and the righteous: "the future of the wicked is destroyed. By contrast (waw) the salvation of the righteous (which is implied in the destruction of the wicked in the previous clause) comes from YHWH." The waw at the beginning of this final strophe also creates a poetic connection with the final strophe of the first quarter of the psalm (vv. 1-11), which also began with waw (וְע֣וֹד מְ֭עַט) (see Poetic Structure).

Word Order

• In v. 2a, two constituents appear before the verb: the prepositional phrases כֶחָצִיר ("like grass") and the adverb מְהֵרָה ("soon"). The phrase כֶחָצִיר ("like grass") might be fronted as a frame-setter: it introduces the agricultural contextual domain which the rest of the clause assumes. The adverb מְהֵרָה ("soon") is probably fronted for marked focus: the point of comparing the wicked to grass is not so much that the wicked "will wither" but that their withering will be soon (cf. v. 10 עוֹד מְעַט). We might paraphrase the clause as follows: "Just like grass, their withering will be soon." Cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "MKD."
• V. 2b, with the fronting of the prepositional phrase כְיֶרֶק דֶּשֶׁא, parallels the word order of the previous clause. Cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "MKD//MKD."
• The verb יַעֲשֶֽׂה in v. 5 has an explicit 3ms pronoun as its subject: הוּא ("he"). The use of this pronoun probably indicates marked focus: "and he [=YHWH] will act." The addressee in this psalm is apparently tempted to become angry and to to take matters into his own hands. The speaker encourages him, instead, to wait patiently and silently for YHWH (e.g., vv. 5-8), and YHWH will act on his behalf. Cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "MKD."
• V. 8b mentions "acting wickedly" (להרע). In v. 9a, therefore, the subject "those who act wickedly" (מְרֵעִים) is presupposed and fronted as known information ("and as for the wicked..."). In the following clause (v. 9b), the subject קֹוֵי יְהוָה is extraposed (or, left-disolated) to create a contrast with the subject in the preceding clause. "The extraposed element is וקוי יהוה, which is contrasted with the foregoing [Noun Phrase functioning as the Subject] מרעים" (Lunn 2006, 84). The pronoun המה, which resumes the noun phrase, indicates marked focus: "and, by contrast, those who hope in YHWH—they (and not the wicked) will possess the land." Cf. Gen 15:4; Deut 1:30; Deut 1:37-38; Ps 38:11.
• In v. 11, the subject עֲנָוִים ("the humble") is probably fronted for marked focus. The wicked will be destroyed (v. 10), and so it will be the humble (not the wicked) who will possess the land (cf. v. 29). Cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "MKD."
• The participles in v. 12 (זֹמֵם רָשָׁע), v. 21 (לֹוֶה רָשָׁע), and v. 32 (צוֹפֶה רָשָׁע) are fronted in order to fit the acrostic structure. At the same time, each of the participles in these three verses describes some activity of the wicked person (רָשָׁע) who has been present from the beginning of the psalm (cf. מְרֵעִים in v. 1). Thus, the fronting of the verbs can also be interpreted as verbal focus. In each clause, the "wicked person" is presupposed, and the focal information is what the wicked person is doing: he is plotting (v. 12), he is lending (v. 21), he is watching. (Each of these fronted participial clauses also has a structural function, opening new sections in the psalm; see Poetic Structure).
• The subject of v. 13a (אֲדֹנָי—"the Lord") is fronted, probably because the clause is thetic; nothing in the clause is presupposed in the context. The previous verses mention the wicked and the righteous, and they do not mention (or imply) "the Lord" or "laughing." Cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "MKD."
• The object of v. 14a (חֶרֶב—"sword") is fronted, probably just to fit the acrostic structure. The fronting of this constituent also creates a small chiasm that spans the first half of v. 14: a. "sword"; b. "they have drawn"; b' "they have strung"; a' "their bows." Cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "DEF."
• The subjects in v. 15 ("their swords... their bows") are presupposed, having been mentioned explicitly in v. 14. They are probably fronted for marked topic (listing): "as for their swords (which I mentioned earlier), they will go into their own hearts; and as for their bows (which I also mentioned earlier), they will be broken." Cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "MKD//MKD."
• The subject in v. 17a, "the arms of the wicked" (זְרוֹעוֹת רְשָׁעִים), is accessible for topic activation, since the previous clause (v. 16) mentions "the wicked" explicitly, and the phrase "abundance of many wicked people" implies that the wicked have "power" (here signified metonymically by "arms"). Thus, the subject "arms of the wicked" is fronted before the verb as the topic of the clause. Cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "MKD." The rest of the verse goes on to comment on what will happen to the arms of the wicked: they will be broken.
• In v. 15b, the predicate (סוֹמֵךְ צַדִּיקִים) is fronted for marked focus: "YHWH is upholding the righteous" (and so their arms will remain strong and intact).
• The participle in v. 18a (יוֹדֵעַ) is fronted, probably to fit the requirements of the acrostic structure (but see Ps 1:6).
• The double fronting of וְנַחֲלָתָם לְעוֹלָם in v. 18b is probably topic + focus: "and as for their inheritance, it will be forever." "Inheritance" is presupposed in the context (cf. the previous references to possessing the land). But cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "DEF."
• The fronting of the prepositional phrase at the beginning of v. 19b ("in times of famine"—בִימֵי רְעָבוֹן) creates a chiasm with the previous verse: a. "they will not be ashamed" b. "during hard times" b'. "during times of famine" a'. "they will eat their fill." Cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "DEF."
• In v. 20, "the wicked" (רְשָׁעִים) are presupposed. Although v. 20 begins a new strophe, the כִּי connects this strophe to the preceding discourse, which has mentioned the wicked a number of times. The word רְשָׁעִים is fronted because it is presupposed: "the wicked (whom I've been talking about) will perish!" (cf. v. 9a). Cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "MKD."
• The topical subjects in v. 22ab are fronted so as to contrast with one another (cf. v. 9). Cf. Lunn 2006, 77.
• The fronting of the prepositional phrase "by YHWH" (מֵיְהוָה) in v. 23 meets the requirements of the acrostic (mem strophe). It can also be explained as an instance of marked focus (contra Lunn 2006, 304, "DEF//DEF"). The previous verses (vv. 21-22) contrasted the behavior of the righteous and the wicked. This verse (v. 23) now answers the question: what is the source of the righteous person's righteousness? Answer: it is from YHWH that a person's steps are established (i.e., brought into conformity with YHWH's will). (Interestingly, 4Q171 has a כיא ("for") at the beginning of v. 23, which suggests that they interpreted the psalm similarly). In the b-line, דַרְכּוֹ (direct object) is fronted as the topic: the point of the line is to say something about the person's path (implied by the previous clause). The fronting of וְדַרְכּ֥וֹ also creates a pattern of repetition after the focus-fronted מֵ֭יְהוָה: noun-about-steps – verb // noun-about-steps – verb.
• The predicate complement "young man" (נַעַר) is probably fronted in v. 25 for the sake of the acrostic structure (nun strophe), and might also be thetic (cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "MKD").
• The adverbial phrase "all day long" (כָּל־הַיּוֹם) in v. 26 is fronted for marked focus, as כל phrases often are (cf. Lunn 2006, 198-199). The point of the clause is not that the righteous person gives, but that he gives all day long, i.e., "non-stop, all the time."
• v. 30a. The subject "a righteous person's mouth" (פִּי־צַדִּיק) is probably fronted to meet the requirements of the acrostic (pe strophe). The clause is probably also thetic, since none of the information in this clause is presupposed; this is the first time the psalm has mentioned the "mouth" of the righteous or the speaking of wisdom. Cf. Lunn 2006, 132, who likewise regards this as an example of "sentence-focus structure."
• v. 30b. The subject "his tongue" (לְשׁוֹנוֹ) is probably fronted to match the word order of the previous clause, creating an aba'b' structure (cf. v. 2).
• The subject עַוָּלִים in v. 28b is fronted for the sake of the acrostic structure. The clause, which begins a new strophe, is probably also thetic. (The acrostic appears to lend itself to these independent though-units.) The word order in the b-line parallels the order of the a-line S-V // S-V (cf. v. 30).
• The subject "the righteous" (צַדִּיקִ֥ים) in v. 29 is probably fronted for marked focus. The wicked will be destroyed (v. 10), and so it will be the righteous (not the wicked) who will possess the land (cf. v. 11). Cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "MKD."
• The fronting of "YHWH" (before both verb and negative marker) in v. 33a might mark the clause as thetic (cf. v. 13), or it might simply mark the shift in topic (preferred). Cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "MKD."
• The phrase "when the wicked are destroyed" is fronted in v. 34 as a frame-setter.
• The fronting of "those who rebel" and "the future of the wicked" in v. 38 marks a topic shift and a contrast with the topic of the previous verse: "...a peaceful person has a future. But as for those who rebel..." (Cf. v. 28b). The repetition of the word אַחֲרִית further underscores the contrast: the peaceful person will have a future, whereas the future of hte wicked will be destroyed. Cf. Lunn 2006, 304, "MKD//MKD."

Speech Act Analysis

Summary Visual

Notes

Psalm 37 consists of a series of exhortations to a person who is struggling to trust in YHWH when the wicked are prospering (see Story Behind). These exhortations are mixed with a variety of other speech acts: predictions about the destruction of the wicked, predictions about the peace and prosperity of the righteous, descriptions of how YHWH cares for the righteous, personal anecdotes, etc. But the purpose of all of these assertive speech acts is to ground the exhortations. The whole psalm, therefore, can be characterized as "exhortation." The label "advice" or "counsel" would also be appropriate, since the exhortations are given by someone who is older and wiser and are aimed at helping the addressee overcome a specific problem.

Some of the Church Fathers aptly characterized the psalm as paraenesis (παραίνεσις), a literary category which captures the elements of both "exhortation" and "advice or counsel given by a person" (LSJ). For example, Theodore of Mopsuestia (4th-5th century) writes, "While all the psalms by blessed David have regard to people's benefit, he did not employ in them one genre... There are times when he... delivers an exhortation (παραίνεσις)..., forbidding what must be avoided and advising what should be done. This psalm is of that kind" (Theodore, trans. Hill 2006, 410-413; so also Theodoret, PG 80.1125, who uses the same term to classify Ps 37; cf. Origen, trans. Trigg 2020, 76). East Syriac manuscripts, probably influenced by Theodore's commentary, helpfully give the psalm a superscription that says: "an admonition (מרתינותא) and instruction (מלפנותא) for everyone" (Taylor 2020, 135).

As an acrostic, Psalm 37 does not exhibit a linear speech-act progression (e.g., lament --> prayer --> praise). Rather, the whole psalm circles around a single theme, approaching it from many different angles (see Poetic Feature #1), with the basic purpose of admonishing and instructing the addressee.

Speech Act Chart

Emotional Analysis

Summary visual

The speaker is nowhere explicit about his emotional attitude, and, in general, given the didactic and hortatory nature of the discourse, the psalm is relatively flat in terms of emotions—there is not a dynamic range of emotions or an emotional movement that progresses throughout the psalm. Nevertheless, because the speaker presents himself as an authoritative teacher for the addressee to learn from and (presumably) emulate, we can assume that the speaker embodies the attitude that he summons the addressee to adopt. The speaker is the opposite of "upset" (vv. 1, 7-8). Instead, he is calm and composed, still, patient, and hopeful (cf. vv. 7, 34). He is "confident" in YHWH (vv. 3-5), and his confidence is most clearly perceived in his description of the destruction of the wicked as imminent (cf. v. 10) and as an event that is as good as done (cf. vv. 20, 28, 38). In general, the speaker's emotional state is high in positiveness and low in activation—the opposite of the addressee's emotional state, which is highly negative and active (i.e., "upset," "envious," cf. vv. 1, 7-8).

Emotional Analysis Chart

Participant analysis

There are 5 participants/characters in Psalm 37:

• The psalmist, identified in the superscription as "David" (v. 1), speaks throughout this psalm. At two points in the psalm he speaks in the first person and gives personal anecdotes (vv. 25, 35-36). The speaker is, apparently, an old man (v. 25) who has "seen it all" (note the verb רָאִיתִי in vv. 25, 35) and gives wisdom based on his experience.
• The concerned individual to whom the many second person singular forms refer (vv. 1-10, 27, 34, 37) is never explicitly described in the psalm. Nevertheless, based on the instruction given to him we can infer that this (idealized, hypothetical) addressee is a relatively young person (without the same lived experience as the speaker) who is deeply troubled by the apparent success of the wicked (see esp. vv. 1, 7-8, 10). We might imagine someone with the same attitude as that which Malachi describes: "You have said, 'It is vain to serve God. What is the profit of our keeping his charge or of walking as in mourning before the Lord of hosts? And now we call the arrogant blessed. Evildoers not only prosper but they put God to the test and they escape'" (Mal 3:14-15, ESV; cf. Ps 73).
• The righteous, according to Ps 37, are those who put their hope in YHWH (v. 9), i.e., who have sought shelter in him (v. 40). They have internalized YHWH's instruction (cf. v. 31), and so they live in a way that is blameless (v. 18) and upright (v. 14). Because living according to YHWH's instruction means being generous (cf. vv. 21, 26) and not joining the wicked in their quest for unjust gain, the righteous often become, in material terms, "afflicted and poor" (v. 14; cf. Ruiz 2009, 182-186). Even so, YHWH provides for them so that they always have enough (cf. v. 19).
• Also in view, at least peripherally, are the children of the righteous (vv. 25-26) and the children of the wicked (v. 28B, cf. v. 38b). Long life in the land implies descendants. For the righteous to possess the land and reside on it "forever" (v. 29, cf. v. 27), therefore, implies that they will have children and that their children will possess the land. Similarly, the utter destruction of the wicked and their removal from the land implies the cessation of their family line.

Participant Relations Diagram

The relationships among the participants may be abstracted and summarized as follows:

Participant Analysis Table

Notes

• *Emendations*:
  • v. 20: For the emendation כֶעָשָׁן, see Grammar (MT: בֶעָשָׁ֣ן).
  • v. 28B: For the emendation עַוָּלִים נִצְמָתוּ, see The Text of Ps 37:28.
  • vv. 28-31: For the rearrangement of the strophes/letters, see Poetic Structure.
  • v. 36: For the emendation וָאֶעֲבֹר, see Grammar (MT: וַ֭יַּֽעֲבֹר).
• v. 22: YHWH?

The referent of the pronominal suffixes in v. 22 is not immediately clear. Up to this point, the strophe (vv. 21-22) has only mentioned the righteous and the wicked, but it does not make sense for either of them to be the referent. The suffixes must refer to YHWH, even though he has not yet been mentioned in this strophe (so NIV, NLT, ESV, CEV, GNT, JPS1917, NET, LUT, HFA, NGÜ, GNB). Echoes of Gen 12:3 (cf. Hossfeld and Zenger 1993, 293) and the blessings and curses of Deuteronomy (cf. Craigie 1983, 298) support this identification.

• v. 23: On the participants in v. 23b, see lexical semantics.
• v. 38b: future or children of the wicked?

It is difficult to know whether the word "future" (אַחֲרִית) refers to the children of the wicked (NRSV, NASB: "posterity"; GNT: "their descendants"). See note on lexical semantics. At the very least, children are implied. Cf. parallel in v. 28B.

Participant Distribution Table

The table below demonstrates the participant distribution throughout Psalm 37.

Bibliography

Craigie, Peter C. 1983. Psalms 1–50. WBC 19. Waco, TX: Word.

Hossfeld, Frank-Lothar, and Erich Zenger. 2011. Psalms 3: A Commentary on Psalms 101-150. Edited by Klaus Baltzer. Translated by Linda M. Maloney. Hermeneia. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress.

Locatell, Christian S. 2019. “Causal Categories in Biblical Hebrew Discourse: A Cognitive Approach to Causal כי.” Journal of Northwest Semitic Languages 45 (2).

Lunn, Nicholas P. 2006. Word-Order Variation in Biblical Hebrew Poetry: Differentiating Pragmatics and Poetics. Paternoster Biblical Monographs. Milton Keynes: Paternoster.

Miller-Naudé, Cynthia L., and C. H. J. van der Merwe. 2011. “הִנֵּה and Mirativity in Biblical Hebrew.” Hebrew Studies 52:53–81.

Taylor, Richard A. 2020. The Psalms According to the Syriac Peshitta Version with English Translation. Piscataway: Gorgias Press.

Theodore of Mopsuestia. 2006. Commentary on Psalms 1-81. Translated by Robert C. Hill. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature.

Theodoret. 2001. Commentary on the Psalms. Translated by Robert C. Hill. The Fathers of the Church, a New Translation, v. 101-102. Washington, D.C: Catholic University of America Press.