Psalm 37 Verse-by-Verse

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Welcome to the Verse-by-Verse Notes for Psalm 37!

The Verse-by-Verse Notes present scholarly, exegetical materials (from all layers of analysis) in a verse-by-verse format. They often present alternative interpretive options and justification for a preferred interpretation. The Verse-by-Verse Notes are aimed at consultant-level users.

The discussion of each verse of this psalm includes the following items.

1. A link to the part of the overview video where the verse in question is discussed.
2. The verse in Hebrew and English.
3. An expanded paraphrase of the verse.
4. A grammatical diagram of the verse, which includes glosses for each word and phrase.
5. A series of notes on the verse, which contain information pertaining to the interpretation of the psalm (e.g., meaning of words and phrases, poetic features, difficult grammatical constructions, etc.).

Introduction

Before presenting the Verse-by-Verse Notes for this psalm, it will be helpful to give a brief introduction to the psalm as a whole. The following five items are especially helpful for an initial orientation to the psalm.

1. Acrostic structure
2. Content and background
3. Purpose and genre
4. Main sections
5. Emotions

Acrostic Structure

The first thing to note about Psalm 37 is that it is an acrostic poem: each section begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet (aleph—vv. 1-2, bet—vv. 3-4, gimel—vv. 5-6, etc.). The alphabet is a symbol of completeness. In an acrostic poem, the poet takes a topic (e.g., Torah [Ps. 119], or the virtuous woman [Prov. 31]) and expounds on it completely (i.e., from every angle necessary to gain a sufficient understanding), so that the reader walks away with a high-resolution image of the topic (i.e., he/she understands it “from A to Z”). In Psalm 37, the topic is 'How to respond to the success of the wicked.'

The acrostic structure of Ps 37 has suffered in two ways over the course of its transmission:

1. In the Masoretic Text, the beginning of the ayin section has been distorted through a series of scribal errors. The original text can be recovered with the help of the Septuagint and the Qumran Pesher manuscript 4Q171 (see notes on v. 28A below, and see The Text of Ps 37:28 for a detailed discussion of the issue).
2. In the Masoretic Text, the ayin section precedes the pe section, but when the psalm was written, the order was probably reversed (pe-ayin, see notes on the pe section below).

Content and background

The message of Ps 37 can be summarized as follows: The wicked will not last for long. It is the righteous who will possess the land.

The psalm assumes a situation in which (1) the righteous and the wicked are living together in the land; (2) the wicked become successful; (3) the person to whom the psalm is addressed begins to question YHWH's justice and the value of living a righteous life; (4) the person becomes upset and jealous of the wicked. But then, (5) the person receives wise counsel from the speaker of Ps 37. As a result, (6) he trusts in YHWH (or, at least, that's the response that Ps 37 is designed to bring about!). The psalm then looks forward to a time when (7) the wicked are destroyed, and the righteous possess the land (8). This "Story Behind" Ps 37 can be visualized as follows.

Some key background ideas include the following:

• YHWH is the judge of all the earth who rewards the righteous and punishes the wicked.
• The success of the wicked poses a perennial challenge to the idea of YHWH's justice.
• YHWH promised to give the land of Canaan to Abraham and his descendants, and in the conquest of Canaan under Joshua, YHWH fulfilled his promise. But Israel's continued possession of the land depended on their faithfulness to the covenant.
• In the end, "all of [YHWH's] people will be righteous, and they [i.e., the righteous] will possess the land forever."

The number-one repeated semantic domain in Ps 37 is BEHAVIOR. Origen was correct to introduce this psalm by saying, "The whole Psalm is concerned with behavior (ἠθικός ἐστι); it is treating our soul, rebuking our sins, and recommending that we live according to the law."

Purpose and genre

Psalm 37 consists of a series of exhortations to a person who is struggling to trust in YHWH when the wicked are prospering. 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 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." 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." 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."

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, with the basic purpose of admonishing and instructing the addressee.

Main sections

The macrostructure of the poem is key to understanding its message. Psalm 37 consists of four sections. The sections can be delimited based on the similarity of their beginnings and endings.

Each section begins by acknowledging the present reality of the wicked and their attempts to harm the righteous:

• "those who act wickedly... those who do wrong" (v. 1)
• "the wicked is plotting..." (v. 12)
• "the wicked is borrowing..." (v. 21)
• "the wicked is watching..." (v. 32)

The beginnings of the last three sections are especially similar to each other: each begins with a ms participle followed by the subject רָשָׁע ("wicked person").

Each section ends with the destruction of the wicked and the salvation of the righteous:

• "...the humble will possess the land" (vv. 9-11)
• "The wicked... are finished... They are finished!" (v. 20)
• "...the righteous will possess the land" (vv. 28B-29)
• "YHWH rescues them... He will rescue them..." (vv. 39-40)

These endings exhibit a pattern. The first and third endings repeat the phrase יִירְשׁוּ אָרֶץ ("they will possess the land"). The second and fourth endings repeat words in close proximity to one another (the only example of this kind of repetition in the psalm): "finished...finished!" (v. 20); "rescues... rescues" (vv. 39-40). It is also worth noting that each of the last three sections ends with qatal verbs to describe the destruction of the wicked as an event that is as good as done: "they are finished!" (v. 20); "wrongdoers are exterminated!" (v. 28B); "those who rebel are completely exterminated!" (v. 38). (On the reordering of the verses such that the ayin section precedes the pe section, see the note on vv. 30-31 below. In the visual below, the verses affected by the reordering are marked with blue asterisks. Blue asterisks within the text mark textual emendations [on each of these, see in the notes below]).

Emotions

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).

Getting upset vs trusting (vv. 1-11)

The first main section of the psalm (vv. 1-11) is distinguished by the thorough use of second-person singular forms ("you" [sg.], "your" [sg.], highlighted yellow in the visual below). In other words, this whole section is very personal, addressed not to a group, but to an individual who is upset about the success of the wicked. Every letter unit (i.e., aleph, bet, etc.) within this section has at least one instance of second-person singular language, whether a 2ms verb or a 2ms pronoun. By contrast, the following section (vv. 12-20) contains no instances of second-person singular language. Verses 1-11 are further bound together by the repeated words that occur uniquely within this section (boxed in the visual below): הִתְעַנַּג (vv. 4a, 11b) and תִּתְחַר (vv. 1a, 7b, 8b). The section further divides into two parts (vv. 1-6; vv. 7-11), which are marked by their similar beginnings (אַל־תִּתְחַר, etc., see visual below).

Aleph (vv. 1-2)

The aleph section consists of a negative exhortation (v. 1, "do not get upset") followed by a pair of statements about the imminent destruction of the wicked supporting the exhortation (v. 2).

v. 1

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
ss	לְדָוִ֨ד ׀	By David.
1a	אַל־תִּתְחַ֥ר בַּמְּרֵעִ֑ים	Do not get upset about those who act wickedly;
1b	אַל־תְּ֝קַנֵּ֗א בְּעֹשֵׂ֥י עַוְלָֽה׃	Do not be jealous of those who do wrong.

Expanded Paraphrase

By David. I realize that you are upset. I realize that when you see wicked people prospering and rising in social status, you are tempted to doubt YHWH's justice and conclude that 'It is vain to serve God...Evildoers not only prosper but they put God to the test and they escape' (Mal 3:15, ESV; cf. Ps 73). Listen to my wise counsel, and I will tell you how you should respond to this situation. Do not get upset about those who act wickedly; Do not be jealous of those who do wrong such that you seek to imitate them.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The verb get upset (תִּתְחַר) is a keyword. It both opens the psalm and occurs a total of three times in the psalm (vv. 1, 7-8). Outside of Ps 37, the verb is rare, occurring only in Prov 24:19 (אַל־תִּתְחַר בַּמְּרֵעִים) and in the margin of a manuscript of Ben Sira. Therefore, this verb is part of what makes Ps 37 unique, and understanding its meaning is important to understanding the meaning of the psalm. Modern English translations use a wide variety of terms to translate it: "fret" (NIV, ESV, NET), "worry" (NLT, cf. GNT), "get upset" (NASB), "be annoyed" (CEV), "be vexed" (NJPS), "strive to outdo" (NEB), "get heated" (NJB). SDBH helpfully defines the word as a "process by which humans or deities experience extreme displeasure." In Ps 37, it is parallel to "anger" (אַף) and "wrath" (חֵמָה) in v. 8, and in v. 1 it is parallel to "envy" (קַנֵּא), which is elsewhere associated with anger (e.g., Ps 79:5; Prov 27:4). In v. 7, its opposite is patient and calm waiting for YHWH. In the end, it is perhaps more helpful to illustrate the meaning of the word than to gloss it or define it. In Ps 73, the psalmist says, "Take a good look. This is what the wicked are like, those who always have it so easy and get richer and richer. I concluded, 'Surely in vain I have kept my motives pure and maintained a pure lifestyle. I suffer all day long, and am punished every morning'" (Ps 73:12-14, NET). Similarly, Malachi describes people who say, "It is futile to serve God. What do we gain by carrying out his requirements and going about like mourners before the Lord Almighty? But now we call the arrogant blessed. Certainly evildoers prosper, and even when they put God to the test, they get away with it" (Mal 3:14-15, NIV). The attitude expressed in these passages ("Surely in vain..."; "It is futile to serve God...") is precisely what Ps 37 is trying to describe with the word "get upset" (תִּתְחַר).
• The addressee is tempted to become upset about those who act wickedly (בַּמְּרֵעִים). The context suggests that the preposition "about" (בַּ) indicates the cause of the upset emotions. It is not so much that the addressee is upset at the wicked (i.e., that his anger is directed towards them), but that he is upset about them. As our study of the rest of the psalm will suggest, it appears that the addressee was tempted to direct his anger towards God. As one scholar explains, commenting on v. 8, "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." Because 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," or, at least, it poses a challenge to the concept of divine justice. The biblical authors frequently wrestled with this apparent contradiction (see e.g., Jer 12:1; Mal 3:14-15; Ps 73; Job 20-21). Some of Israel's neighbors wrestled with this problem as well.
• The verb act wickedly (here, a participle: בַּמְּרֵעִים) means "to treat badly, make difficulties for someone, cause injury." In Ps 37, it is partially synonymous with "those who do wrong" (v. 1) and "the wicked" (vv. 9, 12, 14, etc.), and so it has a clear moral dimension: "[those who] act wickedly" (SDBH). Verse 38 describes them as those who rebel against YHWH's authority, and v. 20 describes them as "YHWH's enemies."
• The word be jealous (תְּקַנֵּא) refers to "negative affective responses to a relative loss in status to a rival. [Jealousy, i.e., קִנְאָה] could be aroused by rivalry over virtually any facet of human life, from material possessions, to political power, to the affec­tions of loved ones." The danger of jealousy (קִנְאָה) is that it 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."

v. 2

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
2a	כִּ֣י כֶ֭חָצִיר מְהֵרָ֣ה יִמָּ֑לוּ	For they will soon wither like grass,
2b	וּכְיֶ֥רֶק דֶּ֝֗שֶׁא יִבּוֹלֽוּן׃	and they will fade like green leaves on plants.

Expanded Paraphrase

Here is why you should not get upset or jealous or desire to be like the wicked: For they will soon wither like grass, and they will fade like green leaves on plants. You see, the wicked are like grass: they sprout up quickly and flourish for a little while, but when the scorching heat comes, they quickly dry up. If you join them, then that is what will happen to you as well.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The word for (כִּי) in v. 2 indicates that the two clauses in v. 2 ground the exhortations in v. 1.
• This verse introduces one of the most important metaphors in this psalm: the wicked are like vegetation that quickly fades, i.e., they are like grass (כֶחָצִיר) and like green leaves on plants (כְיֶרֶק דֶּשֶׁא). The following table explores this image.

• These—prepositional phrases like grass (כֶחָצִיר) and like green leaves on plants (כְיֶרֶק דֶּשֶׁא)—are fronted before the verb as frame-setters that introduce the agricultural contextual domain which the rest of the clause assumes.
• The adverb soon (מְהֵרָה), which refers both to the imminence of the wicked's destruction as well as to the speed with which it will take place, 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—"just a little longer"). Taking the information structure into account, we might paraphrase the clause as follows: "Just like grass, their withering will be soon."

Bet (vv. 3-4)

Whereas the aleph section gives negative exhortations (v. 1: "do not... do not...") and describes the immanent destruction of the wicked (v. 2), the bet sections gives positive exhortations (v. 3a) and describes the wonderful future awaiting the addressee if he should choose to heed the psalmist's advice (vv. 3b-4).

v. 3

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
3a	בְּטַ֣ח בַּֽ֭יהוָה וַעֲשֵׂה־ט֑וֹב	Trust in YHWH and do good!
3b	שְׁכָן־אֶ֝֗רֶץ וּרְעֵ֥ה אֱמוּנָֽה׃	Reside in the land and graze securely!

Expanded Paraphrase

What you need to do is Trust in YHWH and continue practicing covenant faithfulness by doing good to your neighbor (unlike the wicked who harm their neighbors for gain)! If you trust YHWH and do good, then you will forever Reside in the land that YHWH gave to Abraham, and you will graze securely among the sheep of his pasture!

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The first positive exhortation is to trust in YHWH (בְּטַח בַּיהוָה), that is, to be confident that YHWH is good and just and that he will make everything right in the end.
• The second positive exhortation is to do good (עֲשֵׂה־טוֹב), that is, to practice covenant faithfulness as part of what it means to fear and worship YHWH (cf. Ps 34:13-15).
• Although the next two verbs in v. 3b—reside in the land and graze securely! (שְׁכָן־אֶרֶץ וּרְעֵה אֱמוּנָה)—are also imperatives, they are not also exhortations. Rather, they function "to express a distinct assurance... or promise" (cf. Ps 37:27). The NLT captures this function by using future verbs in English: "Then you will live safely in the land and prosper."
• The land (אֶרֶץ) is a key theme in this psalm (cf. vv. 9, 11, 22, 29, 34). The word refers to the land of Canaan which YHWH promised to give to Abraham and his descendants (see Gen 12:7; 15:7, 18-21). 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). In Ps 37, it is only the righteous who will possess the land in the end (cf. Isa 60:21), perhaps hinting at the idea that only the righteous—i.e., those who trust in YHWH and practice covenant faithfulness—are the true descendants of Abraham to whom the land has been given. The following Venn diagram explores some of the similarities and differences between the English word "land" and the Hebrew word אֶרֶץ.

• The final clause of v. 3—translated here as graze securely! (רְעֵה אֱמוּנָה)—has been interpreted in at least five different ways. According to our preferred interpretation, the clause means "graze securely >> "Live securely" (CSB). The image is similar to that in Isa 14:30: "The poorest of the poor will find pasture (וְרָעוּ), and the needy will lie down in safety" (NIV; cf. Ezek 34:14, 18-19; Isa 33:6). The syntax is similar to Isa 30:23, where intransitive רעה is modified by an adverbial accusative—"In that day your cattle will graze (יִרְעֶה) in broad meadows (כַּ֥ר נִרְחָב)" (NIV). According to this view, the word אֱמוּנָה does not refer to the virtue of "faithfulness" but to "security" or "stability" and functions as an adverbial accusative ("securely").
• The word graze introduces the metaphor of YHWH as the shepherd of his people, and his people as the sheep of his pasture (cf. Pss 23; 100). Verse 14 ("slaughter"—טבח) also appears to draw on this imagery.

v. 4

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
4a	וְהִתְעַנַּ֥ג עַל־יְהוָ֑ה	And then you will delight yourself in YHWH,
4b	וְיִֽתֶּן־לְ֝ךָ֗ מִשְׁאֲלֹ֥ת לִבֶּֽךָ׃	and he will give you your heart’s desires.

Expanded Paraphrase

And then, as you dwell in the land and enjoy its benefits, you will delight yourself in YHWH, and he will give you your heart's desires. He will be your shepherd, and you will lack nothing.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The imperative in v. 4a—translated here as and then you will delight yourself (וְהִתְעַנַּג)—is coordinate with the imperatives in v. 3b and should probably be understood in the same way, i.e., not as an exhortation ("delight yourself!") but as a promise ("and then you will delight yourself..."). Similarly, in v. 11, delight in YHWH is something that takes place as a consequence of possessing the land: "the humble will possess the land and delight themselves (וְהִתְעַנְּגו) in great prosperity." The purpose-result semantics are not only clear from the context, they are even encoded syntactically by means of the waw prefix. Thus, according to vv. 3b-4, those who trust in YHWH and do good (v. 3a) will dwell in the land and graze securely (v. 3b), find delight in YHWH, and receive their heart's desires (v. 4).
• The heart (לֵב) is "one’s inner self, seat of feeling and emotions" and the seat of "desire."
• The phrase your heart’s desires (מִשְׁאֲלֹת לִבֶּךָ) is, literally, "your heart's requests." If the "requests of the heart" are unarticulated, then "desires" is an accurate translation (cf. NIV, ESV, NLT, CEV, GNT). In Ps 19, the phrase "meditation of my heart" (הֶגְיוֹן לִבִּי), juxtaposed with the phrase "words of my mouth," probably refers to unvoiced thoughts. Similarly, in Ps 37:4, the reference is probably to unvoiced requests, i.e., deep-seated desires.
• To delight yourself in YHWH (וְהִתְעַנַּג עַל־יְהוָה) means to enjoy 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). The exhortation calls to mind 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."

Gimel (vv. 5-6)

The gimel section (vv. 5-6) continues to give positive exhortations, encouraging the addressee to continue living a life of righteousness and justice while he waits for YHWH to act.

v. 5

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
5a	גּ֣וֹל עַל־יְהוָ֣ה דַּרְכֶּ֑ךָ	Commit your way to YHWH,
5b	וּבְטַ֥ח עָ֝לָ֗יו וְה֣וּא יַעֲשֶֽׂה׃	and trust in him, and he will act,

Expanded Paraphrase

So what you need to do is Commit your way to YHWH. Put this difficult matter into YHWH's hands, and trust in him, and he will act (for he alone is able to do anything about it),

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The word translated commit (גּוֹל) (so ESV, NIV, NLT, NET) is literally "to roll away, to God: a need, distress." SDBH defines it as 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." Here, the thing that should be committed to YHWH is "your way" (דַּרְכֶּךָ) that is, the way on which you walk, i.e., your life journey >> your actions (cf. Prov 16:3). The NJPS translation does a good job bringing out the sense of the clause: "Leave all to the LORD."
• On the exhortation to trust (בְטַח) in YHWH, see above on v. 3.
• The clause he will act (הוּא יַעֲשֶׂה) has an explicit 3ms pronoun: 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 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.
• The verb act (יַעֲשֶׂה) is sometimes intransitive, as it is here, meaning "act with effect, especially of [YHWH]." Cf. ESV: "he will act"; NET: "he will act on your behalf."

v. 6

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
6a	וְהוֹצִ֣יא כָא֣וֹר צִדְקֶ֑ךָ	and he will make your righteousness known like the light,
6b	וּ֝מִשְׁפָּטֶ֗ךָ כַּֽצָּהֳרָֽיִם׃	and [he will make] your justice [known] like midday.

Expanded Paraphrase

and when he does, it will become obvious to everyone that the wicked were in the wrong and that those who trusted in YHWH were in the right. And so he will make your righteousness known to everyone, just like the light is clearly visible to everyone, and [he will make] your justice, the fact that you have lived your life in accordance with YHWH's commands, [known] like midday.

Grammatical Diagram

See previous verse.

Notes

• This verse specifies the way in which YHWH will "act" (see v. 5): he will make your righteousness known like the light (וְהוֹצִיא כָאוֹר צִדְקֶךָ). "Light" is something that is visible to everyone. Thus, to bring something out "like the light" is to make that thing visible. The CEV helpfully renders the verse as follows: "Then it will be as clear as the noonday sun that you were right."
• The word justice (מִשְׁפָּט) refers to behavior that conforms to YHWH’s law (cf. SDBH: “practices that conform to the laws of God”). Everyone will be able to see that this person is in the right and their deeds are just (in conformity with God’s law).

Dalet (v. 7)

The dalet section consists of a single three-line verse. In this section, the psalmist circles back to the negative exhortation with which he opened the poem: "do not get upset"

v. 7

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
7a	דּ֤וֹם ׀ לַיהוָה֮ וְהִתְח֪וֹלֵ֫ל ל֥וֹ	Be silent before YHWH and wait for him!
7b	אַל־תִּ֭תְחַר בְּמַצְלִ֣יחַ דַּרְכּ֑וֹ	Do not get upset about someone who makes his way successful,
7c	בְּ֝אִ֗ישׁ עֹשֶׂ֥ה מְזִמּֽוֹת׃	about a person carrying out schemes.

Expanded Paraphrase

The wicked might be prospering now, but they will not prosper for long. So instead of being upset, Be silent before YHWH and wait patiently for him! Do not get upset about someone who makes his way successful by exploiting others, about a person carrying out cunning schemes designed to make himself rich and powerful at the expense of others.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The verb be silent (דּוֹם) is associated with hopeful expectation (cf. Ps 62:6). The English verb "be silent" requires a preposition like "before," but the Hebrew phrase דּוֹם ל is not so much "be silent before YHWH >> in YHWH's presence" but rather "wait silently for YHWH." In other words, "YHWH" is the object of the psalmist's hope.
• The verb wait (הִתְחוֹלֵל) elsewhere appears to mean "to writhe with fear," but this is not appropriate to the context. Thus, virtually all translations agree that the verb here means to "wait longingly."
• On the exhortation to not get upset (אַל־תִּתְחַר), see above on v. 1.
• The expression translated carrying out schemes (עֹשֶׂה מְזִמּוֹת) refers to carrying out plans (cf. Jer 11:15), not to forming them. The latter is expressed with the verb חשׁב, e.g., בִּמְזִמֹּ֖ות ז֣וּ חָשָֽׁבוּ (Ps 10:2). The Hebrew noun translated "schemes" (מְזִמּוֹת) has a negative connotation (cf. SDBH).

He (vv. 8-9)

In the he section (vv. 8-9), the psalmist continues to encourage the addressee to let go of his anger and avoid joining the wicked (v. 8), grounding his exhortation in the fact that the wicked will be destroyed (v. 9a). This verse also introduces the positive counterpart to the destruction of the wicked (v. 9b): "those who hope in YHWH—they will possess the land."

v. 8

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
8a	הֶ֣רֶף מֵ֭אַף וַעֲזֹ֣ב חֵמָ֑ה	Let go of anger and leave wrath behind!
8b	אַל־תִּ֝תְחַ֗ר אַךְ־לְהָרֵֽעַ׃	Do not get upset, only to act wickedly!

Expanded Paraphrase

Let go of your anger and leave wrath behind! Do not get upset which will lead only to joining the wicked and acting wickedly!

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• On the exhortation to not get upset (אַל־תִּתְחַר), see above on v. 1.
• The speaker here highlights the danger of getting upset. The infinitival phrase only to act wickedly (אַךְ־לְהָרֵעַ) indicates the result of becoming upset. The particle only (אַךְ) modifies לְהָרֵעַ, indicating that "doing evil" is the only possible outcome of getting angry. As Hupfeld explains, "Anger only serves to lead a person into sin, particularly inappropriate speech against God (cf. Pss 39:2; 73:2)... such that the person himself falls in with the evildoers." We see this connection between getting upset (at God) about evildoers and acting wickedly not only in biblical passages like Ps 73 and Mal 3 (see notes on v. 1 above), but also in the Babylonian Theodicy: "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."

v. 9

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
9a	כִּֽי־מְ֭רֵעִים יִכָּרֵת֑וּן	For those who act wickedly will be destroyed;
9b	וְקֹוֵ֥י יְ֝הוָ֗ה הֵ֣מָּה יִֽירְשׁוּ־אָֽרֶץ׃	but those who hope in YHWH—they will possess the land.

Expanded Paraphrase

Here's why you should not get upset and join the wicked: For those who act wickedly will be destroyed; but those who hope in YHWH and practice covenant faithfulness—they (and not the wicked) will possess the land.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The word for (כִּי) in v. 9 indicates that the two clauses in v. 9 ground the exhortations in v. 8. In other words: "The reason why you should not get upset and join the wicked (v. 8) is because the wicked will be destroyed (v. 9)."
• Verse 9 contrasts two groups: those who act wickedly (מְרֵעִים) vs those who hope in YHWH (קֹוֵי יְהוָה). The contrast is reinforced by the word order: the subject "those who act wickedly" (v. 9a) is fronted before the verb, and the subject "those who wait for YHWH" (v. 9b) is extraposed (or, left-disolated). The pronoun they (הֵמָּה), 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."
• On the noun phrase those who act wickedly (מְרֵעִים), see above on v. 1.
• The verb translated will be destroyed (יִכָּרֵתוּן) literally means "will be cut down" and might imply the metaphor "the wicked are plants" (cf. vv. 1, 20, 35), since plants are "cut down" (see e.g., 1 Kgs 5:20; Jer 6:6). Elsewhere, the Bible says that those who refuse to observe YHWH's covenant are "cut off" from YHWH's people.
• The verb hope (קֹוֵי) refers to a "state in which humans are confident that their longing will be fulfilled" (SDBH). It is synonymous with the verb "wait" (הִתְחוֹלֵל) in v. 7. TDOT compares and contrasts the two verbs as follows: "It is difficult to distinguish semantically the various verbs for hoping and waiting. As far as the two most frequent verbs are concerned, one can perhaps best follow Westermann’s suggestion that יחל 'in reference to God retains the entire range of meaning that it has in nontheological usage,' whereas קוה is much more influenced by its theological use. Similar to חכה and שׂבר, [the verb] יחל would then emphasize more the aspect of 'waiting' and קוה more the aspect of 'hoping.' One consideration, however, is that these verbs and their derivatives appear not only in similar contexts but generally also in late (exilic-postexilic) texts, suggesting that they have lost much of their original semantic content and have become increasingly synonymous such that the use of the one or the other depends more on stylistic than semantic considerations."
• The verb possess (ירשׁ) occurs five times in Ps 37 (vv. 9b, 11a, 22a, 29a, 34b). SDBH gives the gloss "take possession." Some English translations simply have "possess" (e.g., NLT, NET, GNT) and others have "inherit" (e.g., NIV, ESV, NJPS, CSB). Despite the popularity of the gloss "inherit" for the verb ירשׁ, this meaning is relatively rare in the Bible and appears to be late. As Lohfink writes, "Only in very late passages does this usage come to refer also to inheritance of the family’s wealth by whoever takes over family leadership when the father dies. Earlier contexts always involve 'acquisition' of something additional, without stipulating the specific mode of acquisition, usually purchase." This developed meaning of the verb ("inherit") might reflect Aramaic influence (cf. Aramaic ירת). In Ps 37, the verb is more accurately glossed as "possess" rather than "inherit." The following Venn diagram explores some of the similarities and differences between the English word "inherit" and the Hebrew verb ירשׁ (qal).

• The Hebrew verb ירשׁ, like the English word "possess," can communicate both the initial act of taking possession (cf. 1 Kgs 21:15) or the continued act of possessing (cf. Josh 1:15b; 1 Chron 28:8). In Ps 37, both senses of "possess" are in view to some extent. On the one hand, the righteous are already living in the land, and many of them are probably landowners. Thus, the psalm affirms that, whereas the wicked will lose possession of the land, the righteous will continue to possess it. On the other hand, the fact that the wicked lose possession of the land implies the righteous will gain land, i.e., they will "take possession." The future-perfective yiqtol probably expresses the terminal phase of the event: they already possess the land to some extent now but will do so fully in the future when the wicked have been destroyed.
• The destruction of the wicked and the righteous' taking possession of the land are future events (rather than habitual events)—will...will.... The psalm is looking forward to a time in the imminent future (cf. v. 1 "soon", v. 10 "just a little longer...") when YHWH will act decisively to bring about the destruction of the wicked and reward the righteous with possession of the land.

Waw (vv. 10-11)

The waw section (vv. 10-11)—note that every clause in this section begins with waw!—concludes the first main section of the psalm. It continues to describe the contrasting fates of the righteous and the wicked and focuses on the immanence of this future situation: "just a little bit longer!"

v. 10

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
10a	וְע֣וֹד מְ֭עַט וְאֵ֣ין רָשָׁ֑ע	And just a little bit longer, and the wicked person will be gone;
10b	וְהִתְבּוֹנַ֖נְתָּ עַל־מְקוֹמ֣וֹ וְאֵינֶֽנּוּ׃	And you will look closely at the place where he was, and he will not be there.

Expanded Paraphrase

And just wait for YHWH a little bit longer and he will act, and the wicked person will be gone; And you will look closely at the place where he was, expecting to find him, and he will not be there.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• On the expression just a little bit longer (עוֹד מְעַט), cf. Exod 17:4; Isa 10:25; Jer 51:33 Hos 1:4.
• The theme of "The ephemerality of the existence of the wicked and their public demise" is a common theme in the speeches of Job's friends. See e.g., Job 15:23 (Eliphaz); 18:5-6, 18 (Bildad); 20:6-8, 23, 26, 28 (Zophar). See also the Babylonian Theodicy: "As for the rascal whose good will you wanted, The ... of his feet will soon disappear."

v. 11

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
11a	וַעֲנָוִ֥ים יִֽירְשׁוּ־אָ֑רֶץ	But the humble will possess the land
11b	וְ֝הִתְעַנְּג֗וּ עַל־רֹ֥ב שָׁלֽוֹם׃	and delight themselves in great prosperity.

Expanded Paraphrase

But it is the humble—those who wait silently for YHWH while doing good—who will possess the land and delight themselves in great prosperity. For the land that YHWH gave to Abraham is "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" (Deut 8:7-9, NIV).

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The humble (עֲנָוִים) here refer to those who quietly suffered while the wicked prospered. As the subject of the clause, it is 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).
• On the verb delight themselves (וְהִתְעַנְּגוּ), see above on v. 4.

Lasting vs fading (vv. 12-20)

The second main section (vv. 12-20) is all about how the righteous will last (see esp. vv. 18-19, also vv. 16, 17b), whereas the wicked, even though they are a menace in the present (vv. 12, 14), will fade like flowers (see esp. v. 20, also vv. 13, 15, 17a). This is the theme of the whole psalm, but it is in special focus here. The section begins with the present plotting of the wicked (v. 12—זֹמֵ֣ם רָשָׁע) and ends with the future destruction of the wicked (v. 20). The two parts of this section (vv. 12-15; vv. 16-20) are, as the two parts in the previous section, marked by their similar beginnings (לַצַּדִּיק, vv. 12, 16).

Zayin (vv. 12-13)

The zayin section (vv. 12-13) acknowledges the present reality of the wicked's oppression of the righteous (v. 12). But it then describes how YHWH views the situation (and, therefore, how the addressee should view the situation): "the Lord laughs at him." The plotting of the wicked, in other words, is not something to get upset about. Rather, it is something to laugh at.

v. 12

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
12a	זֹמֵ֣ם רָ֭שָׁע לַצַּדִּ֑יק	The wicked person is plotting against the righteous person
12b	וְחֹרֵ֖ק עָלָ֣יו שִׁנָּֽיו׃	and grinding his teeth at him.

Expanded Paraphrase

In the current situation, The wicked person is plotting against the righteous person and grinding his teeth at him as an expression of hostility.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The second, third, and fourth main sections of the psalm begin with participles describing the present-continuous activity of "the wicked person" (v. 12 [זֹמֵם רָשָׁע], v. 21 [לֹוֶה רָשָׁע], v. 32 [צוֹפֶה רָשָׁע]). The specific activity described in v. 12 is that the wicked person is plotting (זֹמֵם). The verb is from the same root as the noun "schemes" (מְזִמּוֹת) in v. 7. In terms of morphology, זֹמֵם is a participle, and most English translations translate it as habitual: "the wicked plot(s)" (NLT, NIV, ESV, GNT, REB). Although this analysis is possible, habitual semantics are usually associated with the yiqtol conjugation and not with the participle. The participle usually indicates continuous action ("is plotting" vs "plots"), which would work well in the context of Ps 37. Each main section of the psalm begins with the speaker pointing to some current situation about which the hearer is worried (cf. v. 1) and then proceeds to address the issue: "the wicked person is (currently) plotting (v. 12)... borrowing (v. 21)... watching (v. 32), but in the near future..." The continuous semantics of the participle ("is plotting") together with the singular nouns ("wicked person... against the righteous person") makes the description in this verse especially vivid. Rather than an abstract description of unjust activity ("wicked people plot against righteous people"), the speaker zeros in on a specific, present example of injustice ("a wicked person is plotting against the righteous person").
• Grinding teeth is an expression of "hostility" and "derision." According to the Dictionary of Biblical Imagery, "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."

v. 13

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
13a	אֲדֹנָ֥י יִשְׂחַק־ל֑וֹ	The Lord laughs at him,
13b	כִּֽי־רָ֝אָ֗ה כִּֽי־יָבֹ֥א יוֹמֽוֹ׃	because he sees that his time will come.

Expanded Paraphrase

But The all-powerful Lord laughs at him as an expression of contempt and a form of mockery, because he sees that his time, the time at which he will be destroyed, will come.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The word translated the Lord (אֲדֹנָי) is not the divine name "YHWH" but a divine epithet that highlights YHWH's role as "master and lord." In this context, it underscores YHWH's supremacy over the wicked person who plots against the righteous person. It is used in a similar context in Ps 2: "The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord (אֲדֹנָי) scoffs at them" (Psalm 2:4, NIV).
• As Ps 2:4 also illustrates (see note above), to laugh at someone is an expression of contempt and a form of mockery.
• The coming time (יוֹם, lit.: "day") of the wicked is his "day of judgment" (NLT), i.e., the time at which he will "be destroyed" (GNT). Job's friend Eliphaz describes the pain of the wicked as they anticipate this coming "day": "The sound of terror rings in their ears, and even on good days they fear the attack of the destroyer. They dare not go out into the darkness for fear they will be murdered. They wander around, saying, ‘Where can I find bread?’ They know their day of destruction is near. That dark day terrifies them. They live in distress and anguish, like a king preparing for battle" (Job 15:21-24, NLT).

Khet (vv. 14-15)

The khet section (vv. 14-15) parallels the previous section (vv. 12-13) in that it acknowledges the present threat of the wicked in very dramatic terms (v. 14), but then it also looks forward to the day when the wicked will be destroyed (v. 15). One of the unique contributions of this section is that it describes the wicked as the agents of their own destruction: "their swords will go into their own hearts" (v. 15a).

v. 14

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
14a	חֶ֤רֶב ׀ פָּֽתְח֣וּ רְשָׁעִים֮	The wicked have drawn swords
14b	וְדָרְכ֪וּ קַ֫שְׁתָּ֥ם	and strung their bows
14c	לְ֭הַפִּיל עָנִ֣י וְאֶבְי֑וֹן	in order to bring down the one who is afflicted and poor,
14d	לִ֝טְב֗וֹחַ יִשְׁרֵי־דָֽרֶךְ׃	in order to slaughter those whose conduct is upright.

Expanded Paraphrase

The wicked have finished their plotting and are now preparing to execute their plots against the righteous. They are like dangerous warriors who have drawn their swords before the battle and strung their bows. They have prepared themselves in order to bring down the righteous one who is afflicted and poor, in order to slaughter like helpless lambs those whose conduct is upright.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The phrase translated have drawn swords (חֶרֶב פָּתְחוּ) is literally "they have opened their swords." In Hebrew, a sword is like a mouth that devours (e.g., Deut 23:42—וְחַרְבִּ֖י תֹּאכַ֣ל בָּשָׂ֑ר). Just as a person opens their mouth to prepare to eat, so a warrior "opens" his sword to prepare to slay someone. In English, we would use the verb "to draw (a sword)."
• The image of sword drawing is probably metaphorical; the psalm uses the language of warfare to describe how the wicked oppress the righteous. As the Dictionary of Biblical Imagery explains, "Because of the sword's capacity to inflict wounds, it is used to symbolize anything that causes harm and injury to people." See e.g., 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 word sword (חֶרֶב), the direct object of the clause, 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."
• The clause translated and strung their bows (וְדָרְכוּ קַשְׁתָּם) is literally "they have stepped on their bows." The reference is not to pulling the string back to fire an arrow but to "the method of bending the unstrung bow enough [using one's foot] to slip the bowstring in place on the end of the bow."
• The phrases in order to bring down (לְהַפִּיל)... in order to slaughter (לִטְבוֹחַ) indicate the purpose of the attack. The first phrase ("to bring down," lit.: to cause to fall") refers to a "causative process or action by which humans or deities cause (other) humans to be killed or severely wounded by enemies" (SDBH). The second phrase ("to slaughter") evokes the image of innocent, helpless lambs being slaughtered (Exod 21:37; Jer 11:19; 51:40) and recalls the sheep imagery in v. 3 ("graze securely!").

v. 15

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
15a	חַ֭רְבָּם תָּב֣וֹא בְלִבָּ֑ם	Their swords will go into their own hearts
15b	וְ֝קַשְּׁתוֹתָ֗ם תִּשָּׁבַֽרְנָה׃	and their bows will be broken.

Expanded Paraphrase

But their plots will result in their own destruction! Their swords will go into their hearts, and their bows will be broken.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• Verse 15 describes how the wicked effectively destroy themselves: their swords will go into their own hearts. Interestingly, Ps 37, like Ps 1:6, never explicitly says that YHWH is the agent of the wicked's destruction (although this is probably implicit). Rather, whereas the psalm presents YHWH as being intimately involved in the care of the righteous (e.g., vv. 4-6, 17-18, 23-24, 39-40), it presents him as being far from the wicked, having no direct relationship with them. According to this verse, the wicked cause their own destruction. YHWH's involvement is implicit. 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; cf. Ps 9:16).
• The grammatical subjects in v. 15—their swords... their bows (חַרְבָּם...קַשְּׁתוֹתָם)—are fronted, probably 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."

Tet (vv. 16-17)

The tet section (vv. 16-17) contrasts the righteous and the wicked in terms of their ability to gain and enjoy wealth both now and in the future. Because the wicked will be destroyed (v. 17a), their wealth is nothing to be envied (v. 16, cf. v. 1b). No matter how great it is, it will not last.

v. 16

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
16a	טוֹב־מְ֭עַט לַצַּדִּ֑יק	A little belonging to the righteous person is better
16b	מֵ֝הֲמ֗וֹן רְשָׁעִ֥ים רַבִּֽים׃	than the abundance of many wicked people.

Expanded Paraphrase

It's true that in the present situation wicked people sometimes prosper more than righteous people. But even A little belonging to the righteous person is better than the abundance of many wicked people.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The construction טוֹב מִן indicates a comparison: better than.
• The phrase translated belonging to the righteous person (לַצַּדִּיק) indicates possession.
• The "temporality of wealth and impending poverty" of the wicked is a common theme in the speeches of Job's friends. The same theme occurs in ancient Egyptian wisdom literature. See, e.g., the Egyptian text, Instruction of Amenemope: "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 theft, 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..."

v. 17

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
17a	כִּ֤י זְרוֹע֣וֹת רְ֭שָׁעִים תִּשָּׁבַ֑רְנָה	For the arms of the wicked will be broken,
17b	וְסוֹמֵ֖ךְ צַדִּיקִ֣ים יְהוָֽה׃	but YHWH is upholding the righteous.

Expanded Paraphrase

For the arms of the wicked, which allow them to gain wealth, will be broken, but YHWH is upholding the righteous. Their arms are not broken, and so they can hold on to what little they have and enjoy it.

Grammatical Diagram

See previous verse.

Notes

• Arms (זְרוֹעוֹת) are "directly associated with strength and power." To break someone's arm is to remove their strength and power. In this context, the "arms of the wicked" are an image of their ability to oppress others and gain wealth.
• In terms of information structure, the phrase arms of the wicked (זְרוֹעוֹת רְשָׁעִים) is fronted before the verb as the topic of the clause. The rest of the verse goes on to comment on what will happen to the arms of the wicked: they will be broken.
• In the b-line, the predicate—is upholding the righteous (סוֹמֵ֖ךְ צַדִּיקִ֣ים)—is probably fronted for marked focus: YHWH is upholding the righteous, and so the arms of the righteous will remain strong and intact, and they will be able to hold on to what little they have and enjoy it.

Yod (vv. 18-19)

The yod section (vv. 18-19) turns the listener's attention from the wicked (vv. 12-15, 16b-17a) to focus exclusively on the righteous and the lasting nature of what they possess. Because YHWH cares for them, their inheritance (i.e., the portion of the land they possess) will never be taken from them. Even during famine, they will not be forced to sell their land or to sojourn somewhere else to find food.

v. 18

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
18a	יוֹדֵ֣עַ יְ֭הוָה יְמֵ֣י תְמִימִ֑ם	YHWH knows the days of the blameless,
18b	וְ֝נַחֲלָתָ֗ם לְעוֹלָ֥ם תִּהְיֶֽה׃	and their inheritance will be forever.

Expanded Paraphrase

YHWH knows the days of the blameless and cares for them every day of their lives, and their possession of the land, their inheritance will be forever.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The first line in v. 18 says that YHWH knows (יוֹדֵעַ) the days of the blameless. According to SDBH, the verb "knows" refers to a "state in which humans or deities are actively involved in circumstances relating to the life of humans and animals and care for their well-being." In other words "knows" >> "cares for." If this analysis is correct, then the phrase days of the blameless (יְמֵי תְמִימִים) is probably figurative for "the life-span >> life of the blameless." The point is that "each day of their lives is known to God and comes within his protective care." The NIV helpfully captures the meaning of the clause: "Day by day the LORD takes care of the innocent" (cf. NET, CEV).
• The inheritance of the righteous (נַחֲלָתָם) is probably a reference to the land, which is mentioned several times in this psalm (vv. 3, 9, 11, 22, 29, 34).
• In v. 18b, both the subject ("inheritance") and the prepositional phrase ("forever") in this clause are fronted, the former as the topic and the latter as the focus: "and as for their inheritance, it will be forever."

v. 19

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
19a	לֹֽא־יֵ֭בֹשׁוּ בְּעֵ֣ת רָעָ֑ה	They will not come to shame during hard times,
19b	וּבִימֵ֖י רְעָב֣וֹן יִשְׂבָּֽעוּ׃	and they will eat their fill during times of famine.

Expanded Paraphrase

When hard times or famine comes, people are sometimes forced to sell their land or to leave the land and sojourn in a foreign country. But this will not happen to the blameless. YHWH will provide for them, so that They will not come to shame during hard times, and they will eat their fill during times of famine.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The Hebrew concept of shame (יֵבֹשׁוּ) is, according to TWOT, "somewhat in contrast to the primary meaning of the English 'to be ashamed,' in that the English stresses the inner attitude, the state of mind, while the Hebrew means 'to come to shame' and stresses the sense of public disgrace, a physical state."
• The phrase translated hard times (עֵת רָעָה, lit.: "a time of trouble") refers to a period of time which is characterized by trouble, i.e., "hard times" (NLT, NET). Times of famine (בִימֵי רְעָבוֹן), mentioned in the following line, are a specific example of what is meant by "hard times."
• 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."

Kaph (v. 20)

The kaph section (v. 20) is especially prominent based on the following features:

• v. 20 is a three-line section (in contrast to the four-line sections throughout most of the rest of the psalm).
• v. 20 is full of imagery. There is botanical imagery ("flowers") which is so central to the psalm's message (cf. vv. 2, 35) as well as a new image ("smoke").
• v. 20 contains one of only two instances of doubled words in the psalm (cf. v. 40): "they are finished... they are finished!"
• v. 20 uses qatal verb forms to dramatically depict the destruction of the wicked as an event that is "as good as done" (cf. vv. 28B, 38).
• v. 20, representing the kaph section, ends with a string of words that begin with kaph: כִּיקַ֣ר כָּרִ֑ים כָּל֖וּ *כֶעָשָׁ֣ן* כָּֽלוּ.
• v. 20 is the final line of the first half of the psalm.
• v. 20 encapsulates the message of the psalm: "the wicked will perish."

v. 20

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
20a	כִּ֤י רְשָׁעִ֨ים ׀ יֹאבֵ֗דוּ	For the wicked will perish,
20b	וְאֹיְבֵ֣י יְ֭הוָה כִּיקַ֣ר כָּרִ֑ים	and YHWH’s enemies [will perish] like flowers in a pasture.
20c	כָּל֖וּ *כֶעָשָׁן* כָּֽלוּ׃	They are finished like smoke! They are finished!

Expanded Paraphrase

In sum, here is the basic reason why you should not be upset about the wicked: For the wicked will perish, and YHWH's enemies [will perish] like flowers in a pasture which bloom for a little while and quickly dry up in the heat. They are as good as finished just like smoke which quickly disappears into the sky and leaves no trace of its existence! They are as good as finished!

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The particle for (כִּי) probably indicates that v. 20, which concludes the first half of the psalm (vv. 1-20), grounds the entirety of the preceding discourse (vv. 1-19). It gives the main point of the psalm, much like the כִּי clauses at the end of Pss 1; 5; 11; 100.
• Verse 20 contains one of the most difficult exegetical issues in this psalm. It is not clear whether the phrase כִּיקַר כָּרִים in v. 20b refers to "the fat of lambs" (KJV), "the glory of the pastures" (ESV), or "fuel in a furnace" (REB). See The Text, Grammar, and Meaning of Ps 37:20 for an in-depth discussion. In short, the phrase probably refers to "the glory of the pastures" (ESV, cf. Ps 65:14), i.e., "the flowers of the field" (NIV), which, despite their beauty, quickly "come to an end" (אבד, v. 20a). The determining factor for this decision is the surrounding context of agricultural images for the wicked. The agricultural image for the wicked here at the end of the first half of the psalm (vv. 1-20) corresponds to the agricultural image for the wicked at the beginning of the psalm ("like grass," v. 2). Indeed, all of the similes for the wicked in Ps 37 are taken from the agricultural domain (cf. vv. 2, 20, 35). Furthermore, the image of fading flowers fits well with the image of vanishing smoke in the next line (v. 20c). Both flowers and smoke are images of transitoriness (cf. Hos 13:3; Ps 103:15-16). The point of these images is that the end of the wicked will be soon and sudden. Although they appear to flourish for the moment, their demise is imminent. And when they are destroyed, there will be no trace of their existence.
• There is a textual problem in v. 20c regarding the phrase translated like smoke (*כֶעָשָׁן*). Some translations read the text as כֶעָשָׁן ("like smoke"), while other translations read the text as בֶעָשָׁן ("in smoke"). The difference between the two readings is one letter: כ vs ב, which look similar and often get confused for one another. The reading כֶעָשָׁן has earlier textual support, and it makes the best sense in the context. If the phrase כִּיקַר כָּרִים in the previous line refers to the "fat of lambs," then the bet preposition would well, since animal sacrifices go up "in/as smoke." But if, as argued above, the phrase כִּיקַר כָּרִים refers to the flowers of a field, then the bet preposition "in/as smoke" does not work as well, unless we are to think that the image in this verse is that of a field set on fire. If כִּיקַר כָּרִים refers flowers in a field, then the kaph preposition ("like smoke") fits better. The verse compares YHWH's enemies to two different things: flowers which quickly fade (v. 20b) and smoke which quickly vanishes (v. 20c). Rather than a single image (a field on fire), the verse gives us two images, flowers and smoke, both images of transience. Hosea 13:3 similarly gives a series of similies expressing the idea of transience: "Therefore they will be like the morning mist (כַּעֲנַן־בֹּקֶר), like the early dew (כַטַּל) that disappears, like chaff (כְּמֹץ) swirling from a threshing floor, like smoke (כְעָשָׁן) escaping through a window" (NIV). The following table explores the significance of the smoke imagery.

• It is not clear whether the prepositional phrase "like smoke" (כֶעָשָׁן) modifies the preceding verb ("they are finished like smoke") or the following verb ("like smoke they are finished"). In either case, it is the same verb (כּלוּ), so there is little difference in meaning. The Masoretic tradition is unclear. The word order might support grouping the prepositional phrase with the first verb, since modifiers typically follow (rather than precede) the verbs they modify. Cf. the similar clause in Ps 102:4—כִּֽי־כָל֣וּ בְעָשָׁ֣ן יָמָ֑י.
• The verb translated they are finished (כָּלוּ) occurs twice in this line. According to SDBH, it refers to the "process by which humans and objects completely disappear from existence." It also has poetic significance: as the last word of the first half of the psalm, it signals that the first half of the psalm is "finished." In terms of its verbal semantics, most English translations use a future-tense verb: "shall/will be consumed" (NJPS, NIV), "will disappear" (NLT, GNT). But the use of the qatal conjugation implies past tense, and the use of a past-tense form is rhetorically significant: the future destruction of YHWH's enemies is so certain that the psalmist can speak of it as though it is already complete: "they are finished!" As Rogland writes, "In some cases qatal appears indeed to be used to refer to an event that has not yet occurred.... The use of qatal in these cases appears to be exaggerated rhetoric by which a future event is described 'as good as done.'" This use of qatal is especially common with verbs that belong to the semantic domain of 'perishing', which is exactly what we find in Ps 37 (vv. 20, 28, 38).

Giving vs taking (vv. 21-31)

The third main section of the psalm (vv. 21-32), like the previous section, begins with the wicked taking advantage of others (לֹוֶה רָשָׁע) and ends with their complete destruction (v. 28b) and with the righteous possessing the land (v. 29, on the order of vv. 28-31 see below). This section is bound by an inclusio: a contrast between the righteous and the wicked and a statement that the righteous "will possess the land." Like the previous two main sections, this section divides in half (vv. 21-26; vv. 27-29), with each half being defined by an inclusio: vv. 21-26 (rep. of ברך, חנן, לוה); vv. 27-29 (rep. of שכן לעולם/לעד).

This section continues the theme of 'lasting vs fading' from the previous section, but it shifts the focus slightly towards the contrasting behavior of the righteous and the wicked. The righteous give generously (vv. 21b, 26) and live justly (vv. 27-31), as YHWH sustains them on their walk through life (vv. 23-24). The clearest expression of their righteousness is their generosity. The wicked, by contrast, are takers, who borrow without repaying (v. 21a). This contrast in morals (giving vs taking) underlies and explains the contrast in fates (lasting vs fading).

Lamed (vv. 21-22)

The lamed section (vv. 21-22) contrasts the behavior of the righteous and the wicked, specifically in terms of their generosity (v. 21), and then gives a reason for the difference (v. 22).

v. 21

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
21a	לֹוֶ֣ה רָ֭שָׁע וְלֹ֣א יְשַׁלֵּ֑ם	The wicked person is borrowing and will not repay,
21b	וְ֝צַדִּ֗יק חוֹנֵ֥ן וְנוֹתֵֽן׃	but the righteous person is giving generously.

Expanded Paraphrase

In the current situation, The wicked person is borrowing from the righteous person who graciously lends him money, and the wicked person, in an attempt to defraud the righteous person and take advantage of his generosity, will not repay, but the righteous person is still trusting in YHWH and doing good and giving generously despite the economic disadvantage.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• On the verbal semantics of the participle is borrowing (לֹוֶה), see the note on v. 12.
• The wicked person will not repay (לֹא יְשַׁלֵּם). By not repaying his debt, the wicked person takes advantage of the generosity of others. Some interpret the clause to mean that the wicked will not be able to repay their debts because they will have been destroyed. But the focus of this section (vv. 21-31) is on the contrasting morals of the righteous and the wicked. Furthermore, the parallel beginnings of the psalm's other sections (vv. 12a [זֹמֵם רָשָׁע], 32a [צוֹפֶה רָשָׁע]) describe ways in which the wicked persecute the righteous.
• The phrase translated is giving generously (חוֹנֵן וְנוֹתֵן) consists of two verbs: "is being generous and is giving." These two verbs communicate a single idea: "giving generously" (cf. NIV). The generosity of the righteous contrasts with the financial dishonesty of the wicked. Their continual generosity also implies that YHWH continues to provide for them, even when the wicked take advantage of their generosity.

v. 22

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
22a	כִּ֣י מְ֭בֹרָכָיו יִ֣ירְשׁוּ אָ֑רֶץ	For those blessed by him will possess the land,
22b	וּ֝מְקֻלָּלָ֗יו יִכָּרֵֽתוּ׃	and those cursed by him will be destroyed.

Expanded Paraphrase

For those blessed by him, that is, by YHWH, know that in the end they will possess the land in its fullness, and so they are not concerned about short-term economic loss, and those cursed by him, that is, by YHWH, will be destroyed, and so they do everything they can in the present moment to accumulate wealth, including defrauding others by lending without repaying.

Grammatical Diagram

See previous verse.

Notes

• The particle for (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. 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 topical subjects in v. 22ab—those blessed by him (מְבֹרָכָיו)...those cursed by him (מְקֻלָּלָיו)—are fronted so as to contrast with one another (cf. v. 9).
• The predicates will possess the land (יִירְשׁוּ אָרֶץ) and will be destroyed (יִכָּרֵתוּ) are key words/phrases that occur frequently throughout this psalm. See notes on v. 9.

Mem (vv. 23-24)

The mem section (vv. 23-24) delves even deeper into the contrast between the righteous and the wicked, answering the question: "what is the ultimate source of the righteous person's righteousness?" The answer, according to this section, is that YHWH is the one who brings a person's life journey in line with his will (v. 23) and then keeps him from falling flat on life's journey (v. 24).

In this section, the metaphor "Life is a Journey" is especially prominent. The following chart explores this image: The following table explores the significance of this image (cf. vv. 5, 7, 31).

v. 23

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
23a	מֵ֭יְהוָה מִֽצְעֲדֵי־גֶ֥בֶר כּוֹנָ֗נוּ	When a person’s steps are made steadfast by YHWH,
23b	וְדַרְכּ֥וֹ יֶחְפָּֽץ׃	then he will be pleased with his way.

Expanded Paraphrase

YHWH is the one who brings a person's life journey in line with his own will, who gives a person the ability to walk according to his commands. When a person's steps are made steadfast by YHWH, in this manner, then he, that is, YHWH, will be pleased with this person's way.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The preposition in the phrase by YHWH (מֵיְהוָה) indicates YHWH as the cause, or agent, of the person's steps being established. The fronting of the phrase "by YHWH" (מֵיְהוָה) functions, on the one hand, to meet the requirements of the acrostic structure. On the other hand, the fronting can also be explained as an instance of marked focus. 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 the scribe of this ancient manuscript interpreted the psalm similarly.
• The semantic relationship between the two lines in this verse is difficult to understand. There are at least three options. The first two options see the b-line as semantically subordinate to the a-line, qualifying or restricting the meaning of the a-line in some way. The third option sees an opposite relationship: the b-line is semantically subordinate to the a-line.
  • Option 1. "...when he [=a person] delights in YHWH's prescribed way of life" (cf. NIV), i.e., YHWH only establishes a person's steps if that person delights in YHWH's prescribed way of life.
  • Option 2. "...when he [=YHWH] delights in a person's way of life" (cf. NJPS, NET, CEV, GNT), i.e., YHWH only establishes a person's steps if he delights in that person's way of life.
  • Option 3. "When (ὅταν) the ways of a person are straightened by the Lord, then (τότε) he will want his road."
• In this verse, it is the person, not YHWH, who is on a (metaphorical) journey through life (cf. v. 23a—"the steps of a person"). Thus, the 3ms suffix on the phrase "his way" (דַּרְכּוֹ) probably refers to the person. Consequently, the subject of "delights" (יֶחְפָּץ) is probably YHWH. Option 1 is, therefore, unlikely, and the choice remains between Options 2-3. The decision between these two options depends on what it means for "footsteps" to be established (כּוֹנָנוּ). SDBH claims that it means for one's life to become "faithful and in line with the will of God." According to this interpretation of the phrase, Option 2 would not make sense, and Option 3 would be the most likely option. The sequence of thought would be as follows: YHWH brings a person's way of life in line with his own will --> (as a result) the person keeps YHWH's commands (cf. Ps 119:5) --> (as a result) YHWH takes pleasure in that person's way of life. This interpretation fits well in the flow of the text: the previous strophe contrasted the behavior of the righteous and the wicked (vv. 21-22), and now v. 23 explains how the righteous have become righteous. This interpretation also accounts for the verb forms (qatal --> yiqtol). The yiqtol is future relative to the situation expressed by the qatal (כּוֹנָנוּ) (i.e., a person's steps are established by YHWH and then YHWH delights). Thus, the qatal here has conditional modality: "(When) a person's steps are established by YHWH, (then) he will delight in his way."
• The fronting of his way (דַרְכּוֹ) in the b-line creates an aba'b' pattern of repetition: a. noun-about-steps, b. verb // a.' noun-about-steps, b.' verb.

v. 24

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
24a	כִּֽי־יִפֹּ֥ל לֹֽא־יוּטָ֑ל	When he falls, he will not fall flat,
24b	כִּֽי־יְ֝הוָ֗ה סוֹמֵ֥ךְ יָדֽוֹ׃	because YHWH is supporting his hand.

Expanded Paraphrase

When he falls, that is, when he experiences hardship or when he is tempted to get upset at the wicked as you are now, he will not fall flat, that is, he will not be devasted by the hardship or get upset so as to join the wicked. Instead, YHWH will catch him, because YHWH is supporting his hand.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The subordinating conjunction translated when (כִּי) is either concessive ("even if") or temporal ("when"). If temporal, then the clause assumes that the righteous will occasionally stumble.
• Falling—when he falls (כִּי יִפֹּל)—is "associated with failure and loss of face", while falling flat—he will not fall flat (לֹא יוּטָל)—is a "process by which humans completely fail in their intentions." In other words, the fall will not be a devastating crash from which he does not recover. Craigie expresses the idea well: "if he falls, he won't fall flat on his face." As he writes, "The righteous retain their humanity and still may fall in the walk of life; the divine hand ensures that the fall will not be so grave as to prohibit them from ever rising again and continuing to walk life's road." In this particular context (a moral contrast between the righteous and the wicked), falling probably refers to moral failure (i.e., getting upset at the wicked and imitating them). The idea is similar to 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). Falling could also refer to the hardships that the righteous experience in this life.

Nun (vv. 25-26)

In the nun section (vv. 25-26), the psalmist gives a personal anecdote about how YHWH always provides for the righteous and how the righteous respond to YHWH's generosity by showing generosity to others.

v. 25

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
25a	נַ֤עַר ׀ הָיִ֗יתִי גַּם־זָ֫קַ֥נְתִּי	I was once a young man, and now I am old,
25b	וְֽלֹא־רָ֭אִיתִי צַדִּ֣יק נֶעֱזָ֑ב	and I have not seen a righteous person abandoned
25c	וְ֝זַרְע֗וֹ מְבַקֶּשׁ־לָֽחֶם׃	or his children looking for food.

Expanded Paraphrase

Learn from my experience: I was once a young man much like yourself; and now I am old, and I have not seen a righteous person abandoned or his children looking for food.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The noun translated children (זֶרַע) is a singular noun (lit. "seed") that is often used to refer to one's descendants collectively (e.g., Gen 3:15; 15:3; 1 Sam 2:20; Jer 33:26; Job 21:28).

v. 26

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
26a	כָּל־הַ֭יּוֹם חוֹנֵ֣ן וּמַלְוֶ֑ה	He is always lending generously,
26b	וְ֝זַרְע֗וֹ לִבְרָכָֽה׃	and his children will become a blessing.

Expanded Paraphrase

Instead, I have seen YHWH provide for the righteous time and time again. Not only has he given the righteous enough to provide for his family, but he has given him enough to be generous towards others: He is always lending generously, and after a life-time of generosity, his children will become a blessing. That is, when people see his children, they will say "blessed are you! Your father was a good and generous man!"

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The adverbial phrase translated always (כָּל־הַיּוֹם) is, literally, "all day long" (NET), which is a figurative way of saying "always" (NIV, NLT). The phrase is fronted for marked focus. The point of the clause, in other words, is not that the righteous person gives, but that he gives always.
• The phrase translated is...lending generously (חוֹנֵן וּמַלְוֶה) consists of two verbs: "is being generous and is lending." These two verbs communicate a single idea: "lending generously" (ESV), "give generous loans to others" (NLT). Cf. note on v. 21. In the Old Testament, lending without interest is an act of generosity. As the Dictionary of Biblical Imagery states, "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." The constant generosity of the righteous not only highlights their commitment to YHWH's instruction, but, especially in light of the previous verse, it also implies YHWH's constant provision for them. The righteous keep lending, but they never run out of money, because YHWH keeps providing for them.
• To become a blessing (לִבְרָכָה) probably means, in this context, to become a standard that is invoked in the verbal blessing of others. The same phrase (היה לִבְרָכָה) occurs in Gen 12:3, which Wenham explains as follows: "In other words, people will say, 'May God make me as blessed as Abram.'" See also Zech 8:13—"And just as you were a curse among the nations, O House of Judah and House of Israel, so, when I vindicate you, you shall become a blessing" (NJPS). Ibn Ezra helpfully summarizes the meaning of Ps 37:26b as follows: "after his death his children will be blessed, for the meaning of לִבְרָכָה is, all who see them will bless them."

Samekh (vv. 27-28A)*

In the samekh section (vv. 27-28A), returns briefly to speaking in the 2nd person singular (cf. vv. 1-11). He exhorts the addressee (v. 27a), supplying motivation (v. 27b) and rationale (v. 28A) to his exhortation.

v. 27

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
27a	ס֣וּר מֵ֭רָע וַעֲשֵׂה־ט֗וֹב	Turn away from evil and do good,
27b	וּשְׁכֹ֥ן לְעוֹלָֽם׃	and you will reside forever!

Expanded Paraphrase

Do not join the wicked! Instead, Turn away from the evil that leads only to a vanishing prosperity, and do what is just and good, and you will reside in the land forever!

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The verb in the clause and you will reside forever (וּשְׁכֹן לְעוֹלָם) is actually an imperative: "and reside forever!" As in v. 4, however, the waw + imperative functions to express purpose or consecutive action: "Turn from evil and do good and you will forever inhabit."

v. 28A*

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
28Aa	כִּ֤י יְהוָ֨ה ׀ אֹ֘הֵ֤ב מִשְׁפָּ֗ט	For YHWH loves justice,
28Ab	וְלֹא־יַעֲזֹ֣ב אֶת־חֲ֭סִידָיו	and he will not abandon those who are loyal to him.

Expanded Paraphrase

For YHWH loves justice and he rewards those who act justly, who live in accordance with his commands, and he will not abandon those who are loyal to him.

Grammatical Diagram

See previous verse.

Notes

• The word justice (מִשְׁפָּט) refers to "practices that conform to the laws of God."

Pe (vv. 30-31)*

The pe section (vv. 30-31) continues to extol the virtues of the ideal righteous person, as someone who has internalized YHWH's instruction and is therefore able to speak wisely and justly and walk uprightly through life's journey.

It is likely that the pe section originally preceded the ayin section, as in Lamentations 2-4 (MT), Lamentations 1 (4QLam), Proverbs 31 (LXX), pre-exilic abecederies featuring the order pe-ayin, and Ps 34. Rearranging the letters in this way allows us to appreciate the beautiful symmetical structure of the poem.

v. 30*

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
30a	פִּֽי־צַ֭דִּיק יֶהְגֶּ֣ה חָכְמָ֑ה	A righteous person’s mouth utters what is wise,
30b	וּ֝לְשׁוֹנ֗וֹ תְּדַבֵּ֥ר מִשְׁפָּֽט׃	and his tongue speaks what is just.

Expanded Paraphrase

One of the ways in which you can 'do good' is by speaking words that are wise and just, for the benefit of your neighbor. A righteous person's mouth utters what is wise, and his tongue speaks what is just.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• Both mouth (פִּי) and tongue (לְשׁוֹן) are organs of speech that function metonymically to represent the whole person: "his mouth and his tongue speak >> he speaks with his mouth and tongue."
• The subject of v. 30a, a righteous person's mouth (פִּי צַדִּיק), is probably fronted to meet the requirements of the acrostic. At the same time, 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.
• The subject in the b-line, his tongue (לְשׁוֹנוֹ), is probably fronted to match the word order of the previous clause, creating an aba'b' structure (cf. v. 2).
• The abstract nouns "wisdom" (חָכְמָה) and "justice" (מִשְׁפָּט) are metonymic for what is wise and what is just (cf. NIV). Words that are just are words that conform to YHWH's law, i.e., they are characterized by truth, honesty and love for one's neighbor.

v. 31*

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
31a	תּוֹרַ֣ת אֱלֹהָ֣יו בְּלִבּ֑וֹ	The instruction of his God is in his heart.
31b	לֹ֖א תִמְעַ֣ד אֲשֻׁרָיו׃	His steps will not slip.

Expanded Paraphrase

The reason why he can speak with such wisdom and justice is because The instruction of his God, the ultimate guide to wisdom and justice, is in his heart, and he meditates on it day and night. Because YHWH's instruction gives perfect guidance for life's journey, His steps will not slip. When he is tempted to get upset and join the wicked, he will resist and continue walking according to YHWH's instruction.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• For his steps (אֲשֻׁרָיו) to slip (תִמְעַד) is probably synonymous with "falling flat" in v. 24. It describes a complete moral failure from which one cannot recover. See, e.g., Ps 73:2-3—"But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled, my steps (אֲשֻׁרָי) had nearly slipped. For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked" (ESV). The person who internalizes YHWH's instruction for life's journey will not slip.

Ayin (vv. 28B-29)*

The ayin section (vv. 28B-29) contrasts the assured fate of the wicked (v. 28B) with the fate of the righteous (v. 29).

v. 28B*

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
28Ba	*עַוָּלִים נִשְׁמָדוּ*	Wrong-doers are exterminated,
28Bb	וְזֶ֖רַע רְשָׁעִ֣ים נִכְרָֽת׃	and the children of the wicked are destroyed!

Expanded Paraphrase

By contrast, Wrong-doers who do not follow YHWH's instruction, are as good as exterminated, and the children of the wicked, far from becoming a blessing, are as good as destroyed!

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• Verse 28BA contains the most significant textual issue in the psalm. The ESV, representative of most modern translations, follows the reading of the Masoretic Text (לְעוֹלָ֣ם נִשְׁמָ֑רוּ), which it translates, "They are preserved forever." Other translations, however, choose to emend the text. The NJB, for example, adopts as its Hebrew text עַוָּלִים לְעוֹלָם נִשְׁמָדוּ, which it translates as "Evil-doers will perish eternally." Other translations appear to adopt a slightly different Hebrew text: עַוָּלִים נִשְׁמָדוּ (or perhaps עַוָּלִים נִצְמָתוּ): "Wrongdoers will be destroyed" (cf. BDS, DHH94I). See The Text of Ps 37:28 for an in-depth discussion of the issue. In short, there are good reasons to think that the earliest reading of Ps 37:28c is wrong-doers are exterminated (עַוָּלִם נִשְׁמָדוּ). In the first place, this reading appears to be supported by the oldest witnesses (4Q171 and LXX). It also explains how the other readings came about. The development of the text might have looked something like the following: (1) The original text read עַוָּלִם נִשְׁמָדוּ (so probably LXX and 4Q171), (2) Then the ד in נִשְׁמָדוּ was confused for a ר, and so the text became נִשְׁמָרוּ, and (3) because it makes no sense for עַוָּלִם to be the subject of נִשְׁמָרוּ, the word עַוָּלִם came to be vocalized/understood as עוֹלָם. Finally, (4) because adverbial לְעוֹלָם is more common than adverbial עוֹלָם, the text was changed to לְעוֹלָם נִשְׁמָרוּ. By contrast, it is difficult to explain how the reading לְעוֹלָם נִשְׁמָרוּ would have led to the reading עַוָּלִם נִשְׁמָדוּ. The second reason for adopting עַוָּלִם נִשְׁמָדוּ as the earlier reading is that it fits well in the context. It restores the otherwise disturbed acrostic structure by having a word that begins with ע at the beginning of the line. It also fits well with the parallel line in v. 28d ("the offspring of the wicked are cut off" (וְזֶ֖רַע רְשָׁעִ֣ים נִכְרָֽת). This pair of lines about the wicked (v. 28cd) also matches the pair of lines about the righteous in the following verse (v. 29).
• The subject wrong-doers (עַוָּלִים) is fronted for the sake of the acrostic structure. The clause, which begins a section, is probably also thetic. The word order in the b-line then parallels the order of the a-line S-V // S-V (cf. v. 30).
• On the verbal forms are exterminated (נִשְׁמָדוּ) and are destroyed (נִכְרָת), which function to describe a future event as being "as good as done," see the note on v. 20.
• The "absence of offspring and infertility of the impious" is a common theme in the speeches of Job's friends.

v. 29

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
29a	צַדִּיקִ֥ים יִֽירְשׁוּ־אָ֑רֶץ	The righteous will possess the land
29b	וְיִשְׁכְּנ֖וּ לָעַ֣ד עָלֶֽיהָ׃	and reside on it forever.

Expanded Paraphrase

It is The righteous who will possess the land and reside on it forever.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The subject the righteous (צַדִּיקִ֥ים) 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).

Watching and waiting (vv. 32-40)

The last main section of the psalm (vv. 32-40) begins, like the previous two sections, with the wicked person trying to harm the righteous (צוֹפֶה רָשָׁע) (v. 32) and concludes with the salvation of the righteous (vv. 39-40). The sub-sections within this section form a chiasm: a. protection of the righteous (tsade); b. exhortation (qof); c. personal anecdote (resh); b. exhortation (shin); a. salvation of the righteous (taw). The section is also characterized by verbs for "looking": צפה (v. 32); ראה (vv. 34-35, 37), בקשׁ (vv. 32, 36), שׁמר (v. 37). The wicked "watch" for the righteous and try to kill them (v. 32). The addressee will "see" when the wicked are destroyed (v. 34). The psalmist tells about a time when he "saw" a wicked person effectively disappear (vv. 35-36). The addressee should "look" at the upright (vv. 37-38).

Tsade (vv. 32-33)

The tsade section (vv. 32-33) represents the a section of the chiasm that spans vv. 32-40. This section is about how YHWH protects the righteous person from the wicked person, who attempts to take him to court on false charges that threaten his life.

v. 32

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
32a	צוֹפֶ֣ה רָ֭שָׁע לַצַּדִּ֑יק	The wicked person is watching for the righteous person
32b	וּ֝מְבַקֵּ֗שׁ לַהֲמִיתוֹ׃	and trying to kill him.

Expanded Paraphrase

In the current situation, The wicked person is watching for the righteous person and trying to kill him by any means necessary, including bringing him to court on false charges and finding false witnesses to testify against him.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• On the verbal semantics of the participle is watching (צוֹפֶה), see the note on v. 12.
• The infinitive construct to kill him (לַהֲמִיתוֹ) completes the idea of the main verb בקשׁ ("seek/try to X").
• The image in this verse is similar to the image in Ps 10:8—"He lies in wait near the villages; from ambush he murders the innocent. His eyes watch (יִצְפֹּנוּ) in secret for his victims."

v. 33

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
33a	יְ֭הוָה לֹא־יַעַזְבֶ֣נּוּ בְיָד֑וֹ	YHWH will not abandon him into his hand,
33b	וְלֹ֥א יַ֝רְשִׁיעֶ֗נּוּ בְּהִשָּׁפְטֽוֹ׃	and he will not let him be condemned as guilty when he enters into judgment.

Expanded Paraphrase

But YHWH will not abandon him into his hand, and he will not let him be condemned as guilty when he enters into the judgment that the wicked person has initiated, in an attempt to have the righteous person killed and to seize his property.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• In this context, the hiphil verb translated he will...let him be condemned as guilty (יַרְשִׁיעֶנּוּ) is probably not declarative ("declare guilty, condemn") as it is elsewhere, but causative—"cause to be condemned" or "allow to be condemned" (NET, cf. NIV, NLT, ESV, GNT, NJPS). In this particular situation, YHWH is not the judge, but rather the one protecting the righteous person who has entered into a human court.
• 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)..." 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.</ref>See Bovati 1994.</ref> In this situation, the wicked, in their attempt to kill the righteous person (see previous verse), make false accusations against him. 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." But, in court, "God will demonstrate the righteousness of the righteous."

Qof (v. 34)

The qof section (v. 34), representing the b part of the chiasm, is a personal exhortation to wait patiently for YHWH to act.

v. 34

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
34a	קַוֵּ֤ה אֶל־יְהוָ֨ה ׀ וּשְׁמֹ֬ר דַּרְכּ֗וֹ	Hope in YHWH and keep his way,
34b	וִֽ֭ירוֹמִמְךָ לָרֶ֣שֶׁת אָ֑רֶץ	and he will exalt you to possess the land.
34c	בְּהִכָּרֵ֖ת רְשָׁעִ֣ים תִּרְאֶֽה׃	You will see when the wicked are destroyed.

Expanded Paraphrase

Instead of getting upset about the wicked, Hope in YHWH and keep his way, even when his way is difficult to walk, and in the end he will exalt you to possess the land. And from your exalted height, You will see when the wicked are destroyed just as Abraham looked down at the destruction of the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The weyiqtol form of the verb and he will exalt you (וִירוֹמִמְךָ) indicates result: "Hope in YHWH and keep his way, and then he will exalt you..."
• The infinitival phrase to possess the land (לָרֶשֶׁת אָרֶץ) indicates the purpose of the exaltation: "He will exalt you to inherit the land" (NIV, ESV, cf. KJV.
• The phrase when the wicked are destroyed (בְּהִכָּרֵת רְשָׁעִים) is fronted as a frame setter.

Resh (vv. 35-36)

The resh section (vv. 35-36) is especially prominent. The following features contribute to its prominence:

• It is the central section of the chiasm that spans vv. 32-40.
• It is one of those rare moments in the psalm where the speaker gives a personal anecdote in the first person (cf. vv. 25-26).
• This section contains one of the most remarkable poetic features in the psalm.

This final point needs further explanation. Verses 34-36 contain a 15-word sequence of words that contain the letter resh. Such a long sequence of resh words is unparalleled in the Psalter. The resh sequence comes to an end with the words "and—get this!—he was gone" (v. 36).

The resh sequence in vv. 34-36 has a chiastic structure, based on a combination of semantics, syntax, and sound:

a. קַוֵּ֤ה אֶל־יְהוָ֨ה ׀ (no resh words)

b. וּשְׁמֹ֬ר דַּרְכּ֗וֹ (verb with waw)

c. וִֽ֭ירוֹמִמְךָ (image of height: "exalt")

d. לָרֶ֣שֶׁת אָ֑רֶץ (sounds: guttural, resh, tsade)

e. בְּהִכָּרֵ֖ת רְשָׁעִ֣ים ("wicked")

f. תִּרְאֶֽה ("see")

f. רָ֭אִיתִי ("see")

e. רָשָׁ֣ע ("wicked")

d. עָרִ֑יץ (sounds: guttural, resh, tsade)

c. וּ֝מִתְעָרֶ֗ה כְּאֶזְרָ֥ח רַעֲנָֽן׃ (image of height: "ascending")

b. וָאֶעֲבֹר (verb with waw)

a. וְהִנֵּ֣ה אֵינֶ֑נּוּ וָֽ֝אֲבַקְשֵׁ֗הוּ וְלֹ֣א נִמְצָֽא׃ (no resh words)

The number 15—the number of consecutive words with resh—is significant. One of the most repeated words in Ps 37 is the word "wicked" (רָשָׁע, plural: רְשָׁעִים), which occurs 13 times (vv. 10, 12, 14, 16, 17, 20, 21, 28B, 32, 34, 35, 38, 40). Another word used to refer to the wicked in this psalm is the word מְרֵעִים, which occurs two times (vv. 2, 9). Although there are other words in Ps 37 that refer to the wicked, these are the only words for wicked that contain the letter resh. Thus, the psalm uses 15 resh words to refer to the wicked. The psalm also uses the divine name (יהוה) a total of 15 times.

The subtle chiasm in vv. 34-36 encourages us to read these verses as a unit. When we do, we are immediately struck by the sequence of resh words. The letter resh in vv. 34-36, occurring in 15 consecutive words, symbolizes the wicked (רְשָׁעִים / מְרֵעִים), who are referred to 15 times in the psalm with resh words. The preponderance of resh words in vv. 34-36 contributes to a feeling that the presence of the wicked is overwhelming and never-ending. The wicked are like grass (v. 2) that grows up everywhere, and they are like native trees (v. 35) that are resilient and virtually impossible to get rid of. But, just as the resh sequence comes to a sudden and decisive end in v. 36, so the wicked will completely disappear: "and—get this!—he was gone; then I looked for him, and he was not found" (v. 36).

The agent behind the wicked's destruction is not explicitly stated in the psalm. But the fact that YHWH's name appears 15 times, along with the 15 occurrences of the resh words for the wicked, suggests that YHWH is the one who stands in opposition to the wicked, and he is the one who will bring about their ultimate demise.

v. 35

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
35a	רָ֭אִיתִי רָשָׁ֣ע עָרִ֑יץ	I once saw a ruthless wicked person,
35b	וּ֝מִתְעָרֶ֗ה כְּאֶזְרָ֥ח רַעֲנָֽן׃	and he was ascending like a native tree.

Expanded Paraphrase

Learn from my experience. I've seen it happen before. I once saw a ruthless wicked person, and he was ascending like a native tree—the kind of tree that grows quickly and is very resilent, nearly impossible to get rid of.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• Waltke and O'Connor suggest translating the verb I once saw (רָאִיתִי) as a present perfect ("I have seen...", so NIV, NLT, ESV, CEV, NET, REB). But the following wayyiqtol verbs indicate that the psalmist is telling a story and that the qatal verb in v. 35a (רָאִיתִי) is setting up the story. It might be more accurately translated as a simple past: "I once knew someone wicked... but later I passed by, and he wasn't there; I looked for him, but he could not be found" (GNT).
• The second line of this verse is difficult to interpret. The NIV has "flourishing like a luxuriant native tree" (NIV), while the NJPS has "well-rooted like a robust native tree" (NJPS), the ESV has "spreading himself like a green laurel tree" (ESV), and the NRSV has "towering like a cedar of Lebanon" (NRSV). For an in-depth discussion of the issue, see The Text and Meaning of Ps 37:35b. In short, the Masoretic Text probably preserves the earlier form of the text of v. 35b: וּ֝מִתְעָרֶ֗ה כְּאֶזְרָ֥ח רַעֲנָֽן. Although the word translated as native tree (אֶזְרָח) does not elsewhere refer to a "native tree," this meaning is clearly related to the normal meaning of the word ("native inhabitant"), and it makes sense in the context. The participle translated ascending (מִתְעָרֶה) is probably a phonological variant of מִתְעַלֶּה ("ascending"); the letter resh has replaced the letter lamed, as happens elsewhere in Hebrew (cf. Isa 13:22a; Job 6:16b; 6:25a) and other Semitic languages. This interpretation of מִתְעָרֶה fits the literary context and also finds support among some of the ancient versions (LXX, Peshitta). On the significance of the substitution of resh for lamed see above.
• The description of the wicked person as ascending like a green native tree (וּמִתְעָרֶה כְּאֶזְרָח רַעֲנָן) underscores his apparent success and stability. Trees growing in their native climate and in their native soil grow very well and are resilient. Similarly, the wicked person in v. 35 appears to be flourishing, and there appears to be no chance that he will cease to exist. Nevertheless, the psalmist says in the next verse, "I passed by, and—get this!—he was gone; then I looked for him, and he was not found." The following table explores the significance of the native tree imagery.

• The and (waw) conjunction beginning in v. 35b (וּמִתְעָרֶה) probably introduces a circumstantial clause: "I once saw a ruthless wicked person (and, when I saw him, he was flourishing like a native tree)." The 3ms independent personal pronoun (הוּא) is sometimes omitted before masculine singular active predicative participles.

v. 36

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
36a	וַ֭יַּֽעֲבֹר וְהִנֵּ֣ה אֵינֶ֑נּוּ	Then I passed by, and—get this!—he was gone;
36b	וָֽ֝אֲבַקְשֵׁ֗הוּ וְלֹ֣א נִמְצָֽא׃	then I looked for him, and he was not found.

Expanded Paraphrase

But Then one day I passed by, and—get this!—he was gone; then I looked for him, assuming that he had to be somewhere, and—I could hardly believe it—he was not found.

Notes

• There is a textual problem in the first word of this verse. The MT has a third person verb at the beginning of v. 36 (וַ֭יַּֽעֲבֹר), which could either refer to the passing away of the wicked man ("but he passed away," ESV, cf. NIV, CEV, NJPS) or to the passing by of an onlooker ("one passes by," NET, cf. LUT, ELB). Other modern translations, however, have a first-person verb (וָאֶעֲבֹר): I passed by (GNT, cf. NLT, CSB, HFA, NGÜ, GNB, ZÜR), a reading which is supported by some of our oldest witnesses. The strong manuscript support for the first-person reading, along with the fact that it fits very well in the immediate context (parallel with the 1st person verb וָאֲבַקְשֵׁהוּ), suggests that it is the original reading. The reading וַיַּעֲבֹר (if understood to refer to the "passing away" of the wicked person, as the Targum understands it) is probably an assimilation to the preceding verse which describes the activity of the wicked person. Another factor in favor of the 1cs reading (וָאֶעֲבֹר) is the use of הִנֵּה ("look!" or "get this!"). The particle הִנֵּה assumes that some noteworthy piece of information is about to be presented. If the wicked person "vanished" (וַיַּעֲבֹר), then the fact that he "is no more" is not noteworthy. It would indeed be noteworthy, however, if the psalmist passed by expecting to see the wicked person but the wicked person was nowhere to be found. This use of עבר + הִנֵּה is similar to Prov 24:30-31—"I passed by (עָבַרְתִּי) the field of a sluggard... and behold (וְהִנֵּה), it was all overgrown with thorns..." (ESV; see also Ezek 37:2).
• The speaker's use of the particle translated and get this! (וְהִנֵּה) invites the addressee to see the surprising situation for himself. As BHRG explains, "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."

Shin (vv. 37-38)

The shin section (vv. 37-38) represents the b' part of the chiasm, corresponding to v. 34. Both vv. 34 and vv. 37-38 are personal exhortations. The exhortation in this section (vv. 37-38) is to carefully observe the life of a person who is blameless and upright. The psalmist says, effectively, "Instead of focusing on the wicked as a model for imitation (cf. vv. 2, 7), focus on the righteous! Find a righteous person and watch him closely. Imitate him. Because it's the righteous, not the wicked, who will have peace and prosperity in the end."

v. 37

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
37a	שְׁמָר־תָּ֭ם וּרְאֵ֣ה יָשָׁ֑ר	Pay attention to the blameless one, and look at the upright one,
37b	כִּֽי־אַחֲרִ֖ית לְאִ֣ישׁ שָׁלֽוֹם׃	because the future of a [blameless] person is peace.

Expanded Paraphrase

Pay attention to the positive example of the blameless one and look at the upright one, because the future of a [blameless] person is peace and prosperity in the land.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The adjectives blameless (תָּם) and upright (יָשָׁר) have been interpreted in a number of ways. They might modify the implied noun "way" (דֶּרֶךְ, cf. v. 34): "Keep to the blameless [way], and consider the upright [way].". More likely, in light of the b-line, the adjectives modify the implied noun "person" (אִישׁ): "observe the blameless [man]; look at the upright [man]." Others think that the adjectives function as abstract nouns: "observe that which is blameless [i.e., blamelessness...]" (so LXX).
• The verb translated pay attention (שְׁמָר) can sometimes mean "watch" or "pay attention to."
• Most translations translate the words אִישׁ שָׁלוֹם as a construct chain: "those who seek peace" (NIV), "those who love peace" (NLT), "peaceful people" (GNT), "peace-loving people" (CEV). But in the rest of the Psalm, peace (שָׁלוֹם) is not a virtue that the psalmist is called to adopt, but rather the final result of those who have trusted YHWH (cf. v. 11). It seems likely, therefore, that the "the last part of our verse is to be interpreted as if written, For peace is the future of the man of integrity. (The word תֹּם is to be read as if written twice)." According to this interpretation, שָׁלוֹם is not in construct with אִישׁ but is the predicate complement of the clause: the future of a [blameless] person is peace. The Targum reflects a similar interpretation of the syntax: "the end of the son of man is peace."
• The precise meaning of the word future (אַחֲרִית) in this context is debated. As Seebass writes, "it cannot be determined with certainty whether it is better to translate it by 'future' or 'posterity' in Ps. 37:37..." (TDOT). The NLT translates it as "a wonderful future" while the GNT translates it as "descendants." If our interpretation of the syntax is correct (see previous bullet point), then the "future" (אַחֲרִית) in this context is defined explicitly as "peace" (שָׁלוֹם)—i.e., peace and prosperity in the land that YHWH has given to his people (which, undoubtedly, implies descendants, even if this is not the primary meaning of the word in this context).

v. 38

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
38a	וּֽ֭פֹשְׁעִים נִשְׁמְד֣וּ יַחְדָּ֑ו	But those who rebel are completely exterminated!
38b	אַחֲרִ֖ית רְשָׁעִ֣ים נִכְרָֽתָה׃	The future of the wicked is destroyed!

Expanded Paraphrase

But those who rebel against YHWH by not keeping his covenant are as good as completely exterminated! The future of the wicked, which might appear to be a long life in the land full of peace and prolonged through descendants, is actually as good as destroyed!

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The fronting of those who rebel (פֹשְׁעִים) and the future of the wicked (אַחֲרִית רְשָׁעִים) 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 "future" (אַחֲרִית) from the previous verse further underscores the contrast: the peaceful person will have a future, whereas the future of the wicked will be destroyed.
• On the use of past tense forms to describe future events as being "as good as done"—are...exterminated (נִשְׁמְדוּ)...is destroyed (נִכְרָתָה)—see the note on v. 20.
• The adverb translated completely (יַחְדָּו) could indicate inclusivity ("together," cf. NIV: "all sinners") or degree (GNT: "completely," NET: "totally"). The use of the verb שׁמד ("wipe out completely, exterminate") and the emphatic assertion of the b-line that even their offspring will be destroyed suggests that the adverb indicates degree: "utterly" or "completely" (so DCH).

Taw (vv. 39-40)

The taw section (vv. 39-40) describes the assured salvation of the righteous, in contrast to the assured destruction of the wicked (v. 38), who are not even mentioned in this final section. The dominant metaphor in this section is that YHWH is a fortress (מָעוֹז). The following table explores the significance of this image.

v. 39

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
39a	וּתְשׁוּעַ֣ת צַ֭דִּיקִים מֵיְהוָ֑ה	But the salvation of the righteous comes from YHWH,
39b	מָֽ֝עוּזָּ֗ם בְּעֵ֣ת צָרָֽה׃	their fortress during times of trouble,

Expanded Paraphrase

But the salvation of the righteous comes from YHWH, their fortress during times of trouble.

Grammatical Diagram

Notes

• The waw at the beginning of v. 39 (וּתְשׁוּעַת) is unexpected and somewhat disrupts the acrostic structure. Nevertheless, it has good manuscript support. 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 section also creates a poetic connection with the final sub-section of the first main section of the psalm (vv. 10-11), which also began with waw (וְעוֹד מְעַט).

v. 40

v.	Hebrew	Close-but-Clear
40a	וַֽיַּעְזְרֵ֥ם יְהוָ֗ה וַֽיְפַ֫לְּטֵ֥ם	and YHWH helps them and rescues them.
40b	יְפַלְּטֵ֣ם מֵ֭רְשָׁעִים וְיוֹשִׁיעֵ֑ם	He will rescue them from the wicked and save them,
40c	כִּי־חָ֥סוּ בֽוֹ׃	because they have sought refuge in him.

Expanded Paraphrase

When they are threatened by danger from the wicked or by famine or by a temptation to join the wicked, and YHWH helps them and rescues them. He will always rescue them from the wicked, and he will save them, because they have sought refuge in him as one seeks refuge in a fortress.

Grammatical Diagram

See previous verse.

Notes

• The wayyiqtol verbs in v. 40a (וַיַּעְזְרֵם יְהוָה וַֽיְפַלְּטֵם) probably continue the gnomic semantics of the verbless clause in v. 39. "The LORD helps them and rescues them" (NJPS, cf. NIV, NLT, ESV, GNT, NET).
• The yiqtol verbs in v. 40b (יְפַלְּטֵם...וְיוֹשִׁיעֵם) might continue the habitual semantics of the previous clauses (so NIV, NLT, ESV, GNT, NET, NJPS). However, the use of a different form (yiqtol instead of wayyiqtol) probably implies a different meaning. The imminent and certain destruction of the wicked has featured so much in this psalm that it seems fitting to take these last yiqtols as expressing certainty about a future event: he will rescue them from the wicked and save them.

Legends

Grammatical diagram

The grammar layer visually represents the grammar and syntax of each clause. It also displays alternative interpretations of the grammar. (For more information, click "Grammar Legend" below.)

Grammar Legend

Visualization	Description
	The clause is represented by a horizontal line with a vertical line crossing through it, separating the subject and the verb.
	The object is indicated by a vertical line that does not cross the horizontal line of the clause. Infinitives and participles may also have objects. If the direct object marker (d.o.m.) is present in the text, it appears in the diagram immediately before the object. If the grammar includes a secondary object, the secondary object will appear after the object, separated by another vertical line that does not cross the horizontal line of the clause.
	The subject complement follows the verb (often omitted in Hebrew) separated with a line leaning toward the right. It can be a noun, a whole prepositional phrase or an adjective. The later two appear modifying the complement slot.
	When a noun further describes or renames the object, it is an object complement. The object complement follows the object separated by a line leaning toward the right.
	In a construct chain, the noun in the absolute form modifies the noun in the construct form.
	Participles are indicated in whatever position in the clause they are in with a curved line before the participle. Participles can occur as nominal, where they take the place of a noun, predicate, where they take the place of a verb, or attributive, where they modify a noun or a verb similar to adjectives or adverbs.
	Infinitives are indicated by two parallel lines before the infinitive that cross the horizontal line. Infinitive constructs can appear as the verb in an embedded clause. Infinitive absolutes typically appear as an adverbial.
	The subject of the infinitive often appears in construct to it. In this situation, the infinitive and subject are diagrammed as a construct chain.
	The object of the infinitive is indicated by a vertical line that does not cross the horizontal line of the infinitival clause.
	Modifiers are represented by a solid diagonal line from the word they modify. They can attach to verbs, adjectives, or nouns. If modifying a verb or adjective, it is an adverb, but if modifying a noun, it is an adjective, a quantifier, or a definite article. If an adverb is modifying a modifier, it is connected to the modifier by a small dashed horizontal line.
	Adverbials are indicated by a dashed diagonal line extending to a horizontal line. These are nouns or infinitives that function adverbially (modifying either a verb or a participle), but are not connected by a preposition.
	Prepositional phrases are indicated by a solid diagonal line extending to a horizontal line. The preposition is to the left of the diagonal line and the dependent of the preposition is on the horizontal line. They can modify verbs (adverbial) or nouns (adjectival).
	Embedded clauses are indicated by a "stand" that looks like an upside-down Y. The stand rests in the grammatical position that the clause fulfills. Extending from the top of the stand is a horizontal line for the clause. If introduced by a complementizer, for example כִּי, the complementizer appears before the stand. Embedded clauses can stand in the place of any noun.
	When clauses are joined by a conjunction, they are compound clauses. These clauses are connected by a vertical dotted line. The conjunction is placed next to the dotted line.
	Within a clause, if two or more parts of speech are compound, these are represented by angled lines reaching to the two compound elements connected by a solid vertical line. If a conjunction is used, the conjunction appears to the left of the vertical line. Almost all parts of speech can be compound.
	Subordinate clauses are indicated by a dashed line coming from the line dividing the subject from the predicate in the independent clause and leading to the horizontal line of the subordinate clause. The subordinating conjunction appears next to the dashed line.
	Relative clauses also have a dashed line, but the line connects the antecedent to the horizontal line of the relative clause. The relative particle appears next to the dashed line.
	Sentence fragments are represented by a horizontal line with no vertical lines. They are most frequently used in superscriptions to psalms. They are visually similar to discourse particles and vocatives, but most often consist of a noun phrase (that does not refer to a person or people group) or a prepositional phrase.
	In the body of the psalm, a horizontal line by itself (with no modifiers or vertical lines) can indicate either a discourse particle or a vocative (if the word is a noun referring to a person or people group). A discourse particle is a conjunction or particle that functions at the discourse level, not at the grammatical level. Vocatives can appear either before or after the clause addressed to them, depending on the word order of the Hebrew.
	Apposition is indicated by an equal sign equating the two noun phrases. This can occur with a noun in any function in a sentence.

Hebrew text colors
Default preferred text	The default preferred reading is represented by a black line. The text of the MT is represented in bold black text.
Dispreferred reading	The dispreferred reading is an alternative interpretation of the grammar, represented by a pink line. The text of the MT is represented in bold pink text, while emendations and revocalizations retain their corresponding colors (see below).
Emended text	Emended text, text in which the consonants differ from the consonants of the Masoretic text, is represented by bold blue text, whether that reading is preferred or dispreferred.
Revocalized text	Revocalized text, text in which only the vowels differ from the vowels of the Masoretic text, is represented by bold purple text, whether that reading is preferred or dispreferred.
(Supplied elided element)	Any element that is elided in the Hebrew text is represented by bold gray text in parentheses.
( )	The position of a non-supplied elided element is represented by empty black parentheses. For example, this would be used in the place of the noun when an adjective functions substantivally or in the place of the antecedent when a relative clause has an implied antecedent.

Gloss text colors
Gloss used in the CBC	The gloss used in the Close-but-Clear translation is represented by bold blue text.
Literal gloss >> derived meaning	A gloss that shows the more literal meaning as well as the derived figurative meaning is represented in blue text with arrows pointing towards the more figurative meaning. The gloss used in the CBC will be bolded.
Supplied elided element	The gloss for a supplied elided element is represented in bold gray text.

Shapes and colours on grammatical diagram

(For more information, click "Phrase-level Legend" below.)

Phrase-level Legend

Visualization	Description
	The prepositional phrase is indicated by a solid green oval.
	The construct chain is indicated by a solid yellow oval.
	When the conjunction ו appears at the phrase-level (not clause-level), it is indicated by a solid light purple oval.
	The article is indicated by a solid blue oval.

Expanded paraphrase

(For more information, click "Expanded Paraphrase Legend" below.)

Expanded Paraphrase Legend

Expanded paraphrase legend
Close but Clear (CBC) translation	The CBC, our close but clear translation of the Hebrew, is represented in bold text.
Assumptions	Assumptions which provide background information, presuppositions, entailments, and inferences are represented in italics.

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Footnotes

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