Psalm 37

Dewey Westra, 1972, & William Helder, 1980

1. Fret not yourself be cause of evildoers
   Nor envy them whose wicked deeds you see.
   They soon will fade like grass before the viewer,
   And like green herbs they’ll wither presently.
   Do good! And trust in God as your Renewer.
   Dwell in the land, enjoy security.
   
2. Delight yourself in God and He’ll deliver
   All your desires as from His holy height.
   Commit your ways to Him. The LORD will ever
   Bring forth your vindication as the light;
   He will reward all your upright endeavor
   And, as the noonday, let your cause shine bright.
   
3. Rest in the LORD with patient expectation;
   Envy not him who prospers in his way,
   Whose evil schemes have gained him wealth and station.
   Yield never to resentment and dismay;
   Forsake your wrath, refrain from all vexation,
   Lest sin and evil in your life hold sway.
   
4. All those who hope in God shall with elation
   Possess the land. He is their help and stay.
   The evildoer, to his consternation,
   Shall be cut off; the LORD will not delay.
   If you should seek his former habitation,
   You’ll find no more than ashes and decay.
   
5. The humble shall possess the land forever,
   Delighting in the peace within their gates.
   The wicked may pursue with bow and quiver
   Or gnash their teeth at them in angry hate.
   The LORD sees them and laughs at their endeavor,
   For He has set the day of their defeat.
   
6. The wicked draw the broad sword of oppression
   And bend their bows to bring the needy down,
   To slay the upright by their bold aggression,
   But they will merely hurt themselves alone.
   Their bows are broken by God’s intercession,
   Their base designs completely overthrown.
   
7. The little that the just possess in token
   Exceeds the wealth of evil men who stray.
   The arms of all the wicked shall be broken
   But God upholds the blameless in their way.
   He knows their days and verily has spoken,
   Awarding them their heritage for aye.
   
8. They are not put to shame in time of trouble
   And in the days of famine they shall eat.
   But, be assured, the ruthless and ignoble,
   All who oppose the LORD, shall see defeat
   And fade away as smoke of burning stubble,
   Consumed before His anger’s flaming heat.
   
9. When in his steps he falters and is shaken,
   The LORD Himself will grasp him by the hand.
   I once was young, age no its toll has taken,
   But always God the righteous did defend.
   Indeed, I’ve never seen him left forsaken
   Nor his descendants begging in the land.
   
10. Day in, day out, he’s bountiful in lending;
    His children, too, have many goods in store.
    Depart, then, from the paths to evil tending;
    So you will dwell in peace for evermore.
    But our just LORD, His godly ones defending,
    Upon the seed of foes His wrath will pour.
    
11. The righteous man to wisdom gives expression;
    His tongue speaks justice, showing what is right.
    Within his heart, God’s law is his possession.
    His walk will never wander from its light
    Though evil men may aim at his oppression;
    They seek to slay the righteous day and night.
    
12. The LORD His upright servant will deliver,
    Not let him by his judges be condemned.
    Wait for the LORD and keep His way with fervor;
    He will exalt you to possess the land.
    The wicked you will see cut off for ever
    Because their sure destruction is at hand.
    
13. I’ve seen a wicked man, in all his power,
    Spread out his branches like a native tree.
    But then he fell as grass before the mower
    And soon no trace of him was left to see.
    Although I tried to find this evildoer,
    I searched in vain: forever gone was he.
    
14. Observe the upright and the just consider;
    There is a future for the man of peace.
    Transgressors shall be wiped out altogether;
    The line of their posterity shall cease.
    Then shall the just rejoice with one another
    And sing for their abundance of increase.
    
15. The LORD salvation on the just will shower;
    He is their shelter in the time of stress.
    He will preserve them by His strength and power,
    Protect them from the hosts of wickedness.
    Beneath His wings they refuge will discover,
    For they rely on Him to save and bless.