Psalms 36-38

Psalm 36

¹For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, the servant of the LORD. An oracle is in my heart regarding the transgression of the wicked man: There is no fear of God before his eyes.

²For his eyes are too full of conceit to detect or hate his own sin.

³The words of his mouth are wicked and deceitful; he has ceased to be wise and well-doing.

⁴Even on his bed he plots wickedness; he sets himself on a path that is not good; he fails to reject evil.

⁵Your loving devotion, O LORD, reaches to the heavens, Your faithfulness to the clouds.

⁶Your righteousness is like the highest mountains; Your judgments are like the deepest sea. O LORD, You preserve man and beast.

⁷How precious is Your loving devotion, O God, that the children of men take refuge in the shadow of Your wings!

⁸They feast on the abundance of Your house, and You give them drink from Your river of delights.

⁹For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light.

¹⁰Extend Your loving devotion to those who know You, and Your righteousness to the upright in heart.

¹¹Let not the foot of the proud come against me, nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.

¹²There the evildoers lie fallen, thrown down and unable to rise.

Psalm 37

¹Of David. Do not fret over those who do evil; do not envy those who do wrong.

²For they wither quickly like grass and wilt like tender plants.

³Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.

⁴Delight yourself in the LORD, and He will give you the desires of your heart.

⁵Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him, and He will do it.

⁶He will bring forth your righteousness like the dawn, your justice like the noonday sun.

⁷Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for Him; do not fret when men prosper in their ways, when they carry out wicked schemes.

⁸Refrain from anger and abandon wrath; do not fret—it can only bring harm.

⁹For the evildoers will be cut off, but those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land.

¹⁰Yet a little while, and the wicked will be no more; though you look for them, they will not be found.

¹¹But the meek will inherit the land and delight in abundant prosperity.

¹²The wicked scheme against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them,

¹³but the Lord laughs, seeing that their day is coming.

¹⁴The wicked have drawn the sword and bent the bow to bring down the poor and needy, to slay those whose ways are upright.

¹⁵But their swords will pierce their own hearts, and their bows will be broken.

¹⁶Better is the little of the righteous than the abundance of many who are wicked.

¹⁷For the arms of the wicked will be broken, but the LORD upholds the righteous.

¹⁸The LORD knows the days of the blameless, and their inheritance will last forever.

¹⁹In the time of evil they will not be ashamed, and in the days of famine they will be satisfied.

²⁰But the wicked and enemies of the LORD will perish like the glory of the fields. They will vanish; like smoke they will fade away.

²¹The wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous are gracious and giving.

²²Surely those He blesses will inherit the land, but the cursed will be destroyed.

²³The steps of a man are ordered by the LORD who takes delight in his journey.

²⁴Though he falls, he will not be overwhelmed, for the LORD is holding his hand.

²⁵I once was young and now am old, yet never have I seen the righteous abandoned or their children begging for bread.

²⁶They are ever generous and quick to lend, and their children are a blessing.

²⁷Turn away from evil and do good, so that you will abide forever.

²⁸For the LORD loves justice and will not forsake His saints. They are preserved forever, but the offspring of the wicked will be cut off.

²⁹The righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it forever.

³⁰The mouth of the righteous man utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks justice.

³¹The law of his God is in his heart; his steps do not falter.

³²Though the wicked lie in wait for the righteous, and seek to slay them,

³³the LORD will not leave them in their power or let them be condemned under judgment.

³⁴Wait for the LORD and keep His way, and He will raise you up to inherit the land. When the wicked are cut off, you will see it.

³⁵I have seen a wicked, ruthless man flourishing like a well-rooted native tree,

³⁶yet he passed away and was no more; though I searched, he could not be found.

³⁷Consider the blameless and observe the upright, for posterity awaits the man of peace.

³⁸But the transgressors will all be destroyed; the future of the wicked will be cut off.

³⁹The salvation of the righteous is from the LORD; He is their stronghold in time of trouble.

⁴⁰The LORD helps and delivers them; He rescues and saves them from the wicked, because they take refuge in Him.

Psalm 38

¹A Psalm of David, for remembrance. O LORD, do not rebuke me in Your anger or discipline me in Your wrath.

²For Your arrows have pierced me deeply, and Your hand has pressed down on me.

³There is no soundness in my body because of Your anger; there is no rest in my bones because of my sin.

⁴For my iniquities have overwhelmed me; they are a burden too heavy to bear.

⁵My wounds are foul and festering because of my sinful folly.

⁶I am bent and brought low; all day long I go about mourning.

⁷For my loins are full of burning pain, and no soundness remains in my body.

⁸I am numb and badly crushed; I groan in anguish of heart.

⁹O Lord, my every desire is before You; my groaning is not hidden from You.

¹⁰My heart pounds, my strength fails, and even the light of my eyes has faded.

¹¹My beloved and friends shun my disease, and my kinsmen stand at a distance.

¹²Those who seek my life lay snares; those who wish me harm speak destruction, plotting deceit all day long.

¹³But like a deaf man, I do not hear; and like a mute man, I do not open my mouth.

¹⁴I am like a man who cannot hear, whose mouth offers no reply.

¹⁵I wait for You, O LORD; You will answer, O Lord my God.

¹⁶For I said, “Let them not gloat over me— those who taunt me when my foot slips.”

¹⁷For I am ready to fall, and my pain is ever with me.

¹⁸Yes, I confess my iniquity; I am troubled by my sin.

¹⁹Many are my enemies without cause, and many hate me without reason.

²⁰Those who repay my good with evil attack me for pursuing the good.

²¹Do not forsake me, O LORD; be not far from me, O my God.

²²Come quickly to help me, O Lord my Savior.