Psalms of David

Psalm 37 is a strange song, an acrostic poem with each section starting with subsequent letters of the Hebrew alphabet. What is strange is that it has 40 verses and the Hebrew alphabet only has 22 letters. How does that work out? Most sections are two verses two lines long, 3 sections are a single verse three lines long and one letter of the alphabet is missed. On top of this complex structure, the psalm is asking the question, “Why do good things happen to bad people?”

Psalms in Book 1 (Psalms 1 to 41) are primarily personal songs, so I will look at how they apply to us personally. Social and communal aspects of life and work do not come in until the later books of Psalms.

The books of Psalms are roughly themed like this:

Book 1: Psalms 1 – 41: God is beside us.
Book 2: Psalms 42 – 72: God goes before us
Book 3: Psalms 73 – 89: God is all around us.
Book 4: Psalms 90 – 106: God is above us.
Book 5: Psalms 107 – 150: God is among us.

Of David.

37 (Section 1 Aleph) Fret not yourself because of evildoers;
    be not envious of wrongdoers!
² For they will soon fade like the grass
    and wither like the green herb.
³ (Section 2 Beth) Trust in the Lord, and do good;
    dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.
⁴ Delight yourself in the Lord,
    and he will give you the desires of your heart.
⁵ (Section 3 Gimel) Commit your way to the Lord;
    trust in him, and he will act.
⁶ He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
    and your justice as the noonday.

⁷ (Section 4 Dalet) Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;
    fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,
    over the man who carries out evil devices!

⁸ (Section 5 He) Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!
    Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.
⁹ For the evildoers shall be cut off,
    but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land.
¹⁰ (Section 6 Waw) In just a little while, the wicked will be no more;
    though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there.
¹¹ But the meek shall inherit the land
    and delight themselves in abundant peace.
¹² (Section 7 Zayin) The wicked plots against the righteous
    and gnashes his teeth at him,
¹³ but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
    for he sees that his day is coming.
¹⁴ (Section 8 Het) The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows
    to bring down the poor and needy,
    to slay those whose way is upright;
¹⁵ their sword shall enter their own heart,
    and their bows shall be broken.
¹⁶ (Section 9 Tet) Better is the little that the righteous has
    than the abundance of many wicked.
¹⁷ For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
    but the Lord upholds the righteous.
¹⁸ (Section 10 Yod) The Lord knows the days of the blameless,
    and their heritage will remain for ever;
¹⁹ they are not put to shame in evil times;
    in the days of famine they have abundance.

²⁰ (Section 11 Kaf) But the wicked will perish;
    the enemies of the Lord are like the glory of the pastures;
    they vanish—like smoke they vanish away.

²¹ (Section 12 Lamed) The wicked borrows but does not pay back,
    but the righteous is generous and gives;
²² for those blessed by the Lord shall inherit the land,
    but those cursed by him shall be cut off.
²³ (Section 13 Mem) The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
    when he delights in his way;
²⁴ though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,
    for the Lord upholds his hand.
²⁵ (Section 14 Nun) I have been young, and now am old,
    yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
    or his children begging for bread.
²⁶ He is ever lending generously,
    and his children become a blessing.
²⁷ (Section 15 Samek) Turn away from evil and do good;
    so shall you dwell for ever.
²⁸ For the Lord loves justice;
    he will not forsake his saints.
They are preserved for ever,
    but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.
²⁹ (Ayin?) The righteous shall inherit the land
    and dwell upon it for ever.
³⁰ (Section 16 Pe) The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
    and his tongue speaks justice.
³¹ The law of his God is in his heart;
    his steps do not slip.
³² (Section 17 Tsade) The wicked watches for the righteous
    and seeks to put him to death.
³³ The Lord will not abandon him to his power
    or let him be condemned when he is brought to trial.

³⁴ (Section 18 Qof) (Section 6 Aleph) Wait for the Lord and keep his way,
    and he will exalt you to inherit the land;
    you will look on when the wicked are cut off.

³⁵ (Section 19 Resh) I have seen a wicked, ruthless man,
    spreading himself like a green laurel tree.
³⁶ But he passed away, and behold, he was no more;
    though I sought him, he could not be found.
³⁷ (Section 20 Shin) Mark the blameless and behold the upright,
    for there is a future for the man of peace.
³⁸ But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed;
    the future of the wicked shall be cut off.
³⁹ (Section 21 Taw) The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
    he is their stronghold in the time of trouble.
⁴⁰ The Lord helps them and delivers them;
    he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
    because they take refuge in him.

Psalm 37 ESVUK

Don’t panic. As well as being a catchphrase of Corporal Jones in Dad’s Army and the slogan in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is also in this psalm. Good things do happen to bad people. If you are asking why, I am sorry but I have no answers and neither does Psalm 37, even though that is the subject of the song. “Fret not,” in verse 1 could be better translated, “Do not get worked up,” or, “Don’t Panic.”

Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! Fret not is not a common phrase; don’t worry or don’t panic are more common. The word translated “fret” (charah) really means to grow warm, blaze up, be angry, or be incensed. Why should we not be angry when bad people get good things we think they don’t deserve and good people go unrewarded? It is because we focus on the wrong thing. Psalm 120 starts off, “In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me.” but from there descends into an angry rant. But Psalm 120 is the first in a series of songs, the Psalms of Ascent, that end in praise. It is the start of a journey away from ranting. There is a better way than ranting.

Instead of getting angry Psalm 37 offers a better way, a five-point plan:

1. Trust in the Lord, and do good;
2. Dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.
3. Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.
4. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.
5. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him.

The song is philosophy as well as poetry. It is Wisdom literature, like the books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. In the case of Psalm 37 it is looking at why allows good things to happen to bas people. It is not necessarily to be taken literally, it is tackling philosophical concepts rather than things that have actually happened.

Trust

This instruction comes in two parts. Firstly, we place our trust in God, relying on His guidance and strength to lead us. Secondly, we strive to do good, acting with kindness, compassion, and integrity in all that we do. By following this sequence, we ensure that our actions align with our faith and uphold the values that guide us.

Being good does not get us into God’s good books, God accepts us as we are, but does not expect us to stay that way. Good works are supposed to arise from having a relationship with God.

Dwell and befriend

We have to live in the place where we are put, even though things will not always be fair. It is important to remember that we cannot always choose our enemies, but we do have the ability to choose our friends, which can make a significant difference in our lives.

The idea of dwelling (living or abiding in older translations) with God is taught by Jesus, particularly towards the end of his ministry as his disciples would not have him around much longer. It is about drawing our strength from Jesus.

Delight

Do you find true pleasure, overwhelming joy, and utmost contentment in the presence of God? Are you able to derive profound satisfaction from your obedience to his commands and the intimate connection you share with him? A deep sense of gratification and fulfilment can be discovered when you savour the blessings that arise from your relationship with God.

It is like a healthy marriage relationship—where each person spends time thinking about the other, what they need and want, how to make them happy.  When we stay close to God, the what we want will naturally come into alignment with God’s will.

Commit

The concept behind “commit your way” is about entrusting the entirety of your existence to God’s care. It involves surrendering your life, including the responsibilities and challenges you bear, into his loving hands. By doing so, you acknowledge that God’s guidance and support are essential in navigating the complexities of life.

This takes a lot of trust. Ask yourselves whether you not only believe God can accomplish what he says or what we would like, but whether we really believe that he will do what is best for us

Be still before the Lord

This is not passive, a kind of sitting on our hands and waiting for God to do something: God expects both faith and action. We can find comfort and peace in our relationship with God, developing the ability to turn down the world in order to be more attuned to God’s voice. Furthermore, by actively exercising our faith and taking action, we demonstrate our trust and reliance on God. Our faith is not simply a passive acceptance, but rather an active participation in God’s plan for our lives. As we deepen our connection with God, we can experience a greater sense of purpose and fulfilment, knowing that our actions are aligned with His will. Let us embrace the transformative power of God in our lives.

When we find ourselves getting worked up, it’s developing the discipline to stop dwelling on whatever it is that’s bothering or worrying us and re-focusing instead on God. God loves those we are worked up about too and may be giving them time to come to him and repent.

That is just the first part of Psalm 37. The rest of the psalm is about God knowing what is going on and God’s faithfulness. God will never abandon those who follow him.

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