PSALM 37 [†]  u Fret not yourself because of evildoers;

be not  v envious of wrongdoers!

2 For they will soon  w fade like  x the grass

and wither  y like the green herb.

3  z Trust in the LORD, and do good;

 a dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. [2]

4[†]  b Delight yourself in the LORD,

and he will  c give you the desires of your heart.

5  d Commit your way to the LORD;

 z trust in him, and he will act.

6  e He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,

and your justice as  f the noonday.

7  g Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;

 h fret not yourself over the one who  i prospers in his way,

over the man who carries out evil devices!

8  j Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!

 h Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.

9[^][†]  k For the evildoers shall be cut off,

but those who wait for the LORD shall  l inherit the land.

10 In  m just a little while, the wicked will be no more;

though you look carefully at  n his place, he will not be there.

11[†] But  o the meek shall inherit the land

and delight themselves in  p abundant peace.

12[†] The wicked  q plots against the righteous

and  r gnashes his teeth at him,

13 but the Lord  s laughs at the wicked,

for he sees that his  t day is coming.

14 The wicked draw the sword and  u bend their bows

to bring down the poor and needy,

to slay those whose  v way is upright;

15 their sword shall enter their own heart,

and their  w bows shall be broken.

16  x Better is the little that the righteous has

than the abundance of many wicked.

17 For  y the arms of the wicked shall be broken,

but the LORD  z upholds the righteous.

18 The LORD  a knows the days of the blameless,

and their  b heritage will remain forever;

19 they are not put to shame in evil times;

in  c the days of famine they have abundance.

20 But the wicked will perish;

the enemies of the LORD are like  d the glory of the pastures;

they vanish—like  e smoke they vanish away.

21[†] The wicked borrows but does not pay back,

but the righteous  f is generous and gives;

22 for those blessed by the LORD [3] shall  g inherit the land,

but those cursed by him  h shall be cut off.

23 The  i steps of a man are  j established by the LORD,

when he delights in his way;

24  k though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,

for the LORD  l upholds his hand.

25 I have been young, and now am old,

yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken

or his children  m begging for bread.

26 He is ever  n lending generously,

and his children become a blessing.

27  o Turn away from evil and do good;

so shall you  p dwell forever.

28 For the LORD  q loves justice;

he will not forsake his  r saints.

They are preserved forever,

but the children of the wicked shall be  s cut off.

29 The righteous shall inherit the land

and  p dwell upon it forever.

30 The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,

and his tongue speaks justice.

31  t The law of his God is in his heart;

his  u steps do not slip.

32[†] The wicked  v watches for the righteous

and seeks to put him to death.

33 The LORD will not  w abandon him to his power

or let him  x be condemned when he is brought to trial.

34  y Wait for the LORD and keep his way,

and he will exalt you to inherit the land;

you will look on  z when the wicked are cut off.

35  a I have seen a wicked, ruthless man,

spreading himself like  b a green laurel tree. [4]

36 But he passed away, [5] and behold,  c he was no more;

though I sought him, he could not be found.

37 Mark the blameless and behold the upright,

for there is a future for the man of  d peace.

38 But  e transgressors shall be altogether destroyed;

the future of the wicked  f shall be cut off.

39  g The salvation of the righteous is from the LORD;

he is their stronghold in  h the time of trouble.

40 The LORD helps them and  i delivers them;

 j he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,

because they  k take refuge in him.

A Psalm of David,  l for the memorial offering.