Exposition of Psalm 37 (2)
Verses 9-15

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Having previously expounded the first two divisions of this psalm - a warning to the righteous regarding the wicked (vv.1f) and the antidote for fretting over the wicked and envying their prosperity (vv.3-8) – we now move to the last division:

III. The contrast between the righteous and the wicked (vv.9-40). In this passage we find the wicked described and the righteous contrasted to them (vv.9-15), and the righteous described and the wicked contrasted to them (vv.16-40). Here also we find the providential care of God to the righteous (vv.25f), to which is contrasted His providential judgment against the wicked (vv.35f). Here furthermore, as in the preceding verses, is instruction to the saints (vv.27, 34, 37, 40b). Here furthermore still is the promise that Jehovah will direct the life of a good man and delight in his way, and forever preserve him (vv.23f).

37:9 "For evildoers shall be cut off; ..." The meaning of this phrase is that workers of iniquity will suffer the punishment of death as the consequence of their evil deeds. All evildoers shall be cut off at the final judgment and in the Second Death (Revelation 20:14; 21:8). But the psalmist here evidently refers to the general but not universal rule in this present life. He who flagrantly violates God's law will have his life shortened by the justice of God (Proverb 10:27): "The fear of the LORD prolongs days [cp. Exodus 20:12], but the years of the wicked will be shortened" (cp. Psalm 55:23). He who does evil against his body by habitually abusing good health practices leads himself to an early grave – as does the drug addict, the drunkard, and the glutton. Likewise, he who does evil in flagrantly violating God's law brings upon himself the termination of his life by God. Persecutors of God's people should remember the cutting off of Pharaoh (Exodus chs.14f). Withholders of benevolence to the needy should remember the cutting off of Nabal (1 Samuel ch.25). Schemers against their neighbors should remember the cutting off of Haman (Esther ch.7). False prophets and abettors of sexual immorality should remember the cutting off of Balaam (Numbers 31:8; Joshua 31:2). Abusers of Christ should remember the cutting off of Judas Iscariot (Matthew 26:14-16, 47-49; 27:1-5).

"... But those who wait on the LORD, ..." The root of the word wait means "to look for with great expectation". To "wait on the LORD" is to believe that Jehovah will fulfill His promise, and to wait patiently and with great endurance until He has done so, without acting in such a way as to attempt to fulfill the promise yourself. Accordingly, Jacob declared on his death bed, "I have waited for your salvation, O LORD!" (Genesis 49:18). To "wait on the LORD" may appear to be a very simple and easy thing to do, and yet will prove to be one of the hardest things one will ever do, and also one of the most foremost expressions of faith in Jehovah. These who here "wait on the LORD" are also the same as those who have learned to do what was required in the preceding verses (vv.1-8). They are those who "do not fret because of evildoers, nor [are] envious of the workers of iniquity" (v.1; contrast Proverb 20:22). They are those who obey the commands to "trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness" (v.3), and "delight yourself also in the LORD" (v.4), and "commit your way to the LORD, trust also in Him" (v.5), and "rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him" (v.7), and "cease from anger, and forsake wrath" (v.8).

"... They shall inherit the earth." Believers in Christ are God's adopted children, and therefore "heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ" (Romans 8:14-17). Christ has inherited the earth (Psalm 2:8), and therefore believers will do so also - "And their inheritance shall be forever" (v.18). They therefore, "according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells" (2 Peter 3:13). But the emphasis of the psalmist here is on the present enjoyment of this inheritance. God ascertains that His heirs in this present life on this earth have all their needs met by Him. These heirs are in this psalm described in a fivefold manner: "those who wait on Jehovah" (here); "the meek" (v.11); "the righteous" (v.29); "those who ... keep Jehovah's way" (v.34); "those who are blessed by Jehovah" (v.22).

37:10 "For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more; ..." It may appear to us that he "prospers in his way" (v.7). But this is only for "a little while", after which "the wicked shall be no more". The meaning is not that they will be annihilated, for that will happen to no one, for everyone will at the final judgment enter into either "everlasting punishment" or "eternal life" (Matthew 25:46). Rather, the meaning is that the wicked because of their wickedness will shortly be removed from the earth.

"... Indeed, you will look carefully for his place, / But it shall be no more." "He will fly away like a dream, and not be found; yes, he will be chased away like a vision of the night. The eye that saw him will see him no more, nor will his place behold him anymore" (Job 20:8f). He will no longer occupy his place in this world. Rather, he will at death go to his place in Hades (as did the rich man Dives in Luke 16:22b-23), and then to his place in Gehenna, the everlasting Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:13-15).

37:11 "But the meek shall inherit the earth, ..." The Hebrew word here translated meek means "humble". But this meekness is not weakness; rather, this meekness is known for its strength. Neither is this meekness cowardice; rather, this meekness is known for its bravery. This meekness is that moral and spiritual virtue in the face of adverse conditions that accepts all the dealings of God as good, without disputing or resisting, and patiently endures the insults and injuries inflicted by men, without seeking to avenge self or boasting when not conquered. The foremost example of a meek man among mere mortals is Moses (Numbers 12:1-3): in the face of severe criticism of his wife because of her nationality, and an undue question of his authority, we read "Now the man Moses was very humble ["meek" in KJV], more than all men who were on the face of the earth." Moses is identified as such because he exemplified what is required in this psalm: he trusted in Jehovah (v.3), delighted himself in Jehovah (v.4), committed his way to Jehovah (v.5), rested in Jehovah (v.7), and did not resort to retaliatory anger or wrath (v.8). Such persons are "the meek [who] shall inherit the earth". Jesus Christ quotes this text in The Beatitudes (Matthew 5:5). Now we shall observe what the meek will do in the land they inherit:

"... And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace." The wicked delight in the abundance of evil they do. Men in general delight in the abundance of earthly things they accumulate. But the righteous delight in "peace". They find their peace in Christ- "For He Himself is our peace" (Ephesians 2:14). They have "peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" through "having been justified by faith" in Him (Romans 5:1). And they have "peace with one another" (Mark 9:50). And they have this peace in eternal and immutable "abundance".

37:12 "The wicked plots against the just, ..." They did so against Him who is preeminently the Just One (Acts 3:14; 7:52). They therefore will do so also against all who are just in Him.

"And gnashes at him with his teeth." This denotes the intensity of their wrath against the just – as against Stephen at his martyrdom (Acts 7:54ff).

"... For He sees that his day is coming." The wicked laugh because they deceive themselves into thinking they have triumphed over the righteous (Psalm 35:21), and because they do not see that "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Hebrews 10:31). Jehovah laughs because He sees their futility against Him and His own final triumph over them.

37:14 "The wicked have drawn the sword / And have bent their bow, ..." That is, they employ both close-range and far-range weapons in their warfare against Jehovah and His people.

"... To cast down the poor and needy, / To slay those who are of upright conduct." The intended victims of the wicked are those who are "poor in spirit" (Matthew 5:3) and live in holy conduct and godliness. The wicked intend to not only "cast down" their intended victims, but also to "slay" them.

37:15 "Their sword shall enter their own heart, ..." The weapons of the wicked against the just will recoil against themselves - as did the sword of David's persecutor Saul (1 Samuel 31:4).

"... And their bows shall be broken." Therefore, "Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the workers of iniquity" (v.1).

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