King David advised his generations not to be jealous of the wicked lest they adopt their evil ways. Have faith in G-d, be guided by integrity and G-d will take care of you. Psalm 37 is an acrostic: each verse or pair of verses follows the alef-bet (the Hebrew alphabet) with a few minor irregularities.
- Text of Psalm 37
- Hebrew text Psalm 37 – תהילים לז
- Listen to Psalm 37
- Commentary on Psalm 37 by Rabbi Yitzchok Rubin
- Commentary by Rashi on Psalm 37
- Further explanation of the above Jewish comments
- Psalm 1 to 92
Text of Psalm 37
Do not be annoyed by evil people, do not be jealous of those who do evil, they quickly wither like grass, they wither like the green grass. Trust in the Eternal and do good, inhabit the land and live safely there. Seek your happiness in the Eternal, He will give what your heart desires. Place your life in the hands of the Eternal, trust in Him, He will do this for you: justice will bear like the morning light, righteousness will shine like the noonday sun.
….Behold the innocent, look upon the upright: those who are peaceable have the future. But sinners are destroyed, there is no future for the wicked. The righteous find salvation in the Eternal, He is their refuge in times of trouble. The Eternal has always helped and delivered them, He also delivers them now from sinners, He saves them, because they take refuge in Him.
Hebrew text Psalm 37 – תהילים לז
David, don’t compete with the shepherds, don’t be jealous of those who do good. 2 For like fast grass they will be cut off and like grass they will be withered. 3. Trust in Jehovah and do good, dwell in the earth and have faith. 4 And delight in Jehovah, and he will give you the desire of your heart. Set your path on Jehovah and trust in him and he will do. And bring forth the light of your righteousness and your judgment as the dawn. 7 Doom for Yahweh and let it happen, or you will compete in the success of his way with a man who does mischief. 8. Let go of the heat and let go of the heat. Don’t compete. 9 For the shepherds will perish, and the weak of the Lord will inherit the earth. And yet a little while, and there is no wickedness, and thou hast looked upon his place, and there is none. 11 And the meek shall inherit the earth and delight in the abundance of peace. 12 An evil plot against the righteous and his teeth gnashed on him. 13 The Lord will bless him because he sees that his day will come. The wicked opened the hand of the sword, and their path was bowed down to strike down the poor and desolate, to slay the righteous. Their sword will come into their hearts and their bows will be broken. 16 Better is a few righteous people than many wicked people. 17 For the arms of the wicked will be broken, and Jehovah will strengthen the righteous. 18 Jehovah knows your days forever and your inheritance will be forever. 19 They shall not go dry in a bad time, and in times of famine they shall be satisfied. Because the wicked will perish and the enemies of the Lord will be consumed by the smoke. A wicked borrower who will not pay, and a righteous man who is gracious and gives. 22 For those who bless him shall inherit the earth and those who curse him shall be cut off. 23 From Jehovah the steps of a man have been established and his way will be desired. So that he may fall, he shall not be thrown, because Jehovah is his hand. I was so young that I had not seen a righteous man forsaken and his seed begging for bread. So all day long he is generous and full and his seed is a blessing. So turn away from evil and do good and dwell forever. Because Yahweh loves judgment and will not forsake his followers forever, the seed of wickedness will be cut off. Ninety righteous people will inherit the earth and live forever on it. A righteous person will speak wisdom and his tongue will speak judgment. The law of his God is not in his heart. An evil watcher’s heart for the righteous and seeks his death. Jehovah will not leave us in his hand and will not condemn us in his judgment. Let hope in Jehovah and keep his way and lift yourself up to the net of the land of the knowledge of the wicked you will see. To her I saw a wicked, tyrannical and scornful citizen. And he passed by, and behold, we are not, and I will ask for him, and we will not find him. So keep your guard and see straight, for the last is peace. Moist and criminals were destroyed together after evil was cut off. The salvation of the righteous from Jehovah is strong in times of trouble. And Yahweh helped them and delivered them. He delivered them from the wicked and saved them because they took refuge in him.
Listen to Psalm 37
Listen to Psalm 37 in Hebrew.
Commentary on Psalm 37 by Rabbi Yitzchok Rubin
do not compete with the wicked
Never compete with the wicked. Their hollow existence is not worth our sorrow and pain. Their success is an illusion. When the grass is cut from the root, the grass is no longer greener on the other side. They need to be fed by others and cannot live their own lives.
acting in faith Doing good when evil is around is acting in faith. Trust in G‑d as the Jews in the wilderness trusted in G‑d in their booths n. This belief only strengthens the faith. When we focus on G-d we will be rewarded.
sukkah When Jews sit in the sukkah during the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) they are not distracted. They only look at images of the tzadi kkim (righteous ones) on the walls that paved the path for them. Everything is possible if we focus on what we really need.
Hashem is always with us We do not need to grieve over what seems unreasonable. G-d has given us His greatest gift : He is always with us. When we do what is right – HaShem’s will – then our integrity will be visible to all.
Trial The hardest trial is to remain steadfast in the face of the wicked’s success. Our sukkah seems fragile before the sturdy houses of the wicked. But they miss the mitzvot of Hashem. We have a vision, they lack it.
Commentary by Rashi on Psalm 37
Per verse the commentary of Rashi, the Jewish Bible commentator who lived from 1040-1105. Rashi is considered the teacher of teachers. All traditional Jews regard Rashi as an authority on the Jewish Bible and Talmud. Hence it is important to record his commentary on the Psalms. Rashi uses new Hebrew supplemented with Old French words. His language is sometimes somewhat oracularly short. For further explanation it is wise to consult an orthodox Jewish rabbi.
Verse 1
From David. Don’t compete with the evildoers; do not be jealous of those who commit injustice.
Do not compete with the evildoers : He rebukes Israel that they should not compete with the success of the evildoers to do like their deeds, such as (in Jeremiah 12:5): ,how do you (תתחרה) compete with horses,, run while they run, an atir in Old French, to compete.
do not be jealous of those who commit injustice : to commit injustice like them.
Verse 2
For they will soon be cut off like grass and wither like green vegetation.
For they shall be cut off quickly : Hebrew ימלו, seront tronke in Old French, they shall be cut off, an expression of cutting off.
Verse 3
Trust in the Lord and do good; live in the land and be nourished by faith.
Trust in the Lord : and do not say, “If I do not rob and steal,” or “If I give charity to a poor man, how can I support myself?”
and do good : Then you will dwell in the land for a long time.
and be nourished by faith : You will eat and be sustained by the reward of [your] faith, that you believed in the Holy One, blessed be He, to trust in Him and do good.
Verse 4
So you will rejoice in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.
This is how you will rejoice in the Lord : Enjoy pleasures by being supported by the Holy One, blessed be He.
Verse 5
Make your way to the Lord and trust Him and He will act.
Make your way to the Lord : Entrust all your needs to Him.
Verse 7
Wait for the Lord and hope in Him; do not compete with one whose way is prosperous, with a man who works evil plans.
Wait on the Lord : Hebrew דום. Wait for his salvation, as (in I Samuel 14:9): “If thus they say to us, ‘Wait (דמו)!’” Regarding Jonathan. However, Menachem (p. 64) associates it as an expression of silence, as (in Leviticus 10:3): ,and Aaron held his peace (וידם)., He also interpreted (Lamentations 3:26): ,It is good that one should wait quietly (ודומם) in this way and Dunash (p. 27) agrees with him
and hope : Hebrew והתחולל, an expression of hope (תוחלת )
do not compete : saying, ,I will be wicked like him, and I will prosper like him.,
Verse 8
Desist from wrath and forsake wrath; do not compete only to do evil.
Desist from wrath : Cease to be evil so that you will not be angry.
and forsake : a matter that will bring you the wrath of the Holy One, blessed be He.
Verse 9
For evildoers will be cut off, and those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land.
For evildoers : whom you now see flourishing will be cut off.
Verse 10
Yet a little while and the wicked man will not be here, and you will look at his place and he is not there.
Yet a little while : If you wait a little longer , you will see that the wicked man is not there.
and you will look at his place : and you will look at the place where he was, and he is not there, because he has died and perished.
Verse 12
The wicked man plots against the righteous and gnashes his teeth at him.
and gnashing of teeth : Hebrew וחרק, as (in Lamentations 2:16): ,and gnashed their teeth (ויחרקו),; e rechineynt in Old French.
Verse 14
The wicked began to make war, and bent their bow to cast down the poor and the needy, to kill those who walk in a straight path.
initiated war : the poorly initiated quarrel and fight without prior provocation.
Verse 16
The few of the righteous are better than the multitude of many wicked people.
The few of the righteous are better : The few men who help the righteous are better.
then the multitude of many evil people : Amraphel and his allies started a war in the world with the aim of capturing Lot and provoking Abraham, but the few who were with Abraham succeeded and destroyed all those armies.
Verse 18
The Lord knows the days of the innocent, and their inheritance will be forever.
The Lord knows the days of the innocent : He acknowledges the deeds of their days, and their inheritance and the receipt of their reward from Him will be forever.
Verse 20
For the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the Lord are as fading light upon the plains; they are consumed in smoke, yes they are consumed.
like vanishing light on the plains : Hebrew כרים כיקר, like the light of the morning cloud, which appears at dawn and glitters on the broad plains, which do not last. כרים means a plain, as (in Isaiah 30:23): ,a broad plain (כר נרחב)., כיקר is an expression of ,fading light (אור יקרות), (as in Zechariah 14:6). Others interpret כיקר כרים: as the glory of lambs being fattened for slaughter.
Verse 21
The wicked borrows and does not pay, but the righteous is gracious and gives.
The wicked borrows and does not pay, but the righteous is gracious and gives. : The Holy One, blessed be He, Who is the Just of the world, is merciful to His own and gives it to the one who has borrowed what he [the borrower] has stolen from him.
Verse 22
For those who are blessed by Him will inherit the land, and those who are cursed by Him will be cut off.
For those who are blessed by Him : Through the Righteous One of the world, will inherit the land.
Verse 23
The steps of a mighty man are established by the Lord, for He delights in his way.
the steps of a mighty man : He who is mighty in the fear of the Holy One, blessed be He; les pas du fort in French, the steps of the strong.
be established : Fureut afettetes in French, are prepared for reality.
Verse 24
If he falls, he will not be thrown down, for the Lord upholds his hand.
If he falls : Hebrew יפל, aluverjera in Old French, falters, an expression of (Genesis 24:64): ,and she fell from the camel.,
As : Hebrew כי, like אם.
he will not be thrown down : He will not be thrown away to be forsaken.
Verse 25
I was young, and I grew older, and I did not forsake a righteous man who sought bread for his seed.
I was young : This verse was recited by the Prince of the World (the most important angel), because if it was David, he was not that old.
Verse 26
All day long he is gracious and lends, and his seed is ready for a blessing.
All day long : the righteous is merciful to the poor and lends to them.
and his seed : This seed that he sows with his charity will ultimately be blessed.
Verse 30
The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks judgment.
The mouth of the righteous speaks : at first words of wisdom in his heart to see the law that the Torah decreed for every thing, and then his tongue speaks judgment.
Verse 31
The law of his God is in his heart; his feet do not falter.
his feet do not falter : his steps do not slip.
Verse 35
I saw a wicked man, strong, well rooted, like a native who is fresh.
well-rooted : Hebrew ומתערה, rooted, as (in Isaiah 19:7): ,the well-rooted plants (ערות) by the stream., In the language of the Mishnah there are many [examples]: e.g. (Oktzin 3:8): ,A tree that was cut down yet is rooted by its bark.,
like a native who is fresh : Like one of the natives of the country who is well-rooted and rich in property. And so Menachem (p. 20) explained it: כאזרח רענן moist and growing like a well-rooted tree, and the native (אזרח) of the natives (מאזרחי) of people are people of roots.
Verse 37
Consider the innocent and behold the upright, for there is a future for the man of peace.
Watch the Innocents : Examine the ways of innocents to learn from their actions.
for there is a future for the man of peace : If he has no beginning, he has a future, but the transgressors, the sinners and the wicked, their future is cut off and they are destroyed together.
Further explanation of the above Jewish comments
The wicked feeds on success. He always has to score to stroke his ego. As soon as he is no longer materially successful, he becomes depressed. Life is then just a hollow existence for him. Should we be jealous of the success of these wicked people? No! The purpose of existence is not to be successful. Of course it is nice to live a happy life, but true happiness only comes from G-d. He wants us to be happy by serving Him (serve G-d with joy). This can be done by adhering to His laws. For the Jews these are the 613 mitzvot and for the non-Jews the Noahide commandments. These guidelines last forever and lead to a perfect world. It is not about our ego but about Creation as a whole. What could be better than creating a perfect world in which every person is happy? We do not achieve this by pursuing our own success or acting selfishly, but rather through altruistic behavior. Successful people are those who follow G-d’s laws and thus restore the world (tikkun olam). The world can only be repaired when we start with ourselves (tikkoen atsmo). By constantly working on ourselves, transforming ourselves into a perfect human being in G-d’s image, we will be successful. Live G-d’s laws and be a partner in G-d’s Creation. That is the purpose of existence. And that is anything but a hollow existence.
Psalm 1 to 92
Would you like to read more Psalms with a Jewish interpretation? Go to: Psalms 1 through 92.