Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible
Psalms 37:32-40
4). The Contrast Between The Behaviour And Destinies Of The Righteous and Of The Unrighteous (Tsade to Tau - Psalms 37:32).
The Psalmist concludes his Psalm by making contrasts between the lives and destinies of the righteous and the unrighteous.
TS ‘The wicked watches the righteous,
And seeks to slay him.
YHWH will not leave him in his hand,
Nor condemn him when he is judged.'
It is one of the traits of the unrightous that they cannot bear those who are ‘too righteous'. Thus they seek to do them harm, and even get rid of them. But God's promise is that He will not leave His righteous ones in the hands of the unrighteous. Nor will He Himself condemn those who are His, simply because they are falsely declared guilty by men. He is not bound by men's verdicts, and knows how often they are perverted. This is especially so in countries where bribery and influence can be brought to bear on the sourcs of ‘justice'.
Q ‘Wait for YHWH, and keep his way,
And he will exalt you to inherit the land,
When the wicked are cut off,
You will see it.'
So the righteous must wait patiently for YHWH and walk truly in His way. Then they can be sure that in His own good time God will lift them up and will cause them to ‘inherit the land (or earth)'. That is, He will give them the full desire of their heart. To ‘inherit the land' was the dream of every Israelite. It was to gain all that they could want. As for the unrighteous, they will be cut off, and the tighteous will see it. In other words, in the end all will see God's justice fulfilled.
R I have seen the wicked in great power,
And spreading himself like a green tree in its native soil.
But one passed by, and, lo, he was not,
Yes, I sought him, but he could not be found.'
An example is now given. The ageing Psalmist looks back over his life and can think of many times when the unrighteous have been in positions of great power and influence. They had spread themselves like a green tree does in its natural environment. But one day passers by notice that they have gone. They cannot be found anywhere. They have been ‘cut off'.
SH ‘Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright,
For there is a happy end to the man of peace.
As for transgressors, they will be destroyed together,
The end of the wicked will be cut off.'
So let men observe those who are true to their God and are upright, those who walk in His ways. To these ‘men of peace', men who do not love violence but prefer mediation and amity, there is a happy end, and a joyous destiny. But as for the unrighteous, for transgressors against God's ways, they will all be destroyed together, for their destiny is to be ‘cut off'.
T But the salvation of the righteous is of YHWH,
He is their stronghold in the time of trouble,
And YHWH helps them, and rescues them,
He rescues them from the wicked, and saves them,
Because they have taken refuge in him.'
The Psalm closes with and assurance for the righteous, that is, for all true believers. They do not have to live lives of worry and concern for their salvation is in the hands of YHWH. Indeed their whole lives are in the hands of YHWH. When the time of trouble comes He is their stronghold. In Him they can find refuge. He is ever there to help them and to rescue them and to deliver them. Thus He rescues them from the unrighteous, and saves them as a result of the fact that they have taken refuge in Him and that their trust is in Him. They know that He will never let them down.
‘My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me, and I give to them eternal life, and they will never perish, and none will pluck them from My hand' (John 10:27).