Isaiah 32:17(v37)The work of righteousness will be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and confidence forever.
Psalms 27:14(v34)Wait for Yahweh. Be strong, and let your heart take courage. Yes, wait for Yahweh.
Psalms 37:9(v34)For evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for Yahweh shall inherit the land.
Proverbs 20:22(v34)Don’t say, “I will pay back evil.” Wait for Yahweh, and he will save you.
Job 5:3(v35)I have seen the foolish taking root, but suddenly I cursed his habitation.
Show all 50 cross-references
Psalms 37:10(v36)For yet a little while, and the wicked will be no more. Yes, though you look for his place, he isn’t there.
Isaiah 57:1-2(v37)The righteous perish, and no one lays it to heart. Merciful men are taken away, and no one considers that the righteous is taken away from…
Matthew 24:13(v34)But he who endures to the end will be saved.
Psalms 37:7(v34)Rest in Yahweh, and wait patiently for him. Don’t fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who makes wicked plots…
Psalms 52:5-6(v34)God will likewise destroy you forever. He will take you up, and pluck you out of your tent, and root you out of the land of the living. The…
2 Timothy 4:6-8(v37)For I am already being offered, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight. I have finished the course. I have…
Job 23:10-12(v34)But he knows the way that I take. When he has tried me, I will come out like gold. My foot has held fast to his steps. I have kept his way,…
Psalms 37:3(v34)Trust in Yahweh, and do good. Dwell in the land, and enjoy safe pasture.
Psalms 91:8(v34)You will only look with your eyes, and see the recompense of the wicked.
Proverbs 4:25-27(v34)Let your eyes look straight ahead. Fix your gaze directly before you. Make the path of your feet level. Let all of your ways be…
Acts 7:59-60(v37)They stoned Stephen as he called out, saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” He kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, “Lord, don’t…
Job 17:9(v34)Yet the righteous will hold to his way. He who has clean hands will grow stronger and stronger.
Luke 14:11(v34)For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”
1 Peter 5:6(v34)Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time,
Proverbs 14:32(vv37–38)The wicked is brought down in his calamity, but in death, the righteous has a refuge.
Job 1:1(v37)There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job. That man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God, and turned away from…
Psalms 92:10-11(v34)But you have exalted my horn like that of the wild ox. I am anointed with fresh oil. My eye has also seen my enemies. My ears have heard of…
Psalms 112:9(v34)He has dispersed, he has given to the poor. His righteousness endures forever. His horn will be exalted with honor.
Proverbs 16:17(v34)The highway of the upright is to depart from evil. He who keeps his way preserves his soul.
1 Peter 1:7(v34)that the proof of your faith, which is more precious than gold that perishes even though it is tested by fire, may be found to result in…
Job 21:7-17(v35)“Why do the wicked live, become old, yes, and grow mighty in power? Their child is established with them in their sight, their offspring…
Job 42:12-17(v37)So Yahweh blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand yoke of…
Psalms 52:5(v38)God will likewise destroy you forever. He will take you up, and pluck you out of your tent, and root you out of the land of the living.
Psalms 73:3-11(v35)For I was envious of the arrogant, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For there are no struggles in their death, but their strength…
Luke 2:25-29(v37)Behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel, and…
Acts 12:22-23(v36)The people shouted, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him, because he didn’t give God the…
Exodus 15:19(v36)For the horses of Pharaoh went in with his chariots and with his horsemen into the sea, and Yahweh brought back the waters of the sea on…
Esther 5:11(v35)Haman recounted to them the glory of his riches, the multitude of his children, all the things in which the king had promoted him, and how…
Job 8:13-19(v35)So are the paths of all who forget God. The hope of the godless man will perish, Whose confidence will break apart, Whose trust is a…
Psalms 1:4-6(v38)The wicked are not so, but are like the chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore the wicked shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners…
Psalms 9:17(v38)The wicked shall be turned back to Sheol, even all the nations that forget God.
Isaiah 10:16-19(v36)Therefore the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, will send among his fat ones leanness; and under his glory a burning will be kindled like the burning…
Isaiah 10:33-34(v36)Behold, the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, will lop the boughs with terror. The tall will be cut down, and the lofty will be brought low. He will…
Isaiah 14:14-19(v35)I will ascend above the heights of the clouds! I will make myself like the Most High!” Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, to the…
Ezekiel 31:6-10(v35)All the birds of the sky made their nests in its boughs. Under its branches, all the animals of the field gave birth to their young. All…
Ezekiel 31:18(v35)“ ‘To whom are you thus like in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden? Yet you will be brought down with the trees of Eden to the…
Matthew 13:49-50(v38)So will it be in the end of the world. The angels will come and separate the wicked from among the righteous, and will cast them into the…
2 Thessalonians 1:8-9(v38)punishing those who don’t know God, and to those who don’t obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus, who will pay the penalty: eternal…
Exodus 15:9-10(v36)The enemy said, ‘I will pursue. I will overtake. I will divide the plunder. My desire will be satisfied on them. I will draw my sword. My…
Job 20:5-29(v36)that the triumphing of the wicked is short, the joy of the godless but for a moment? Though his height mount up to the heavens, and his…
Psalms 73:17(v38)until I entered God’s sanctuary, and considered their latter end.
Daniel 4:20-33(v35)The tree that you saw, which grew, and was strong, whose height reached to the sky, and its sight to all the earth; whose leaves were…
Matthew 13:30(v38)Let both grow together until the harvest, and in the harvest time I will tell the reapers, “First, gather up the darnel weeds, and bind…
Matthew 25:46(v38)These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
2 Peter 1:14(v37)knowing that the putting off of my tent comes swiftly, even as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me.
50 distinct cross-references across this passage (51 total citations).
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (20 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
John Calvin1540 · Public DomainOn vv34, 35, 3734 Wait upon Jehovah, and keep his way David…
34 Wait upon Jehovah, and keep his way David again returns to the style of exhortation, in order that the faithful, trusting to God’s promises and sustained by them, may not suffer themselves to be drawn hither and thither by any temptations through devious and sinful ways, but may persevere steadfastly in the service of God. In the first place, he exhorts them to hope and patience, as if he wished them, amidst the tumults and troubles of life, to trust in God, and hold their peace till he again show them his countenance, which for a time he had hid from them. Hence arises, in the second place, another exhortation, that they should not turn aside from the way of the Lord; for wherever hope and patience prevail, they will so restrain the minds of men that they will not break out into any thing unlawful and wicked. It will doubtless be found, that the reason why every man endeavors to promote his own advantage by wicked practices is, that no one depends upon God, or else that he thinks, if fortune do not quickly smile upon him, that it is vain for him to persevere in the practice of equity and uprightness. Moreover, we may learn from this place, that if many, even of the good and the upright, are subjected to poverty, and lead a life of protracted affliction and trial, they suffer their punishment justly, because, so far from being firmly persuaded that it belongs to God as his proper office not only to lift up his servants from the dunghill, but also to bring them forth even from their graves, scarcely one in a hundred of them patiently waits upon God, and continues perseveringly in the right course. Nor is it without good reason that David makes use of the word exalt, that we may know that God often stretches forth his hand to the faithful when they appear to be overwhelmed by the weight of their calamities. He then adds, that the wicked shall perish before the eyes of the godly. If their end were not very different from that of the righteous, the state in which the reprobate now rejoice for a time would easily allure even the best of men to evil. And, indeed, God would make us daily to behold such sights if we had eyes to behold his judgments. And yet, although the whole world were blinded, God does not cease to render a just reward to the wickedness of men; but by punishing them in a more private manner, he withdraws from us that fruit of which our own dulness deprives us.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators1599 · Public DomainOn vv36–37So that the prosperity of the wicked is but…
So that the prosperity of the wicked is but as a cloud, which vanisheth away in a moment.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp1656 · Public DomainOn vv34–38Psa 37:34 Wait on the LORD, and keep his…
Psa 37:34 Wait on the LORD, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see [it].
Ver. 34. Wait on the Lord] Bind him not to a day, wake not the Beloved till he please.
Read full note →
Keep his way] For, out of God’s precincts out of his protection.
When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it] See and smile, look and laugh, Psa 52:6-7, {See Trapp on "Psa 52:6"} {See Trapp on "Psa 52:7"}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole1685 · Public DomainOn vv34–38Wait on the Lord; seeking and trusting to him,…
Wait on the Lord; seeking and trusting to him, and to him only, for help and deliverance.
Keep his way; continue in the practice of thy duty, or in those ways which God hath prescribed to thee in his word, and do not use indirect and irregular means to deliver thyself.
Read full note →
Thou shalt see it; thou shalt not only escape the destruction which they design for thee, but shalt live to see their ruin.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry1710 · Public DomainOn v34The psalmist's conclusion of this sermon (for that is…
The psalmist's conclusion of this sermon (for that is the nature of this poem) is of the same purport with the whole, and inculcates the same things.
I. The duty here pressed upon us is still the same (Psa 37:34): Wait on the Lord and keep his way. Duty is ours, and we must mind it and make conscience of it, keep God's way and never turn out of it nor loiter in it, keep close, keep going; but events are God's and we must refer ourselves to him for the disposal of them; we must wait on the Lord, attend the motions of his providence, carefully observe them, and conscientiously accommodate ourselves to them. If we make conscience of keeping God's way, we may with cheerfulness wait on him and commit to him our way; and we shall find him a good Master both to his working servants and to his waiting servants.
Read full note →
II. The reasons to enforce this duty are much the same too, taken from the certain destruction of the wicked and the certain salvation of the righteous. This good man, being tempted to envy the prosperity of the wicked, that he might fortify himself against the temptation, goes into the sanctuary of God and leads us thither (Psa 73:17); there he understands their end, and thence gives us to understand it, and, by comparing that with the end of the righteous, baffles the temptation and puts it to silence. Observe,
1. The misery of the wicked at last, however they may prosper awhile: The end of the wicked shall be cut off (Psa 37:38); and that cannot be well that will undoubtedly end so ill. The wicked, in their end, will be cut off from all good and all hopes of it; a final period will be put to all their joys, and they will be for ever separated from the fountain of life to all evil. (1.) Some instances of the remarkable ruin of wicked people David had himself observed in this world - that the pomp and prosperity of sinners would not secure them from the judgments of God when their day should come to fall (Psa 37:36, Psa 37:35): I have seen a wicked man (the word is singular), suppose Saul or Ahithophel (for David was an old man when he penned this psalm), in great power, formidable (so some render it), the terror of the mighty in the land of the living, carrying all before him with a high hand, and seeming to be firmly fixed and finely flourishing, spreading himself like a green bay-tree, which produces all leaves and no fruit; like a native home-born Israelite (so Dr. Hammond), likely to take root. But what became of him? Eliphaz, long before, had learned, when he saw the foolish taking root, to curse his habitation, Job 5:3. And David saw cause for it; for this bay-tree withered away as soon as the fig-tree. Christ cursed: He passed away as a dream, as a shadow, such was he and all the pomp and power he was so proud of. He was gone in an instant: He was not; I sought him with wonder, but he could not be found. He had acted his part and then quitted the stage, and there was no miss of him. (2.) The total and final ruin of sinners, of all sinners, will shortly be made as much a spectacle to the saints as they are now sometimes made a spectacle to the world (Psa 37:34): When the wicked are cut off (and cut off they certainly will be) thou shalt see it, with awful adorations of the divine justice. The transgressors shall be destroyed together, Psa 37:38. In this world God singles out here one sinner and there another, out of many, to be made an example in terrorem - as a warning; but in the day of judgment there will be a general destruction of all the transgressors, and not one shall escape. Those that have sinned together shall be damned together. Bind them in bundles, to burn them.
2. The blessedness of the righteous, at last. Let us see what will be the end of God's poor despised people. (1.) Preferment. There have been times the iniquity of which has been such that men's piety has hindered their preferment in this world, and put them quite out of the way of raising estates; but those that keep God's way may be assured that in due time he will exalt them, to inherit the land (Psa 37:34); he will advance them to a place in the heavenly mansions, to dignity, and honour, and true wealth, in the New Jerusalem, to inherit that good land, that land of promise, of which Canaan was a type; he will exalt them above all contempt and danger. (2.) Peace, Psa 37:37. Let all people mark the perfect man, and behold the upright; take notice of him to admire him and imitate him, keep your eye upon him to observe what comes of him, and you will find that the end of that man is peace. Sometimes the latter end of his days proves more comfortable to him than the beginning was; the storms blow over, and he is comforted again, after the time that he was afflicted. However, if all his days continue dark and cloudy, perhaps his dying day may prove comfortable to him and his sun may set in brightness; or, if it should set under a cloud, yet his future state will be peace, everlasting peace. Those that walk in their uprightness while they live shall enter into peace when they die, Isa 57:2. A peaceful death has concluded the troublesome life of many a good man; and all is well that thus ends everlastingly well. Balaam himself wished that his death and his last end might be like that of the righteous Num 23:10. (3.) Salvation, Psa 37:39, Psa 37:40. The salvation of the righteous (which may be applied to the great salvation of which the prophets enquired and searched diligently, Pe1 1:10) is of the Lord; it will be the Lord's doing. The eternal salvation, that salvation of God which those shall see that order their conversation aright (Psa 50:23), is likewise of the Lord. And he that intends Christ and heaven for them will be a God all-sufficient to them: He is their strength in time of trouble, to support them under it and carry them through it. He shall help them and deliver them, help them to do their duties, to bear their burdens, and to maintain their spiritual conflicts, help them to bear their troubles well and get good by them, and, in due time, shall deliver them out of their troubles. He shall deliver them from the wicked that would overwhelm them and swallow them up, shall secure them there, where the wicked cease from troubling. He shall save them, not only keep them safe, but make them happy, because they trust in him, not because they have merited it from him, but because they have committed themselves to him and reposed a confidence in him, and have thereby honoured him.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill1763 · Public DomainOn vv34–38I have seen the wicked in great power,.... Meaning…
I have seen the wicked in great power,.... Meaning some particular person invested with great power, in great authority among men, one of the spiritual wickednesses in high places; such a man as Haman in Ahasuerus's court; and though the psalmist does not choose to mention his name, he doubtless had him in his mind; as either Saul, or Doeg the Edomite, or Ahithophel, or some such man, who was in an exalted station of life; and it may be when he himself was in low and distressed circumstances: the word used (c) signifies one formidable and terrible, striking terror to all around; of whom others are afraid, as Aben Ezra interprets it, Isa 29:20;
and spreading himself like a green bay tree: or like one that grows up out of the earth of itself, and is in its native soil, and very flourishing: and the metaphor denotes an increase of riches and honour, and a seemingly settled state in the enjoyment of such outward felicity; so Jarchi interprets it "taking root"; as well as such a man's glorying in and boasting of his affluence and fulness; see Psa 73:12. Aben Ezra explains it of a wicked man's openly committing iniquity, declaring his sin as Sodom, and glorying in his shame; but rather it denotes a man in great authority and esteem, as a man crowned with laurels, and in a very exalted and triumphant state.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley1765 · Public DomainOn vv35–38Bay-tree - Which is continually green and flourishing even…
Bay-tree - Which is continually green and flourishing even in winter.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke1810 · Public DomainOn vv34–37Verse 34. Wait on the Lord, and keep his…
Verse 34. Wait on the Lord, and keep his way] This is the true mode of waiting on God which the Scripture recommends; keeping God's way-using all his ordinances, and living in the spirit of obedience. He who waits thus is sure to have the farther blessings of which he is in pursuit. קוה kavah, to wait, implies the extension of a right line from one point to another. The first point is the human heart; the line is its intense desire; and the last point is GOD, to whom this heart extends this straight line of earnest desire to be filled with the fulness of the blessing of the Gospel of peace.
And he shall exalt thee to inherit the land] If ye keep his way, and be faithful to him in your exile, he will exalt you, lift you up from your present abject state, to inherit the land of your fathers. See before, Ps 37:9; Ps 37:11, c.
Read full note →
When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.] They did see the destruction of the Babylonish king, Belshazzar, and his empire and it was in consequence of that destruction that they were enlarged.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson1811 · Public DomainOn vv34, 35, 37Psa 37:34. Wait on the Lord — Seeking and…
Psa 37:34. Wait on the Lord — Seeking and trusting to him, and to him only, for help and deliverance. And keep his way — Continue in the practice of thy duty, or in those ways which God hath prescribed to thee in his word, and do not use indirect and irregular means to deliver thyself. When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it — Thou shalt not only escape the destruction they designed for thee, but shalt live to see their ruin.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes1834 · Public DomainOn vv34–38Wait on the Lord - See the notes at…
Wait on the Lord - See the notes at Psa 37:9. Let your hope be from the Lord; depend wholly upon Him; have such confidence in Him as to expect His gracious interposition in your behalf.
And keep his way - Or, walk in the path which He commands. Do not turn from that at any thee. Do not allow any temptation, or any opposition, to cause you to swerve from that path.
Read full note →
And he shall exalt thee to inherit the land - See Psa 37:3, Psa 37:9,Psa 37:18.
When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it - This implies that they would certainly be cut off, and that the righteous would be permitted to see the result of a course of righteousness and one of wickedness. It is not necessarily implied that they would have any satisfaction in seeing the punishment of the wicked; but the meaning is, that they would be permitted to live so as to see that one course of life tended to secure the favor of God, and another to incur His displeasure; that there was an advantage in virtue and religion in this life; and the certainty that they would see this is adverted to as a “motive” for leading a life of piety. The result is so sure that a man may, if he live long, see it himself; and the fact that this is so should be an inducement for his leading a holy life. The psalmist proceeds, in Psa 37:35-36, to illustrate this idea from his own observation.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown1871 · Public DomainOn vv34–38On the contrary, the good are not only blessed,…
On the contrary, the good are not only blessed, but made to see the ruin of their foes.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon1874 · Public DomainOn vv35, 37, 3835. Like a green bay tree—The word rendered “bay…
35. Like a green bay tree—The word rendered “bay tree” means an indigenous, native born tree, one that has never been checked in its growth by transplanting or change of climate, hence vigorous, strong, and flourishing.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges1878 · Public DomainOn vv34–3834. Stanza of Qoph. The Psalmist again addresses his…
34. Stanza of Qoph. The Psalmist again addresses his disciple.
For a while he may be crushed and down-trodden, but ultimately he will be exalted and the wicked cut off.
Read full note →
keep his way] Cp. Psa_37:33, note; Psa_18:21.
thou shall see it] With satisfaction at the vindication of God’s righteous government. Cp. Psa_52:6; Psa_58:10-11. See Introd. p. xci.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers1878 · Public DomainOn vv35–37(35) In great power.—Terrible, like a tyrant.
(35) In great power.—Terrible, like a tyrant.
Green bay tree.—The Hebrew word elsewhere implies a “native” as opposed to “a foreigner.” So here an indigenous tree. “It may be questioned whether any particular tree is intended by the psalmist; but if so, it must have been an evergreen, and may possibly be the Sweet Bay (Laurus nobilis), which is a native of Palestine. We met with it near Hebron; on Mount Carmel in great plenty; on Tabor, and in various glades of Galilee and Gilead” (Tristram, Natural History of Bible, 338).
Read full note →
The LXX. and Vulg., by slightly altering the text, have, “as cedars of Lebanon.”
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary1880 · Public DomainOn vv34–38Wait on the lord (comp. vers. 2, 5, 7;…
Wait on the lord (comp. vers. 2, 5, 7; and Psa_27:14 Psa_62:5 Psa_130:5 Pro_20:22). The injunction is repeated so often because of man"s extreme impatience and unwillingness to "tarry the Lord"s leisure" (Prayer-book Version of Psa_27:1-6) trustfully and confidently. And keep his way. The way in which he would have them walk the way of righteousness (comp. ver. 3). And he shall exalt thee to inherit the land (see ver. 29, and the comment ad loc. ). When the ungodly are cut off, thou shalt see it. (comp. Psa_52:5, 6 91:8) Doubtless with some satisfaction. As the "ungodly" spoken of are employed in watching for an occasion to "slay" the righteous (ver. 32), these last can scarcely witness their removal from the world by God"s providence without a feeling of relief.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Charles H. Spurgeon1885 · Public DomainOn vv34–38Ver. 34. Wait on the Lord. We have here…
Ver. 34. Wait on the Lord. We have here the eighth precept, and it is a lofty eminence to attain to. Tarry the Lord's leisure. Wait in obedience as a servant, in hope as an heir, in expectation as a believer. This little word "wait" is easy to say, but hard to carry out, yet faith must do it. And keep his way. Continue in the narrow path; let no haste for riches or ease cause unholy action. Let your motto be, "On, on, on." Never flag, or dream of turning aside. "He that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved." And he shall exalt thee to inherit the land. Thou shalt have all of earthly good which is really good, and of heavenly good there shall be no stint. Exaltation shall be the lot of the excellent. When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it. A sight how terrible and how instructive! What a rebuke for fretfulness! what an incentive to gratitude! My soul, be still, as you foresee the end, the awful end of the Lord's enemies.
Ver. 34. Wait on the Lord, etc. He that truly trusts in God will stay God's time, and use God's means, and walk in God's way, though it seem round about; they will not neglect their souls for haste; they know this would be to make more haste than good speed. Nor would they step out of the way, the way that is holy and righteous, though they may escape a loss, an affliction by it, though they might gain some desirable advantage by it. True faith goes leaning upon God, and therefore will keep his way. He that will not be liberal for the promoting and honouring of the gospel; he that fears poverty or affliction more than he fears sin; he that is more careful for the things of the world than for his soul; he that takes indirect or suspected courses, to get, or increase, or secure his estate; he that is not jealous or watchful, lest his cares for the world (when he is much engaged therein) should be immoderateit is plain he doth not trust God with his estate; and that he does not trust God for his estate, whatever he thinks or pretend, he does not trust God for his soul, for his salvation; his hopes of heaven and salvation are but presumption. David Clarkson.
Read full note →
Ver. 34. Wait on the Lord. Bind him not to a day, wake not the Beloved till he please. John Trapp.
Ver. 34. Wait...keep. While we are waiting let us take heed of wavering. Go not a step out of God's way, though a lion be in the way; avoid not duty to meet with safety; keep God's highway, the good old way Jer 6:16, the way which is paved with holiness. "And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called the way of holiness." Isa 35:8. Avoid crooked paths, take heed of turning to the left hand, lest you be set on the left hand. Sin doth cross our hopes, it barricades up our way; a man may as well expect to find heaven in hell, as in a sinful way. Thomas Watson.
Ver. 34.
1. A twofold admonition:
1. Wait on the Lord.
2. And keep his way; wait and work, wait and walk, get grace and exercise it.
2. A twofold promise:
1. He shall exalt thee to inherit the land; God is the source of all elevation and honour.
2. When the wicked are cur off, thou shalt see it; and they will be cut off. William Jay.
Ver. 34. Patient faith, persevering holiness, and promised exaltation.
Ver. 34 (last clause). Emotions caused in the godly by a sight of the sinner's doom.
Ver. 34. (last clause). The wicked are often cut off 1. Even in life, from their places, and riches, and prospects. 2. At death they are cut off from all their possessions and comforts.
3. In the last day they will be cut off from "the resurrection of life." William Jay.
Psalms 37:35*
Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
The Biblical Illustrator1887 · Public DomainOn vv34, 35, 37, 38Wait on the Lord and keep His way, and…
Psa_37:34
Wait on the Lord and keep His way, and He shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.
Read full note →
A twofold admonition and promise.
I. The admonition.
1. Wait on the Lord. Do you thus wait? Now, in the present time, and at all times?
2. Keep His way. This is beautifully connected with the former. Wait--and work. Wait--and walk. Get grace--and exercise it.
II. The promise.
1. He shall exalt thee to inherit the land. God is the source of all elevation and honour.
2. When the wicked are cut off, thou, etc. And they will be cut off from all they enjoy here, and from all hope hereafter. And as the saint will see the destruction of the sinner, so the sinner will see the salvation of the righteous, and not partake of it. This must be a source to him of the keenest anguish, for it might have been his own. (W. Jay.)
Obedience the remedy for religious perplexity
To some persons it may sound strange to speak of difficulties in religion, for they find none at all. But this arises, in many cases, from ignorance of religion itself. They observe forms, but their heart is not in the work. But when they are awakened, and earnestly seek the right way, then, from time to time, they are troubled with doubts and misgivings, and oppressed with gloom. To all those who are perplexed, one precept must be given--obey. It is obedience which brings a man into the right path; it is obedience keeps him there and strengthens him in it. Under all circumstances, whatever be the cause of his distress--obey. Apply this exhortation to those who have but lately taken up the subject of religion at all. Every science has its difficulties at first; why, then, should the science of living well be without them? And others are impatient with themselves, forgetting that a Christian spirit is the growth of time, and that we cannot force it upon our minds, however desirable and necessary it may be to possess it; that by giving utterance to religious sentiments we do not become religious--rather the reverse; whereas if we strove to obey Gods will in all things, we actually should be gradually training our hearts into the fulness of a Christian spirit. But, not understanding this, men are led to speak much upon sacred subjects, in the hope of its making them better: and they measure their advance in faith and holiness, not by their power of obeying God in practice, but by the warmth and energy of their religious feelings. And then, when these fail, and when, as sometimes is the case, their old sins revive, they are discouraged, and tempted to despair. But let them wait on the Lord, this is the rule; keep His way, this is the manner of waiting. Go about your duty; mind little things as well as great. Do not pause, and say, I am as I was; day after day passes, and still no light; go on. (J. H. Newman.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield1917 · Public DomainOn v37perfect man
perfect man
(See Scofield "1Ki 8:61").
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0On vv34, 35, 37he will raise you up to possess the land
he will raise you up to possess the land
Here "raise you up" refers to God giving honor to those who wait for him. AT: "he will honor you by giving you the land" (See: Metaphor)
Read full note →
the wicked
This refers to wicked people. AT: "the wicked people" (See: Nominal Adjectives)
are cut off
The destruction of the wicked is spoken of as if they were a branch of a plant that was cut off and thrown away. See how you translated a similar phrase in Psalms 37:9. (See: Metaphor)
GEBible — Godless Engineer's Bible App
John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv34, 35, 37 34 Wait upon Jehovah, and keep his way David…
34 Wait upon Jehovah, and keep his way David again returns to the style of exhortation, in order that the faithful, trusting to God’s promises and sustained by them, may not suffer themselves to be drawn hither and thither by any temptations through devious and sinful ways, but may persevere steadfastly in the service of God. In the first place, he exhorts them to hope and patience, as if he wished them, amidst the tumults and troubles of life, to trust in God, and hold their peace till he again show them his countenance, which for a time he had hid from them. Hence arises, in the second place, another exhortation, that they should not turn aside from the way of the Lord; for wherever hope and patience prevail, they will so restrain the minds of men that they will not break out into any thing unlawful and wicked. It will doubtless be found, that the reason why every man endeavors to promote his own advantage by wicked practices is, that no one depends upon God, or else that he thinks, if fortune do not quickly smile upon him, that it is vain for him to persevere in the practice of equity and uprightness. Moreover, we may learn from this place, that if many, even of the good and the upright, are subjected to poverty, and lead a life of protracted affliction and trial, they suffer their punishment justly, because, so far from being firmly persuaded that it belongs to God as his proper office not only to lift up his servants from the dunghill, but also to bring them forth even from their graves, scarcely one in a hundred of them patiently waits upon God, and continues perseveringly in the right course. Nor is it without good reason that David makes use of the word exalt, that we may know that God often stretches forth his hand to the faithful when they appear to be overwhelmed by the weight of their calamities. He then adds, that the wicked shall perish before the eyes of the godly. If their end were not very different from that of the righteous, the state in which the reprobate now rejoice for a time would easily allure even the best of men to evil. And, indeed, God would make us daily to behold such sights if we had eyes to behold his judgments. And yet, although the whole world were blinded, God does not cease to render a just reward to the wickedness of men; but by punishing them in a more private manner, he withdraws from us that fruit of which our own dulness deprives us.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv36–37 So that the prosperity of the wicked is but…
So that the prosperity of the wicked is but as a cloud, which vanisheth away in a moment.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv34–38 Psa 37:34 Wait on the LORD, and keep his…
Psa 37:34 Wait on the LORD, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see [it].
Ver. 34. Wait on the Lord] Bind him not to a day, wake not the Beloved till he please.
Read full note →
Keep his way] For, out of God’s precincts out of his protection.
When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it] See and smile, look and laugh, Psa 52:6-7, {See Trapp on "Psa 52:6"} {See Trapp on "Psa 52:7"}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv34–38 Wait on the Lord; seeking and trusting to him,…
Wait on the Lord; seeking and trusting to him, and to him only, for help and deliverance.
Keep his way; continue in the practice of thy duty, or in those ways which God hath prescribed to thee in his word, and do not use indirect and irregular means to deliver thyself.
Read full note →
Thou shalt see it; thou shalt not only escape the destruction which they design for thee, but shalt live to see their ruin.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On v34 The psalmist's conclusion of this sermon (for that is…
The psalmist's conclusion of this sermon (for that is the nature of this poem) is of the same purport with the whole, and inculcates the same things.
I. The duty here pressed upon us is still the same (Psa 37:34): Wait on the Lord and keep his way. Duty is ours, and we must mind it and make conscience of it, keep God's way and never turn out of it nor loiter in it, keep close, keep going; but events are God's and we must refer ourselves to him for the disposal of them; we must wait on the Lord, attend the motions of his providence, carefully observe them, and conscientiously accommodate ourselves to them. If we make conscience of keeping God's way, we may with cheerfulness wait on him and commit to him our way; and we shall find him a good Master both to his working servants and to his waiting servants.
Read full note →
II. The reasons to enforce this duty are much the same too, taken from the certain destruction of the wicked and the certain salvation of the righteous. This good man, being tempted to envy the prosperity of the wicked, that he might fortify himself against the temptation, goes into the sanctuary of God and leads us thither (Psa 73:17); there he understands their end, and thence gives us to understand it, and, by comparing that with the end of the righteous, baffles the temptation and puts it to silence. Observe,
1. The misery of the wicked at last, however they may prosper awhile: The end of the wicked shall be cut off (Psa 37:38); and that cannot be well that will undoubtedly end so ill. The wicked, in their end, will be cut off from all good and all hopes of it; a final period will be put to all their joys, and they will be for ever separated from the fountain of life to all evil. (1.) Some instances of the remarkable ruin of wicked people David had himself observed in this world - that the pomp and prosperity of sinners would not secure them from the judgments of God when their day should come to fall (Psa 37:36, Psa 37:35): I have seen a wicked man (the word is singular), suppose Saul or Ahithophel (for David was an old man when he penned this psalm), in great power, formidable (so some render it), the terror of the mighty in the land of the living, carrying all before him with a high hand, and seeming to be firmly fixed and finely flourishing, spreading himself like a green bay-tree, which produces all leaves and no fruit; like a native home-born Israelite (so Dr. Hammond), likely to take root. But what became of him? Eliphaz, long before, had learned, when he saw the foolish taking root, to curse his habitation, Job 5:3. And David saw cause for it; for this bay-tree withered away as soon as the fig-tree. Christ cursed: He passed away as a dream, as a shadow, such was he and all the pomp and power he was so proud of. He was gone in an instant: He was not; I sought him with wonder, but he could not be found. He had acted his part and then quitted the stage, and there was no miss of him. (2.) The total and final ruin of sinners, of all sinners, will shortly be made as much a spectacle to the saints as they are now sometimes made a spectacle to the world (Psa 37:34): When the wicked are cut off (and cut off they certainly will be) thou shalt see it, with awful adorations of the divine justice. The transgressors shall be destroyed together, Psa 37:38. In this world God singles out here one sinner and there another, out of many, to be made an example in terrorem - as a warning; but in the day of judgment there will be a general destruction of all the transgressors, and not one shall escape. Those that have sinned together shall be damned together. Bind them in bundles, to burn them.
2. The blessedness of the righteous, at last. Let us see what will be the end of God's poor despised people. (1.) Preferment. There have been times the iniquity of which has been such that men's piety has hindered their preferment in this world, and put them quite out of the way of raising estates; but those that keep God's way may be assured that in due time he will exalt them, to inherit the land (Psa 37:34); he will advance them to a place in the heavenly mansions, to dignity, and honour, and true wealth, in the New Jerusalem, to inherit that good land, that land of promise, of which Canaan was a type; he will exalt them above all contempt and danger. (2.) Peace, Psa 37:37. Let all people mark the perfect man, and behold the upright; take notice of him to admire him and imitate him, keep your eye upon him to observe what comes of him, and you will find that the end of that man is peace. Sometimes the latter end of his days proves more comfortable to him than the beginning was; the storms blow over, and he is comforted again, after the time that he was afflicted. However, if all his days continue dark and cloudy, perhaps his dying day may prove comfortable to him and his sun may set in brightness; or, if it should set under a cloud, yet his future state will be peace, everlasting peace. Those that walk in their uprightness while they live shall enter into peace when they die, Isa 57:2. A peaceful death has concluded the troublesome life of many a good man; and all is well that thus ends everlastingly well. Balaam himself wished that his death and his last end might be like that of the righteous Num 23:10. (3.) Salvation, Psa 37:39, Psa 37:40. The salvation of the righteous (which may be applied to the great salvation of which the prophets enquired and searched diligently, Pe1 1:10) is of the Lord; it will be the Lord's doing. The eternal salvation, that salvation of God which those shall see that order their conversation aright (Psa 50:23), is likewise of the Lord. And he that intends Christ and heaven for them will be a God all-sufficient to them: He is their strength in time of trouble, to support them under it and carry them through it. He shall help them and deliver them, help them to do their duties, to bear their burdens, and to maintain their spiritual conflicts, help them to bear their troubles well and get good by them, and, in due time, shall deliver them out of their troubles. He shall deliver them from the wicked that would overwhelm them and swallow them up, shall secure them there, where the wicked cease from troubling. He shall save them, not only keep them safe, but make them happy, because they trust in him, not because they have merited it from him, but because they have committed themselves to him and reposed a confidence in him, and have thereby honoured him.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv34–38 I have seen the wicked in great power,.... Meaning…
I have seen the wicked in great power,.... Meaning some particular person invested with great power, in great authority among men, one of the spiritual wickednesses in high places; such a man as Haman in Ahasuerus's court; and though the psalmist does not choose to mention his name, he doubtless had him in his mind; as either Saul, or Doeg the Edomite, or Ahithophel, or some such man, who was in an exalted station of life; and it may be when he himself was in low and distressed circumstances: the word used (c) signifies one formidable and terrible, striking terror to all around; of whom others are afraid, as Aben Ezra interprets it, Isa 29:20;
and spreading himself like a green bay tree: or like one that grows up out of the earth of itself, and is in its native soil, and very flourishing: and the metaphor denotes an increase of riches and honour, and a seemingly settled state in the enjoyment of such outward felicity; so Jarchi interprets it "taking root"; as well as such a man's glorying in and boasting of his affluence and fulness; see Psa 73:12. Aben Ezra explains it of a wicked man's openly committing iniquity, declaring his sin as Sodom, and glorying in his shame; but rather it denotes a man in great authority and esteem, as a man crowned with laurels, and in a very exalted and triumphant state.
Read full note →
(c) "terrificam", Montanus, Vatablus; "terribilem ant formidabilem", Gejerus, Michaelis; "daunting, terrible", Ainsworth.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv35–38 Bay-tree - Which is continually green and flourishing even…
Bay-tree - Which is continually green and flourishing even in winter.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv34–37 Verse 34. Wait on the Lord, and keep his…
Verse 34. Wait on the Lord, and keep his way] This is the true mode of waiting on God which the Scripture recommends; keeping God's way-using all his ordinances, and living in the spirit of obedience. He who waits thus is sure to have the farther blessings of which he is in pursuit. קוה kavah, to wait, implies the extension of a right line from one point to another. The first point is the human heart; the line is its intense desire; and the last point is GOD, to whom this heart extends this straight line of earnest desire to be filled with the fulness of the blessing of the Gospel of peace.
And he shall exalt thee to inherit the land] If ye keep his way, and be faithful to him in your exile, he will exalt you, lift you up from your present abject state, to inherit the land of your fathers. See before, Ps 37:9; Ps 37:11, c.
Read full note →
When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.] They did see the destruction of the Babylonish king, Belshazzar, and his empire and it was in consequence of that destruction that they were enlarged.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv34, 35, 37 Psa 37:34. Wait on the Lord — Seeking and…
Psa 37:34. Wait on the Lord — Seeking and trusting to him, and to him only, for help and deliverance. And keep his way — Continue in the practice of thy duty, or in those ways which God hath prescribed to thee in his word, and do not use indirect and irregular means to deliver thyself. When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it — Thou shalt not only escape the destruction they designed for thee, but shalt live to see their ruin.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv34–38 Wait on the Lord - See the notes at…
Wait on the Lord - See the notes at Psa 37:9. Let your hope be from the Lord; depend wholly upon Him; have such confidence in Him as to expect His gracious interposition in your behalf.
And keep his way - Or, walk in the path which He commands. Do not turn from that at any thee. Do not allow any temptation, or any opposition, to cause you to swerve from that path.
Read full note →
And he shall exalt thee to inherit the land - See Psa 37:3, Psa 37:9,Psa 37:18.
When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it - This implies that they would certainly be cut off, and that the righteous would be permitted to see the result of a course of righteousness and one of wickedness. It is not necessarily implied that they would have any satisfaction in seeing the punishment of the wicked; but the meaning is, that they would be permitted to live so as to see that one course of life tended to secure the favor of God, and another to incur His displeasure; that there was an advantage in virtue and religion in this life; and the certainty that they would see this is adverted to as a “motive” for leading a life of piety. The result is so sure that a man may, if he live long, see it himself; and the fact that this is so should be an inducement for his leading a holy life. The psalmist proceeds, in Psa 37:35-36, to illustrate this idea from his own observation.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv34–38 On the contrary, the good are not only blessed,…
On the contrary, the good are not only blessed, but made to see the ruin of their foes.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv35, 37, 38 35. Like a green bay tree—The word rendered “bay…
35. Like a green bay tree—The word rendered “bay tree” means an indigenous, native born tree, one that has never been checked in its growth by transplanting or change of climate, hence vigorous, strong, and flourishing.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv34–38 34. Stanza of Qoph. The Psalmist again addresses his…
34. Stanza of Qoph. The Psalmist again addresses his disciple.
For a while he may be crushed and down-trodden, but ultimately he will be exalted and the wicked cut off.
Read full note →
keep his way] Cp. Psa_37:33, note; Psa_18:21.
thou shall see it] With satisfaction at the vindication of God’s righteous government. Cp. Psa_52:6; Psa_58:10-11. See Introd. p. xci.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv35–37 (35) In great power.—Terrible, like a tyrant.
(35) In great power.—Terrible, like a tyrant.
Green bay tree.—The Hebrew word elsewhere implies a “native” as opposed to “a foreigner.” So here an indigenous tree. “It may be questioned whether any particular tree is intended by the psalmist; but if so, it must have been an evergreen, and may possibly be the Sweet Bay (Laurus nobilis), which is a native of Palestine. We met with it near Hebron; on Mount Carmel in great plenty; on Tabor, and in various glades of Galilee and Gilead” (Tristram, Natural History of Bible, 338).
Read full note →
The LXX. and Vulg., by slightly altering the text, have, “as cedars of Lebanon.”
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv34–38 Wait on the lord (comp. vers. 2, 5, 7;…
Wait on the lord (comp. vers. 2, 5, 7; and Psa_27:14 Psa_62:5 Psa_130:5 Pro_20:22). The injunction is repeated so often because of man"s extreme impatience and unwillingness to "tarry the Lord"s leisure" (Prayer-book Version of Psa_27:1-6) trustfully and confidently. And keep his way. The way in which he would have them walk the way of righteousness (comp. ver. 3). And he shall exalt thee to inherit the land (see ver. 29, and the comment ad loc. ). When the ungodly are cut off, thou shalt see it. (comp. Psa_52:5, 6 91:8) Doubtless with some satisfaction. As the "ungodly" spoken of are employed in watching for an occasion to "slay" the righteous (ver. 32), these last can scarcely witness their removal from the world by God"s providence without a feeling of relief.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Charles H. Spurgeon 1885 · Public Domain On vv34–38 Ver. 34. Wait on the Lord. We have here…
Ver. 34. Wait on the Lord. We have here the eighth precept, and it is a lofty eminence to attain to. Tarry the Lord's leisure. Wait in obedience as a servant, in hope as an heir, in expectation as a believer. This little word "wait" is easy to say, but hard to carry out, yet faith must do it. And keep his way. Continue in the narrow path; let no haste for riches or ease cause unholy action. Let your motto be, "On, on, on." Never flag, or dream of turning aside. "He that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved." And he shall exalt thee to inherit the land. Thou shalt have all of earthly good which is really good, and of heavenly good there shall be no stint. Exaltation shall be the lot of the excellent. When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it. A sight how terrible and how instructive! What a rebuke for fretfulness! what an incentive to gratitude! My soul, be still, as you foresee the end, the awful end of the Lord's enemies.
Ver. 34. Wait on the Lord, etc. He that truly trusts in God will stay God's time, and use God's means, and walk in God's way, though it seem round about; they will not neglect their souls for haste; they know this would be to make more haste than good speed. Nor would they step out of the way, the way that is holy and righteous, though they may escape a loss, an affliction by it, though they might gain some desirable advantage by it. True faith goes leaning upon God, and therefore will keep his way. He that will not be liberal for the promoting and honouring of the gospel; he that fears poverty or affliction more than he fears sin; he that is more careful for the things of the world than for his soul; he that takes indirect or suspected courses, to get, or increase, or secure his estate; he that is not jealous or watchful, lest his cares for the world (when he is much engaged therein) should be immoderateit is plain he doth not trust God with his estate; and that he does not trust God for his estate, whatever he thinks or pretend, he does not trust God for his soul, for his salvation; his hopes of heaven and salvation are but presumption. David Clarkson.
Read full note →
Ver. 34. Wait on the Lord. Bind him not to a day, wake not the Beloved till he please. John Trapp.
Ver. 34. Wait...keep. While we are waiting let us take heed of wavering. Go not a step out of God's way, though a lion be in the way; avoid not duty to meet with safety; keep God's highway, the good old way Jer 6:16, the way which is paved with holiness. "And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called the way of holiness." Isa 35:8. Avoid crooked paths, take heed of turning to the left hand, lest you be set on the left hand. Sin doth cross our hopes, it barricades up our way; a man may as well expect to find heaven in hell, as in a sinful way. Thomas Watson.
Ver. 34.
1. A twofold admonition:
1. Wait on the Lord.
2. And keep his way; wait and work, wait and walk, get grace and exercise it.
2. A twofold promise:
1. He shall exalt thee to inherit the land; God is the source of all elevation and honour.
2. When the wicked are cur off, thou shalt see it; and they will be cut off. William Jay.
Ver. 34. Patient faith, persevering holiness, and promised exaltation.
Ver. 34 (last clause). Emotions caused in the godly by a sight of the sinner's doom.
Ver. 34. (last clause). The wicked are often cut off 1. Even in life, from their places, and riches, and prospects. 2. At death they are cut off from all their possessions and comforts.
3. In the last day they will be cut off from "the resurrection of life." William Jay.
Psalms 37:35*
Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv34, 35, 37, 38 Wait on the Lord and keep His way, and…
Psa_37:34
Wait on the Lord and keep His way, and He shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.
Read full note →
A twofold admonition and promise.
I. The admonition.
1. Wait on the Lord. Do you thus wait? Now, in the present time, and at all times?
2. Keep His way. This is beautifully connected with the former. Wait--and work. Wait--and walk. Get grace--and exercise it.
II. The promise.
1. He shall exalt thee to inherit the land. God is the source of all elevation and honour.
2. When the wicked are cut off, thou, etc. And they will be cut off from all they enjoy here, and from all hope hereafter. And as the saint will see the destruction of the sinner, so the sinner will see the salvation of the righteous, and not partake of it. This must be a source to him of the keenest anguish, for it might have been his own. (W. Jay.)
Obedience the remedy for religious perplexity
To some persons it may sound strange to speak of difficulties in religion, for they find none at all. But this arises, in many cases, from ignorance of religion itself. They observe forms, but their heart is not in the work. But when they are awakened, and earnestly seek the right way, then, from time to time, they are troubled with doubts and misgivings, and oppressed with gloom. To all those who are perplexed, one precept must be given--obey. It is obedience which brings a man into the right path; it is obedience keeps him there and strengthens him in it. Under all circumstances, whatever be the cause of his distress--obey. Apply this exhortation to those who have but lately taken up the subject of religion at all. Every science has its difficulties at first; why, then, should the science of living well be without them? And others are impatient with themselves, forgetting that a Christian spirit is the growth of time, and that we cannot force it upon our minds, however desirable and necessary it may be to possess it; that by giving utterance to religious sentiments we do not become religious--rather the reverse; whereas if we strove to obey Gods will in all things, we actually should be gradually training our hearts into the fulness of a Christian spirit. But, not understanding this, men are led to speak much upon sacred subjects, in the hope of its making them better: and they measure their advance in faith and holiness, not by their power of obeying God in practice, but by the warmth and energy of their religious feelings. And then, when these fail, and when, as sometimes is the case, their old sins revive, they are discouraged, and tempted to despair. But let them wait on the Lord, this is the rule; keep His way, this is the manner of waiting. Go about your duty; mind little things as well as great. Do not pause, and say, I am as I was; day after day passes, and still no light; go on. (J. H. Newman.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On v37 perfect man
perfect man
(See Scofield "1Ki 8:61").
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv34, 35, 37 he will raise you up to possess the land
he will raise you up to possess the land
Here "raise you up" refers to God giving honor to those who wait for him. AT: "he will honor you by giving you the land" (See: Metaphor)
Read full note →
the wicked
This refers to wicked people. AT: "the wicked people" (See: Nominal Adjectives)
are cut off
The destruction of the wicked is spoken of as if they were a branch of a plant that was cut off and thrown away. See how you translated a similar phrase in Psalms 37:9. (See: Metaphor)
translationWords
raise
possess
cut off
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v35 37:35-36 The wicked might appear to be flourishing like…
37:35-36 The wicked might appear to be flourishing like a tree (cp. 52:8; 92:12-13), but they eventually die and are forgotten (37:2).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.