Psalm 37:12

Translations

Modern

The wicked scheme against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them,

Traditional

The wicked plotteth against the just, and gnasheth upon him with his teeth.

Literal

The wicked man is plotting against the righteous one and is gnashing his teeth at him.

Latin

Observabit peccator justum, et stridebit super eum dentibus suis.

Original

Hebrew

English

The wicked scheme against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them,

Notes

Psalms 37:12–13

The wicked show their envy by gnashing their teeth (an expression of anger and hostility). They make plans to harm the godly. But the Lord laughs at them because he knows they will fail (Psalm 2:4).

Psalms 37:12–17

The wicked seek to destroy the Lord’s order, but he defeats them.

Psalms 37:1–40

This psalm addresses the issues raised in Psalm 36:

How should the godly react to evil?
When will the Lord bring justice?
Why does he allow the wicked to harm his creation?

Psalm 37 provides clear answers that reduce the tensions of life (Psalm 37:1–9, 34) and promise that the meek will have a future (Psalm 37:10–11, 39–40).

The contrast between the godly and the wicked highlights the uselessness of foolishness (Psalm 37:12–24, 27–33). The psalmist's personal insights add a human element (Psalm 37:25–26, 35–38). He encourages viewing the land's inheritance with a long-term perspective: The earth belongs to the Lord, who will give it to those he blesses—the humble and godly who trust, hope, and follow him (see Psalm 37:9, 11, 22, 29, 34; see also Isaiah 57:13; Matthew 5:5).

Theme notes and profiles

David Inheriting the Land Wisdom Psalms

Related verses

Micah 2:1
Woe to those who devise iniquity and plot evil on their beds! At morning’s light they accomplish it because the power is in their hands.
Psalm 35:16
Like godless jesters at a feast, they gnashed their teeth at me.
Daniel 8:12
And in the rebellion, the host and the daily sacrifice were given over to the horn, and it flung truth to the ground and prospered in whatever it did.
Matthew 26:16
So from then on Judas looked for an opportunity to betray Jesus.
Psalm 31:13
For I hear the slander of many; there is terror on every side. They conspire against me and plot to take my life.
1 Samuel 18:21
“I will give her to David,” Saul thought, “so that she may be a snare to him, and the hand of the Philistines may be against him.” So Saul said to David, “For a second time now you can be my son-in-law.”
Esther 3:6
And when he learned the identity of Mordecai’s people, he scorned the notion of laying hands on Mordecai alone. Instead, he sought to destroy all of Mordecai’s people, the Jews, throughout the kingdom of Xerxes.
1 Samuel 23:7–9
When Saul was told that David had gone to Keilah, he said, “God has delivered him into my hand, for he has trapped himself by entering a town with gates and bars.”
2 Samuel 15:10–12
Then Absalom sent spies throughout the tribes of Israel with this message: “When you hear the sound of the horn, you are to say, ‘Absalom reigns in Hebron!’”
Daniel 8:24
His power will be great, but it will not be his own. He will cause terrible destruction and succeed in whatever he does. He will destroy the mighty men along with the holy people.
Matthew 26:4
…and they conspired to arrest Jesus covertly and kill Him.
Psalm 37:32
Though the wicked lie in wait for the righteous, and seek to slay them,

Psalm 37:12

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