Psalms 37:1

“Submission is Delight”

Psalms 37:1-2 says, “Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like grass, and wither as the green herb.”

The last two chapters of Psalms, Psalms 35 and 36 taught a great deal about the wickedness of men. Now in Psalms 37 the theme is going to be found in verses 1,3, and 4 which say “Fret not thyself because of evil doers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. Trust in the LORD, and do good, Delight thyself also in the LORD, commit thy way unto him.”

Jesus said Mathew 7:7, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you: For everyone that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.” In the context of Matthew 7:7 Jesus is speaking of praying to God. But the principle of seek and ye shall find is true for every human being in life. People find what they seek after in life. If you seek truth and if you seek Christ and if you seek forgiveness of sins you are going to find it. If you seek the things of this world and the pleasures of sin you are going to find those too. Seek and ye shall find.

In Psalms 37:1 the wicked of this world are compared to a green herb. A green herb is something that is prosperous. But it does not prosper for long. It grows, prospers, flowers, and quickly withers away. The wicked people of this world seek after the things of this world. They have no hope beyond the grave. They live for this life: the lusts of the flesh, of the eyes, and the pride of life. Therefore they put all there their energies and efforts, abilities, and intelligence into materialism, money, power, fame, physical security, and possessions, and human relationships. From a practical standpoint there is nothing wrong with doing you best to gain what you can materially and to accomplish what you can in life. But for the lost people of this world this is all they have. And more often than not they use the wrong methods, dishonest and cruel methods taking advantage of others to obtain their desires. This is why the world in which we live is economically based on Usury.

The warning given in these verses of Psalms is not given to the lost people of the world but it is given to the believer in Jesus. The warning is to not fret and to not be envious. The word fret means to be angry. The word is translated, ‘wroth’ in speaking of Cain when he became angry at his brother and slew him. The word envious is a word that refers to a jealousy that moves someone to great anger.

Ephesians 4:26 says, “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath. Neither give place to the devil. ”

Aside from righteous anger, that is to say anger against sin it is never good to be angry. Anger gives place to the devil. Anger should not motivate you. Anger should not be your response to men and circumstances of life that do not go your way. In Ephesians 2:3 the lost people of the world are called, “The children of wrath” because men who are controlled by their sinful selfish nature tend to be angry when life does not work out for them.

As a Christian living in a wicked world where there is great opposition to the truth of the Word of God from a physical perspective life may bring for you many shattered dreams, persecutions, and cruel hatreds from men. Without faith in Christ the temptation to fret and to be envious of those who prosper can be very great.

When the evildoers and the workers of iniquity prosper and the Christian suffers the Christian should not fret or be envious. Psalms 37:3 says, “Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.”

In other words if you do not trust in Jesus and rely upon his promises the odds are you are going to fret and to be envious. Anger and jealousy if left unchecked always leads to murder both in the heart, mind, and externally. Do not fret, do not be envious when the lost people of this world prosper while the Christian suffers but remember that they only have this life. They are a green herb that will wither when this life ends. The Christian has eternal life and all spiritual blessings in heavenly places. God has promised to provide for the needs of his children. Perhaps it is not the will of God for you in this life to be rich or to be prosperous materially but God will provide for your needs for the duration of the time that you are on this earth so that you can serve him. This is why Psalms 37:25 says, “I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.” And Psalms 37:3 says, “Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.”

Trust in Jesus and keep your faith in the promises of God. Jesus will take care of you and provide for your needs. There is no need to become angry against those who are lost and in need of Christ’s forgiveness. They only have this life to live for. Perhaps they are a green herb today but soon they shall wither and be cast into hell unless by the grace of God they repent of their sins and turn to Jesus Christ for salvation.

Psalms 37:4-5 says, “Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thy heart. Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.”

These two verses in Psalms are some of the most well known verses in the Bible by many Christians. They serve as a great teaching on the way to live life and to see all your dreams in life fulfilled. How often the story of the human race is the story of lives left disappointed and broken by the tragedies of life and by shattered dreams. The philosophy of the world says to never give up hope and things will work out. But circumstances in this life do not always work out. No matter how much you hope that your circumstances in this life will work out does not mean that they will. Sometimes life can be very tragic from a physical perspective. The true secret to success in life is to never give up to never give up hope by trusting in the promises of God.

Psalms 37:4 says, “Delight thyself in the LORD, and do good; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” Another way of saying this verse is Colossians 3:1-2, “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.”

This is wonderful truth. If you ask Christ to save you from your sins He will because he died for your sins. If your desire in this life is to serve Christ and to do your part in the spread of the gospel of Jesus Christ then your dream will come true because this is the will and the work of God in this world. There are no shattered dreams, there are no disappointed lives for those who keep their faith in the promises of God. If the desire of your heart becomes the same as the desire of the heart of God then the desires of your heart Christ shall give unto you. Seek and ye shall find.

God has a purpose for each human soul that he brings into this world. Finding and fulfilling that purpose is how life was meant to be lived. The true stories in this life which are success stories are the stories of men whom have given their lives to Christ and fulfilled God’s will for their lives. The true stories of broken lives and shattered dreams are the stories of those whom have turned away from the will God and lived only for this life and the things of this world.

Psalms 37:4 says, “Delight thyself in the LORD, and do good; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.”

The word delight is a word that means, “delicately.” It is a word in the Bible mostly used in reference to the delicate way of a woman. It means softness. In the context of Psalms 37:4 the idea is that of submission to the will of God.

First Timothy 2:11-12 says, “Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.”

The Christian is the bride of Christ. The martial relationship between a man and a woman is symbolic of the spiritual relationship between a Christian and the Savior. This is the reason the same word that is translated, ‘help meet’ in the book of Genesis when it says that God made Eve a ‘help meet’ for Adam is the same word used in Psalms 33:20 of Jesus saying, “he is our help and our shield.”

Christ is the second Adam, the I am. To delight in the LORD means to be submissive to the will of God. A person cannot get saved without submitting their will over to Christ. A person cannot serve Christ unless that person does God’s will instead of His own. Go where God wants you to go. Marry whom God wants you to marry. Work where God wants you to work. Witness to whom God wants you to witness too. Pray about the things God wants you to pray about. Study the Bible when God wants you to study the Bible. Learn the things God wants you to learn. Suffer the things God wants you to suffer. Give up the things God wants you to give up. Use your time the way God wants you to use your time. Use your resources the way God wants you to use your resources. Stay separated from the world. Stay separated unto the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Or as it says in Psalms 37:4 says, “Delight thyself in the LORD, and do good; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.”

If you then be risen with Christ you surely are not blind and can see afar off. You can see the eternal rewards, the exceeding riches of God’s grace, the inheritance of “loveingkindness” that is waiting for you. Delight thyself in the LORD. Submit thyself until the will of God. Go softly and delicately in the decisions of your life. Delight thyself in the LORD. Submit thyself unto the will of God. To submit unto Christ is delight. Submission unto the will of God can only end in a fulfilled life.

If you have never turned from your sins to Jesus for forgiveness and eternal life then do so now. Submit yourself unto the forgiveness of sins found in Jesus Christ.

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