Trust, Delight in and Commit Thyself to the Lord

(Theme: Selections from the Psalms—Faith Set to Music)

“Trust in the Lord and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the Lord; and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass.” -Psalm 37:3-5 (KJV. Read Psalm 37.)

Psalm 37 is another of the Wisdom Psalms, so classified because it teaches about life, good and evil, and the values of following God. Dr. David M. Fleming, professor of religion, Campbell University, Buies Creek, NC lists the wisdom Psalms as 1, 14, 36, 37, 49, 53, 73, 78, 112, 119, 127, 128 and 133. Dr. Alton H. McEachern who wrote the “Introduction to Psalms” in The Disciple’s Study Bible agrees with this listing of the Wisdom Psalms. It is not that other Psalms besides these listed do not contain wisdom; they certainly do. These particular Psalms answer deep questions about following God and abstaining from evil. You might like to designate these 13 psalms with a notation “Wisdom” beside each in your study Bible.

“Trust in the Lord and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.” Here is an action on the part of the believer—“trust and do good.” It is followed by a promise from God for His response: “thou shalt be fed.” To me, this says that the one who trusts in God will have the things he needs. God will provide. We do not trust God so that provision of our needs will be met; but because the believer trusts, God will make a way, He will provide.

“Delight thyself also in the Lord, and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” “Choose God’s pleasures, and he will choose yours.” (McEachern). We delight ourselves in the Lord by studying His Word, following His ways, seeking to grow more Christ-like.

“Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him and He shall bring it to pass.” Commitment is a solemn and long-term agreement. Psalm 37:6 promises this result from such commitment: “He will make your righteousness shine as the dawn” (NIV).

The whole of Psalm 37 is a series of proverbs encouraging trust, delighting in the Lord and commitment to Him. The promises of such follow-ship are multiple. How about this one for security? “I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread” (Ps. 37:25, NIV). Praise be to God!

c Ethelene Dyer Jones; Friday, May 21, 2010