Psalms 37:18
in Psalms 37The LORD knows the days of the blameless, and their inheritance will last forever.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Jehovah knoweth the days of the perfect; And their inheritance shall be for ever.
KJV
The Lord knoweth the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall be for ever.
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This verse in Psalms 37
Commentary
14 notes on this verseThe Lord knoweth the days of the upright. His foreknowledge made him laugh at the proud, but in the case of the upright he sees a brighter future, and treats them as heirs of salvation. Ever is this our comfort, that all events are known to our God, and that nothing in our future can take him at unawares. No arrow can pierce us by accident, no danger smite us by stealth; neither in time nor eternity can any unforeseen ill occur to us.
This site's exposition
Better is the little
on Psalms 37:16-20
The little of the righteous outweighs the abundance of many wicked men. Verse 17 sets broken arms against the LORD holding the righteous up, and verse 19 carries the promise into famine, where they are satisfied. The wicked fade like the glory of the fields, like smoke.
This site's exposition
The LORD knows the days of the blameless
Diodorus of Tarsus read knows as makes His own, the same sense as Psalm 1:6. Matthew Henry said He knows their bright days and their dark. Spurgeon joined it to verse 13, where the same foreknowledge laughs at the proud and here sees a brighter future for the upright.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers4 voices
A commentator
Ambrose of MilanCommentaries on the Twelve Davidic Psalms, On Psalm 37, 33 · Written before 397.
proposed
The Lord knows the days of the immaculate, for by the grace of His immaculate innocence and fullness, He has mercy, He does not have mercy on the erring. They do not have a day, for they flee from the light, of whom it is beautifully said: Their days pass like a shadow. Therefore, knowledge of God is a matter of worthiness, not of vision. His eyes are light: those whom He looks upon, He illuminates; and therefore, His eyes are the days of the just.
..."The Lord knoweth the ways of the spotless ones" (ver. 18). When they suffer ills, they are believed to be walking ill ways by those who are ignorant, by those who have not knowledge to discern "the ways of the spotless ones." He who "knoweth those ways," knoweth by what way to lead His own, "them that are gentle," in the right way. Whence in another Psalm he said, "The meek shall He guide in judgment; them that are gentle will He teach His way." How, think you, was that beggar, who lay covered with sores before the rich man's door, spurned by the passers by! How did they, probably, close their nostrils and spit at him! The Lord, however, knew how to reserve Paradise for him. How did they, on the other hand, desire for themselves the life of him who was "clad in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day!" But the Lord, who foresaw that man's "day coming," knew the torments, the torments without end, that were in store for him. Therefore "The Lord knoweth the ways of the upright." "And their inheritance shall be for ever." This we hold by faith. Doth the Lord too know it by faith? The Lord knoweth those things with as clear a manifestation, as we cannot speak of even when we shall be made equal to the Angels. For the things that shall be manifest to us, shall not be equally manifest to us as they are now to Him, who is incapable of change. Yet even of us ourselves what is said? […]
"Knows" means makes his own, as in the first psalm, "Because the Lord knows the ways of the righteous," that is, makes them his own.
A commentator
Ambrose of MilanCommentaries on the Twelve Davidic Psalms · Written before 397.
proposed
(Verse 18, 19.) Do not think that the Lord does not know your way. If you are righteous, He knows. Believe what the Prophet says: The Lord knows the ways of the blameless; and their inheritance will be blameless. They will not be put to shame in times of trouble. Those who know the Lord are known by the Lord.
The Medieval Church1 voice
Next, when he says, "The Lord knows," he makes his proposition clear. And first he speaks of the stability of the just. Second, of the crushing of the unjust, at "For sinners." Now the just are strengthened by God in two ways: first, their goods …
6 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
He knows their bright days, and has pleasure in their prosperity; he knows their cloudy and dark days, the days of their affliction, and as the day is so shall the strength be. Fourthly, That their inheritance shall be for ever; not their inheritance in the earth, but that incorruptible indefeasible one which is laid up for them in heaven.
The Lord knoweth the days of the upright,....
The Nineteenth Century4 voices
The Lord knoweth the days of the upright. His foreknowledge made him laugh at the proud, but in the case of the upright he sees a brighter future, and treats them as heirs of salvation. Ever is this our comfort, that all events are known to our God, and that nothing in our future can take him at unawares. No arrow can pierce us by accident, no danger smite us by stealth; neither in time nor eternity can any unforeseen ill occur to us. Futurity shall be but a continual development of the good things which the Lord has laid up in store for us. And their inheritance shall be for ever. Their inheritance fades not away. It is entailed, so that none cam deprive them of it, and preserved, so that none shall destroy it. Eternity is the peculiar attribute of the believer's portion: what they have on earth is safe enough, but what they shall have in heaven is theirs without end.
The Lord knoweth the days of the upright. His foreknowledge made him laugh at the proud, but in the case of the upright he sees a brighter future, and treats them as heirs of salvation. Ever is this our comfort, that all events are known to our God, and that nothing in our future can take him at unawares. No arrow can pierce us by accident, no danger smite us by stealth; neither in time nor eternity can any unforeseen ill occur to us.
The Lord knoweth the days of the upright - He is acquainted with all his circumstances, severings, and ability to bear them; and he will either shorten his trials or increase his power. The Lord also approves of the man and his concerns; and his inheritance shall be for ever. He shall have God for his portion, here and hereafter. This is probably another indirect promise to the captives that they shall be restored to their own land. See Psa 37:11.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
The Lord knoweth the days of the upright - See the notes at Psa 1:6. He knows how long they will live, and all that will happen to them. He sees their whole course of life; he sees the end. It is implied here that his eyes are on all the allotted days of their life; on all that has been ordained for them in the whole course of their life; and that nothing can shorten the days appointed to them. The wicked expect to live, hope to live, make their arrangements to live; but their eyes cannot rest on the future, and they cannot see the end - cannot tell precisely when they will be cut off. Some unexpected calamity - something which they cannot foresee - may come upon them, and cut short their days long before the expected thee; but this cannot happen in respect to Him whose eyes are on the righteous. Nothing can prevent their reaching the thee which he has fixed as the termination of their lives. And their inheritance shall be forever - Shall be permanent, enduring. Perhaps all that was implied in tiffs language, as it was used by the psalmist, was that they would “continue,” or would not be cut off as the wicked are; that is, that righteousness would contribute to length of days upon the earth (compare Psa 37:9); yet the “language” suggests a higher idea, and is applicable to the righteous in respect to the promise that they will be put in “everlasting” possession of that which they “inherit” from God; that is, that they will be literally blessed forever. They will have a sure inheritance on earth, and it will endure to all eternity in another world.
The words behind it
7 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| יוֹדֵ֣עַ | yodea' | [is] knowing | H3045 → | 945 times |
| יְ֭הוָה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| יְמֵ֣י | yemei | [the] days of | H3117 → | 2304 times |
| תְמִימִ֑ם | temimim | blameless [people] | H8549 → | 91 times |
| וְ֝נַחֲלָתָ֗ם | venachalatam | and inheritance their | H5159 → | 222 times |
| לְעוֹלָ֥ם | leolam | for ever | H5769 → | 438 times |
| תִּהְיֶֽה׃ | tihyeh | it will be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
יוֹדֵ֣עַ[is] knowing
yodea'H3045 →945 times
יְ֭הוָהYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
יְמֵ֣י[the] days of
yemeiH3117 →2304 times
תְמִימִ֑םblameless [people]
temimimH8549 →91 times
וְ֝נַחֲלָתָ֗םand inheritance their
venachalatamH5159 →222 times
לְעוֹלָ֥םfor ever
leolamH5769 →438 times
תִּהְיֶֽה׃it will be
tihyehH1961 →3559 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
2 Timothy 2:19Nevertheless, God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord must turn away from iniquity.”
it leads to
- John 10:14
I am the good shepherd. I know My sheep and My sheep know Me,
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Nahum 1:7
The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of distress; He cares for those who trust in Him.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Corinthians 8:3
But the one who loves God is known by God.
- 1 John 3:7–10
Little children, let no one deceive you: The one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as Christ is righteous.
- Numbers 16:5
Then he said to Korah and all his followers, “Tomorrow morning the LORD will reveal who belongs to Him and who is holy, and He will bring that person near to Himself. The one…
- John 10:14
Through
Romans 6:23For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
it leads to
- John 3:36
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. Whoever rejects the Son will not see life. Instead, the wrath of God remains on him.”
- Romans 5:12
Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, so also death was passed on to all men, because all sinned.
- James 1:15
Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
- John 3:36
Where this verse is studied
About Psalms
This page draws on 14 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Psalms; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Ambrose of Milan, Commentaries on the Twelve Davidic Psalms, On Psalm 37, 33; Ambrose of Milan, Commentaries on the Twelve Davidic Psalms; Augustine of Hippo, Exposition on Psalm 37; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 2; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David; Diodorus of Tarsus, Commentary on Psalm 37; Diodorus of Tarsus, COMMENTARY ON PSALM 37; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Exposition on the Psalms of David.