Psalms 37:32
in Psalms 37Though the wicked lie in wait for the righteous, and seek to slay them,
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
The wicked watcheth the righteous, And seeketh to slay him.
KJV
The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him.
⋯
This verse in Psalms 37
Commentary
12 notes on this verseThe wicked watcheth the righteous,.... All his motions and steps, his works and actions; he watches for his halting, and to take all opportunities and advantages against him; see Jer 20:10; and seeketh to slay him; murder his reputation, destroy his substance, and take away his life: some understand it of the devil, who watches the saints, observes their failings, accuses then, before the throne, and seeks to devour them, 1Pe 5:8.
This site's exposition
Turn away from evil
on Psalms 37:27-33
The command is to turn away from evil and do good, with abiding forever attached to it as the promise. The law of his God sits in his heart. The LORD loves justice and does not leave the righteous in the power of those who lie in wait for them.
This site's exposition
the wicked lie in wait for the righteous
Adam Clarke tied this to the plotting of verse 12. John Gill noted that some read the watcher as the devil of 1 Peter 5:8. Spurgeon recalled that Jesus was watched by enemies thirsting for His blood, and that His disciples should expect the same.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers3 voices
"The wicked watches the righteous, and seeks to slay him" [Psalm 37:32]. For he says, what it was foretold in the book of Wisdom that he should say, "He is grievous unto us, even to behold; for his life is not like other men's." [Wisdom 2:15] Therefore he "seeks to slay him." What? Does the Lord, who keeps him, who dwells with him, who departs not from his lips, from his heart, does He forsake him? What then becomes of what was said before: "And He forsakes not His Saints"?
A commentator
Ambrose of MilanCommentaries on the Twelve Davidic Psalms · Written before 397.
proposed
(Vers. 32, 33.) The more righteous someone is, the more their enemy plots against them; and therefore Scripture says: The sinner considers the just person and seeks to destroy them. But the Lord will not abandon them into their hands, nor will He condemn them when He judges.
A commentator
Ambrose of MilanCommentaries on the Twelve Davidic Psalms · Written before 397.
proposed
The sinner cannot stand the just person who speaks wisdom with his mouth and meditates on it in his heart. He sees this one keeping the law of the Lord in his heart, and he does all in his power to make him sin mortally. But the Lord watches over the just. We need not fear the snares laid for us by the sinner, because God is for us.
The Medieval Church1 voice
"The sinner watches." Here he treats of the scheming of the wicked. And first he sets forth the thoughts of the wicked against the good. Second, the defense of the good. He says therefore, "The sinner watches the just man," namely treacherously, looking for how …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
37 Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace. 38 But the transgressors shall be destroyed together: the end of the wicked shall be cut off. 39 But the salvation of the righteous is of the L ORD : he is their strength in the time of trouble.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — scripture-overlap:96%@v37-39
4 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century4 voices
The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him. If it were not for the laws of the land, we should soon see a massacre of the righteous. Jesus was watched by his enemies, who were thirsting for his blood: his disciples must not look for favour where their Master found hatred and death.
The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him. If it were not for the laws of the land, we should soon see a massacre of the righteous. Jesus was watched by his enemies, who were thirsting for his blood: his disciples must not look for favour where their Master found hatred and death.
The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him - Similar to what is said Psa 37:8: “The wicked plotteth against the righteous.” But it is added, Psa 37:33: “The Lord will not leave him in his hands;” he will confound his devices, and save his own servants.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
The wicked watcheth the righteous ... - Observes closely; looks out for him; has his eye on him, seeking an opportunity to slay him. See the notes at Psa 10:8-9. The sense is, that the wicked are the enemies of the righteous, and seek to do them wrong. It is a characteristic of the wicked that they seek to destroy the righteous. This was manifested in the case of the prophets; in the case of the apostles; in the case of the Saviour; and it has been so manifest in the deaths of the martyrs, and all the persecutions which the Church has suffered, as to justify the general declaration that it is one of the characteristics of a wicked world that it desires to do this.
The words behind it
5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| צוֹפֶ֣ה | tzopeh | [is] watching | H6822 → | 36 times |
| רָ֭שָׁע | rasho' | a wicked [person] | H7563 → | 263 times |
| לַצַּדִּ֑יק | latzadik | for <the> righteous [person] | H6662 → | 206 times |
| וּ֝מְבַקֵּ֗שׁ | umevakesh | and [is] seeking | H1245 → | 225 times |
| לַהֲמִיתוֹ׃ | lahamitov | to kill him | H4191 → | 839 times |
צוֹפֶ֣ה[is] watching
tzopehH6822 →36 times
רָ֭שָׁעa wicked [person]
rasho'H7563 →263 times
לַצַּדִּ֑יקfor <the> righteous [person]
latzadikH6662 →206 times
וּ֝מְבַקֵּ֗שׁand [is] seeking
umevakeshH1245 →225 times
לַהֲמִיתוֹ׃to kill him
lahamitovH4191 →839 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
Jeremiah 20:10For I have heard the whispering of many: “Terror is on every side! Report him; let us report him!” All my trusted friends watch for my fall: “Perhaps he will be deceived so that…
it leads to
- Psalms 41:9
Even my close friend whom I trusted, the one who shared my bread, has lifted up his heel against me.
- Psalms 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.
- Isaiah 29:21
those who indict a man with a word, who ensnare the mediator at the gate, and who with false charges deprive the innocent of justice.
- Jeremiah 18:18
Then some said, “Come, let us make plans against Jeremiah, for the law will never be lost to the priest, nor counsel to the wise, nor an oracle to the prophet. Come, let us…
- Psalms 41:9
Through
Luke 20:20So they watched Him closely and sent spies who pretended to be sincere. They were hoping to catch Him in His words in order to hand Him over to the rule and authority of…
it leads to
- Luke 11:54
waiting to catch Him in something He might say.
- Matthew 22:15–22
Then the Pharisees went out and conspired to trap Jesus in His words.
- Luke 11:54
Through
Luke 14:1One Sabbath, Jesus went to eat in the home of a leading Pharisee, and those in attendance were watching Him closely.
it leads to
- Mark 3:2
In order to accuse Jesus, they were watching to see if He would heal on the Sabbath.
- Psalms 41:6
My visitor speaks falsehood; he gathers slander in his heart; he goes out and spreads it abroad.
- Mark 3:2
Where this verse is studied
About Psalms
This page draws on 12 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Ambrose of Milan, Commentaries on the Twelve Davidic Psalms; Augustine of Hippo, Exposition on Psalm 37; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 2; Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Psalms; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Exposition on the Psalms of David.