Psalms 37:21-22

37:21 Evil men borrow, but do not repay their debt,

but the godly show compassion and are generous.

37:22 Surely those favored by the Lord will possess the land,

but those rejected by him will be wiped out.


tn Heb “an evil [man] borrows and does not repay; but a godly [man] is gracious and gives.” The singular forms are used in a representative sense; the typical evildoer and godly individual are in view. The three active participles and one imperfect (“repay”) draw attention to the characteristic behavior of the two types.

tn The particle כִּי is best understood as asseverative or emphatic here.

tn Heb “those blessed by him.” The pronoun “him” must refer to the Lord (see vv. 20, 23), so the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.

tn Heb “cursed.”

tn Or “cut off”; or “removed” (see v. 9).