Psalms 37:1-7
The phrase “fret not thyself”, serves as literary bookends to a list of instructions for the believer. Verse 1 and verse 8 tell us not to fret, while verses 3-8 give us five great responsibilities. “Fret” means to be hot, furious or to burn; thus the psalmist is telling us not to let others determine our actions. People doing evil around us (verse 1), and the wicked prospering (verse 7) are no reasons for us to lose our focus.
The five things that David lists for us are: trust in the LORD; delight thyself in the LORD; commit thy way to the LORD; rest in the LORD; Cease from anger. If we do not place our confidence in those around us we will have the starting point for bringing these five things to pass, and as we bring these to pass, we will see even less fretting on our part. Notice that the first four things are “in the LORD”, while the last is an end result. If you place His finished work on the pedestal that it deserves, ceasing from anger will become easy to do.
“Trust in the LORD, and do good” – The man that trusts in the covenant God is blessed (Psalms 84:12). When you trust that God is a keeper of His word; that He will protect His own; that He will hold your hand and your heart, it empowers you to “do good”. Doubt that God is on your side, or believe that He is angry with you and there will be no strength to bring forth the good.
“Delight thyself also in the LORD” – “Delight” means “to be happy about” or “to take exquisite delight”. Find your happiness in the finished work of Christ and you will find “an abundance of peace” (Psalms 37:11).
“Commit thy way unto the LORD” – The word “commit” is most often translated as a rolling, such as the rolling of the stone away from the well’s mouth (Genesis 29:3, 8, 10). This means that we can roll our problems onto our Lord. Whatever presses you, give it to Jesus, for He has taken your pressure.
“Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him” – This word “rest” is translated in Hebrew as “be silent or still” and appears as “rest” only one other time (Job 30:27). Sometimes, it is best that we not open our mouths to our detractors or our critics. Our tongue can interfere with God’s work and cause us to delay His action as well. Joshua told the children of Israel to keep quiet as they marched around Jericho. He had seen the terrible results of negative talk, as the 10 spies had kept Israel in the wilderness 40 years longer than they should have, due to the doubt that they spoke (Numbers 14:2).
“Cease from anger, and forsake wrath” – Only after you rest in the Lord can you successfully cease from anger. When we find His perfect rest, our tongues will stop speaking the negative in our lives. We will begin to praise Him for what He has already accomplished, not just what we see. We will easily lay down the wrath and strife when we realize all that His finished work has done.
“Fret not thyself” is not a taskmasters command to the believer; it is a promise that has been paid for by the blood of Jesus. How can you fret when you see all that Jesus has paid for?
The phrase “fret not thyself”, serves as literary bookends to a list of instructions for the believer. Verse 1 and verse 8 tell us not to fret, while verses 3-8 give us five great responsibilities. “Fret” means to be hot, furious or to burn; thus the psalmist is telling us not to let others determine our actions. People doing evil around us (verse 1), and the wicked prospering (verse 7) are no reasons for us to lose our focus.
The five things that David lists for us are: trust in the LORD; delight thyself in the LORD; commit thy way to the LORD; rest in the LORD; Cease from anger. If we do not place our confidence in those around us we will have the starting point for bringing these five things to pass, and as we bring these to pass, we will see even less fretting on our part. Notice that the first four things are “in the LORD”, while the last is an end result. If you place His finished work on the pedestal that it deserves, ceasing from anger will become easy to do.
“Trust in the LORD, and do good” – The man that trusts in the covenant God is blessed (Psalms 84:12). When you trust that God is a keeper of His word; that He will protect His own; that He will hold your hand and your heart, it empowers you to “do good”. Doubt that God is on your side, or believe that He is angry with you and there will be no strength to bring forth the good.
“Delight thyself also in the LORD” – “Delight” means “to be happy about” or “to take exquisite delight”. Find your happiness in the finished work of Christ and you will find “an abundance of peace” (Psalms 37:11).
“Commit thy way unto the LORD” – The word “commit” is most often translated as a rolling, such as the rolling of the stone away from the well’s mouth (Genesis 29:3, 8, 10). This means that we can roll our problems onto our Lord. Whatever presses you, give it to Jesus, for He has taken your pressure.
“Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him” – This word “rest” is translated in Hebrew as “be silent or still” and appears as “rest” only one other time (Job 30:27). Sometimes, it is best that we not open our mouths to our detractors or our critics. Our tongue can interfere with God’s work and cause us to delay His action as well. Joshua told the children of Israel to keep quiet as they marched around Jericho. He had seen the terrible results of negative talk, as the 10 spies had kept Israel in the wilderness 40 years longer than they should have, due to the doubt that they spoke (Numbers 14:2).
“Cease from anger, and forsake wrath” – Only after you rest in the Lord can you successfully cease from anger. When we find His perfect rest, our tongues will stop speaking the negative in our lives. We will begin to praise Him for what He has already accomplished, not just what we see. We will easily lay down the wrath and strife when we realize all that His finished work has done.
“Fret not thyself” is not a taskmasters command to the believer; it is a promise that has been paid for by the blood of Jesus. How can you fret when you see all that Jesus has paid for?
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