The Meaning of Psalms 37:34 Explained

Psalms 37:34

KJV: Wait on the LORD, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.

YLT: Look unto Jehovah, and keep His way, And He doth exalt thee to possess the land, In the wicked being cut off -- thou seest!

Darby: Wait for Jehovah, and keep his way, and he will exalt thee to possess the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.

ASV: Wait for Jehovah, and keep his way, And he will exalt thee to inherit the land: When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Wait  on the LORD,  and keep  his way,  and he shall exalt  thee to inherit  the land:  when the wicked  are cut off,  thou shalt see  [it]. 

What does Psalms 37:34 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalms 37:30-40 - Steps That Shall Not Slide
How dear this psalm has been to God's saints! It has been peculiarly prized by them in all ages. Gerhardt has paraphrased it in his noble hymn:
Give to the winds thy fears,
Hope, and be undismayed.
When banished from Berlin by the Elector, he turned into a small wayside hostelry, not knowing where to go. Seeing his wife greatly depressed, he turned to find comfort for them both in these verses, and the conception of his hymn broke upon him. That evening messengers arrived from the Duke of Mecklenburg, offering Gerhardt an honorable position in his kingdom. Among many others, Psalms 37:5 was frequently quoted by David Livingstone.
Bishop Coverdale's translation of Psalms 37:37 is noteworthy: "Keep innocency and take heed unto the thing that is right, for that shall bring a man peace at the last." But the psalmist repeatedly insists that the fulfillment of God's promises is conditioned by our faith, Psalms 37:40. The day may break stormily, but the storms expend themselves before nightfall and the sunset is golden. [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 37

1  David persuades to patience and confidence in God,
12  by the different estate of the godly and the wicked

What do the individual words in Psalms 37:34 mean?

Wait on Yahweh and keep His way and He shall exalt you to inherit the land when are cut off the wicked you shall see [it]
קַוֵּ֤ה אֶל־ יְהוָ֨ה ׀ וּשְׁמֹ֬ר דַּרְכּ֗וֹ וִֽ֭ירוֹמִמְךָ לָרֶ֣שֶׁת אָ֑רֶץ בְּהִכָּרֵ֖ת רְשָׁעִ֣ים תִּרְאֶֽה

קַוֵּ֤ה  Wait 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperative, masculine singular
Root: קָוָה 
Sense: to wait, look for, hope, expect.
יְהוָ֨ה ׀  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
וּשְׁמֹ֬ר  and  keep 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular
Root: שָׁמַר  
Sense: to keep, guard, observe, give heed.
דַּרְכּ֗וֹ  His  way 
Parse: Noun, common singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: דֶּרֶךְ  
Sense: way, road, distance, journey, manner.
וִֽ֭ירוֹמִמְךָ  and  He  shall  exalt  you 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Piel, Conjunctive imperfect, third person masculine singular, second person masculine singular
Root: יָרוּם 
Sense: to rise, rise up, be high, be lofty, be exalted.
לָרֶ֣שֶׁת  to  inherit 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: יָרַשׁ  
Sense: to seize, dispossess, take possession off, inherit, disinherit, occupy, impoverish, be an heir.
אָ֑רֶץ  the  land 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֶרֶץ  
Sense: land, earth.
בְּהִכָּרֵ֖ת  when  are  cut  off 
Parse: Preposition-b, Verb, Nifal, Infinitive construct
Root: כָּרַת  
Sense: to cut, cut off, cut down, cut off a body part, cut out, eliminate, kill, cut a covenant.
רְשָׁעִ֣ים  the  wicked 
Parse: Adjective, masculine plural
Root: רָשָׁע  
Sense: wicked, criminal.
תִּרְאֶֽה  you  shall  see  [it] 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, second person masculine singular
Root: רָאָה 
Sense: to see, look at, inspect, perceive, consider.