Devotional Short Note on Psalm 37: This Psalm is intertwined with woven threads of two time-zones in David’s life: his present life or the now of history of the faithful until the End of Times, and the End of Times and beyond scenarios. The “now” in David’s experience and all faithful living with this history of the world is described in 37:1; 37:3-8; 37:16a-b; 37:21; 37:23-27; 37:32; 37:35; and 37:35. The Eschaton is also well-known to David although scholars of other denominations will disagree about it and try to allocate eschatological thinking to a post-exilic period borrowing from the Persians and Greeks and what not (see John Collins et al). Such minimalist analysis belongs only to a thinker who has something to hide so as to lock the predictive accusations that fits the shoe, out of reach, thus non-applicable for modern times. David talked about the Second-Coming in 37:2; Hell in 37:9a; Second Coming in 37:9b; Hell in 37:10a; the 1000 years or millennium in 37:10b; the Second Coming in 37:11a-b; the Little Time of Trouble before the Door of Mercy closes and the Time of Jacob’s Trouble after the Door of Mercy closes in 37:12a-b; Hell in 37:13a-b; Time of Trouble in 37:14a-c which is probably a reference to the current future where there will be worldwide landgrabbing due to anti-colonialism; worldwide spoliation with Robin-Hoodism rationalizations; worldwide militarization as predicted also by Amos and Isaiah 24; Time of Jacob’s Trouble in 37:15a-b; Hell in 37:17a-b and 37:20a-c; Time of Trouble before the Door of Mercy closes or the Time of Jacob’s Trouble in 37:19 talking about a probable worldwide famine due to global warming also mentioned by Isaiah 24 and elsewhere in the prophets; the Second Coming in 37:22a and the Hell in 37:22b; Judgment on behalf of the Saints of Daniel 7:22 “until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was passed in favor of the saints of the Most High” is seen by David in 37:28a-d: “For the Lord loves judgment and He will not forsake His saints”; Heaven arrived for saints in 37:28c; Hell or executive “cutting off” of the wicked in finality of existence in 37:28d; New Heaven and New Earth to be inherited by the righteous in 37:29a-b; Perfection already arrived since the righteous “shall utter wisdom” in 37:30a and “his tongue will speak judgment” in 37:30b. Why will he speak judgment? Christ says that saints will take possession of the kingdom in Daniel 7:22 and they will judge or be involved for a 1000 years in a kind of Confirmation Judgment verifying why their loved ones did not make it. Due to perfection they received in sanctification on earth with their careful relationship with the Lord the “law of his God is in his heart” through conversion and “none of his/her steps shall slide” in 37:31, thus absolute perfection guaranteed but attained because God does not like “machine-men with machine-minds” (to quote the famous words of Charlie Chaplin’s Great Speech in the Dictator film clip on Youtube). In the Time of Trouble the Lord will not leave the righteous to suffer as is also explained by Isaiah in a number of instances but here by David in Psalm 37:33. They are to “wait for the Lord”. Why wait? Advent promise means Advent hope and a delay of that coming means waiting. “Keep His way” is to keep considering His Word as the ultimate standard in spiritual living and not to exchange it for culture or my feelings or my opinions or ‘I did it my way’ (Frank Sinatra). The Lord “will raise you to inherit the land” at the Resurrection day (37:34b). “When the wicked are cut off you [the faithful ones] shall see it” (37:34c). The Hell event is witnessed by the saints safely in the city of Zion or New Jerusalem and Psalm 46 is that description of the Warrior Messiah battle on the Day of the Lord. The saints are watching the battle from the city. Also in 37:38a-b is the same idea expressed that transgressors shall be destroyed “together” (jahadu) since they are brought together for the Hell event in the final Day of the Lord battle. View scissors cutting a cord and that is what the timeline is for the evil on that day, a dropping line that is “cut off”. In 37:39b it is promised that in the Time of Trouble or the later Time of Jacob’s Trouble “He is their stronghold in the time of trouble”. See Daniel 12:1-2 about this Time of Trouble like there never was. It is during this time that the Messiah or Michael [another name for Christ] comes. The Lord will help them (see 37:40a) and will deliver them from the wicked (37:40b); and will save them for one reason only: they have taken refuge in Him and that is what justification and sanctification is all about.