This question plagues the human race: Why do bad things happen to good people and vice versa?
Psalm 37 is an alphabetic acrostic with 22 mini-poems linked together. Mysteriously the sixteenth letter, ayin, seems to be AWOL. There are many suggestions as to the reason. We know the letter ayin as a word means “eye,” it has the value of 70—our stated lifespan—and it’s a silent letter, relying on vowel sounds to be pronounced. Perhaps it’s missing just to remind us that some things in life are inexplicable to us. The theme, similar to Psalm 73 (we can see the obvious link between 37 and 73), as well as the book of Job, is the prosperity of the wicked and afflictions of the righteous. Often life seems to be turning out opposite to the conclusions of Psalm 1. Are the righteous flourishing like a tree and the wicked blown away like chaff? It may not seem to be, but it isn’t time that tells, it’s eternity. This is inferred in the law of sowing and reaping. The harvest has a direct relationship to the kind and amount of seed sown. However, the harvest doesn’t immediately come. It is in this intervening time where our faith may be challenged. Throughout the psalm, David builds a case for such faith in the Lord and His faithfulness. Let’s take our time to observe his carefully considered arguments. He begins: “Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb” (Ps 73:1-2). We may be angry at what the wicked do, or envy what they have, but in either case our response is short-sighted. We should take into account both the journey and the destination. With the long view, we’ll learn to “Trust in the Lord…Delight yourself…in the Lord…Commit your way to the Lord…and…Rest in the Lord” (vv 3-7). Then be amazed at what happens!