Psalm 37, an ancient poem written by David, the shepherd-king of Israel, leads us to green pastures.
Trust in the LORD, and do good;
dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. (37:3)
That’s a beautiful idea all on its own, but the English Standard Version provides a footnote worth its weight in gold.
Trust in the LORD, and do good;
dwell in the land and feed on faithfulness.
How many times have we heard, “You are what you eat”? With Psalm 37, we have the powerful spiritual reminder: you will grow to be what you feed upon, which is why the good shepherd of Psalm 37 nudges us away from certain things.
Fret not yourself because of evildoers;
be not envious of wrongdoers!
For they will soon fade like the grass
and wither like the green herb. (37:1-2)
Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!
Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil. (37:8)
Don’t feed on fretting or envy, evil or wrongdoing. Keep your distance from anger and wrath. Why? Because you will grow to be what you feed upon, which is why the good shepherd of Psalm 37 leads us toward better pastures.
Trust in the LORD, and do good… (37:3)
Delight yourself in the LORD,
and he will give you the desires of your heart. (37:4)
Commit your way to the LORD;
trust in him, and he will act.
He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
and your justice as the noonday. (37:5-6)
Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;
fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,
over the man who carries out evil devices! (37:7)
The meek shall inherit the land
and delight themselves in abundant peace. (37:11)
The steps of a man are established by the LORD,
when he delights in his way;
though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,
for the LORD upholds his hand. (37:23-24)
I have been young, and now am old,
yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
or his children begging for bread. (37:25)
Turn away from evil and do good;
so shall you dwell forever.
For the LORD loves justice;
he will not forsake his saints.
They are preserved forever… (37:27-28)
The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
and his tongue speaks justice.
The law of his God is in his heart;
his steps do not slip. (37:30-31)
Wait for the LORD and keep his way… (37:34)
…which is all another way of saying, “feed on faithfulness.”
So on what am I feeding my heart today? Fretting? Envy? Evil? Wrongdoing? Anger? Wrath? We will grow to be what we feed upon. Goodness? Faithfulness? Righteousness? Wisdom? Justice? Contentment? Patience? Meekness? Peace? We will grow to be what we feed upon.