How does Psalm 37:32 address the problem of evil? Text and Translation “The wicked lie in wait for the righteous and seek to slay them.” (Psalm 37:32) Immediate Literary Context of Psalm 37 Psalm 37 is an acrostic wisdom psalm. Its theme is the apparent success of evildoers contrasted with God’s certain vindication of the righteous. Verses 30–33 form a tight unit: the righteous speak wisdom (vv. 30–31), but the wicked ambush them (v. 32). God’s protective verdict follows immediately (v. 33), anchoring the entire psalm’s assurance that evil is temporary and justice inevitable. Observational Realism: Evil’s Existence Recognized Verse 32 unflinchingly acknowledges moral evil. The wicked “lie in wait,” indicating premeditation; they “seek to slay,” revealing homicidal intent. Scripture does not sanitize reality: evil is personal, deliberate, and often targets those who follow God. The candid description counters any naïve optimism and aligns with other eyewitness biblical observations (Genesis 6:5; Psalm 10:8–10; 1 Peter 5:8). The Moral Agency of the Wicked: Free Will and Accountability By portraying plotting and intent, the verse presupposes genuine human freedom. God’s image-bearing creatures are capable of authentic love and, therefore, authentic rebellion (Deuteronomy 30:19). The biblical worldview grounds the possibility of evil in creaturely misuse of freedom, not in divine malice. Yet accountability is also woven in: every action is done coram Deo (“before the face of God”), and the psalm repeatedly states the wicked “will be no more” (vv. 9–10, 20). Divine Sovereignty and Delayed Judgment Psalm 37 never hints that God is absent; His patience restrains immediate judgment to allow repentance (2 Peter 3:9). Verse 33—“the LORD will not leave them in their power”—explains the delay: God’s sovereign oversight sets temporal boundaries on evil while orchestrating ultimate justice. History provides analogues: Pharaoh’s hardened heart (Exodus 9:12) was used to display God’s power, yet judgment fell decisively at the Red Sea—archaeological corroborations include probable collapse debris matching chariot wheels in the Gulf of Aqaba. Eschatological Certainty: The Fate of the Wicked The psalm moves repeatedly from present tension to future resolution. Verse 32 introduces the threat; verses 34–38 resolve it: “Wait for the LORD… He will exalt you to inherit the land” (v. 34). This eschatological pattern culminates in Revelation 20:11–15, where every wicked deed meets the Great White Throne. The resurrection of Christ (1 Corinthians 15:20) supplies empirical down-payment that such judgment is possible; multiple independent first-century testimonies (1 Corinthians 15:3–8; Matthew 28; John 20) confirm the event, answering the skeptic’s demand for evidence that God can and will reverse evil. Implications for the Righteous: Patient Trust Because evil is real but temporary, the righteous are commanded to “fret not” (Psalm 37:1, 8), “trust” (v. 3), “rest” (v. 7), and “do good” (vv. 3, 27). Verse 32 becomes a diagnostic tool: when persecution intensifies, it validates the believer’s alignment with God rather than disproving God’s goodness (John 15:18–20). Behaviorally, persecution often refines character, increasing resilience and prosocial compassion—findings mirrored in contemporary studies on post-traumatic growth among faith communities. The Psalm and the Messianic Pattern of Persecution The ambush motif anticipates the conspiracy against Jesus (Psalm 31:13; Mark 3:6). Luke 23:23 records the crowd’s call to “crucify Him,” perfectly echoing “seek to slay.” Yet the resurrection translates Psalm 37’s promise from temporal deliverance to eternal victory. The empty tomb, verified by hostile witnesses’ silence and the conversion of skeptical James and Saul, is God’s irreversible verdict overruling verse 32’s murderous intent. Philosophical Engagement: Logical and Evidential Problem of Evil Logically, the verse demonstrates that the biblical God is not incompatible with evil’s existence; Scripture explicitly claims both. Evidentially, God’s moral framework transforms evil into evidence for His reality: without an objective standard (Romans 2:14–15), “wicked” and “righteous” lose meaning. Psalm 37:32’s moral categories presuppose a transcendent Lawgiver, solving the meta-ethical component of the problem of evil. Corroboration from Salvation History and Archaeology The psalm’s Davidic attribution is supported by the Tel Dan Stele naming the “House of David” (9th century BC). A historical David increases the psalm’s evidentiary weight. Further, the theme of divine rescue recurs in verifiable episodes: the fall of Sennacherib (2 Kings 19) parallels Isaiah’s prediction; corresponding Assyrian annals admit failure, confirming Scripture’s claim that God thwarted evil designs against Jerusalem. Harmony with New Testament Teaching Jesus cites similar wisdom: “Blessed are you when people… persecute you” (Matthew 5:11). Paul echoes the psalmic assurance: “The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed” (2 Timothy 4:18). Both authors assume Psalm 37’s framework—temporary suffering, certain deliverance—culminating in the new heavens and earth (2 Peter 3:13), fulfilling “inherit the land” (Psalm 37:29). Conclusion: Psalm 37:32 as a Pillar in Biblical Theodicy Psalm 37:32 does not solve the problem of evil in isolation; it locates the problem inside a larger covenantal narrative. Evil’s presence is acknowledged, its moral agency defined, its duration limited, and its defeat assured. The verse thereby undercuts the skeptic’s claim that evil discredits God and simultaneously equips believers to persevere, confident that the same God who overturned the grave will finally “bring forth your righteousness like the dawn” (Psalm 37:6). |
    |