Bible Gateway passage: Psalm 73 - New King James Version (2024)

The Tragedy of the Wicked, and the Blessedness of Trust in God

A Psalm of ^(A)Asaph.

73Truly God is good to Israel,
To such as are pure in heart.
²But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled;
My steps had nearly ^(B)slipped.
^3(C)For I was envious of the boastful,
When I saw the prosperity of the ^(D)wicked.

⁴For there are no ^[a]pangs in their death,
But their strength is firm.
^5(E)They are not in trouble as other men,
Nor are they plagued like other men.
⁶Therefore pride serves as their necklace;
Violence covers them ^(F)like a garment.
^7(G)Their ^[b]eyes bulge with abundance;
They have more than heart could wish.
^8(H)They scoff and speak wickedly concerning oppression;
They ^(I)speak ^[c]loftily.
⁹They set their mouth ^(J)against the heavens,
And their tongue walks through the earth.

¹⁰Therefore his people return here,
^(K)And waters of a full cup are drained by them.
¹¹And they say, ^(L)“How does God know?
And is there knowledge in the Most High?”
¹²Behold, these are the ungodly,
Who are always at ease;
They increase in riches.
¹³Surely I have ^[d]cleansed my heart in ^(M)vain,
And washed my hands in innocence.
¹⁴For all day long I have been plagued,
And chastened every morning.

¹⁵If I had said, “I will speak thus,”
Behold, I would have been untrue to the generation of Your children.
¹⁶When I thought how to understand this,
It was ^[e]too painful for me—
¹⁷Until I went into the sanctuary of God;
Then I understood their ^(N)end.

¹⁸Surely ^(O)You set them in slippery places;
You cast them down to destruction.
¹⁹Oh, how they are brought to desolation, as in a moment!
They are utterly consumed with terrors.
²⁰As a dream when one awakes,
So, Lord, when You awake,
You shall despise their image.

²¹Thus my heart was grieved,
And I was ^[f]vexed in my mind.
^22(P)I was so foolish and ignorant;
I was like a beast before You.
²³Nevertheless I am continually with You;
You hold me by my right hand.
^24(Q)You will guide me with Your counsel,
And afterward receive me to glory.

^25(R)Whom have I in heaven but You?
And there is none upon earth that I desire besides You.
^26(S)My flesh and my heart fail;
But God is the ^[g]strength of my heart and my ^(T)portion forever.

²⁷For indeed, ^(U)those who are far from You shall perish;
You have destroyed all those who ^[h]desert You for harlotry.
²⁸But it is good for me to ^(V)draw near to God;
I have put my trust in the Lord God,
That I may ^(W)declare all Your works.