yet he passed away and was no more; though I searched, he could not be found.
Parallel translations
- WEB But he passed away, and behold, he was not. Yes, I sought him, but he could not be found.
- KJV Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was not: yea, I sought him, but he could not be found.
- NKJV Yet he passed away, and behold, he was no more; Indeed I sought him, but he could not be found.
- NASB Then he passed away, and behold, he was no more; I searched for him, but he could not be found.
- NLT But when I looked again, they were gone! Though I searched for them, I could not find them!
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Yet the wicked man passed away and could not be found when sought. His seeming permanence vanished without a trace.
Overview
Continuing his testimony, David notes that the once-flourishing wicked man simply 'was not'; he disappeared so completely that he could not be located. The contrast with v.35 drives home the brevity of ungodly success. This sober reality assures the righteous that the apparent triumph of evil is temporary, and that lasting hope belongs to those rooted in God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Ps 37:10Yet a little while, and the wicked will be no more; though you look for them, they will not be found.
- Acts 12:22–23And they began to shout, “This is the voice of a god, not a man!”
- Exod 15:19For when Pharaoh’s horses, chariots, and horsemen went into the sea, the LORD brought the waters of the sea back over them. But the Israelites walked through the sea on dry ground.
- Isa 10:16–19Therefore the Lord GOD of Hosts will send a wasting disease among Assyria’s stout warriors, and under his pomp will be kindled a fire like a burning flame.
- Isa 10:33–34Behold, the Lord GOD of Hosts will lop off the branches with terrifying power. The tall trees will be cut down, the lofty ones will be felled.
- Job 20:5–29the triumph of the wicked has been brief and the joy of the godless momentary?
- Exod 15:9–10The enemy declared, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake. I will divide the spoils; I will gorge myself on them. I will draw my sword; my hand will destroy them.’
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 37:36 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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