Hay That Is Soon Harvested
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.
PSALM 37:1-2
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Hay That Is Soon Harvested
This is a fine illustration; it is frightening to the hypocrites and comforting to the suffering. How wonderfully [the psalmist] takes us out of our own sight and puts us before the sight of God! Before our own sight the mob of hypocrites grows green, blooms, and increases until it covers the whole world; only they seem to amount to anything, as the green grass covers and adorns the earth. But in God's sight, what are they? Hay that is soon to be harvested. The higher the grass grows, the closer are the scythes and pitchforks. Thus the faster the wicked grow and the higher they soar, the closer is their downfall. Then why should you be angry, since their wickedness and their good fortune are such a brief thing? But you may say: "What am I to do meanwhile? What shall I hold on to until that happens?" Listen to the great promise: Trust in the Lord, and do good; remain in the land, and make your living in faith [Psalm 37:3).
From Four Psalms of Comfort, on Psalm 37 (Luther's Works 14:211-12)
May 12
PSALM 37:1-2
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Hay That Is Soon Harvested
This is a fine illustration; it is frightening to the hypocrites and comforting to the suffering. How wonderfully [the psalmist] takes us out of our own sight and puts us before the sight of God! Before our own sight the mob of hypocrites grows green, blooms, and increases until it covers the whole world; only they seem to amount to anything, as the green grass covers and adorns the earth. But in God's sight, what are they? Hay that is soon to be harvested. The higher the grass grows, the closer are the scythes and pitchforks. Thus the faster the wicked grow and the higher they soar, the closer is their downfall. Then why should you be angry, since their wickedness and their good fortune are such a brief thing? But you may say: "What am I to do meanwhile? What shall I hold on to until that happens?" Listen to the great promise: Trust in the Lord, and do good; remain in the land, and make your living in faith [Psalm 37:3).
From Four Psalms of Comfort, on Psalm 37 (Luther's Works 14:211-12)
May 12
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