Psalm 37 is one of what many call the “Security Psalms,” which ranges from Psalm 32 to Psalm 37. Last week, I shared some thoughts on the phrase found in this psalm, “do not fret.” Now I want to look at the answer to that.

Worry, or fretting, at the most basic level, is a feeling of insecurity. Many people believe that the opposite of worry is contentment, peace, or calmness. I don’t think any of those provide a complete picture of what replaces worry. God tells us not to worry, and he does say that we will receive peace and contentment as a result, but that’s not the basic root of the issue.

What we are called to instead of worry and fear… is trust.

Trust is the opposite of worry. Trust is what we are called to do. Peace and contentment will come as a result. But if we don’t have that trust, that faith, worry will continually overtake us.

Trusting God in the face of difficult circumstances can be very difficult at times. Fortunately, the same psalm that tells us not to worry also tells us how to trust. Psalm 37 gives us five different ways to build and strengthen our trust in the Lord.

Psalms 32-37 are often called the “Security Psalms.” This is a series of psalms of David, written at times in his life when he had to rely on God for his his security, and not on his own efforts.

Our natural inclination when things get crazy is to worry about the outcome. It’s human nature. And although the Bible commands us to avoid it, we find that hard to accomplish most of the time. Worry is ultimately a lack of trust. We see our own inability to control things, and we fret over them, knowing that we can do nothing about it.

Psalm 37 is the final portion of this series of Security Psalms, and is one of the most poignant. In it, David addresses our inclination to worry, and then gives us an alternative.

David was often faced with troubling enemies. He was pursued by Saul before he became king, and faced threats from multiple foreign nations during his reign. He also faced a threat that came from his own son, who attempted to take the kingdom from him in rebellion. David had to rely on God for his sense of security.

In Psalm 37, we can see his trust in God come through clearly.

First, David assures us that the prosperity of our enemies is short lived, and that their fall is self-evident in their own nature. The wicked are their own worst enemy. But in stark contrast, the way of the righteous is secure, because it is established by God, and he provides safety to those who follow him.