But he passed away, and behold, he was no more; though I sought him, he could not be found.
The faithful see the world in chaos: the godless prosper while the pious suffer, which tempts us to think God either absent or indifferent. This psalm strengthens us against that very temptation by declaring their felicity cursed and fleeting, while God's care for His own never fails, even in calamity.
AI summary
Commenting on Psalm 37:1-40
Yet he passed away. Tree and man both gone, the son of man as surely as the child of the forest. What clean sweeps death makes! And, lo, he was not. To the surprise of all men the great man was gone, his estates sold, his business bankrupt, his house alienated, his name forgotten, and all in a few months. Yea, I sought him, but he could not be found.
The psalmist's conclusion of this sermon (for that is the nature of this poem) is of the same purport with the whole, and inculcates the same things. I. The duty here pressed upon us is still the same (Psa 37:34): Wait on the Lord and keep his way.
Commenting on Psalm 37:34-40