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Psalm 37:17

For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, but the LORD upholds the righteous.

15Their sword shall enter into their own heart. Their bows shall be broken.
16Better is a little that the righteous has, than the abundance of many wicked.
17For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, but the LORD upholds the righteous.
18The LORD knows the days of the perfect. Their inheritance shall be forever.
19They shall not be disappointed in the time of evil. In the days of famine they shall be satisfied.
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← Psalm 37:16Psalm 37:18 →
Notice

Broken arms are a harsh picture of wicked power brought down, set against YHWH’s support for the righteous when wealth seems to favor evil.

Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.

Where do you see wicked power seeming more secure than the little the righteous have?

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What does being upheld by YHWH suggest about the strength the righteous depend on?

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Connect

Where else Scripture says this

11 passages readers most often link with this verse, and the thread each one shares with it.

This verse's connections, by chapterThe Bible's strongest chapter linksHover or tap a book to trace it
Isaiah 41:10Don’t you be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. Yes, I will help you. Yes, I will uphold you with the …Both passages speak of God upholding his people; Isaiah adds the assurance of his presence and the strength of his right hand.
Psalm 63:8The LORD’s support for the righteous becomes a personal confession in Psalm 63: God’s right hand holds the speaker up.
Psalm 145:14The LORD upholds all who fall, and raises up all those who are bowed down.Both name the LORD as the one who upholds, with Psalm 145 describing his help for those who fall or bow down.
Job 5:12He frustrates the plans of the crafty, so that their hands can’t perform their enterprise.Broken arms and frustrated plans both portray the loss of power to carry out evil.
Isaiah 42:1“Behold, my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights: I have put my Spirit on him. He will bring justice to the nations.The LORD upholds the righteous in the psalm and his chosen servant in Isaiah, where the servant will bring justice.
Psalm 37:24Though he stumble, he shall not fall, for the LORD holds him up with his hand.Both verses describe the LORD’s sustaining help, with verse 24 showing that being upheld can include stumbling.
Psalm 119:116–117Uphold me according to your word, that I may live. Let me not be ashamed of my hope.Psalm 37 declares that the LORD upholds the righteous; Psalm 119 asks for that support according to his word.
Jude 1:24Now to him who is able to keep them from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory in great joy,Both describe divine sustaining power, though Jude speaks of keeping people from stumbling and presenting them faultless before God’s glory.
Job 38:15From the wicked, their light is withheld. The high arm is broken.Both use a broken arm as an image of the wicked losing their strength.
Ezekiel 30:21–25“Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Behold, it has not been bound up, to apply medicines, to put a bandage to bind it, that it may …Both portray power broken through the image of an arm; Ezekiel names Pharaoh and his lost strength to hold a sword.
1 Corinthians 1:8who will also confirm you until the end, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.Both describe divine support for God’s people; Corinthians extends that assurance to being confirmed until the day of Jesus Christ.
Where this verse fits

Injustice and anger. envy and comparison. fear for the future.

What the Bible says about anger →What the Bible says about fear →
One step

Something small to carry out of this verse

Read Psalm 37:16–17 aloud, noting whose strength lasts

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Encouragement

The promise gives no date for the breaking of wicked power. Its certainty rests with God: the strength that harms will fail, and YHWH upholds the righteous.

Now put it in your words.

Start an entry on Psalm 37:17. Write what it stirs. Psalmlog sets your words beside Scripture and gives you one next step. Your first entry is free, no account needed.

Keep goingPsalm 37 · the whole chapter with its connection mapPsalms · every chapterBuild a reading plan through Psalms

Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).