Psalm 1

Book One

The Way of the Righteous and the Wicked

1. Blessed is the man[a] 1 who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, 1 nor stands in the way of sinners, 1 nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

2. but his delight is in the law[b] of the Lord, 2 and on his law he meditates day and night.

3. He is like a tree 3 planted by streams of water 3 that yields its fruit in its season, 3 and its leaf does not wither. 3 In all that he does, he prospers.

4. The wicked are not so, 4 but are like chaff that the wind drives away.

5. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, 5 nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;

6. for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, 6 but the way of the wicked will perish.

Footnotes:
a. Psalm 1:1: The singular Hebrew word for man (ish) is used here to portray a representative example of a godly person; see Preface
b. Psalm 1:2: Or instruction