The Nugget:
Psa 34:21 Evil shall slay the wicked: and they that hate the righteous shall be desolate. (KJV)
Psa 34:21 Villainy hastes to its own undoing; the enemies of innocence will bear their punishment. (Knox translation)
Psa 34:21 The death of sinners is evil: and they that hate righteousness will go wrong. (LXX., Brenton translation)
Psa 34:21 (34:22) The death of the wicked is very evil: and they that hate the just shall be guilty. (DRB, Douay-Rheims Bible)
Psa 34:21 Evil shall slay the wicked, and they that hate the righteous shall be destroyed. (Lamsa translation)
Psa 34:21 Evil doth put to death the wicked, And those hating the righteous are desolate. (YLT, Young’s Literal Translation)
Psa 34:21 Evil will slay the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will incur guilt. (LEB, Lexham English Bible)
Psa 34:21 Evil people self-destruct; those who hate the godly are punished. (NET Bible)
Psa 34:21 But the wicked commit slow suicide. For they hate and persecute the lovers of God. Make no mistake about it, God will hold them guilty and punish them; they will pay the penalty! (TPT, The Passion Translation)
Psa 34:21 Evil shall slay the wicked; And they that hate the righteous shall be condemned. (ASV, American Standard Version)
Psa 34:21 Evil will kill the wicked; those who hate the righteous will be punished. (GNB, Good News Bible)
Psa 34:21 Evil will kill wicked people, and those who hate righteous people will be condemned. (GW, God’s Word translation)
Psa 34:21 Evil will put an end to the sinner, and those who are haters of righteousness will come to destruction. (BBE, Bible in Basic English)
Psa 34:21 But troubles will kill the wicked. The enemies of those who live right will all be punished. (ERV, Easy to Read Version)
Psa 34:21 Wicked people are killed by their own evil deeds, and if you hate God’s people you will be punished. (CEV, Contemporary English Version)
My Comment:
I have found, in the past, that the subjects of Psalm 34:21 are not popular with many Christians. But God’s Word is very clear about the fate of the wicked and the fate of unbelievers in this life. I had a geometry teacher when I was a student at Cass Technical High School in Detroit. He often quoted Proverbs 13:15, “The way of transgressors is hard,” as he paced around the room keeping an eye on the work we were doing. In one home Bible study some became quite upset when our studies led us to Isaiah 66:24. There are some unpleasant warnings in the Bible. It is best if we heed them!
Dig deeper into the subjects mentioned in Psalm 34:19 by reading and studying the cross references shared below from the Ultimate Cross Reference Treasury. I will add additional cross references here that are not given there.
Psalms 34:21
Evil shall slay. Psa 5:10; Psa 37:30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40; Psa 55:23; *Psa 94:23; Psa 140:11; *Psa 145:20, Num 31:8; +**Num 32:23, Est 7:10, Pro 3:31, Isa 3:11, 1Th 2:16, **2Th 1:9.
the wicked. or, a lawless one. Hebrew, rasha’. H7563. Psa 94:13.
they that hate. Psa 21:8; Psa 37:12, 13, 14, 15; Psa 40:15; Psa 86:17; Psa 89:23; Psa 129:5, 1Sa 19:4, 5; 1Sa 31:4, 1Ki 22:8; 1Ki 22:37, 2Ch 18:7, Luk 19:14; Luk 19:27; Luk 19:41, 42, 43, 44, John 7:7; *John 15:18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, +**Rom 15:7, 1Th 2:15, 16, 2Th 1:6, 7, 8, 9.
the righteous. or, the Just One. Bishop Horsley renders, “God shall slay the ungodly, and they that hate the Just One shall be made desolate.” Psa 34:19 note. Psa 97:11 note. Zec 9:9.
desolate. or, guilty. Exo 20:7. Psa 18:39, 40; Psa 20:8, %John 5:24, %Rom 8:1.
Yes, I distinctly remember reading Proverbs 13:15 on a blackboard in my English class
at Cass Tech. I am trying to remember who did the deed. Mr . Smith? LOL.
I may be guilty, Gary Lindell, of having learned something in my geometry class from my Jewish teacher besides geometry. I have never forgotten his use of this Bible verse. I hope some of my students have also remembered some of the Proverbs and Quotations which I shared daily with my classes all the years that I was a teacher.