Psalm 12 → 37
Reasoning: 7616 Output: 7457 Total: 15073
Argument
Here are ways to argue that Psalm 37 “follows on” from Psalm 12, in the sense that it picks up Psalm 12’s crisis and develops it into counsel, promise, and outcome. I group the links by flow, theme, and shared Hebrew. High‑level flow (problem → divine oracle → instruction and outcome) - Seam from 12:9 to 37:1. Psalm 12 ends with “around (the righteous) the wicked prowl; when vileness is exalted among the sons of man” (סָבִיב רְשָׁעִים יִתְהַלָּכוּן כְּרֻם זֻלּוּת לִבְנֵי אָדָם). Psalm 37 opens by addressing precisely that spectacle of triumphant evildoers: “Do not fret because of evildoers, do not envy workers of injustice” (אַל־תִּתְחַר בַּמְּרֵעִים אַל־תְּקַנֵּא בְּעֹשֵׂי עַוְלָה). - Psalm 12 contains an oracle of YHWH in response to oppression (12:6): “Now I will arise … I will set (the oppressed) in safety” (עַתָּה אָקוּם … אָשִׁית בְּיֵשַׁע). Psalm 37 is the extended wisdom exposition of that oracle: trust, wait, and watch; God will act, cut off the wicked, and settle the righteous securely. - Psalm 12 is a communal lament about corrupt speech and social collapse; Psalm 37 is wisdom instruction on living through that very situation without panic—an expected movement in Israelite piety: lament → divine pledge → didactic reassurance. Thematically matched problem/answer pairs - The boast “Who is lord over us?” (מִי אָדוֹן לָנוּ, 12:5) is countered by “Adonai laughs at him, for He sees his day coming” (אֲדֹנָי יִשְׂחַק־לוֹ … יָבֹא יוֹמוֹ, 37:13). Psalm 37 answers Psalm 12’s hubris explicitly and ironically, even echoing the title אֲדֹנָי/אָדוֹן. - Oppression of the poor: “From the plunder of the needy, from the groaning of the poor … I will set him in safety” (מִשֹּׁד עֲנִיִּים מֵאַנְקַת אֶבְיוֹנִים … אָשִׁית בְּיֵשַׁע, 12:6) meets “the wicked draw the sword … to bring down the poor and needy” (לְהַפִּיל עָנִי וְאֶבְיוֹן, 37:14) and concludes with “the salvation of the righteous is from YHWH … He saves them” (וּתְשׁוּעַת צַדִּיקִים מֵיְהוָה … וְיוֹשִׁיעֵם, 37:39–40). The same victims, the same God, the same promised outcome. - Cut off vs. cut off: Psalm 12 prays “May YHWH cut off all smooth lips” (יַכְרֵת יְהוָה …, 12:4). Psalm 37 makes that the refrain of the outcome: “evildoers will be cut off” (יִכָּרֵתוּן, 37:9; cf. 37:22, 34, 38). The petition of Psalm 12 becomes the repeated promise of Psalm 37. - Guarding/preserving: “You, YHWH, will guard them; You will protect us from this generation forever” (אַתָּה־יְהוָה תִּשְׁמְרֵם … לְעוֹלָם, 12:8). Psalm 37 responds: “YHWH loves justice and will not forsake His faithful ones; they are preserved forever” (וְלֹא־יַעֲזֹב אֶת־חֲסִידָיו לְעוֹלָם נִשְׁמָרוּ, 37:28), and “Wait for YHWH and keep His way” (קַוֵּה … וּשְׁמֹר דַּרְכּוֹ, 37:34). Same root שׁמר, same “forever,” now expanded into instruction. - Speech vs. speech, heart vs. heart. Psalm 12 diagnoses the age by its mouth and heart: “They speak falsehood … with smooth lips; with a heart and a heart they speak” (שָׁוְא יְדַבְּרוּ … שְׂפַת חֲלָקוֹת; בְּלֵב וָלֵב, 12:3). Psalm 37 answers with the righteous mouth and heart: “The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom; his tongue speaks justice; the Torah of his God is in his heart” (פִּי־צַדִּיק יֶהְגֶּה חָכְמָה … תּוֹרַת אֱלֹהָיו בְּלִבּוֹ, 37:30–31). The exact lexemes לָשׁוֹן/דִּבֵּר/לֵב reappear but with the opposite moral valence. - Exaltation reversed. Psalm 12 ends: “when vileness is exalted (כְּרֻם זֻלּוּת).” Psalm 37:34 counters with covenantal exaltation: “He will exalt you (וִירוֹמִמְךָ) to inherit the land.” The same root רום shifts from the apparent elevation of baseness to the true elevation of the faithful. Shared lexicon (rarer or weighty items first; identical or near-identical lemmas) - כרת “cut off”: 12:4 יַכְרֵת; 37:9 יִכָּרֵתוּן; 37:22 יִכָּרֵתוּ; 37:34 בְּהִכָּרֵת; 37:38 נִכְרָתָה. This cluster is conspicuous and programmatic. - ישע “save/deliver”: 12:6 בְּיֵשַׁע; 37:39 וּתְשׁוּעַת; 37:40 וְיוֹשִׁיעֵם. Same root, same salvation promised and then fulfilled. - שׁמר “guard/keep”: 12:8 תִּשְׁמְרֵם; 37:28 לְעוֹלָם נִשְׁמָרוּ; 37:34 וּשְׁמֹר דַּרְכּוֹ. The divine guarding becomes both promise and human vocation. - חסיד “faithful one”: 12:2 גָמַר חָסִיד (the חסיד seems to vanish); 37:28 לֹא־יַעֲזֹב … חֲסִידָיו (YHWH will not forsake His חסידים). Direct reversal of 12:2’s crisis. - אמן “faith/faithfulness”: 12:2 אֱמוּנִים “the faithful (people)”; 37:3 אֱמוּנָה “faithfulness” as the quality the righteous “feed” or cultivate. Same root, shifted from absence to practice. - לשון/דבר/שפה vs. לשון/דבר: 12:3–5 fixates on “lips” and “tongue”; 37:30 recasts “tongue” as instrument of justice. - עני/אביון: 12:6 עֲנִיִּים … אֶבְיוֹנִים; 37:14 עָנִי וְאֶבְיוֹן. Same pair of social victims. - רשע/רשעים: closes Ps 12 (12:9) and saturates Ps 37; the adversary is the same. - לֵב “heart”: 12:3 “with a heart and a heart”; 37:4 “desires of your heart,” 37:31 “Torah in his heart.” The heart moves from duplicity to Torah-shaped integrity. - אָדוֹן/אֲדֹנָי: 12:5 “Who is lord (אָדוֹן) over us?” answered by 37:13 “Adonai (אֲדֹנָי) laughs.” Same title set against hubris. - רוּם “to exalt”: 12:9 כְּרֻם; 37:34 וִירוֹמִמְךָ. The verb turns from the rise of baseness to the rise of the faithful. Stylistic and formal continuities - Both are Davidic (לְדָוִד). Psalm 12’s musical rubric (לַמְנַצֵּחַ עַל־הַשְּׁמִינִית) marks a lament; Psalm 37 is a didactic acrostic. That is a common liturgical/literary movement: from lament with oracle (12:6–8) to sapiential instruction that teaches how to live under and wait for that oracle’s fulfillment (37). - Psalm 12 highlights speech ethics; Psalm 37’s wisdom frame resolves that by contrasting the speech of the wicked with the speech of the righteous and grounding it in Torah-in-the-heart. The stylistic focus on mouth/tongue/heart is continuous, but the second psalm turns diagnosis into pedagogy. Covenantal and historical logic - “Inherit the land” (ירשׁ ארץ; 37:9, 11, 22, 29, 34) spells out what “I will set him in safety” (12:6) looks like in Israel’s covenantal world: secure tenure, settled dwelling (שְׁכָן־אֶרֶץ, 37:3; cf. 37:27, 29), and protection from predatory elites (37:14, 21, 32). It turns the generic salvation of Ps 12 into the concrete Deuteronomic promise of stable inheritance. - Social context is the same: slander, boastful speech, and legal perversion (Ps 12) are the standard tools of local oppressors. Psalm 37 addresses the same reality—violent/arrogant men who flourish briefly like green grass, prey on the poor, and manipulate courts (37:6, 14, 32–33)—and explains their end and the righteous response (trust, patience, generosity). How Psalm 37 answers specific lines in Psalm 12 - 12:3–5 (lying lips, proud tongue) → 37:30–31 (the righteous mouth and Torah-shaped heart). - 12:4 (cut off lying lips) → 37:9, 22, 34, 38 (the wicked will be cut off). - 12:5 (“Who is lord over us?”) → 37:13 (Adonai laughs; their day is coming). - 12:6 (rise, save the poor/needy) → 37:14, 39–40 (wicked target the poor; YHWH saves those who take refuge). - 12:7–8 (YHWH’s words are pure; You will guard them forever) → 37:18, 28, 33–34 (YHWH knows the days of the blameless; He will not forsake His faithful; wait for Him and keep His way). In sum: Psalm 37 reads like the promised divine response and the wisdom “how-to” for Psalm 12’s world. It shares key and even relatively weighty lexemes (חסיד; אמן; ישע; כרת; שׁמר; לָשׁוֹן/דִּבֵּר; עָנִי/אֶבְיוֹן; אָדוֹן/אֲדֹנָי; רוּם), pursues the same social problem (triumphant wicked, oppressed poor), and moves the reader from lament and oracle (Psalm 12) to patient trust, ethical speech, Torah-in-heart, and the concrete covenant promise of land and lasting security (Psalm 37).
Evaluation
Score: 6.5
Evaluated at: 2026-01-12T02:35:51 (UTC)
Evaluator model: gpt-5
Evaluator version: v2
Reasoning: 3456 Output: 8303 Total: 11759
Checklist
- Has verse refs: Yes
- Factual error detected: No
- Only generic motifs: No
- Counterargument considered: No
- LXX/MT numbering acknowledged: No
Vocabulary specificity: 3.0 / 10
Accurate, specific correspondences (כרת, ישע, שׁמר; 12:5↔37:13; 12:4↔37:9,22,34,38) and plausible flow from crisis to counsel. Yet lexemes are common, no cross‑psalm editorial marker, and non‑adjacent placement; counterpoints unaddressed.
Prompt
Consider Psalm 12 and Psalm 37 (reproduced below). What arguments could you make to justify that Psalm 37 logically follows on from Psalm 12? Consider stylistic similarities, similarities of form, similarities of vocab or ideas, shared roots (if you're doing the search in Hebrew), connections to sequences of events common in ancient Israelite life, mythology or history shared by the two psalms.
Rarer words are more significant than commoner words. Identical forms are more significant than similar forms. The same word class is more significant than different word classes formed from the same root. Identical roots are more significant than suppletive roots.
Psalm 12:
Psalm 12
1. לַמְנַצֵּ֥חַ
עַֽל־
הַשְּׁמִינִ֗ית
מִזְמ֥וֹר
לְדָוִֽד׃
2. הוֹשִׁ֣יעָה
יְ֭הוָה
כִּי־
גָמַ֣ר
חָסִ֑יד
כִּי־
פַ֥סּוּ
אֱ֝מוּנִ֗ים
מִבְּנֵ֥י
אָדָֽם׃
3. שָׁ֤וְא ׀
יְֽדַבְּרוּ֮
אִ֤ישׁ
אֶת־
רֵ֫עֵ֥הוּ
שְׂפַ֥ת
חֲלָק֑וֹת
בְּלֵ֖ב
וָלֵ֣ב
יְדַבֵּֽרוּ׃
4. יַכְרֵ֣ת
יְ֭הוָה
כָּל־
שִׂפְתֵ֣י
חֲלָק֑וֹת
לָ֝שׁ֗וֹן
מְדַבֶּ֥רֶת
גְּדֹלֽוֹת׃
5. אֲשֶׁ֤ר
אָֽמְר֨וּ ׀
לִלְשֹׁנֵ֣נוּ
נַ֭גְבִּיר
שְׂפָתֵ֣ינוּ
אִתָּ֑נוּ
מִ֖י
אָד֣וֹן
לָֽנוּ׃
6. מִשֹּׁ֥ד
עֲנִיִּים֮
מֵאַנְקַ֢ת
אֶבְי֫וֹנִ֥ים
עַתָּ֣ה
אָ֭קוּם
יֹאמַ֣ר
יְהוָ֑ה
אָשִׁ֥ית
בְּ֝יֵ֗שַׁע
יָפִ֥יחַֽ
לֽוֹ׃
7. אִֽמֲר֣וֹת
יְהוָה֮
אֲמָר֢וֹת
טְהֹ֫ר֥וֹת
כֶּ֣סֶף
צָ֭רוּף
בַּעֲלִ֣יל
לָאָ֑רֶץ
מְ֝זֻקָּ֗ק
שִׁבְעָתָֽיִם׃
8. אַתָּֽה־
יְהוָ֥ה
תִּשְׁמְרֵ֑ם
תִּצְּרֶ֓נּוּ ׀
מִן־
הַדּ֖וֹר
ז֣וּ
לְעוֹלָֽם׃
9. סָבִ֗יב
רְשָׁעִ֥ים
יִתְהַלָּכ֑וּן
כְּרֻ֥ם
זֻ֝לּ֗וּת
לִבְנֵ֥י
אָדָֽם׃
Psalm 37:
Psalm 37
1. לְדָוִ֨ד ׀
אַל־
תִּתְחַ֥ר
בַּמְּרֵעִ֑ים
אַל־
תְּ֝קַנֵּ֗א
בְּעֹשֵׂ֥י
עַוְלָֽה׃
2. כִּ֣י
כֶ֭חָצִיר
מְהֵרָ֣ה
יִמָּ֑לוּ
וּכְיֶ֥רֶק
דֶּ֝֗שֶׁא
יִבּוֹלֽוּן׃
3. בְּטַ֣ח
בַּֽ֭יהוָה
וַעֲשֵׂה־
ט֑וֹב
שְׁכָן־
אֶ֝֗רֶץ
וּרְעֵ֥ה
אֱמוּנָֽה׃
4. וְהִתְעַנַּ֥ג
עַל־
יְהוָ֑ה
וְיִֽתֶּן־
לְ֝ךָ֗
מִשְׁאֲלֹ֥ת
לִבֶּֽךָ׃
5. גּ֣וֹל
עַל־
יְהוָ֣ה
דַּרְכֶּ֑ךָ
וּבְטַ֥ח
עָ֝לָ֗יו
וְה֣וּא
יַעֲשֶֽׂה׃
6. וְהוֹצִ֣יא
כָא֣וֹר
צִדְקֶ֑ךָ
וּ֝מִשְׁפָּטֶ֗ךָ
כַּֽצָּהֳרָֽיִם׃
7. דּ֤וֹם ׀
לַיהוָה֮
וְהִתְח֢וֹלֵ֫ל
ל֥וֹ
אַל־
תִּ֭תְחַר
בְּמַצְלִ֣יחַ
דַּרְכּ֑וֹ
בְּ֝אִ֗ישׁ
עֹשֶׂ֥ה
מְזִמּֽוֹת׃
8. הֶ֣רֶף
מֵ֭אַף
וַעֲזֹ֣ב
חֵמָ֑ה
אַל־
תִּ֝תְחַ֗ר
אַךְ־
לְהָרֵֽעַ׃
9. כִּֽי־
מְ֭רֵעִים
יִכָּרֵת֑וּן
וְקֹוֵ֥י
יְ֝הוָ֗ה
הֵ֣מָּה
יִֽירְשׁוּ־
אָֽרֶץ׃
10. וְע֣וֹד
מְ֭עַט
וְאֵ֣ין
רָשָׁ֑ע
וְהִתְבּוֹנַ֖נְתָּ
עַל־
מְקוֹמ֣וֹ
וְאֵינֶֽנּוּ׃
11. וַעֲנָוִ֥ים
יִֽירְשׁוּ־
אָ֑רֶץ
וְ֝הִתְעַנְּג֗וּ
עַל־
רֹ֥ב
שָׁלֽוֹם׃
12. זֹמֵ֣ם
רָ֭שָׁע
לַצַּדִּ֑יק
וְחֹרֵ֖ק
עָלָ֣יו
שִׁנָּֽיו׃
13. אֲדֹנָ֥י
יִשְׂחַק־
ל֑וֹ
כִּֽי־
רָ֝אָ֗ה
כִּֽי־
יָבֹ֥א
יוֹמֽוֹ׃
14. חֶ֤רֶב ׀
פָּֽתְח֣וּ
רְשָׁעִים֮
וְדָרְכ֢וּ
קַ֫שְׁתָּ֥ם
לְ֭הַפִּיל
עָנִ֣י
וְאֶבְי֑וֹן
לִ֝טְב֗וֹחַ
יִשְׁרֵי־
דָֽרֶךְ׃
15. חַ֭רְבָּם
תָּב֣וֹא
בְלִבָּ֑ם
וְ֝קַשְּׁתוֹתָ֗ם
תִּשָּׁבַֽרְנָה׃
16. טוֹב־
מְ֭עַט
לַצַּדִּ֑יק
מֵ֝הֲמ֗וֹן
רְשָׁעִ֥ים
רַבִּֽים׃
17. כִּ֤י
זְרוֹע֣וֹת
רְ֭שָׁעִים
תִּשָּׁבַ֑רְנָה
וְסוֹמֵ֖ךְ
צַדִּיקִ֣ים
יְהוָֽה׃
18. יוֹדֵ֣עַ
יְ֭הוָה
יְמֵ֣י
תְמִימִ֑ם
וְ֝נַחֲלָתָ֗ם
לְעוֹלָ֥ם
תִּהְיֶֽה׃
19. לֹֽא־
יֵ֭בֹשׁוּ
בְּעֵ֣ת
רָעָ֑ה
וּבִימֵ֖י
רְעָב֣וֹן
יִשְׂבָּֽעוּ׃
20. כִּ֤י
רְשָׁעִ֨ים ׀
יֹאבֵ֗דוּ
וְאֹיְבֵ֣י
יְ֭הוָה
כִּיקַ֣ר
כָּרִ֑ים
כָּל֖וּ
בֶעָשָׁ֣ן
כָּֽלוּ׃
21. לֹוֶ֣ה
רָ֭שָׁע
וְלֹ֣א
יְשַׁלֵּ֑ם
וְ֝צַדִּ֗יק
חוֹנֵ֥ן
וְנוֹתֵֽן׃
22. כִּ֣י
מְ֭בֹרָכָיו
יִ֣ירְשׁוּ
אָ֑רֶץ
וּ֝מְקֻלָּלָ֗יו
יִכָּרֵֽתוּ׃
23. מֵ֭יְהוָה
מִֽצְעֲדֵי־
גֶ֥בֶר
כּוֹנָ֗נוּ
וְדַרְכּ֥וֹ
יֶחְפָּֽץ׃
24. כִּֽי־
יִפֹּ֥ל
לֹֽא־
יוּטָ֑ל
כִּֽי־
יְ֝הוָ֗ה
סוֹמֵ֥ךְ
יָדֽוֹ׃
25. נַ֤עַר ׀
הָיִ֗יתִי
גַּם־
זָ֫קַ֥נְתִּי
וְֽלֹא־
רָ֭אִיתִי
צַדִּ֣יק
נֶעֱזָ֑ב
וְ֝זַרְע֗וֹ
מְבַקֶּשׁ־
לָֽחֶם׃
26. כָּל־
הַ֭יּוֹם
חוֹנֵ֣ן
וּמַלְוֶ֑ה
וְ֝זַרְע֗וֹ
לִבְרָכָֽה׃
27. ס֣וּר
מֵ֭רָע
וַעֲשֵׂה־
ט֗וֹב
וּשְׁכֹ֥ן
לְעוֹלָֽם׃
28. כִּ֤י
יְהוָ֨ה ׀
אֹ֘הֵ֤ב
מִשְׁפָּ֗ט
וְלֹא־
יַעֲזֹ֣ב
אֶת־
חֲ֭סִידָיו
לְעוֹלָ֣ם
נִשְׁמָ֑רוּ
וְזֶ֖רַע
רְשָׁעִ֣ים
נִכְרָֽת׃
29. צַדִּיקִ֥ים
יִֽירְשׁוּ־
אָ֑רֶץ
וְיִשְׁכְּנ֖וּ
לָעַ֣ד
עָלֶֽיהָ׃
30. פִּֽי־
צַ֭דִּיק
יֶהְגֶּ֣ה
חָכְמָ֑ה
וּ֝לְשׁוֹנ֗וֹ
תְּדַבֵּ֥ר
מִשְׁפָּֽט׃
31. תּוֹרַ֣ת
אֱלֹהָ֣יו
בְּלִבּ֑וֹ
לֹ֖א
תִמְעַ֣ד
אֲשֻׁרָיו׃c
32. צוֹפֶ֣ה
רָ֭שָׁע
לַצַּדִּ֑יק
וּ֝מְבַקֵּ֗שׁ
לַהֲמִיתוֹ׃
33. יְ֭הוָה
לֹא־
יַעַזְבֶ֣נּוּ
בְיָד֑וֹ
וְלֹ֥א
יַ֝רְשִׁיעֶ֗נּוּ
בְּהִשָּׁפְטֽוֹ׃
34. קַוֵּ֤ה
אֶל־
יְהוָ֨ה ׀
וּשְׁמֹ֬ר
דַּרְכּ֗וֹ
וִֽ֭ירוֹמִמְךָ
לָרֶ֣שֶׁת
אָ֑רֶץ
בְּהִכָּרֵ֖ת
רְשָׁעִ֣ים
תִּרְאֶֽה׃
35. רָ֭אִיתִי
רָשָׁ֣ע
עָרִ֑יץ
וּ֝מִתְעָרֶ֗ה
כְּאֶזְרָ֥ח
רַעֲנָֽן׃
36. וַ֭יַּֽעֲבֹר
וְהִנֵּ֣ה
אֵינֶ֑נּוּ
וָֽ֝אֲבַקְשֵׁ֗הוּ
וְלֹ֣א
נִמְצָֽא׃
37. שְׁמָר־
תָּ֭ם
וּרְאֵ֣ה
יָשָׁ֑ר
כִּֽי־
אַחֲרִ֖ית
לְאִ֣ישׁ
שָׁלֽוֹם׃
38. וּֽ֭פֹשְׁעִים
נִשְׁמְד֣וּ
יַחְדָּ֑ו
אַחֲרִ֖ית
רְשָׁעִ֣ים
נִכְרָֽתָה׃
39. וּתְשׁוּעַ֣ת
צַ֭דִּיקִים
מֵיְהוָ֑ה
מָֽ֝עוּזָּ֗ם
בְּעֵ֣ת
צָרָֽה׃
40. וַֽיַּעְזְרֵ֥ם
יְהוָ֗ה
וַֽיְפַלְּ֫טֵ֥ם
יְפַלְּטֵ֣ם
מֵ֭רְשָׁעִים
וְיוֹשִׁיעֵ֑ם
כִּי־
חָ֥סוּ
בֽוֹ׃