Psalms 1:4 (DBY)

Passage

The wicked are not so; but are as the chaff which the wind driveth away.

Nearby Context

Psalms 1:2 But his delight is in Jehovah's law, and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

Psalms 1:3 And he [is] as a tree planted by brooks of water, which giveth its fruit in its season, and whose leaf fadeth not; and all that he doeth prospereth.

Psalms 1:4 The wicked are not so; but are as the chaff which the wind driveth away.

Psalms 1:5 Therefore the wicked shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

Psalms 1:6 For Jehovah knoweth the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked shall perish.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "wicked", "chaff", "wind", "driveth", and "away". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "wicked" and "chaff", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "And he is as a tree planted..." into verse 5's "Therefore the wicked shall not stand in...", so "wicked" and "chaff" belong inside that flow. In Psalms context, the local focus is worship, trust, the LORD's kingship, and covenant mercy.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "wicked" and "chaff" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.