Psalms 50:4
in Psalms 50He summons the heavens above, and the earth, that He may judge His people:
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
He calleth to the heavens above, And to the earth, that he may judge his people:
KJV
He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people.
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This verse in Psalms 50
Commentary
2 notes on this verseHe shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth. Angels and men, the upper and the lower worlds, are called to witness the solemn scene. The whole creation shall stand in court to testify to the solemnity and the truth of the divine pleading. Both earth beneath and heaven above shall unite in condemning sin; the guilty shall have no appeal, though all are summoned that they may appeal if they dare.
This site's exposition
He summons the heavens above
on Psalms 50:4-6
The heavens above and the earth are summoned as witnesses in a covenant lawsuit, a legal case God brings against His own people. Gather to Me My saints names the ones on trial, the men who made a covenant with God by sacrifice. The heavens proclaim His righteousness, and God Himself is Judge.
The words behind it
8 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| יִקְרָ֣א | yikra' | he summons | H7121 → | 733 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | <to> | H413 → | 5510 times |
| הַשָּׁמַ֣יִם | hashamayim | the heavens | H8064 → | 421 times |
| מֵעָ֑ל | meal | <from> above | H5920 → | |
| וְאֶל־ | veel- | and <to> | H413 → | 5510 times |
| הָ֝אָ֗רֶץ | haaretz | the earth | H776 → | 2504 times |
| לָדִ֥ין | ladin | to judge | H1777 → | 24 times |
| עַמּֽוֹ׃ | amo | people his | H5971 → | 1873 times |
יִקְרָ֣אhe summons
yikra'H7121 →733 times
אֶל־<to>
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
הַשָּׁמַ֣יִםthe heavens
hashamayimH8064 →421 times
מֵעָ֑ל<from> above
mealH5920 →
וְאֶל־and <to>
veel-H413 →5510 times
הָ֝אָ֗רֶץthe earth
haaretzH776 →2504 times
לָדִ֥יןto judge
ladinH1777 →24 times
עַמּֽוֹ׃people his
amoH5971 →1873 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Deuteronomy 4:26I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you this day that you will quickly perish from the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess. You will not live long upon it,…
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 32:1
Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- Jeremiah 22:29
O land, land, land, hear the word of the LORD!
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Deuteronomy 32:1
Through
Deuteronomy 30:19I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. Therefore choose life, so that you and your descendants may live,
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 30:15
See, I have set before you today life and goodness, as well as death and disaster.
- Deuteronomy 11:26
See, today I am setting before you a blessing and a curse—
- Psalms 119:30
I have chosen the way of truth; I have set Your ordinances before me.
- Proverbs 8:36
But he who fails to find me harms himself; all who hate me love death.”
- Deuteronomy 30:15
Through
Deuteronomy 32:1Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 4:26
I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you this day that you will quickly perish from the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess. You will not live long upon it,…
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- Deuteronomy 4:26
Through
Isaiah 1:2Listen, O heavens, and give ear, O earth, for the LORD has spoken: “I have raised children and brought them up, but they have rebelled against Me.
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 30:19
I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. Therefore choose life, so that you and your descendants may live,
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Deuteronomy 30:19
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Psalms
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Psalms; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 2 and Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Psalms.