Psalms 145:12
in Psalms 145to make known to men Your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of Your kingdom.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, And the glory of the majesty of his kingdom.
KJV
To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom.
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This verse in Psalms 145
Commentary
9 notes on this verseTo make known to the sons of men his mighty acts. These glorious deeds ought to be known to all mankind; but yet few reckon such knowledge to be an essential part of education. As the State cannot teach these holy histories the people of God must take care to do it themselves. The work must be done for every age, for men have short memories in reference to their God, and the doings of his power.
This site's exposition
All You have made will give You thanks
on Psalms 145:10-13
The praise comes from everything He has made and from His saints, and it turns to the kingdom. Verse 13 calls the kingdom everlasting and the dominion lasting through all generations. Henry set it against the thrones of earthly princes, which totter.
This site's exposition
to make known to men Your mighty acts
The telling of verse 11 aims at all mankind. Charles Spurgeon observed men carve their heroes' deeds on brass while the LORD's acts are written on sand, washed from memory. Albert Barnes found the ground of the Christian missionary's desire to carry these truths to the ends of the earth.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
"That they may make known to the sons of men Your power, and the glory of the greatness of the beauty of Your kingdom" [Psalm 145:12]. Your saints then commend "the glory of the greatness of the beauty of Your kingdom," the glory of the greatness of its beauty. There is a certain "greatness of the beauty of Your kingdom:" that is, Your kingdom has beauty, and great beauty. Since whatever has beauty, has beauty from You, how great beauty has Your whole kingdom! Let not the kingdom frighten us: it has beauty also, wherewith to delight us. For what is that beauty, which the saints shall hereafter enjoy, to whom it shall be said, "Come, you blessed of My Father, enjoy the kingdom"? [Matthew 25:34] Whence shall they come? Whither shall they come? Behold, brethren, and, if you can, as far as you can, think of the beauty of that kingdom which is to come; whence our prayer says, "Your kingdom come." For that kingdom we desire may come, that kingdom the saints proclaim to be coming. Observe this world: it is beautiful. How beautiful are earth, sea, air, heavens, stars. Do not all these frighten him who considers them? Is not the beauty of them so conspicuous, that it seems as though nothing more beautiful could be found? And here, in this beauty, in this fairness almost unspeakable, here worm and mice and all creeping things of the earth live with you, they live with you in all this beauty. How great is the beauty of that kingdom where none but angels live with You! There is a greatness of a certain beauty; let it be loved before it is seen, that when it is seen, it may be retained.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
), for he has prepared his throne in the heavens, and it is high and lifted up, and surrounded with an innumerable company of angels. The courts of Solomon and Ahasuerus were magnificent; but, compared with the glorious majesty of God's kingdom, they were but as glow-worms to the sun.
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To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts. These glorious deeds ought to be known to all mankind; but yet few reckon such knowledge to be an essential part of education. As the State cannot teach these holy histories the people of God must take care to do it themselves. The work must be done for every age, for men have short memories in reference to their God, and the doings of his power. They inscribe the deeds of their heroes upon brass, but the glorious acts of Jehovah are written upon the sand, and the tide of time washes them from present memory; therefore we must repeat the lesson, and yet again repeat it. The saints are the religious instructors of the race; they ought to be not only the historians of the past, but the bards of the present, whose duty it is to keep the sons of men in memory of the great deeds which the Lord did in the days of their fathers and in the old time before them. Note the contrast between the great deeds of God and the puny sons of Adam, who have even degenerated from their father, though he was as nothing compared with his Maker. And the glorious majesty of his kingdom. What a grand subject! Yet this we are to make known; the publication of it is left to us who bless the Lord. "The glory of the majesty of his reign." What a theme! Jehovah's reign as sovereign Lord of all, his majesty in that dominion, and the glory of that majesty! The threefold subject baffles the most willing mind. How shall we make this known to the sons of men? Let us first labour to know it ourselves, and then let us make it a frequent subject of discourse, so shall men know it from us, the Holy Spirit attending our word.
To make known - They delight to recommend their God and Father to others.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts - To bring other people to understand and to appreciate the evidences of the power of God. A man who sees this himself will wish that others may see it also. This is the foundation of the desire which warms and animates the heart of the Christian missionary - the desire to make the great truths of redemption known as far as possible, even to the ends of the earth. And the glorious majesty of his kingdom - And the glory of the majesty of his reign. They wish to communicate the knowledge of this to those ignorant of it. They themselves see this to be glorious, and they wish that all others may see it also.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
To Make Known (להודיע): And just as they bless and acknowledge among themselves, so they should make known to the sons of men Your mighty acts, which they do not know, and the glorious majesty of Your kingdom.
2 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
Glory (כבוד): In those blessings they shall mention the glory of Your kingdom and Your power, for You are the king over all and the creator of everything, and with Your power and ability, You sustain all creatures.
Thy kingdom (מלכותך): It is not a kingdom of a human being that has an end either in his life or in his death, but the kingdom of the Almighty, may He be blessed, has no end, for His kingdom is the kingdom of all worlds, all times, and repeated in different words.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 3 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| לְהוֹדִ֤יעַ׀ | lehodia' | to make known | H3045 → | 945 times |
| לִבְנֵ֣י | livnei | to [the] children of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| הָ֭אָדָם | haadom | <the> humankind | H120 → | 551 times |
| גְּבוּרֹתָ֑יו | gevurotav | mighty deeds his | H1369 → | 61 times |
| וּ֝כְב֗וֹד | ukhevod | and [the] glory of | H3519 → | 200 times |
| הֲדַ֣ר | hadar | [the] majesty of | H1926 → | 30 times |
| מַלְכוּתֽוֹ׃ | malkhuto | kingdom his | H4438 → | 91 times |
לְהוֹדִ֤יעַ׀to make known
lehodia'H3045 →945 times
לִבְנֵ֣יto [the] children of
livneiH1121 →4930 times
הָ֭אָדָם<the> humankind
haadomH120 →551 times
גְּבוּרֹתָ֑יוmighty deeds his
gevurotavH1369 →61 times
וּ֝כְב֗וֹדand [the] glory of
ukhevodH3519 →200 times
הֲדַ֣ר[the] majesty of
hadarH1926 →30 times
מַלְכוּתֽוֹ׃kingdom his
malkhutoH4438 →91 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
Matthew 28:18Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.
it leads to
- John 3:35
The Father loves the Son and has placed all things in His hands.
- 1 Peter 3:22
who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to Him.
- Matthew 11:27
All things have been entrusted to Me by My Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses…
- Ephesians 1:20–22
which He exerted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly realms,
- Hebrews 2:8
and placed everything under his feet.” When God subjected all things to him, He left nothing outside of his control. Yet at present we do not see everything subject to him.
- John 3:35
Through
Psalms 105:1Give thanks to the LORD, call upon His name; make known His deeds among the nations.
it leads to
- Isaiah 12:4
and on that day you will say: “Give praise to the LORD; proclaim His name! Make His works known among the peoples; declare that His name is exalted.
- Isaiah 12:4
Through
Revelation 12:10And I heard a loud voice in heaven saying: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of His Christ. For the accuser of our…
it leads to
- Luke 22:31
Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift each of you like wheat.
- Zechariah 3:1–2
Then the angel showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, with Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him.
- Luke 22:31
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies4
About Psalms
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Psalms; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Augustine of Hippo, Exposition on Psalm 145; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 7; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.