Psalms 21:1
in Psalms 21O LORD, the king rejoices in Your strength. How greatly he exults in Your salvation!
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
The king shall joy in thy strength, O Jehovah; And in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice!
KJV
The king shall joy in thy strength, O Lord; and in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice!
⋯
This verse in Psalms 21
Commentary
13 notes on this verseI think that these words had been prophesied by those who had spoken long before David. Since David had learned from the lofty oracles that those words were looking not only at the strength of his own salvation but also that which was going to come forth from his seed, concerning which he said he would rejoice and praise with enthusiasm. Having been assured of those things and the enemies having been thoroughly subjugated with mighty power, to you, God, the author of the victory, he grants the prize of his victory.
This site's exposition
the king rejoices in Your strength
on Psalms 21:1-2
The king's joy is in God's strength and God's salvation, both of them God's gift. Verse 2 reports the answer, his heart's desire granted and the request of his lips not withheld. Spurgeon reads Psalm 20 and this psalm as prayer and thanksgiving.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers3 voices
"O Lord, the King shall rejoice in Your strength" [Psalm 21:1]. O Lord, in Your strength, whereby the Word was made flesh, the Man Christ Jesus shall rejoice. "And shall exult exceedingly in Your salvation." And in that, whereby Thou quickenest all things, shall exult exceedingly.
"O Lord, the King shall rejoice in Your strength" [Psalm 21:1]. O Lord, in Your strength, whereby the Word was made flesh, the Man Christ Jesus shall rejoice. "And shall exult exceedingly in Your salvation." And in that, whereby Thou quickenest all things, shall exult exceedingly.
Our belief that there are two natures in Christ the Lord, one divine and one human, is a matter of salvation. These two natures endure without change in one person for ever. This statement of faith bears frequent repetition, because, when it is frequently heard …
The Medieval Church2 voices
Friends of David also delivered this psalm, as if he were now pleased for the salvation that was born from his seed for the world; this was a glorious crown for him, and length of days and glory and magnificence, and delight and joy and …
Above, in the preceding Psalm, a petition was made for the exaltation of the king: but here, as though heard, he foretells it. The title is "Unto the end, a Psalm of David." This Psalm is therefore divided into two parts. In the first he …
6 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
): " The king rejoices, he uses to rejoice in thy strength, and so do we; what pleases the king pleases us," 2 Sam. iii. Happy the people the character of whose king it is that he makes God's strength his confidence and God's salvation his joy, that is pleased with all the advancements of God's kingdom and trusts God to bear him out in all he does for the service of it.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
The king shall joy in thy strength, O Lord,....
The Nineteenth Century4 voices
"The king shall joy in thy strength, O Lord." Jesus is a Royal Personage. The question, "Art thou a King then?" received a full answer from the Saviour's lips: "Thou sayest that I am a King. To this end was I born, and for this purpose came I into the world, that I might bear witness unto the truth." He is not merely a King, but the King; King over minds and hearts, reigning with a dominion of love, before which all other rule is but mere brute force.
"The king shall joy in thy strength, O Lord." Jesus is a Royal Personage. The question, "Art thou a King then?" received a full answer from the Saviour's lips: "Thou sayest that I am a King. To this end was I born, and for this purpose came I into the world, that I might bear witness unto the truth." He is not merely a King, but the King; King over minds and hearts, reigning with a dominion of love, before which all other rule is but mere brute force. He was proclaimed King even on the cross, for there, indeed, to the eye of faith, he reigned as on a throne, blessing with more than imperial munificence the needy sons of earth. Jesus has wrought out the salvation of his people, but as a man he found his strength in Jehovah his God, to whom he addressed himself in prayer upon the lonely mountain's side, and in the garden's solitary gloom. That strength so abundantly given is here gratefully acknowledged, and made the subject of joy. The Man of Sorrows is now anointed with the oil of gladness above his fellows. Returned in triumph from the overthrow of all his foes, he offers his own rapturous Te Deum in the temple above, and joys in the power of the Lord. Herein let every subject of King Jesus imitate the King; let us lean upon Jehovah's strength, let us joy in it by unstaggering faith, let us exult in it in our thankful songs. Jesus not only has thus rejoiced, but he shall do so as he sees the power of divine grace bringing out from their sinful hiding-places the purchase of his soul's travail; we also shall rejoice more and more as we learn by experience more and more fully the strength of the arm of our covenant God. Our weakness unstrings our harps, but his strength tunes them anew. If we cannot sing a note in honour of our own strength, we can at any rate rejoice in our omnipotent God. "And in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice!"
The king shall joy - מלך משיחא melech Meshicha, “the King Messiah.” - Targum. What a difference between ancient and modern heroes! The former acknowledged all to be of God, because they took care to have their quarrel rightly founded; the latter sing a Te Deum, pro forma, because they well know that their battle is not of the Lord. Their own vicious conduct sufficiently proves that they looked no higher than the arm of human strength. God suffers such for a time, but in the end he confounds and brings them to naught.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
The king shall joy in thy strength - King David, who had achieved the victory which he had desired and prayed for, Psa 20:1-9. This is in the third person, but the reference is doubtless to David himself, and is to be understood as his own language. If it be understood, however, as the language of “the people,” it is still an ascription of praise to God for his favor to their king. It seems better, however, to regard it as the language of David himself. The word ““strength”” here implies that all the success referred to was to be traced to God. It was not by the prowess of a human arm; it was not by the valor or skill of the king himself; it was by the power of God alone. And in thy salvation - In the salvation or deliverance from foes which thou hast granted, and in all that thou doest to save. The language would embrace all that God does to save his people. How greatly shall he rejoice! - Not only does he rejoice now, but he ever will rejoice. It will be to him a constant joy. Salvation, now to us a source of comfort, will always be such; and when we once have evidence that God has interposed to save us, it is accompanied with the confident anticipation that this will continue to be the source of our highest joy forever.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| יְֽהוָ֗ה | yahweh | O Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| בְּעָזְּךָ֥ | beazekha | in strength your | H5797 → | 92 times |
| יִשְׂמַח־ | yismach- | he rejoices | H8055 → | 155 times |
| מֶ֑לֶךְ | melekh | [the] king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| וּ֝בִישׁ֥וּעָתְךָ֗ | uvishuatekha | and in deliverance your | H3444 → | 78 times |
| מַה־ | mah- | how! | H4100 → | 752 times |
| יָּ֥גֶל | yageil | he exults | H1523 → | 45 times |
| מְאֹֽד׃ | meod | exceedingly | H3966 → | 300 times |
יְֽהוָ֗הO Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
בְּעָזְּךָ֥in strength your
beazekhaH5797 →92 times
יִשְׂמַח־he rejoices
yismach-H8055 →155 times
מֶ֑לֶךְ[the] king
melekhH4428 →2525 times
וּ֝בִישׁ֥וּעָתְךָ֗and in deliverance your
uvishuatekhaH3444 →78 times
מַה־how!
mah-H4100 →752 times
יָּ֥גֶלhe exults
yageilH1523 →45 times
מְאֹֽד׃exceedingly
meodH3966 →300 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
Hebrews 12:2Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand…
it leads to
- Micah 7:7
But as for me, I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me.
- 1 Peter 3:18
For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit,
- 1 Peter 2:23–24
When they heaped abuse on Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats, but entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.
- Hebrews 1:3
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His nature, upholding all things by His powerful word. After He had provided purification for sins, He sat down at the…
- Philippians 1:6
being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
- Micah 7:7
Through
Psalms 28:7The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. Therefore my heart rejoices, and I give thanks to Him with my song.
it leads to
- Psalms 30:11–12
You turned my mourning into dancing; You peeled off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
- Psalms 56:3–4
When I am afraid, I put my trust in You.
- Psalms 30:11–12
Through
Psalms 62:7My salvation and my honor rest on God, my strong rock; my refuge is in God.
it leads to
- Psalms 3:3
But You, O LORD, are a shield around me, my glory, and the One who lifts my head.
- Psalms 3:3
About Psalms
This page draws on 12 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Augustine of Hippo, Exposition on Psalm 21; Cassiodorus, EXPLANATION OF THE PSALMS 21:1; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 1; Eusebius of Caesarea, COMMENTARY ON PSALMS 21:2; Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Psalms; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Pseudo-Athanasius, EXPOSITION ON PSALM 21 and Thomas Aquinas, Exposition on the Psalms of David.