Psalms 89:8
in Psalms 89O LORD God of Hosts, who is like You? O mighty LORD, Your faithfulness surrounds You.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
O Jehovah God of hosts, Who is a mighty one, like unto thee, O Jehovah? And thy faithfulness is round about thee.
KJV
O Lord God of hosts, who is a strong Lord like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee?
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This verse in Psalms 89
Commentary
11 notes on this verseO Lord God of hosts, who is a strong Lord like unto thee? Or Jehovah, God of Hosts, who is like thee, Mighty Jah. Alexander remarks, that the infinite superiority of God to men and angels is here expressed, or rather indicated, by an accumulation of descriptive titles. Here we have the name which displays his self existence, the title which denotes his dominion over all his creatures, and an adjective which sets forth the power with which he exercises his sovereignty. Yet this great and terrible God has entered into covenant with men!
This site's exposition
The heavens praise Your wonders
on Psalms 89:5-8
The praise here is in the heavens, and the assembly and the council are of the holy ones. Heavenly beings in verse 6 renders bene elim, sons of God, and none of them can be compared with the LORD. Verse 8 names Him God of Hosts, with faithfulness around Him.
This site's exposition
O mighty LORD
Albert Barnes noted that the name behind mighty LORD is Yah, a short form of the divine name found in only a few places. Adam Clarke pictured God's faithfulness standing round His throne like servants waiting on a king. The next verses prove it from creation.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
"O Lord God of Hosts, who is like unto Thee? Thy truth, most mighty Lord, is on every side" [Psalm 89:8]. Great is Thy power Thou hast made Heaven and earth, and all things that in them are: but greater still is thy loving-kindness, which has shown forth Thy truth to all around Thee. For if Thou hadst been preached only on the spot where Thou didst deign to be born, to suffer, to rise again, to ascend; the truth of that promise of God would have been fulfilled, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers: but the promise, "that the Gentiles may glorify God for His mercy," [Romans 15:9] would not have been fulfilled, had not that truth been explained, and diffused to those around Thee from the spot where Thou didst deign to appear. On that spot Thou didst thunder out of Thy own cloud: but to scatter rain upon the Gentiles round about, Thou hast sent other clouds. Truly in Thy power hast Thou fulfilled what Thou hast said, "Hereafter shall ye see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of Heaven." [Matthew 26:64]
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
): Who is a strong Lord like unto thee? No angel, no earthly potentate, whatsoever, is comparable to God, or has an arm like him, or can thunder with a voice like him.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
O Lord God of hosts,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
To illustrate His power and faithfulness examples are cited from history. His control of the sea (the most mighty and unstable object in nature), and of Egypt (Ps 87:4), the first great foe of Israel (subjected to utter helplessness from pride and insolence), are specimens.
O Lord God of hosts, who is a strong Lord like unto thee? Or Jehovah, God of Hosts, who is like thee, Mighty Jah. Alexander remarks, that the infinite superiority of God to men and angels is here expressed, or rather indicated, by an accumulation of descriptive titles. Here we have the name which displays his self existence, the title which denotes his dominion over all his creatures, and an adjective which sets forth the power with which he exercises his sovereignty. Yet this great and terrible God has entered into covenant with men! Who would not reverence him with deepest love? Or to thy faithfulness round about thee. He dwells in faithfulness; it is said to be the girdle of the loins of his only begotten Son, who is the express image of his person. None in all creation is faithful as he is; even his angels might prove faithless if he left them to themselves, but he cannot "lie unto David", or forget to keep his oath. Men often fail in truth because their power is limited, and then they find it easier to break their word than to keep it; but the strong Jehovah is equal to all his engagements, and will assuredly keep them. Unrivalled might and unparalleled truth are wedded in the character of Jehovah. Blessed be his name that it is so.
3 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
O Lord God of hosts - Thou who hast all armies at thy command, and canst serve thyself by every part of thy creation, whether animate or inanimate. Who is a strong Lord - See Psa 89:6. Thy faithfulness round about thee? - Or, more properly, thy faithfulness is round about thee. Thou still keepest thy promises in view. God’s truth leads him to fulfill his promises: they stand round his throne as the faithful servants of an eastern monarch stand round their master, waiting for the moment of their dismission to perform his will.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
O Lord God of hosts - See the notes at Isa 1:9; Psa 24:10. God, commanding the armies of heaven; leading forth the stars; controlling all forces - all powers. Who is a strong Lord like unto thee? - The original word here rendered “Lord” is יה Yâhh, or Jah. This is one of the few places where that word occurs, except in the compounding of words. It is an abbreviation of the name Yahweh, and has the same signification. See the notes at Psa 68:4. The meaning is, that there was no one who in respect to power could be compared with Yahweh. Or to thy faithfulness round about thee? - Rather, “thy faithfulness is round about thee.” That is, It attends thee at all times; it is always with thee; it is a part of thy very nature. To all round about thee, thou art faithful; wherever God is - and he is everywhere - there is faithfulness. He never changes; and people and angels may always trust in him. The psalmist then proceeds to illustrate the greatness of his power, and of his faithfulness, in the works of creation. The design of these illustrations, doubtless, is to keep before the mind the idea of the divine faithfulness as shown in the works of nature, and then to apply this to the covenant which had been made with David. The idea is, that he who is so faithful in nature will be the same in grace; that he who had shown such unchangeableness in the works of creation might be expected to show the like in respect to the promises which he had made.
Modern Voices1 voice
A commentator
Michael S. Heiser"Response to Dr. Thomas Howe's Thoughts on The Unseen Realm" (drmsh.com) (2019)
The same council language found in Psalm 82 appears in Psalm 89 (as I noted in the book), and the latter psalm specifies that the council and its sons of God are "in the skies" (the spiritual realm; Psa 89:5-8, noting v. 6 in particular).
The words behind it
9 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| יְהוָ֤ה׀ | yahweh | O Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֱלֹ֘הֵ֤י | ʾelohei | God of | H430 → | 2601 times |
| צְבָא֗וֹת | tzevaot | hosts | H6635 → | 485 times |
| מִֽי־ | mi- | who? | H4310 → | 423 times |
| כָֽמ֖וֹךָ | khamokha | like you | H3644 → | 143 times |
| חֲסִ֥ין׀ | chasin | [is] mighty | H2626 → | |
| יָ֑הּ | yah | O Yahweh | H3050 → | 50 times |
| וֶ֝אֱמֽוּנָתְךָ֗ | veemunatekha | and faithfulness your | H530 → | 49 times |
| סְבִיבוֹתֶֽיךָ׃ | sevivoteikha | [is] around you | H5439 → | 336 times |
יְהוָ֤ה׀O Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֱלֹ֘הֵ֤יGod of
ʾeloheiH430 →2601 times
צְבָא֗וֹתhosts
tzevaotH6635 →485 times
מִֽי־who?
mi-H4310 →423 times
כָֽמ֖וֹךָlike you
khamokhaH3644 →143 times
חֲסִ֥ין׀[is] mighty
chasinH2626 →
יָ֑הּO Yahweh
yahH3050 →50 times
וֶ֝אֱמֽוּנָתְךָ֗and faithfulness your
veemunatekhaH530 →49 times
סְבִיבוֹתֶֽיךָ׃[is] around you
sevivoteikhaH5439 →336 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
Jeremiah 32:17“Oh, Lord GOD! You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too difficult for You!
it leads to
- Luke 1:37
For no word from God will ever fail.”
- Jeremiah 32:27
“Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is anything too difficult for Me?
- Genesis 18:14
Is anything too difficult for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you—in about a year—and Sarah will have a son.”
- Job 42:2
“I know that You can do all things and that no plan of Yours can be thwarted.
- Matthew 19:26
Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
- Luke 1:37
Through
1 Samuel 2:2There is no one holy like the LORD. Indeed, there is no one besides You! And there is no Rock like our God.
it leads to
- 2 Samuel 22:32
For who is God besides the LORD? And who is the Rock except our God?
- Isaiah 44:6
Thus says the LORD, the King and Redeemer of Israel, the LORD of Hosts: “I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God but Me.
- Psalms 86:8
O Lord, there is none like You among the gods, nor any works like Yours.
- 2 Samuel 22:32
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies12
On this verse
About Psalms
This page draws on 10 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 (1832-1869); Augustine of Hippo, On the Psalms; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 4; Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Psalms; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Michael S. Heiser, "Response to Dr. Thomas Howe's Thoughts on The Unseen Realm" (drmsh.com).