By them shall the fowls of the heaven have their habitation, which sing among the branches.
Parallel translations
- WEB The birds of the sky nest by them. They sing among the branches.
- BSB The birds of the air nest beside the springs; they sing among the branches.
- NKJV By them the birds of the heavens have their home; They sing among the branches.
- NASB The birds of the sky dwell beside them; They lift up their voices from among the branches.
- NLT The birds nest beside the streams and sing among the branches of the trees.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Beside these waters the birds nest and sing among the branches. God's provision fills creation with beauty and song.
Overview
Around the streams, birds make their homes and fill the air with music. The detail shows that God's care produces not only survival but delight. Such ordered beauty testifies to the Creator whose works declare His glory and goodness in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Ps 50:11I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine.
- Ps 148:10Beasts, and all cattle; creeping things, and flying fowl:
- Ps 104:16–17The trees of the LORD are full of sap; the cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted;
- Ps 147:9He giveth to the beast his food, and to the young ravens which cry.
- Matt 6:26Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
- Ps 84:3Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God.
- Matt 8:20And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 104:12 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.