Praise the LORD, all you nations! Extol Him, all you peoples!
Parallel translations
- WEB Praise Yahweh, all you nations! Extol him, all you peoples!
- KJV O Praise the LORD, all ye nations: praise him, all ye people.
- NKJV Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles! Laud Him, all you peoples!
- NASB Praise the Lord, all nations; Sing His praises, all peoples!
- NLT Praise the Lord, all you nations. Praise him, all you people of the earth.
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
All nations and peoples are called to praise the Lord. It matters because God's worship is meant for the whole world, not Israel alone.
Overview
The shortest psalm summons every nation to praise Yahweh, anticipating the global scope of his salvation. Paul cites this verse as proof that the Gentiles were always meant to glorify God (Rom. 15:11). It foreshadows the gospel going to all peoples, gathering worshipers from every tribe and tongue through Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Rev 15:4Who will not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before You, for Your righteous acts have been revealed.”
- Rom 15:11And again: “Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and extol Him, all you peoples.”
- Ps 67:3Let the peoples praise You, O God; let all the peoples praise You.
- Rev 5:9And they sang a new song: “Worthy are You to take the scroll and open its seals, because You were slain, and by Your blood You purchased for God those from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.
- Ps 86:9All the nations You have made will come and bow before You, O Lord, and they will glorify Your name.
- Ps 66:1For the choirmaster. A song. A Psalm. Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth!
- Ps 148:11–14kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth,
- Ps 66:4All the earth bows down to You; they sing praise to You; they sing praise to Your name.” Selah
- Rev 7:9–10After this I looked and saw a multitude too large to count, from every nation and tribe and people and tongue, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and holding palm branches in their hands.
- Isa 24:15–16Therefore glorify the LORD in the east. Extol the name of the LORD, the God of Israel in the islands of the sea.
- Ps 150:6Let everything that has breath praise the LORD! Hallelujah!
- Isa 42:10–12Sing to the LORD a new song—His praise from the ends of the earth—you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, you islands, and all who dwell in them.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
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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 117:1 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.