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The LORD is God; He has made His light to shine upon us. Bind the festal sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.
Psalms 118:27 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB Yahweh is God, and he has given us light. Bind the sacrifice with cords, even to the horns of the altar.
  • KJV God is the LORD, which hath shewed us light: bind the sacrifice with cords, even unto the horns of the altar.
  • NKJV God is the Lord, And He has given us light; Bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.
  • NASB The Lord is God, and He has given us light; Bind the festival sacrifice to the horns of the altar with cords.
  • NLT The Lord is God, shining upon us. Take the sacrifice and bind it with cords on the altar.

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

Yahweh is God who gives light; bind the sacrifice to the altar. It matters because God's saving light moves his people to grateful sacrifice and worship.

Overview

Acknowledging Yahweh as God who illumines his people, the verse calls for a festal sacrifice at the altar. Light and offering express thanksgiving for deliverance. The light God gives finds its fullness in Christ, the light of the world, and the true sacrifice offered once for all (John 8:12; Heb. 10:10).

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 17

  • Ps 18:28For You, O LORD, light my lamp; my God lights up my darkness.
  • John 8:12Once again, Jesus spoke to the people and said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life.”
  • 1 Pet 2:9But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.
  • Isa 9:2The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death, a light has dawned.
  • Esth 8:16For the Jews it was a time of light and gladness, of joy and honor.
  • Isa 60:1Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.
  • 1 Kgs 18:39When all the people saw this, they fell facedown and said, “The LORD, He is God! The LORD, He is God!”
  • Ps 37:6He will bring forth your righteousness like the dawn, your justice like the noonday sun.
  • Mal 4:2“But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings, and you will go out and leap like calves from the stall.
  • 1 Kgs 8:63–64And Solomon offered as peace offerings to the LORD 22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep. So the king and all the Israelites dedicated the house of the LORD.
  • Exod 38:2He made a horn at each of its four corners, so that the horns and altar were of one piece, and he overlaid the altar with bronze.
  • 1 Kgs 18:21Then Elijah approached all the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow Him. But if Baal is God, follow him.” But the people did not answer a word.
  • Ps 51:18–19In Your good pleasure, cause Zion to prosper; build up the walls of Jerusalem.
  • Exod 27:2Make a horn on each of its four corners, so that the horns are of one piece, and overlay it with bronze.
  • 1 Chr 29:21The next day they offered sacrifices and presented burnt offerings to the LORD: a thousand bulls, a thousand rams, and a thousand lambs, along with their drink offerings, and other sacrifices in abundance for all Israel.
  • Heb 13:15Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise, the fruit of lips that confess His name.
  • Mic 7:9Because I have sinned against Him, I must endure the rage of the LORD, until He argues my case and executes justice for me. He will bring me into the light; I will see His righteousness.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (2)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Psalms videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Psalms 118:27YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on PsalmsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 118:27 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.