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Praise Yahweh, Jerusalem! Praise your God, Zion!
Psalms 147:12 · World English Bible
Parallel translations
  • KJV Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem; praise thy God, O Zion.
  • BSB Exalt the LORD, O Jerusalem; praise your God, O Zion!
  • NKJV Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem! Praise your God, O Zion!
  • NASB ¶Praise the Lord, Jerusalem! Praise your God, Zion!
  • NLT Glorify the Lord, O Jerusalem! Praise your God, O Zion!

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

Jerusalem and Zion are summoned to praise their God. God's people are called to worship the One who blesses them.

Overview

The psalm directly calls the covenant city to praise, naming both Jerusalem and Zion. This summons grounds worship in God's gracious dealings with His people. The church, the heavenly Zion, joins this call to praise the God of all blessing (Hebrews 12:22).

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 6

  • Isa 12:6Cry aloud and shout, you inhabitant of Zion; for the Holy One of Israel is great among you!”
  • Isa 52:7How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”
  • Joel 2:23“Be glad then, you children of Zion, and rejoice in Yahweh, your God; for he gives you the former rain in just measure, and he causes the rain to come down for you, the former rain and the latter rain, as before.
  • Ps 146:10Yahweh will reign forever; your God, O Zion, to all generations. Praise Yah!
  • Ps 135:19–21House of Israel, praise Yahweh! House of Aaron, praise Yahweh!
  • Ps 149:2Let Israel rejoice in him who made them. Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.

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 147:12YouTube · 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 147:12 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.