to bind their kings with chains and their nobles with shackles of iron,
Parallel translations
- WEB To bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron;
- KJV To bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron;
- NKJV To bind their kings with chains, And their nobles with fetters of iron;
- NASB To bind their kings with chains, And their dignitaries with shackles of iron,
- NLT to bind their kings with shackles and their leaders with iron chains,
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
The image of binding kings and nobles in chains pictures the subjugation of proud earthly powers under God's rule.
Overview
Hostile rulers who set themselves against God are here pictured as defeated and bound, their authority overturned by the Lord through His people. The scene anticipates the ultimate truth that every earthly authority is accountable to God. It points forward to Christ, before whom every knee will bow and to whom all kings and nations will finally be subject (Philippians 2:10-11; Revelation 19:16).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- Josh 12:7And these are the kings of the land that Joshua and the Israelites conquered beyond the Jordan to the west, from Baal-gad in the Valley of Lebanon to Mount Halak, which rises toward Seir (according to the allotments to the tribes of Israel, Joshua gave them as an inheritance
- Josh 10:23–24So they brought the five kings out of the cave—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon.
- Judg 1:6–7As Adoni-bezek fled, they pursued him, seized him, and cut off his thumbs and big toes.
- Job 36:8And if men are bound with chains, caught in cords of affliction,
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 149:8 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
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