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Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.
Psalms 16:9 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Therefore my heart is glad, and my tongue rejoices. My body shall also dwell in safety.
  • BSB Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will dwell securely.
  • NKJV Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will rest in hope.
  • NASB Therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will dwell securely.
  • NLT No wonder my heart is glad, and I rejoice. My body rests in safety.

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

David's heart is glad and his body rests in safety because of God's presence. It matters because trust in God brings joy and confident hope even concerning the body.

Overview

Flowing from God's nearness, David's heart rejoices and his very flesh dwells in security. His confidence extends beyond the soul to the body's safety and future. Peter applies this to Christ in Acts 2, whose body rested in hope of resurrection, securing the same hope for believers.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 12

  • Acts 2:26Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope:
  • Ps 30:12To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.
  • Ps 57:8Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early.
  • Ps 4:7–8Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased.
  • Ps 108:1O God, my heart is fixed; I will sing and give praise, even with my glory.
  • Job 14:14–15If a man die, shall he live again? all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come.
  • Job 19:26–27And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:
  • 1 Th 4:13–14But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
  • Luke 10:21–22In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight.
  • Isa 26:19Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead.
  • Jas 3:5–9Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!
  • Prov 14:32The wicked is driven away in his wickedness: but the righteous hath hope in his death.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (6)

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 16:9YouTube · 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 16:9 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.