Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
Parallel translations
- WEB Surely goodness and loving kindness shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in Yahweh’s house forever.
- KJV Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.
- NKJV Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.
- NASB Certainly goodness and faithfulness will follow me all the days of my life, And my dwelling will be in the house of the Lord forever.
- NLT Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever.
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
Goodness and steadfast love will pursue the believer all his days, and he will dwell in God's house forever. The psalm ends in confident hope of eternal fellowship with God.
Overview
David is assured that God's goodness and covenant love will follow, even chase after, him throughout life, and that he will dwell in the Lord's house forever. This points beyond the earthly sanctuary to everlasting communion with God. Through Christ this hope is secured, for he has gone to prepare a place so that his people may dwell with God eternally.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Ps 27:4One thing I have asked of the LORD; this is what I desire: to dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and seek Him in His temple.
- 2 Tim 4:18And the Lord will rescue me from every evil action and bring me safely into His heavenly kingdom. To Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
- 2 Cor 5:1Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is dismantled, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.
- Ps 36:7–10How precious is Your loving devotion, O God, that the children of men take refuge in the shadow of Your wings!
- Ps 16:11You have made known to me the path of life; You will fill me with joy in Your presence, with eternal pleasures at Your right hand.
- Ps 73:24–26You guide me with Your counsel, and later receive me in glory.
- 2 Cor 1:10He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and He will deliver us. In Him we have placed our hope that He will yet again deliver us,
- Ps 103:17But from everlasting to everlasting the loving devotion of the LORD extends to those who fear Him, and His righteousness to their children’s children—
- Ps 30:11–12You turned my mourning into dancing; You peeled off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
- Ps 17:15As for me, I will behold Your face in righteousness; when I awake, I will be satisfied in Your presence.
- Phil 1:23I am torn between the two. I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better indeed.
- Ps 21:4He asked You for life, and You granted it—length of days, forever and ever.
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 23:6 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.