Beautiful in loftiness, the joy of all the earth, like the peaks of Zaphon is Mount Zion, the city of the great King.
Parallel translations
- WEB Beautiful in elevation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion, on the north sides, the city of the great King.
- KJV Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.
- NKJV Beautiful in elevation, The joy of the whole earth, Is Mount Zion on the sides of the north, The city of the great King.
- NASB Beautiful in elevation, the joy of the whole earth, Is Mount Zion in the far north, The city of the great King.
- NLT It is high and magnificent; the whole earth rejoices to see it! Mount Zion, the holy mountain, is the city of the great King!
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
Mount Zion is beautiful and the joy of the whole earth, the city of the great King. It matters because God's dwelling place is the source of true joy for all peoples.
Overview
Zion is praised for its beauty and as the joy of all the earth, the city of God the great King. Its splendor lies in being the place of God's presence and rule. This anticipates the new Jerusalem and the reign of Christ, the great King, whose city brings joy to all the redeemed from every nation.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Ps 50:2From Zion, perfect in beauty, God shines forth.
- Matt 5:35or by the earth, for it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
- Lam 2:15All who pass by clap their hands at you in scorn. They hiss and shake their heads at the Daughter of Jerusalem: “Is this the city that was called the perfection of beauty, the joy of all the earth?”
- Heb 12:22Instead, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to myriads of angels
- Ezek 20:6On that day I swore to bring them out of the land of Egypt into a land that I had searched out for them, a land flowing with milk and honey, the glory of all lands.
- Isa 14:13You said in your heart: “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God. I will sit on the mount of assembly, in the far reaches of the north.
- Dan 11:16The invader will do as he pleases, and no one will stand against him. He will establish himself in the Beautiful Land, with destruction in his hand.
- Isa 66:10Be glad for Jerusalem and rejoice over her, all who love her. Rejoice greatly with her, all who mourn over her,
- Ps 47:7–8For God is King of all the earth; sing profound praises to Him.
- Mal 1:14“But cursed is the deceiver who has an acceptable male in his flock and vows to give it, but sacrifices a defective animal to the Lord. For I am a great King,” says the LORD of Hosts, “and My name is to be feared among the nations.
- Dan 8:9From one of these horns a little horn emerged and grew extensively toward the south and the east and toward the Beautiful Land.
- Isa 60:15–20Whereas you have been forsaken and despised, with no one passing through, I will make you an everlasting pride, a joy from age to age.
- Mal 3:12“Then all the nations will call you blessed, for you will be a land of delight,” says the LORD of Hosts.
- Jer 3:19Then I said, ‘How I long to make you My sons and give you a desirable land, the most beautiful inheritance of all the nations!’ I thought you would call Me ‘Father’ and never turn away from following Me.
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 48:2 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.