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We have thought of thy lovingkindness, O God, in the midst of thy temple.
Psalms 48:9 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB We have thought about your loving kindness, God, in the middle of your temple.
  • BSB Within Your temple, O God, we contemplate Your loving devotion.
  • NKJV We have thought, O God, on Your lovingkindness, In the midst of Your temple.
  • NASB ¶We have thought over Your goodness, God, In the midst of Your temple.
  • NLT O God, we meditate on your unfailing love as we worship in your Temple.

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

In the temple the people meditate on God's steadfast love. True worship dwells on His covenant faithfulness.

Overview

Gathered in the sanctuary, the worshipers do not merely perform rituals but ponder God's 'loving kindness' (hesed), His committed covenant love. Worship here is reflective and grateful, centered on who God is toward His people. This points forward to the believer's communion with God, now grounded in the once-for-all love displayed at the cross.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 10

  • Ps 26:3For thy lovingkindness is before mine eyes: and I have walked in thy truth.
  • Ps 77:10–14And I said, This is my infirmity: but I will remember the years of the right hand of the most High.
  • Ps 40:10I have not hid thy righteousness within my heart; I have declared thy faithfulness and thy salvation: I have not concealed thy lovingkindness and thy truth from the great congregation.
  • 2 Chr 20:5–13And Jehoshaphat stood in the congregation of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the LORD, before the new court,
  • Ps 63:2–3To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.
  • Luke 22:19–20And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.
  • Ps 104:34My meditation of him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the LORD.
  • Song 1:4Draw me, we will run after thee: the king hath brought me into his chambers: we will be glad and rejoice in thee, we will remember thy love more than wine: the upright love thee.
  • Isa 26:8Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
  • Ps 105:5–6Remember his marvellous works that he hath done; his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth;

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (2)

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 48:9YouTube · 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 48:9 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.