A Psalm of the sons of Korah. A song. He has founded His city on the holy mountains.
Parallel translations
- WEB A Psalm by the sons of Korah; a Song. His foundation is in the holy mountains.
- KJV His foundation is in the holy mountains.
- NKJV His foundation is in the holy mountains.
- NASB His foundation is in the holy mountains.
- NLT On the holy mountain stands the city founded by the Lord.
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
God's city has its foundation in the holy mountains of Zion. Zion's stability rests on God Himself.
Overview
Psalm 87 celebrates Zion, the city of God, whose foundation God has laid on His holy hill. The emphasis is on divine establishment rather than human achievement. This city points beyond earthly Jerusalem to the heavenly Zion, the church and city of the living God founded on Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Isa 28:16So this is what the Lord GOD says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; the one who believes will never be shaken.
- Isa 56:7I will bring them to My holy mountain and make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on My altar, for My house will be called a house of prayer for all the nations.”
- Eph 2:20–22built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone.
- Matt 16:18And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.
- Ps 48:1–2A song. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, His holy mountain.
- Isa 2:2–3In the last days the mountain of the house of the LORD will be established as the chief of the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it.
- 1 Cor 3:10–11By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one must be careful how he builds.
- Zech 8:3This is what the LORD says: “I will return to Zion and dwell in Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem will be called the City of Truth, and the mountain of the LORD of Hosts will be called the Holy Mountain.”
- 2 Pet 1:18And we ourselves heard this voice from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain.
- Ps 68:16Why do you gaze in envy, O mountains of many peaks? This is the mountain God chose for His dwelling, where the LORD will surely dwell forever.
- 1 Pet 2:4–8As you come to Him, the living stone, rejected by men but chosen and precious in God’s sight,
- Ps 121:1A song of ascents. I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?
- 2 Chr 3:1Then Solomon began to build the house of the LORD in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the LORD had appeared to his father David. This was the place that David had prepared on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
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 87:1 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.