One who dwells in the shelter of the Most High Will lodge in the shadow of the Almighty.
Parallel translations
- WEB He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
- KJV He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
- BSB He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
- NKJV He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
- NLT Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
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
Those who make their home in God's presence find safe rest under His protection.
Overview
This psalm celebrates the security of trusting God, depicted as the "Most High" and "Almighty." To dwell in His "secret place" is to live in intimate, abiding fellowship and shelter. Such refuge is found fully in Christ, in whom our life is hidden with God (Col. 3:3).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 22
- Ps 32:7You are my hiding place. You will preserve me from trouble. You will surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah.
- Ps 27:5For in the day of trouble he will keep me secretly in his pavilion. In the covert of his tabernacle he will hide me. He will lift me up on a rock.
- Ps 36:7How precious is your loving kindness, God! The children of men take refuge under the shadow of your wings.
- Ps 17:8Keep me as the apple of your eye. Hide me under the shadow of your wings,
- 1 Jn 4:15–16Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God remains in him, and he in God.
- Ps 31:20In the shelter of your presence you will hide them from the plotting of man. You will keep them secretly in a dwelling away from the strife of tongues.
- Isa 25:4For you have been a stronghold to the poor, a stronghold to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat, when the blast of the dreaded ones is like a storm against the wall.
- Ps 61:3–4For you have been a refuge for me, a strong tower from the enemy.
- Ps 121:5Yahweh is your keeper. Yahweh is your shade on your right hand.
- Isa 32:2A man shall be as a hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the storm, as streams of water in a dry place, as the shade of a large rock in a weary land.
- Ps 90:1A Prayer by Moses, the man of God. Lord, you have been our dwelling place for all generations.
- Ps 57:1For the Chief Musician. To the tune of “Do Not Destroy.” A poem by David, when he fled from Saul, in the cave. Be merciful to me, God, be merciful to me, for my soul takes refuge in you. Yes, in the shadow of your wings, I will take refuge, until disaster has passed.
- Lam 4:20The breath of our nostrils, the anointed of Yahweh, was taken in their pits; Of whom we said, Under his shadow we shall live among the nations.
- Ps 52:8But as for me, I am like a green olive tree in God’s house. I trust in God’s loving kindness forever and ever.
- Ps 25:13His soul shall dwell at ease. His offspring shall inherit the land.
- Hos 14:5–6I will be like the dew to Israel. He will blossom like the lily, and send down his roots like Lebanon.
- Isa 4:5–6Yahweh will create over the whole habitation of Mount Zion, and over her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night; for over all the glory will be a canopy.
- Song 2:3As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, his fruit was sweet to my taste.
- Ezek 11:16“Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord Yahweh: “Whereas I have removed them far off among the nations, and whereas I have scattered them among the countries, yet I will be to them a sanctuary for a little while in the countries where they have come.”’
- Judg 9:15“The bramble said to the trees, ‘If in truth you anoint me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shade; and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon.’
- Isa 8:14He will be a sanctuary, but for both houses of Israel, he will be a trap and a snare for the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
- 1 Chr 28:1–21David assembled all the princes of Israel, the princes of the tribes, the captains of the companies who served the king by division, the captains of thousands, the captains of hundreds, and the rulers over all the substance and possessions of the king and of his sons, with the officers and the mighty men, even all the mighty men of valor, to Jerusalem.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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 91:1 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.