Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols: worship him, all ye gods.
Parallel translations
- WEB Let all them be shamed who serve engraved images, who boast in their idols. Worship him, all you gods!
- BSB All worshipers of images are put to shame—those who boast in idols. Worship Him, all you gods!
- NKJV Let all be put to shame who serve carved images, Who boast of idols. Worship Him, all you gods.
- NASB ¶May all those be ashamed who serve carved images, Who boast in idols; Worship Him, all you gods.
- NLT Those who worship idols are disgraced— all who brag about their worthless gods— for every god must bow to him.
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
Idolaters are put to shame, and the LORD alone is to be worshiped. Every false god must bow before Him.
Overview
The psalm contrasts the futility of idol worship with the supremacy of the true God, declaring shame on those who trust carved images. The call for 'all you gods' to worship Him affirms God's sovereignty over every supposed power. Hebrews 1:6 applies this verse to Christ, summoning the angels to worship the Son, underscoring His full deity.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Jer 10:14Every man is brutish in his knowledge: every founder is confounded by the graven image: for his molten image is falsehood, and there is no breath in them.
- Heb 1:6And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.
- Isa 42:17They shall be turned back, they shall be greatly ashamed, that trust in graven images, that say to the molten images, Ye are our gods.
- Lev 26:1Ye shall make you no idols nor graven image, neither rear you up a standing image, neither shall ye set up any image of stone in your land, to bow down unto it: for I am the LORD your God.
- Rev 5:11–14And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;
- Isa 44:9–11They that make a graven image are all of them vanity; and their delectable things shall not profit; and they are their own witnesses; they see not, nor know; that they may be ashamed.
- Exod 20:4Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
- Isa 41:29Behold, they are all vanity; their works are nothing: their molten images are wind and confusion.
- 2 Chr 3:13The wings of these cherubims spread themselves forth twenty cubits: and they stood on their feet, and their faces were inward.
- Isa 37:18–19Of a truth, LORD, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the nations, and their countries,
- Deut 27:15Cursed be the man that maketh any graven or molten image, an abomination unto the LORD, the work of the hands of the craftsman, and putteth it in a secret place. And all the people shall answer and say, Amen.
- Exod 25:20And the cherubims shall stretch forth their wings on high, covering the mercy seat with their wings, and their faces shall look one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubims be.
- Rev 14:8–10And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.
- 1 Pet 1:12Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.
- Deut 5:8Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth:
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 97:7 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.