Great is the LORD in Zion; He is exalted above all the peoples.
Parallel translations
- WEB Yahweh is great in Zion. He is high above all the peoples.
- KJV The LORD is great in Zion; and he is high above all the people.
- NKJV The Lord is great in Zion, And He is high above all the peoples.
- NASB The Lord is great in Zion, And He is exalted above all the peoples.
- NLT The Lord sits in majesty in Jerusalem, exalted above all the nations.
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
The LORD is great in Zion and exalted over all peoples. His greatness is known where He dwells and extends to all nations.
Overview
God's greatness is centered in Zion, His chosen dwelling among His people, yet it rises above every nation. This balances God's nearness to His covenant people with His supremacy over the whole world. In Christ, God's presence and rule extend from a particular people to all the nations who trust in Him.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Ps 97:9For You, O LORD, are Most High over all the earth; You are exalted far above all gods.
- Isa 14:32What answer will be given to the envoys of that nation? “The LORD has founded Zion, where His afflicted people will find refuge.”
- Isa 12:6Cry out and sing, O citizen of Zion, for great among you is the Holy One of Israel.”
- Dan 4:34–35But at the end of those days I, Nebuchadnezzar, looked up to heaven, and my sanity was restored to me. Then I praised the Most High, and I honored and glorified Him who lives forever: “For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, and His kingdom endures from generation to generation.
- Jas 4:6–7But He gives us more grace. This is why it says: “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”
- Ps 66:7He rules forever by His power; His eyes watch the nations. Do not let the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah
- Heb 12:22–24Instead, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to myriads of angels
- Ps 48:1–3A 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.
- Ps 76:1–2For the choirmaster. With stringed instruments. A Psalm of Asaph. A song. God is known in Judah; His name is great in Israel.
- Ps 113:4The LORD is exalted over all the nations, His glory above the heavens.
- Ps 50:2From Zion, perfect in beauty, God shines forth.
- Rev 14:1–5Then I looked and saw the Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him 144,000 who had His name and His Father’s name written on their foreheads.
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 99:2 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.