Psalms 21 (ASV)

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Chapter Text

21:1 The king shall joy in thy strength, O Jehovah; And in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice!

21:2 Thou hast given him his heart`s desire, And hast not withholden the request of his lips. Selah

21:3 For thou meetest him with the blessings of goodness: Thou settest a crown of fine gold on his head.

21:4 He asked life of thee, thou gavest it him, Even length of days for ever and ever.

21:5 His glory is great in thy salvation: Honor and majesty dost thou lay upon him.

21:6 For thou makest him most blessed for ever: Thou makest him glad with joy in thy presence.

21:7 For the king trusteth in Jehovah; And through the lovingkindness of the Most High he shall not be moved.

21:8 Thy hand will find out all thine enemies; Thy right hand will find out those that hate thee.

21:9 Thou wilt make them as a fiery furnace in the time of thine anger: Jehovah will swallow them up in his wrath, And the fire shall devour them.

21:10 Their fruit wilt thou destroy from the earth, And their seed from among the children of men.

21:11 For they intended evil against thee; They conceived a device which they are not able to perform.

21:12 For thou wilt make them turn their back; Thou wilt make ready with thy bowstrings against their face.

21:13 Be thou exalted, O Jehovah, in thy strength: So will we sing and praise thy power. Psalm 22 For the Chief Musician; set to Aijaleth hash-Shahar. A Psalm of David.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "king", "shall", "strength", "jehovah", "salvation", "greatly", and "rejoice". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "king" and "shall", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The local ASV text gives this verse as the immediate unit, so "king" and "shall" carries the first interpretive weight. In The LORD as Shepherd, the local focus is trust, covenant mercy, guidance, and worship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "king" and "shall" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.