📖 Psalms — Chapter 21 (KJV)
Read the complete King James Version chapter below, then explore the passage sections, check what you remember, and keep your private study notes.
Scripture source: Project Gutenberg KJV, ebook 10.
Psalms 21:1 RThe king shall joy in thy strength, O LORD; and in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice!
Psalms 21:2 Thou hast given him his heart’s desire, and hast not withholden the request of his lips. Selah.
Psalms 21:3 For thou Rpreventest him with the blessings of goodness: thou settest a crown of pure gold on his head.
Psalms 21:4 He Rasked life of thee, and thou gavest it him, even length of days for ever and ever.
Psalms 21:5 His Rglory is great in thy salvation: honour and majesty hast thou laid upon him.
Psalms 21:6 For thou hast Tmade him most blessed for ever: thou hast RTmade him exceeding glad with thy countenance.
Psalms 21:7 RFor the king trusteth in the LORD, and through the mercy of the most High he shall not be moved.
Psalms 21:8 Thine hand shall find out all thine enemies: thy right hand shall find out those that hate thee.
Psalms 21:9 RThou shalt make them as a fiery oven in the time of thine anger: the LORD shall swallow them up in his wrath, and the fire shall devour them.
Psalms 21:10 Their fruit shalt thou destroy from the earth, and their seed from among the children of men.
Psalms 21:11 For they intended evil against thee: they Rimagined a mischievous device, which they are not able to perform.
Psalms 21:12 RTherefore Tshalt thou make them turn their Tback, when thou shalt make ready thine arrows upon thy strings against the face of them.
Psalms 21:13 RBe thou exalted, LORD, in thine own strength: so will we sing and praise thy power.
📚 Study This Chapter
📖 What We’re Reading
Psalms 21:1–6 — The king rejoices in God's gifts
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The king celebrates God's strength and salvation, remembering answered prayer, a crown, and life. His honor and gladness are received from God rather than independently achieved. This royal thanksgiving directs attention to the giver behind the blessings instead of treating royal success as self-made.
Key Truth: God's gifts should lead to thankful joy.
Check What You Remember
1. In whose strength does the king joy? (Psalms 21:1)
Find it in Psalms 21:1 (KJV).
2. What is the crown made of? (Psalms 21:3)
Find it in Psalms 21:3 (KJV).
3. What did the king ask for? (Psalms 21:4)
Find it in Psalms 21:4 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Psalms 21:7–10 — Trust and judgment
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The king's stability rests in trust and the mercy of the Most High. The following judgment imagery describes God's defeat of hostile opposition. Read in its royal setting, the passage expresses divine justice and security, not instructions for ordinary readers to harm people they regard as enemies.
Key Truth: Mercy sustains trust under God's righteous rule.
Check What You Remember
1. In whom does the king trust? (Psalms 21:7)
Find it in Psalms 21:7 (KJV).
2. Through whose mercy will he not be moved? (Psalms 21:7)
Find it in Psalms 21:7 (KJV).
3. What fiery image describes judgment? (Psalms 21:9)
Find it in Psalms 21:9 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Psalms 21:11–13 — Failed schemes and praise
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The enemies' harmful plans cannot achieve their purpose. Their retreat leads the community to ask that the Lord be exalted in his own strength. The psalm ends as it began, locating the cause for rejoicing in God rather than in confidence about human power.
Key Truth: Praise belongs to the Lord whose power exceeds hostile schemes.
Check What You Remember
1. What did the enemies intend? (Psalms 21:11)
Find it in Psalms 21:11 (KJV).
2. What can they not perform? (Psalms 21:11)
Find it in Psalms 21:11 (KJV).
3. What will the people praise? (Psalms 21:13)
Find it in Psalms 21:13 (KJV).
Related Scripture (KJV)
Psalms 20:6 — The preceding royal prayer also trusts God's saving strength.
This related passage is selected for its connection with this chapter. It is separate from the chapter text.
Reflect and Apply
What blessing can you name with gratitude while remembering that strength and security ultimately come from God?
Advanced Questions and Answers
Study this chapter’s wording, patterns, contrasts, and meaning in greater depth.
1. How does the opening link the king’s joy and answered prayer?
2. What distinguishes the king’s request from the answer described?
3. How is the king’s stability explained?
4. How do the enemies’ intention and ability differ?
5. What response closes the psalm’s account of deliverance?
Notes
Write what you want to remember, questions to explore, or Scriptures to look up later. Your saved notes are private to your account.
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