📖 Psalms — Chapter 48 (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 48:1 RGreat is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holiness.
Psalms 48:2 RBeautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.
Psalms 48:3 RGod is known in her palaces for a refuge.
Psalms 48:4 RFor, lo, the kings were assembled, they passed by together.
Psalms 48:5 They saw it, and so they marvelled; they Rwere troubled, and hasted away.
Psalms 48:6 RFear took hold upon them there, and pain, as of a woman in travail.
Psalms 48:7 Thou Rbreakest the ships of Tarshish with an east wind.
Psalms 48:8 RAs we have heard, so have we seen in the city of the LORD of hosts, in the city of our God: God will establish it for ever. Selah.
Psalms 48:9 We have Rthought of thy lovingkindness, O God, in the midst of thy temple.
Psalms 48:10 RAccording to thy name, O God, so is thy praise unto the ends of the earth: thy right hand is full of righteousness.
Psalms 48:11 Let mount Zion rejoice, let the Rdaughters of Judah be glad, because of thy judgments.
Psalms 48:12 RWalk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof.
Psalms 48:13 RTMark ye well her bulwarks, Tconsider her palaces; that ye may tell it to the generation following.
Psalms 48:14 For Rthis God is our God for ever and ever: he will be our guide even unto death.
📚 Study This Chapter
📖 What We’re Reading
Psalms 48:1–3 — God's city and refuge
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The psalm praises the Lord in his holy city, naming Zion as the city of the great King. Its beauty is linked with God's presence as refuge. The focus is ultimately on God, so admiration of a place remains connected to the Lord whose care gives it significance.
Key Truth: Praise the God who is known as refuge.
Check What You Remember
1. Who is greatly to be praised? (Psalms 48:1)
Find it in Psalms 48:1 (KJV).
2. What mountain is named? (Psalms 48:2)
Find it in Psalms 48:2 (KJV).
3. What is God known as in the palaces? (Psalms 48:3)
Find it in Psalms 48:3 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Psalms 48:4–8 — Remembered deliverance
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
Assembled kings see the city, become troubled, and hurry away. The poem portrays God's protection through sudden fear and the image of shattered ships. What the worshipers previously heard they now testify to having seen, turning received accounts of God's care into communal remembrance.
Key Truth: Remember and testify to God's protecting care.
Check What You Remember
1. Who assembled together? (Psalms 48:4)
Find it in Psalms 48:4 (KJV).
2. What took hold of them? (Psalms 48:6)
Find it in Psalms 48:6 (KJV).
3. What wind breaks the ships of Tarshish? (Psalms 48:7)
Find it in Psalms 48:7 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Psalms 48:9–14 — Tell the next generation
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The worshipers consider God's lovingkindness in the temple, praise his righteousness, and walk about Zion so they can tell the next generation. The final confidence is that this God is their lasting guide. Remembering visible features serves the deeper task of passing on knowledge of God's faithfulness.
Key Truth: Pass on remembrance of God's faithfulness.
Check What You Remember
1. What do they consider in the temple? (Psalms 48:9)
Find it in Psalms 48:9 (KJV).
2. Whom should they tell? (Psalms 48:13)
Find it in Psalms 48:13 (KJV).
3. What will God be even unto death? (Psalms 48:14)
Find it in Psalms 48:14 (KJV).
Related Scripture (KJV)
Psalms 78:4 — God's works are to be told to the generation to come.
This related passage is selected for its connection with this chapter. It is separate from the chapter text.
Reflect and Apply
What account of God's care can you thoughtfully pass on to someone younger?
Advanced Questions and Answers
Study this chapter’s wording, patterns, contrasts, and meaning in greater depth.
1. How is admiration of Zion rooted in God?
2. How do the assembled kings react to what they see?
3. How does seeing relate to received testimony?
4. How do temple remembrance and worldwide praise connect?
5. Why inspect Zion’s towers and palaces?
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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