TRV
Translation
King James Version
Be thou exalted, LORD, in thine own strength: so will we sing and praise thy power.
American Standard Version
Be thou exalted, O Jehovah, in thy strength: So will we sing and praise thy power.
World English Bible Messianic
Be exalted, LORD, in your strength, so we will sing and praise your power.
Geneva Bible (1599)
Be thou exalted, O Lord, in thy strength: so will we sing and prayse thy power.
Young's Literal Translation
Be Thou exalted, O Jehovah in, Thy strength, We sing and we praise Thy might!
See also
In the KJVVerse 14,205 of 31,102
Study This Verse
Commentary on Psalms 21 verses 7–13
7 ¶ For the king trusteth in the LORD, and through the mercy of the most High he shall not be moved.
8 Thine hand shall find out all thine enemies: thy right hand shall find out those that hate thee.
9 Thou 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.
10 Their fruit shalt thou destroy from the earth, and their seed from among the children of men.
11 For they intended evil against thee: they imagined a mischievous device, which they are not able to perform.
12 Therefore shalt thou make them turn their back, when thou shalt make ready thine arrows upon thy strings against the face of them.
13 Be thou exalted, LORD, in thine own strength: so will we sing and praise thy power.
The psalmist, having taught his people to look back with joy and praise on what God had done for him and them, here teaches them to look forward with faith, and hope, and prayer, upon what God would further do for them: The king rejoices in God (Psa 21:1), and therefore we will be thankful; the king trusteth in God (Psa 21:7), therefore will we be encouraged. The joy and confidence of Christ our King is the ground of all our joy and confidence.
I. They are confident of the stability of David's kingdom. Through the mercy of the Most High, and not through his own merit or strength, he shall not be moved. His prosperous state shall not be disturbed; his faith and hope in God, which are the stay of his spirit, shall not be shaken. The mercy of the Most High (the divine goodness, power, and dominion) is enough to secure our happiness, and therefore our trust in that mercy should be enough to silence all our fears. God being at Christ's right hand in his sufferings (Psa 16:8) and he being at God's right hand in his glory, we may be sure he shall not, he cannot, be moved, but continues ever.
II. They are confident of the destruction of all the impenitent implacable enemies of David's kingdom. The success with which God had blessed David's arms hitherto was an earnest of the rest which God would give him from all his enemies round about, and a type of the total overthrow of all Christ's enemies who would not have him to reign over them. Observe, 1. The description of his enemies. They are such as hate him, Psa 21:8. They hated David because God had set him apart for himself, hated Christ because they hated the light; but both were hated without any just cause, and in both God was hated, Joh 15:23, Joh 15:25. 2. The designs of his enemies (Psa 21:11): They intended evil against thee, and imagined a mischievous device; they pretended to fight against David only, but their enmity was against God himself. Those that aimed to un-king David aimed, in effect, to un-God Jehovah. What is devised and designed against religion, and against the instruments God raises up to support and advance it, is very evil and mischievous, and God takes it as devised and designed against himself and will so reckon for it. (3.) The disappointment of them: "They devise what they are not able to perform," Psa 21:11. Their malice is impotent, and they imagine a vain thing, Psa 2:1. (4.) The discovery of them (Psa 21:8): "Thy hand shall find them out. Though ever so artfully disguised by the pretences and professions of friendship, though mingled with the faithful subjects of this kingdom and hardly to be distinguished from them, though flying from justice and absconding in their close places, yet thy hand shall find them out wherever they are." There is no escaping God's avenging eye, no going out of the reach of his hand; rocks and mountains will be no better shelter at last than fig-leaves were at first. (5.) The destruction of them; it will be an utter destruction (Luk 19:27); they shall be swallowed up and devoured, Psa 21:9. Hell, the portion of all Christ's enemies, is the complete misery both of body and soul. Their fruit and their seed shall be destroyed, Psa 21:10. The enemies of God's kingdom, in every age, shall fall under the same doom, and the whole generation of them will at last be rooted out, and all opposing rule, principality, and power, shall be put down. The arrows of God's wrath shall confound them and put them to flight, being levelled at the face of them, Psa 21:12. That will be the lot of daring enemies that face God. The fire of God's wrath will consume them (Psa 21:9); they shall not only be cast into a furnace of fire (Mat 13:42), but he shall make them themselves as a fiery oven or furnace; they shall be their own tormentors; the reflections and terrors of their own consciences will be their hell. Those that might have had Christ to rule and save them, but rejected him and fought against him, shall find that even the remembrance of that will be enough to make them, to eternity, a fiery oven to themselves: it is the worm that dies not.
III. In this confidence they beg of God that he would still appear for his anointed (Psa 21:13), that he would act for him in his own strength, by the immediate operations of his power as Lord of hosts and Father of spirits, making little use of means and instruments. And, 1. Hereby he would exalt himself and glorify his own name. "We have but little strength, and are not so active for thee as we should be, which is our shame; Lord, take the work into thy own hands, do it, without us, and it will be thy glory." 2. Hereupon they would exalt him: "So will we sing, and praise thy power, the more triumphantly." The less God has of our service when a deliverance is in the working the more he must have of our praises when it is wrought without us.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 7–13. Public domain.
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Diodorus of TarsusAD 390
COMMENTARY ON PSALM 21
Exalted though you are, then, you are shown to be more exalted through your power and in outdoing all the arrogant, as by inflicting the blow on them from on high. For this reason we shall not cease singing your praises always.
Augustine of HippoAD 430
Exposition on Psalm 21
"Be Thou exalted, O Lord, in Your strength" [Psalm 21:13]. Be Thou, Lord, whom in humiliation they did not discern, exalted in Your strength, which they thought weakness. "We will sing and praise Your power." In heart and in deed we will celebrate and make known Your marvels.
Theodoret of CyrusAD 458
COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS 21:8
Not for being lowly is God exalted, nor does he receive what he does not possess; instead, what he possesses he reveals … your exaltation is revealed in your ineffable power, which we shall continue to celebrate and sing, recounting your marvelous works.
CassiodorusAD 585
EXPLANATION OF THE PSALMS 21:14
To sing means to proclaim the words of the Lord with the mouth. To make music on the harp means to fulfill the divine commands faithfully through good works.
Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
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SUMMARY
Psalm 21:13 serves as a climactic declaration of praise and a fervent prayer, acknowledging God's supreme, inherent strength as the sole source of victory, blessing, and all effective power. It is a profound petition for the Lord to manifest His divine might in a way that is undeniably evident, coupled with a resolute commitment from the community to respond to such a display with joyful song, worship, and adoration, thereby affirming His ultimate sovereignty over all creation and human affairs.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Psalm 21:13 masterfully employs several literary devices to convey its powerful message. The opening phrase, "Be thou exalted, LORD, in thine own strength," utilizes an Imperative mood, functioning as a fervent prayer or a declarative wish for God to reveal His inherent greatness and manifest His power. This is immediately followed by a clear example of Synthetic Parallelism, where the second line, "[so] will we sing and praise thy power," expands upon or completes the thought of the first. It establishes a direct cause-and-effect relationship: God's self-exaltation through the display of His strength leads directly and inevitably to the people's joyful singing and praising of His demonstrated power. Furthermore, the psalm, in its broader context, implicitly uses Antithesis by contrasting human reliance on "chariots and horses" with the profound trust placed in "the name of the LORD our God" (Psalm 20:7), thereby highlighting God's strength as the sole and true source of victory and security. The use of distinct Hebrew words for "strength" (ʻôz) and "power" (gᵉbûwrâh) also demonstrates a subtle Wordplay or Semantic Nuance, enriching the meaning by distinguishing between God's inherent attribute and its active manifestation.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
This verse encapsulates a profound theological truth: God's glory and exaltation are not contingent upon human recognition or effort, yet His sovereign revelation of His inherent strength inevitably elicits worship from His creation. It teaches that true worship is a spontaneous and committed response to the manifest character and mighty deeds of God. The psalm moves from a specific act of divine intervention (the king's victory) to a universal principle of praise, demonstrating that every display of God's power, whether in grand historical events, the sustained order of creation, or personal providences, should culminate in adoration. This commitment to sing and praise God's power is a recognition that He is the active, sovereign ruler over all, whose might is both intrinsic to His being and effectively demonstrated in the world, demanding and deserving the worship of His people.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Psalm 21:13 offers a timeless blueprint for the believer's response to God's sovereignty and active presence in the world. It calls us to shift our focus from our limitations, the overwhelming challenges we face, or the apparent might of worldly powers, to the boundless, inherent, and self-sufficient strength of the Lord. When we witness God's hand at work—whether in personal deliverance, the unfolding of His purposes in history, the sustained order of creation, or the transformative power of His Word—our natural and proper response should be one of profound worship. This is not merely an emotional outburst but a conscious, communal act of acknowledging His absolute authority and effective power. Living out this verse means cultivating a posture of continuous praise, recognizing that God is always at work, demonstrating His strength, and that our trust should be placed entirely in Him. This reliance on divine power empowers us to face life's uncertainties with courage, faith, and a joyful heart, knowing that our ultimate victory comes from Him alone.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Is this verse a command to God or a prayer?
Answer: Psalm 21:13 functions primarily as a fervent prayer or a declarative petition, rather than a command in the sense of dictating to God. When the psalmist says, "Be thou exalted, LORD, in thine own strength," it is an earnest plea for God to manifest or display His inherent, supreme power in a way that is evident to all. It expresses a deep longing for God's glory to be revealed and recognized. This public display of His strength then serves as the catalyst for the communal response of worship: "so will we sing and praise thy power." It acknowledges God's sovereignty while expressing the deep desire for His glory to be revealed and celebrated by His people.
What is the difference between "strength" and "power" in this verse?
Answer: The King James Version translates two distinct Hebrew words: ʻôz (עֹז, H5797) for "strength" and gᵉbûwrâh (גְּבוּרָה, H1369) for "power." While both terms relate to divine might, they carry different nuances. ʻÔz (strength) refers to God's inherent, unassailable, and formidable might—His intrinsic capacity and vigor. It speaks of His very being as powerful. Gᵉbûwrâh (power), on the other hand, refers to the active demonstration or manifestation of that strength through mighty deeds, acts of valor, and effective actions. So, the verse prays for God to be exalted in His inherent strength (ʻôz), and in response to the demonstrated acts of that strength (gᵉbûwrâh), the people will sing and praise. This distinction highlights both God's essential nature and His active, powerful engagement in the world, as seen in His mighty works throughout salvation history, from the parting of the Red Sea in Exodus 15 to the ultimate victory over sin and death.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Psalm 21:13 finds its ultimate and most profound fulfillment in the person and work of Jesus Christ. The prayer for God to be "exalted... in thine own strength" culminates in the glorious exaltation of the Son, through whom the Father's strength and power are perfectly and redemptively revealed. Christ's entire life, His miraculous deeds, His authoritative teaching, and especially His triumph over sin and death on the cross and through the resurrection, are the supreme demonstrations of God's gᵉbûwrâh (power). The cross, though appearing as weakness to the world, was in fact the ultimate display of God's strength to redeem humanity, as 1 Corinthians 1:18 profoundly declares. His resurrection unequivocally demonstrated God's power over death and the grave, leading to His glorious ascension and exaltation to the right hand of the Father, where "every knee should bow... and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Philippians 2:9-11). Thus, the communal "we will sing and praise thy power" becomes the universal song of the redeemed, who worship the Lamb of God for His decisive victory and the power by which He accomplished salvation, a praise that echoes throughout eternity in Revelation 5:12.