BOOK 19 OF 66 · WISDOM & POETRY · KING JAMES BIBLE

Psalms 21

Psalms book home•Chapter 21 of 150•13 verses

Chapter overviewAt a glance + deeper study

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Psalms 21 Overview

The king rejoices in God's strength, receives blessing and life, trusts in the LORD, and looks ahead to judgment on persistent enemies.

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21Chapter

13Verses

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Before you read Psalms 21

Coming from

Psalm 20 centered on prayer for the king before battle. Psalms is an anthology rather than a continuous chronological story, so the connection here is canonical and thematic.

In this chapter

The king rejoices in God's strength, receives blessing and life, trusts in the LORD, and looks ahead to judgment on persistent enemies.

Leads into

Psalm 22 turns to the forsaken sufferer moves from agony to worldwide praise, continuing the Psalter’s arranged movement without requiring that the two psalms describe consecutive historical events.

Key understandingExplore deeper

Psalm 21 belongs to Book I of the Psalter (Psalms 1–41). Psalm 20 prays before battle; Psalm 21 naturally answers with thanksgiving after victory.

Major truths in this chapterExplore deeper

Central truth

Thanksgiving for the king's God-given victory.

Royal truth

In Psalm 21, every human throne is dependent on and accountable to the LORD’s higher kingship.

Thanksgiving truth

In Psalm 21, remembered deliverance should become explicit thanksgiving rather than private relief only.

Connections to the rest of ScriptureExplore deeper

Royal connection

Revelation 19:11-16 presents the final victorious rule of Christ over the nations. This connection helps frame Psalm 21.

Thanksgiving connection

1 Chronicles 16 joins remembered acts of God with public thanksgiving and praise. This connection helps frame Psalm 21.

What is clear, and where care is neededExplore deeper

Keep royal in context

Keep Psalm 21 in its Israelite royal setting, then follow later Scripture where it extends the language to the Messiah.

Keep thanksgiving in context

Do not make the deliverance in Psalm 21 a guaranteed timetable for every believer’s present crisis.

Read Psalms 21 watching for…

king joy.

heart desire.

gold crown and life.

trust in LORD.

enemies found out.

Chapter outline2 sections

1-6The king rejoices in the LORD’s strength, salvation, and blessings 7-13The LORD will find and judge his enemies, and his strength will be praised

To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.The king shall joy in thy strength, O LORD; and in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice!

Thou hast given him his heart's desire, and hast not withholden the request of his lips. Selah.

For thou preventest him with the blessings of goodness: thou settest a crown of pure gold on his head.

He asked life of thee, and thou gavest it him, even length of days for ever and ever.

His glory is great in thy salvation: honour and majesty hast thou laid upon him.

For thou hast made him most blessed for ever: thou hast made him exceeding glad with thy countenance.

For the king trusteth in the LORD, and through the mercy of the most High he shall not be moved.

Thine hand shall find out all thine enemies: thy right hand shall find out those that hate thee.

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.

Their fruit shalt thou destroy from the earth, and their seed from among the children of men.

For they intended evil against thee: they imagined a mischievous device, which they are not able to perform.

Therefore shalt thou make them turn their back, when thou shalt make ready thine arrows upon thy strings against the face of them.

Be thou exalted, LORD, in thine own strength: so will we sing and praise thy power.

STUDY THIS VERSE

Psalms 21:9

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