ao:eng_webu
Psalms 48
1Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised, in the city of our God, in his holy .
2Beautiful in elevation, the joy of the whole earth, is Zion, on the north sides, the city of the great .
3God has shown himself in her citadels as a refuge.
4For, behold, the assembled themselves, they passed by together.
5They saw it, then they were amazed. They were dismayed. They hurried away.
6Trembling took hold of them there, pain, as of a woman in travail.
7With the east wind, you break the ships of Tarshish.
8As we have heard, so we have seen, in the city of the LORD of Armies, in the city of our God. God will establish it forever. Selah.
9We have thought about your loving kindness, God, in the middle of your temple.
10As is your name, God, so is your praise to the ends of the earth. Your right hand is full of .
11Let Zion be glad! Let the daughters of Judah rejoice because of your judgments.
12Walk about Zion, and go around her. Number its towers.
13Notice her bulwarks. Consider her palaces, that you may tell it to the next generation.
14For this God is our God forever and ever. He will be our guide even to death.
Slow reading
Read Psalms 48 three times
Guided passes through short verse groups: read it whole, watch the words, then pray it back. Phrases to stop on along the way, with deeper explanation held back until you have read the verses yourself.
Ask about this chapter
Have a question about Psalms 48?
Ask anything about this chapter. Every answer names the verses it rests on and links straight to them, highlighted in the reader.
Study together
Questions on Psalms 48
Every comment is tied to a place in the text: a verse, a span of verses, or one section of the study. Ask what you do not understand, and answer others from Scripture.
Sign in to ask a question or answer one. Reading always stays open to everyone.
Questions this passage answers
Who is God?
God is the one living Creator who made everything and depends on nothing, and Scripture answers this question mainly by telling us his character rather than by defining his substance. When God described himself to Moses he said he is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, abundant in loving kindness and truth, and yet will by no means clear the guilty. The New Testament adds that this God is finally known in Jesus Christ, who has made him known.
Who wrote the Bible?
The Bible was written by many human authors over a long period, and Scripture presents itself as God-breathed rather than as human opinion. Some books name their writer, some do not, and honest study says which is which. Paul calls every Scripture God-breathed, and Peter says no prophecy came by the will of man but that people spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit, which is the Bible's own account of how both authors are involved at once.
Can the Bible be trusted?
Scripture claims to be true and invites examination rather than avoiding it. It says God's word is truth and that it stands when everything else fades, and the New Testament writers appeal to eyewitnesses, named places and public events rather than to private experience. Trust in Scripture is finally trust in the God who speaks in it, and the clearest reason a Christian gives for that trust is that Jesus treated these writings as God's own word.
How should I pray?
When the disciples asked this, Jesus answered with a pattern rather than a technique. Pray to your Father, in private, without performance and without needing many words, because he already knows what you need. The prayer he gave begins with God's name, kingdom and will, then asks for bread, forgiveness and protection. Scripture adds that we may bring everything, that the Spirit helps our weakness, and that we can ask with confidence when we ask according to God's will.