Psalms 33 KJV
Praise to the Creator
About This Psalm
A celebration of God's character - His word, faithfulness, justice, and love. Pure worship without any request attached.
1ejoice in the LORD, O ye righteous: for praise is comely for the upright.
2 Praise the LORD with harp: sing unto him with the psaltery and an instrument of ten strings.
3 Sing unto him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise.
4 For the word of the LORD is right; and all his works are done in truth.
5 He loveth righteousness and judgment: the earth is full of the goodness of the LORD.
6 By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.
7 He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap: he layeth up the depth in storehouses.
8 Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.
9 For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.
10 The LORD bringeth the counsel of the heathen to nought: he maketh the devices of the people of none effect.
11 The counsel of the LORD standeth for ever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations.
12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.
13 The LORD looketh from heaven; he beholdeth all the sons of men.
14 From the place of his habitation he looketh upon all the inhabitants of the earth.
15 He fashioneth their hearts alike; he considereth all their works.
16 There is no king saved by the multitude of an host: a mighty man is not delivered by much strength.
17 An horse is a vain thing for safety: neither shall he deliver any by his great strength.
18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy;
19 To deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.
20 Our soul waiteth for the LORD: he is our help and our shield.
21 For our heart shall rejoice in him, because we have trusted in his holy name.
22 Let thy mercy, O LORD, be upon us, according as we hope in thee.
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Did You Know?
Psalm 33 moves from universal creation by divine word (v. 6, echoing Genesis yet using 'breath of his mouth') to God's particular election of Israel as 'his own inheritance,' forging a distinctive link between cosmic sovereignty and covenant particularity absent in most creation hymns.
Unlike surrounding Davidic psalms, it bears no superscription in the Masoretic Text, marking it as one of the 'orphan' psalms likely shaped for corporate temple liturgy rather than individual royal authorship.
The dismissal of the horse as 'a vain thing for safety' (v. 17) subverts ancient Near Eastern military ideology that equated chariot power with divine favor, redirecting trust exclusively to Yahweh's 'eye' upon those who fear him.
Verses 13-15 portray God fashioning every human heart individually while observing all deeds from his throne, an image of meticulous providence that later shaped both rabbinic ideas of the yetzer and early Christian doctrines of divine foreknowledge.
The imperative to 'sing unto him a new song' (v. 3) appears here in one of its earliest canonical contexts, framing praise as an act that anticipates eschatological renewal rather than merely repeating past deliverance.