Psalm 21
לַמְנַצֵּ֗חַ מִזְמ֥וֹר לְדָוִֽד
BSB
After the Battle
(Proverbs 21:1–31)
For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.
1O LORD, the king rejoices in Your strength.
How greatly he exults in Your salvation!
2You have granted his heart’s desire
and have not withheld the request of his lips.
Selah
3For You welcomed him with rich blessings;
You placed on his head a crown of pure gold.
4He asked You for life, and You granted it—
length of days, forever and ever.
5Great is his glory in Your salvation;
You bestow on him splendor and majesty.
6For You grant him blessings forever;
You cheer him with joy in Your presence.
7For the king trusts in the LORD;
through the loving devotion of the Most High,
he will not be shaken.
8Your hand will apprehend all Your enemies;
Your right hand will seize those who hate You.
9You will place them in a fiery furnace
at the time of Your appearing.
In His wrath the LORD will engulf them,
and the fire will consume them.
10You will wipe their descendants from the earth,
and their offspring from the sons of men.
11Though they intend You harm,
the schemes they devise will not prevail.
12For You will put them to flight
when Your bow is trained upon them.
13Be exalted, O LORD, in Your strength;
we will sing and praise Your power.
Introduction
Psalms 21
As the foregoing psalm was a prayer for the king that God would protect and prosper him, so this is a thanksgiving for the success God had blessed him with. Those whom we have prayed for we ought to give thanks for, and particularly for kings, in whose prosperity we share. They are here taught, I. To congratulate him on his victories, and the honour he had achieved (Psa 21:1-6). II. To confide in the power of God for the completing of the ruin of the enemies of his kingdom (Psa 21:7-13). In this there is an eye to Messiah the Prince, and the glory of his kingdom; for to him divers passages in this psalm are more applicable than to David himself.
To the chief musician. A psalm of David.
Cross-references: Ps 21:1 · Ps 21:7