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Psalms 99:1–5

A psalm calls us to exalt YHWH, and twice repeats: he is holy

1YHWH reigns; let the peoples shudder; he who sits upon the cherubim, let the earth tremble.

2YHWH in Zion is great, and exalted is he above all the peoples.

3Let them give thanks to your name, great and fearsome; holy is he.

4And the strength of the king loves justice; you have established uprightness; justice and righteousness in Jacob you have done.

5Exalt YHWH our Elohim, and bow down at the footstool of his feet; holy is he.

Study it word by word

In its context

…

6Moses and Aaron among his priests, and Samuel among those who called on his name; they called to YHWH, and he answered them.

7In the pillar of cloud he spoke to them; they kept his testimonies and the statute that he gave them.

Read all of Psalms 99

Its words in the original

  • יְהוָהyehva· YHWH

    The personal name of the God of Israel, written in Hebrew with four letters, Y-H-W-H, without vowels. Out of reverence Jews stopped pronouncing it and read "Adonai" (Lord), so many Bibles put "the LORD" or "Jehovah". This translation keeps the four letters. The name is related to the verb "to be" (Exodus 3:14-15). He is not a god other than Elohim: "YHWH Elohim" is the same Creator God, called by his name.

  • מָלָךְmalach· reign

    Reign, be king; in the causative form, make someone king.

  • יִרְגְּזוּyirgzu· tremble; be agitated

    Shake, tremble, quiver; be troubled or enraged.

  • עַמִּיםamim· people

    People: a human group joined by kinship, history and destiny. "My people", said by God, is Israel. Also the people as a crowd, or troops.

  • יֹשֵׁבyoshev· sit, dwell

    Sit, sit down; from there stay in a place, live, dwell. In the causative form, settle someone, make to dwell. Also sit as judge or as king.

  • כְּרוּבִיםkeruvim· cherub

    Cherub(im): heavenly beings who in the Bible appear near God's presence and guarding what is holy, such as the way to the tree of life and the place above the ark of the covenant. They are not the "little angels" of paintings.

  • תָּנוּטtanut· quake

    To quake, to shake. It appears only once in the Bible.

  • אָרֶץarets· earth, land

    The earth, in two senses: the whole world in contrast with the heavens, or a particular country or region ("the land of Egypt").

  • צִיּוֹןtsiyon· Zion

    Zion: the fortified hill of Jerusalem that David took from the Jebusites; later the name is used for all Jerusalem and for the temple mount.

  • גָּדוֹלgadol· great

    Great in size, number, age or importance; also "the elder" of two; "high priest" is "great priest".

  • רָםram· be high, lift up

    Be high, rise; in the causative form, lift up, raise, exalt.

  • יוֹדוּyodu· praise, give thanks; confess

    In one form of the verb, praise, give thanks. In another, confess: acknowledge sins or the name of God aloud. Its root sense is to throw.

  • שִׁמְshim· name

    Name. In the Bible a name says who someone is; so it also means fame, renown or reputation.

  • נוֹרָאnora· fear

    Fear. It can be fright before a danger or deep reverence before God ("fear YHWH"). In some forms, be fearsome, awesome.

  • קָדוֹשׁkadosh· holy, Holy One

    Holy: set apart for God, different from what is common. As a noun, "the Holy One" (God) or holy ones.

  • עֹזoz· strength, might

    Strength, power.

  • מֶלֶךְmelech· king

    King: the ruler of a city, a people or a kingdom.

  • מִשְׁפָּטmishpat· justice, judgment

    What is right and the decision that establishes it: the judgment of a judge, someone's right, a rule or ordinance, a custom. "Do righteousness and justice" is to treat each one as is due.

  • אָהֵבahev· love

    Love, have affection for someone: a parent for a child, a husband for a wife, a friend for a friend, a person for God; also like, desire.

  • כּוֹנַנְתָּkonanta· be firm, prepare

    Be firm, be set, be ready; in the causative form, set up, establish, prepare, make ready.

  • מֵישָׁרִיםmesharim· uprightness

    Uprightness: what is straight, level, not crooked. It is said of upright conduct and of judging with justice.

  • צְדָקָהtsedaka· righteousness

    Righteousness: being right with God and acting rightly with others; justice.

  • יַעֲקֹבyaakov· Jacob

    Jacob, the younger son of Isaac and Rebekah, twin brother of Esau and father of the twelve tribes. In Hebrew "Yaakov" sounds like "heel" and "supplant" (Genesis 25:26; 27:36). God later gave him the name Israel; the name also stands for his descendants, the people of Israel.

  • עָשִׂיתָasita· do, make

    Do, make, in the widest sense: build, produce, carry out, keep (a command), prepare.

  • אֱלֹהֵיelohe· Elohim, God, gods

    The Hebrew word usually translated "God". This translation keeps "Elohim" when it speaks of the one true God, the Creator, the God of Israel. The word ends like a plural, but it does not mean several: for him the verb is singular ("Elohim created"); the plural form expresses greatness. The same word as a common noun names the "gods" of other peoples, and there it is a true plural, translated "gods". It is also used of mighty ones or judges.

  • הִשְׁתַּחֲווּhishtachavu· bow down, worship

    Bow down: bend down to the ground. It was the gesture of respect before someone greater (a king, a visitor) and also the gesture of worshiping God.

  • הֲדֹםhadom· footstool

    Footstool: a low stool on which the feet of someone seated rest. The Bible uses it as an image: the ark, the temple, or the earth is God's "footstool," that is, the place where his throne touches the earth.

  • רַגְלָיraglay· foot

    Foot; the foot of an animal; also a step.

Holiness