Christianity

Psalms 47King of All the Earth

Summary

Psalm 47 calls all peoples to clap their hands and shout to God, the great King over all the earth, who subdues nations and chooses Israel's heritage. It celebrates God going up with a shout and the sound of the trumpet, and pictures the princes of the peoples gathering as the people of the God of Abraham. It is a psalm of the sons of Korah. Jews recite it before blowing the shofar on Rosh Hashanah.

Key verse

“O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph.”

Psalms 47:1

Themes

Universal Kingship
Joyful Praise
Trumpet Sound
Nations Gathered

O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph.

For the LORD most high is terrible; he is a great King over all the earth.

He shall subdue the people under us, and the nations under our feet.

He shall choose our inheritance for us, the excellency of Jacob whom he loved. Selah.

God is gone up with a shout, the LORD with the sound of a trumpet.

Sing praises to God, sing praises: sing praises unto our King, sing praises.

For God is the King of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding.

God reigneth over the heathen: God sitteth upon the throne of his holiness.

The princes of the people are gathered together, even the people of the God of Abraham: for the shields of the earth belong unto God: he is greatly exalted.

Text: King James Version (1611/1769), public domain.

Across traditions

Judaism
Tehillim 47 in the JPS 1917 Tanakh
In many Jewish communities this psalm is recited seven times before the shofar is sounded on Rosh Hashanah, because of its trumpet imagery and its theme of God's kingship.
Christianity
Acts 1: He Was Taken Up
Christian lectionaries often pair Psalm 47, with its line God is gone up with a shout, with the account of Jesus' ascension in Acts 1.

Questions about Psalms 47

Why is Psalm 47 read on Rosh Hashanah?

Rosh Hashanah celebrates God as King, and Psalm 47:5 mentions the sound of the trumpet. Many communities recite it seven times before the shofar blasts.

What does God is gone up with a shout mean?

Psalm 47:5 likely pictures God ascending his throne, perhaps in a temple procession with the ark. Christians associate the verse with the ascension of Christ.