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Psalm 149:4
For the LORD takes pleasure in his people. He crowns the humble with salvation.
2Let Israel rejoice in him who made them. Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.
3Let them praise his name in the dance! Let them sing praises to him with tambourine and harp!
4For the LORD takes pleasure in his people. He crowns the humble with salvation.
5Let the saints rejoice in honor. Let them sing for joy on their beds.
6May the high praises of God be in their mouths, and a two-edged sword in their hand,
Notice
The crown rests on the humble, and the reason for Israel’s praise is personal: YHWH takes pleasure in his people.
Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.
What comes to mind when you read that YHWH takes pleasure in his people?
Write on thisWhere might the image of the humble receiving a crown challenge your view of honor?
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Where else Scripture says this
12 passages readers most often link with this verse, and the thread each one shares with it.
This verse's connections, by chapterThe Bible's strongest chapter linksHover or tap a book to trace it
Zephaniah 3:17The LORD, your God, is among you, a mighty one who will save. He will rejoice over you with joy. He will calm you in his love. He will rejoice over you with …Both passages join God’s delight in his people with his saving action; Zephaniah describes that delight as rejoicing with singing.
Matthew 5:5Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.Both passages link humility or gentleness with blessing: salvation in the psalm, inheritance of the earth in Matthew.
Isaiah 61:1The Lord GOD’s Spirit is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the humble. He has sent me to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim …The humble receive salvation in the psalm and good news in Isaiah, where the LORD sends his anointed messenger.
Psalm 147:11The LORD takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his loving kindness.Both say the LORD takes pleasure in his people, with Psalm 147 naming those who fear him and hope in his loving kindness.
Psalm 35:27Let those who favor my righteous cause shout for joy and be glad. Yes, let them say continually, “May the LORD be magnified, who has pleasure in the prosperity …Both connect joyful praise with the LORD’s pleasure: in his people here, and in his servant’s prosperity in Psalm 35.
1 Peter 3:4but from the hidden person of the heart, in the incorruptible adornment of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in God’s sight.Both connect honor with humility or gentleness: God crowns the humble, and a gentle spirit is precious in his sight.
Isaiah 62:4You will not be called Forsaken any more, nor will your land be called Desolate any more; but you will be called Hephzibah, and your land Beulah; for the LORD …Both declare the LORD’s delight in his people; Isaiah expresses that delight through new names replacing Forsaken and Desolate.
Psalm 132:16I will also clothe her priests with salvation. Her saints will shout aloud for joy.Both portray salvation as something God bestows like an outward honor: a crown for the humble and clothing for priests.
1 Timothy 2:9In the same way, that women also adorn themselves in decent clothing, with modesty and propriety, not with braided hair, gold, pearls, or expensive clothing,The connection is limited to adornment: the psalm describes God crowning the humble, while Paul addresses modest clothing.
Psalm 22:8“He trusts in the LORD. Let him deliver him. Let him rescue him, since he delights in him.”Psalm 22 turns God’s delight and rescue into a taunt; Psalm 149 declares his pleasure and saving action as praise.
James 3:13Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by his good conduct that his deeds are done in gentleness of wisdom.God honors the humble with salvation in the psalm; James describes wise conduct marked by gentleness.
Jeremiah 32:41Yes, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul.”Both join God’s pleasure in his people with action for their good: crowning them with salvation and planting them in the land.
Where this verse fits
Praise and worship. gratitude. envy and comparison.
One step
Something small to carry out of this verse
Encouragement
Humility does not put you beneath God’s notice. YHWH takes pleasure in his people, and the salvation that crowns the humble comes from him.
Now put it in your words.
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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).