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Psalm 48:4

For, behold, the kings assembled themselves, they passed by together.

2Beautiful in elevation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion, on the north sides, the city of the great King.
3God has shown himself in her citadels as a refuge.
4For, behold, the kings assembled themselves, they passed by together.
5They saw it, then they were amazed. They were dismayed. They hurried away.
6Trembling took hold of them there, pain, as of a woman in travail.
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← Psalm 48:3Psalm 48:5 →
Notice

The kings move together, a show of united strength that can make the city’s danger feel more immediate, even after God is named its refuge.

Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.

What changes in your reading of the gathered kings when you begin with God as the city’s refuge?

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How does the kings’ shared advance compare with their response in the next two verses?

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Connect

Where else Scripture says this

10 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
Psalm 2:2The kings of the earth take a stand, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his Anointed, saying,Both passages show kings acting together, with Psalm 2 naming their opposition to the LORD and his Anointed.
Revelation 17:12–14The ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour.Both passages depict kings grouped together, though Revelation identifies ten kings whose authority with the beast lasts one hour.
Revelation 20:8–9and he will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to the war, whose number is as …Both passages describe forces gathering together for conflict, though Revelation names deceived nations and Psalm 48 names kings.
2 Samuel 10:6–19When the children of Ammon saw that they had become odious to David, the children of Ammon sent and hired the Syrians of Beth Rehob and the Syrians of Zobah, …Both passages portray strength assembled from several rulers or peoples, with Samuel detailing the troops hired by Ammon.
Isaiah 7:1In the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, went up to …Both accounts show kings advancing together against Jerusalem and failing, with Psalm 48’s surrounding lines describing their retreat.
Psalm 83:2–8For, behold, your enemies are stirred up. Those who hate you have lifted up their heads.Both psalms describe a threatening show of opposition, with Psalm 83 naming the enemies as those who hate God.
Isaiah 29:5–8But the multitude of your foes will be like fine dust, and the multitude of the ruthless ones like chaff that blows away. Yes, it will be in an instant, …Both passages portray threatening forces whose strength fails, with Psalm 48’s surrounding lines describing retreat and Isaiah comparing foes to dust.
Revelation 19:20The beast was taken, and with him the false prophet who worked the signs in his sight, with which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and …Both passages describe hostile powers brought down, though Psalm 48’s setting shows retreat and Revelation describes judgment by fire.
Isaiah 10:8For he says, “Aren’t all of my princes kings?Both passages mention kings as a display of human strength, though Isaiah records a boast and Psalm 48 describes an assembly.
Isaiah 8:8–10It will sweep onward into Judah. It will overflow and pass through. It will reach even to the neck. The stretching out of its wings will fill the width of your …Both passages depict threatening movement toward God’s people, with Psalm 48 describing kings and Isaiah picturing an invasion as overflowing water.
Where this verse fits

Fear for the future. sermon or Bible study notes.

What the Bible says about fear →
One step

Something small to carry out of this verse

Read Psalm 48:3–6 and mark where the kings’ confidence breaks

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Encouragement

The gathered kings have strength enough to threaten Zion, yet the next lines describe their terror and retreat. Their combined power does not undo what God has shown himself to be: a refuge.

Now put it in your words.

Start an entry on Psalm 48:4. Write what it stirs. Psalmlog sets your words beside Scripture and gives you one next step. Your first entry is free, no account needed.

Keep goingPsalm 48 · the whole chapter with its connection mapPsalms · every chapterBuild a reading plan through Psalms

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).