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Psalm 82:1

A Psalm by Asaph. God presides in the great assembly. He judges among the gods.

1A Psalm by Asaph. God presides in the great assembly. He judges among the gods.
2“How long will you judge unjustly, and show partiality to the wicked?” Selah.
3“Defend the weak, the poor, and the fatherless. Maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed.
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Psalm 82:2 →
Notice

The great assembly has a judge above its members, a picture that challenges the sense that great power can escape all scrutiny.

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

What changes in your view of power when God presides over the great assembly?

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What examples of partiality, if any, come to mind as you read God's charge against the assembly?

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Connect

Where else Scripture says this

11 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 82:6I said, “You are gods, all of you are sons of the Most High.Both verses use the word “gods” for those whom God addresses and judges within this psalm.
John 10:34Jesus answered them, “Isn’t it written in your law, ‘I said, you are gods’?Jesus quotes this psalm’s language about “gods,” the same term used for those among whom God judges.
John 10:35If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture can’t be broken),Both passages use “gods”; John discusses those who received God's word, while the psalm depicts God judging among them.
2 Chronicles 19:6–7and said to the judges, “Consider what you do, for you don’t judge for man, but for the LORD; and he is with you in the judgment.Both connect judgment with God's authority: God presides in the psalm, and the judges in Chronicles judge for the LORD.
Isaiah 3:13The LORD stands up to contend, and stands to judge the peoples.Both portray God taking the judge's place, presiding over the assembly in Psalms and standing to judge the peoples in Isaiah.
Ecclesiastes 5:8If you see the oppression of the poor, and the violent taking away of justice and righteousness in a district, don’t marvel at the matter, for one official is …Both depict authority under scrutiny: officials watch other officials in Ecclesiastes, while God judges the assembly in the psalm.
Psalm 58:11so that men shall say, “Most certainly there is a reward for the righteous. Most certainly there is a God who judges the earth.”Both name God as judge, with Psalm 82 depicting the assembly and Psalm 58 declaring his judgment of the earth.
Exodus 12:12For I will go through the land of Egypt in that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and animal. I will execute judgments …Both depict God's judgment involving gods; Exodus names Egypt's gods within the announced death of Egypt's firstborn.
Psalm 138:1By David. I will give you thanks with my whole heart. Before the gods, I will sing praises to you.Both speak of God in relation to “gods”: he judges among them in Psalm 82 and receives praise before them in Psalm 138.
Daniel 2:47The king answered to Daniel, and said, “Of a truth your God is the God of gods, and the Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, since you have been able to …God's supremacy over gods appears in both: he judges among them in the psalm, and Daniel's king acknowledges him as their God.
Exodus 22:8If the thief isn’t found, then the master of the house shall come near to God, to find out whether or not he has put his hand on his neighbor’s goods.Both connect God with judgment, though Exodus concerns disputed property and the psalm depicts a great assembly.
Where this verse fits

Injustice and anger. leadership weight. sermon or Bible study notes.

What the Bible says about anger →
One step

Something small to carry out of this verse

Read Psalm 82:1–3 and underline who judges whom

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Encouragement

Readers differ about who “the gods” are. The clear point remains: God presides over the assembly, and those gathered there are subject to his judgment.

Now put it in your words.

Start an entry on Psalm 82:1. 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 82 · 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).