48
A psalm written by one of the descendants of Korah
1 Yahweh is great, and he deserves to be greatly praised in the city where he lives,
which is built on Zion, his sacred hill.
2 That city, on a high hill, is beautiful;
it is the city where the true God, the great king, lives,
and it causes people all over the world to rejoice when they see it.
3 God is in the strong towers there,
and he shows that he protects the people in that city.
4 Many kings gathered with their armies to attack that city,
5 but when they saw it, they were amazed;
they became terrified, and ran away.
6 Because they were very afraid, they trembled
like a woman who is about to give birth to a child;
7 they shook like ships sailing from Tarshish are shaken by a strong wind.
8 We had heard that this city is glorious,
and now we have seen that it is.
It is the city in which Yahweh, the almighty one, lives.
It is the city which God will preserve/protect forever.
(Think about that!)
9 God, here in your temple we think about how you faithfully love us.
10 You [MTY] are famous and ◄are praised/people praise you► all over the earth,
because you rule powerfully [MTY] and justly.
11 The people who live near Zion Hill should be happy!
The people in all the cities [MTY] in Judah should rejoice
because you judge people fairly.
12 You Israeli people should walk around Zion Hill
and count the towers there;
13 notice the walls there and examine the forts
in order that you can tell about them to your children.
14 Say to them, “This is the city that belongs to our God, the one who lives forever;
he will guide us all of our lives.”