Psalm 87:3
New International Version
Glorious things are said of you, city of God:

New Living Translation
O city of God, what glorious things are said of you! Interlude

English Standard Version
Glorious things of you are spoken, O city of God. Selah

Berean Standard Bible
Glorious things are ascribed to you, O city of God. Selah

King James Bible
Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God. Selah.

New King James Version
Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God! Selah

New American Standard Bible
Glorious things are spoken of you, City of God. Selah

NASB 1995
Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah.

NASB 1977
Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah.

Legacy Standard Bible
Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah.

Amplified Bible
Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God [Jerusalem]. Selah.

Christian Standard Bible
Glorious things are said about you, city of God. Selah

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Glorious things are said about you, city of God. Selah “

American Standard Version
Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God. [Selah

Contemporary English Version
Zion, you are the city of God, and wonderful things are told about you.

English Revised Version
Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God. Selah

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Glorious things are said about you, O city of God! [Selah]

Good News Translation
Listen, city of God, to the wonderful things he says about you:

International Standard Version
Glorious things are spoken about you, city of God. Interlude

Majority Standard Bible
Glorious things are ascribed to you, O city of God. Selah

NET Bible
People say wonderful things about you, O city of God. (Selah)

New Heart English Bible
Glorious things are spoken about you, city of God. Selah.

Webster's Bible Translation
Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God. Selah.

World English Bible
Glorious things are spoken about you, city of God. Selah.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
Honorable things are spoken in You, "" O city of God. Selah.

Young's Literal Translation
Honourable things are spoken in Thee, O city of God. Selah.

Smith's Literal Translation
Honored things being spoken in thee, O city of God. Silence.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Glorious things are said of thee, O city of God.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Glorious things are being said of you, O City of God.

New American Bible
Rahab and Babylon I count among those who know me. See, Philistia and Tyre, with Ethiopia, “This one was born there.”

New Revised Standard Version
Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of our God.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Glories are spoken in you, City of our God!
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Glorious things are spoken of Thee, O city of God. Selah

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Glorious things have been spoken of thee, O city of God. Pause.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The LORD Loves the Gates of Zion
2The LORD loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob. 3Glorious things are ascribed to you, O city of God. Selah 4“I will mention Rahab and Babylon among those who know Me—along with Philistia, Tyre, and Cush—when I say, ‘This one was born in Zion.’ ”…

Cross References
Isaiah 2:2-3
In the last days the mountain of the house of the LORD will be established as the chief of the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it. / And many peoples will come and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us His ways so that we may walk in His paths.” For the law will go forth from Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

Isaiah 60:1-3
Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you. / For behold, darkness covers the earth, and thick darkness is over the peoples; but the LORD will rise upon you, and His glory will appear over you. / Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

Revelation 21:10-11
And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the holy city of Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, / shining with the glory of God. Its radiance was like a most precious jewel, like a jasper, as clear as crystal.

Revelation 21:23-24
And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, because the glory of God illuminates the city, and the Lamb is its lamp. / By its light the nations will walk, and into it the kings of the earth will bring their glory.

Hebrews 12:22
Instead, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to myriads of angels

Galatians 4:26
But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother.

Isaiah 62:1-2
For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not keep still, until her righteousness shines like a bright light, her salvation like a blazing torch. / Nations will see your righteousness, and all kings your glory. You will be called by a new name that the mouth of the LORD will bestow.

Micah 4:1-2
In the last days the mountain of the house of the LORD will be established as the chief of the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and the peoples will stream to it. / And many nations will come and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us His ways, so that we may walk in His paths.” For the law will go forth from Zion and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

Zechariah 8:3
This is what the LORD says: “I will return to Zion and dwell in Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem will be called the City of Truth, and the mountain of the LORD of Hosts will be called the Holy Mountain.”

Revelation 3:12
The one who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will never again leave it. Upon him I will write the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God (the new Jerusalem that comes down out of heaven from My God), and My new name.

Isaiah 52:1
Awake, awake, clothe yourself with strength, O Zion! Put on your garments of splendor, O Jerusalem, holy city! For the uncircumcised and unclean will no longer enter you.

Isaiah 60:14
The sons of your oppressors will come and bow down to you; all who reviled you will fall facedown at your feet and call you the City of the LORD, Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

Revelation 21:2
I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

Psalm 48:1-2
A song. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, His holy mountain. / Beautiful in loftiness, the joy of all the earth, like the peaks of Zaphon is Mount Zion, the city of the great King.

Psalm 46:4
There is a river whose streams delight the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells.


Treasury of Scripture

Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah.

glorious

Psalm 48:2,3,11-13
Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King…

Psalm 125:1,2
A Song of degrees. They that trust in the LORD shall be as mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever…

Isaiah 12:6
Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion: for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee.

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Psalm 87
1. The nature and glory of the church
4. The increase, honor, and comfort of the members thereof.














Glorious things
The phrase "glorious things" in Hebrew is "נִכְבָּדוֹת" (nikbadot), which stems from the root "כָּבוֹד" (kavod), meaning "glory" or "honor." This word is often used in the Old Testament to describe the weighty presence and majesty of God. In the context of Psalm 87, it signifies the divine splendor and the magnificent attributes that are associated with the city of God. Historically, Jerusalem was seen as the epicenter of God's presence on earth, and thus, the "glorious things" refer to the divine favor, the prophetic promises, and the spiritual significance that God has bestowed upon the city. This phrase invites believers to reflect on the spiritual blessings and the eternal promises that God has in store for His people.

are ascribed to you
The verb "are ascribed" in Hebrew is "יְדֻבָּרוּ" (yedubbaru), which can also be translated as "spoken of" or "declared." This indicates that the glory of the city is not just inherent but is also recognized and proclaimed by others. The passive form suggests that these declarations come from various sources, including the nations and the people of God. It emphasizes the universal acknowledgment of the city's significance. In a broader theological context, this can be seen as a foreshadowing of the New Jerusalem, where God's glory will be fully revealed and acknowledged by all creation.

O city of God
The "city of God" refers to Jerusalem, known in Hebrew as "עִיר הָאֱלֹהִים" (ir ha'Elohim). This title underscores the city's unique status as the dwelling place of God among His people. Jerusalem was the location of the Temple, the center of Jewish worship, and the place where God's presence was most intimately experienced. Theologically, the "city of God" represents not just a physical location but also a spiritual reality where God's kingdom is established. In Christian eschatology, this concept is expanded to include the heavenly Jerusalem, the ultimate fulfillment of God's promise to dwell with His people eternally. The phrase calls believers to anticipate the future glory of God's eternal city, where His presence will be fully realized.

(3) The meaning of this verse is obvious in spite of its many grammatical difficulties. The praise of Zion had found many tongues, but the poet implies that he is going to swell the chorus.

Verse 3. - Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God. The psalmist probably refers in part to the predictions of older prophets, but also in part to the revelations made to himself, which he is on the point of recording (vers. 4-7).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Glorious things
נִ֭כְבָּדוֹת (niḵ·bā·ḏō·wṯ)
Verb - Nifal - Participle - feminine plural
Strong's 3513: To be heavy, weighty, or burdensome

are ascribed
מְדֻבָּ֣ר (mə·ḏub·bār)
Verb - Pual - Participle - masculine singular
Strong's 1696: To arrange, to speak, to subdue

to you,
בָּ֑ךְ (bāḵ)
Preposition | second person feminine singular
Strong's Hebrew

O city
עִ֖יר (‘îr)
Noun - feminine singular construct
Strong's 5892: Excitement

of God.
הָאֱלֹהִ֣ים (hā·’ĕ·lō·hîm)
Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative

Selah
סֶֽלָה׃ (se·lāh)
Interjection
Strong's 5542: Suspension, pause


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OT Poetry: Psalm 87:3 Glorious things are spoken about you city (Psalm Ps Psa.)
Psalm 87:2
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