Tehillim 21 | “Lord, The king rejoices in Your Might”

This too is a 'royal psalm'. It opens with gratitude and praise to God, who bestows blessing upon the king, and explains the basis for the king’s merit: “For the king trusts in the Lord; with loyalty of the Most High he will never be shaken.” (21:8) The poet then turns to future deliverance of the king, and here too, the voice of the psalm shifts. Up until this point, the text is addressed to God, speaking about the king. Now, the psalm turns to the king himself, describing how he will triumph over his enemies in a physical, earthly manner, yet always under God’s supervision by his side. Even in this second half of the psalm, despite the king being the one who strikes down his foes, the psalm ends with a closing refrain that re-centers our attention on God as the true source of power and strength. In parallel with the opening verse: “Lord, the king rejoices in Your might” (21:2), the psalm concludes “Rise up, Lord, in Your might; we will sing and praise of Your power.” (21:14)