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Thursday, September 18th, 2025
the Week of Proper 19 / Ordinary 24
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Read the Bible

Bible in Basic English

Psalms 48:12

Make your way about Zion, and go round it, numbering its towers.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Church;   Temple;   Zion;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Cities;   Excellency and Glory of the Church, the;   Jerusalem;   Towers;   Walls;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Jerusalem;   Towers;   Zion or Sion;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Jerusalem;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Towers;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - English Versions;   Greek Versions of Ot;   Korah, Korahites;   Psalms;   Sin;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Tower;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - God;   Jerusalem;   Korah;   Psalms the book of;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Bible, the;   Psalms, Book of;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Go around Zion, encircle it;count its towers,
Hebrew Names Version
Walk about Tziyon, and go around her. Number the towers of it;
King James Version
Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof.
English Standard Version
Walk about Zion, go around her, number her towers,
New Century Version
Walk around Jerusalem and count its towers.
New English Translation
Walk around Zion! Encircle it! Count its towers!
Amplified Bible
Walk about Zion, go all around her; Count her towers,
New American Standard Bible
Walk around Zion and encircle her; Count her towers;
World English Bible
Walk about Zion, and go around her. Number the towers of it;
Geneva Bible (1587)
Compasse about Zion, and goe round about it, and tell the towres thereof.
Legacy Standard Bible
Walk about Zion and go around her;Count her towers;
Berean Standard Bible
March around Zion, encircle her, count her towers,
Contemporary English Version
Let's walk around Zion and count its towers.
Complete Jewish Bible
Let Mount Tziyon rejoice, let the daughters of Y'hudah be glad, because of your judgment [on the enemy].
Darby Translation
Walk about Zion, and go round about her: count the towers thereof;
Easy-to-Read Version
Walk around Jerusalem, and count its towers.
George Lamsa Translation
Circle Zion, and go round about her; count the towers thereof.
Good News Translation
People of God, walk around Zion and count the towers;
Lexham English Bible
Walk about Zion and circle it; count her towers.
Literal Translation
Walk around Zion; yea, go all around it; count its towers;
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Walke aboute Sion, go rounde aboute her, and tell hir towres.
American Standard Version
Walk about Zion, and go round about her; Number the towers thereof;
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Let mount Zion be glad, let the daughters of Judah rejoice, because of Thy judgments.
King James Version (1611)
Walke about Sion, and goe round about her: tell the towres thereof.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Compasse about Sion, and go rounde about her: and tell the towres therof.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Go round about Sion, and encompass her: tell ye her towers.
English Revised Version
Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Cumpasse ye Syon, and biclippe ye it; telle ye in the touris therof.
Update Bible Version
Walk about Zion, and go round about her; Number the towers thereof;
Webster's Bible Translation
Walk about Zion, and go round her: number her towers.
New King James Version
Walk about Zion, And go all around her. Count her towers;
New Living Translation
Go, inspect the city of Jerusalem. Walk around and count the many towers.
New Life Bible
Walk in Zion, and go around her. See how many towers she has.
New Revised Standard
Walk about Zion, go all around it, count its towers,
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Go round Zion, and compass her about, Reckon up her towers;
Douay-Rheims Bible
(47-13) Surround Sion, and encompass her: tell lye in her towers.
Revised Standard Version
Walk about Zion, go round about her, number her towers,
Young's Literal Translation
Compass Zion, and go round her, count her towers,
THE MESSAGE
Circle Zion, take her measure, count her fortress peaks, Gaze long at her sloping bulwark, climb her citadel heights— Then you can tell the next generation detail by detail the story of God, Our God forever, who guides us till the end of time.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Walk about Zion and go around her; Count her towers;

Contextual Overview

8 As it came to our ears so have we seen it, in the town of the Lord of armies, in the town of our God; God will keep it fixed for ever. (Selah.) 9 Our thoughts were of your mercy, O God, while we were in your Temple. 10 As your name is, O God, so is your praise to the ends of the earth; your right hand is full of righteousness. 11 Let there be joy in the mountain of Zion, and let the daughters of Judah be glad, because of your wise decisions. 12 Make your way about Zion, and go round it, numbering its towers. 13 Take note of its strong walls, looking well at its fair buildings; so that you may give word of it to the generation which comes after. 14 Because this God is our God for ever and ever: he will be our guide.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Walk: Nehemiah 12:31-40, Matthew 24:1, Matthew 24:2

tell: Isaiah 33:18-20

Reciprocal: 2 Samuel 5:7 - Zion 1 Chronicles 11:5 - the castle Isaiah 26:1 - salvation Isaiah 33:20 - Look Ezekiel 21:20 - the defenced Micah 4:8 - O tower Zephaniah 1:16 - and against Zechariah 2:5 - a wall

Cross-References

Genesis 18:2
And lifting up his eyes, he saw three men before him; and seeing them, he went quickly to them from the door of the tent, and went down on his face to the earth;
Genesis 19:1
And at nightfall the two angels came to Sodom; and Lot was seated at the way into the town: and when he saw them he got up and came before them, falling down on his face to the earth.
Genesis 23:7
And Abraham got up and gave honour to the children of Heth, the people of that land.
Genesis 33:3
And he himself, going before them, went down on his face to the earth seven times till he came near his brother.
Genesis 42:6
Now Joseph was ruler over all the land, and it was he who gave out the grain to all the people of the land; and Joseph's brothers came before him and went down on their faces to the earth.
Exodus 20:12
Give honour to your father and to your mother, so that your life may be long in the land which the Lord your God is giving you.
Exodus 34:8
Then Moses quickly went down on his face in worship.
Leviticus 19:3
Let every man give honour to his mother and to his father and keep my Sabbaths: I am the Lord your God.
Leviticus 19:32
Get up from your seats before the white-haired, and give honour to the old, and let the fear of your God be before you: I am the Lord.
1 Kings 2:19
So Bath-sheba went to King Solomon to have talk with him on Adonijah's account. And the king got up to come to her, and went down low to the earth before her; then he took his place on the king's seat and had a seat made ready for the king's mother and she took her place at his right hand.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Walk about Zion, and go round about her,.... These words are either an address to the enemies of the church, sarcastically delivered; calling upon them to come, and surround, and besiege Zion, and see what the issue and consequence of it will he, even the same as that of the kings, Psalms 48:4; or to the builders of Zion, as Jarchi observes, to come and take a survey of it, and see what repairs were necessary; or rather to the saints, to the daughters of Judah before mentioned, to take a view of the strength and defence of the church, for their own comfort and encouragement, and to report the same to others for theirs also; for by walking around it may be observed the foundation, the rock and eminence on which it is built, Christ Jesus; the wall of it, the Lord himself, a wall of fire; the entrance into it, Christ the gate of righteousness; the fortress and strong hold of it the same; and the guards about it, the watch men on its walls, the ministers of the Gospel, and an innumerable company of angels, that in a circle surround both ministers and people; see Revelation 7:11;

tell the towers thereof; see 2 Chronicles 26:9; the Lord himself is the tower of his people, high and strong, which secures and defends them from all their enemies, Psalms 18:2; the ministers of the Gospel, who are immovable, and are set for the defence of it, Jeremiah 6:27; the Scriptures of truth, which are like a tower built for an armoury, out of which the saints are furnished and provided with proper armour, whereby they are able to engage with false teachers, and to overcome the evil one, Song of Solomon 4:4; and the ordinances of the Gospel, the church's two breasts, said to be as towers, Song of Solomon 8:10; some render the words, "tell in the towers" i; publish on the house tops, declare in the high places of the city, in the most public manner, the great things of the Gospel, which relate to the glory of Christ and his church.

i מגדליה εν τοις πυργοις αυτης, Sept. "in turribus ejus", V. L.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Walk about Zion - This is a call on all persons to go round the city; to take a survey of it; to see how beautiful and how strong it was - how it had escaped all danger, and was uninjured by the attempt to destroy it - how capable it was of resisting an attack. The word “walk” here means simply to go around or surround. The other word used has a more direct reference to a solemn procession.

And go round about her - The word used here - from נקף nâqaph - to fasten together, to join together, means to move round in a circle, as if persons joined together (see the notes at Job 1:5), and would refer here properly to a solemn procession moving round the city, and taking a deliberate survey of its entire circuit.

Tell the towers thereof - That is, Take the number of the towers. See how numerous they are; how firm they remain; what a defense and protection they constitute. Cities, surrounded by walls, had always “towers” or elevated portions as posts of observation, or as places from which missiles might be discharged with advantage on those who should attempt to scale the walls. Compare Genesis 11:4-5; 2 Chronicles 26:9-10; Isaiah 2:15.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Psalms 48:12. Walk about Zion — Consider the beauty and magnificence of the temple, count the towers by which it is fortified.


 
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