What Does 1 Chronicles 16:12 Mean in the King James?
Remember his marvellous works that he hath done, his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth;
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
Remembering God’s wonders brings what exceeds the ordinary back into view now.
THE MEANING
God’s works, wonders, and spoken judgments remain present to your awareness. Remembering them keeps visible who God is as you read the life before you.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It undoes the belief that what God has done belongs only to the past and has no bearing on what you face now.
THE ROOT
זִכְרוּ
zikru
GROWS FROM
זכר
Remember, recall, bring to mind, or commemorate.
“Remember” in this verse is zikru. The verse’s opening word is an active call to bring God’s works into view. The same root appears in words for a memorial, linking remembrance with what is deliberately kept present.
ALSO GROWS
zeker: Remembrance or a memorial.
זֵכֶר
This branch shows that remembering can leave a trace that keeps what happened present.
zikkaron: A memorial or act of remembrance.
זִכָּרוֹן
Like the verse’s command, this branch describes remembrance as something given a lasting place.
נִפְלְאֹתָיו
nifla’otav
GROWS FROM
פלא
Be extraordinary or wonderful; exceed ordinary measure.
The ‘marvellous works’ are expressed with a word from the root פלא, which carries the sense of what is extraordinary. The verse pairs remembering with wonders that still invite attention because they exceed the ordinary.
ALSO GROWS
pele: A wonder or extraordinary thing.
פֶּלֶא
This branch shares the root’s sense of what calls forth wonder in the works being remembered.
nifla: Wonderful or extraordinary.
נִפְלָא
This form describes what the remembered works are like: beyond the ordinary.
מִשְׁפְּטֵי
mishpetei
GROWS FROM
שפט
Judge, decide, or establish what is right.
‘Judgments’ can sound like verdicts alone, but מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat) also names a decision or ruling. Joined to ‘his mouth,’ the phrase makes God’s judgments audible: his decisions are spoken, not hidden.
ALSO GROWS
shofet: A judge or one who decides a case.
שֹׁפֵט
This branch shows the personal role behind the judgments named in the verse.
mishpat: A judgment, ruling, or just decision.
מִשְׁפָּט
This is the singular form of the word used in the verse and clarifies that these are spoken decisions.
THE PATTERN
Remembering God’s acts keeps what God has done present as a measure of what is true now.
Thou shalt not be afraid of them: but shalt well remember what the LORD thy God did unto Pharaoh, and unto all Egypt;I will remember the works of the LORD: surely I will remember thy wonders of old.And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.THE THREAD
And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh.The same root, זכר (zakar), appears when God says, ‘I will remember my covenant.’ Here the works remembered in 1 Chronicles reveal a nature that remains active and present.
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