What Does Psalm 122:5 Mean in the King James?
For there are set thrones of judgment, the thrones of the house of David.
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
Judgment is pictured as a settled authority seated in the house of David, whose name carries the nature of the beloved.
THE MEANING
You meet judgment here as a seated authority, established in a place of rule rather than passing as a momentary verdict. Its seat belongs to the house of David, a name carrying the nature of the beloved.
THE ROOT
מִשְׁפָּט
mishpat
GROWS FROM
שפט
judge, govern, decide a case
The same root names the act of judging, the judge who carries it out, and the judgment that orders a matter. Here judgment is not just a verdict; it is a form of governance with a seat in the house of David.
ALSO GROWS
shaphat: to judge or govern
שָׁפַט
The action behind judgment shows that this throne exercises rule, not merely delivers a sentence.
shofet: a judge or ruler
שֹׁפֵט
The judge is a person who embodies the same root named by the throne’s work.
mishpatim: judgments, decisions, ordinances
מִשְׁפָּטִים
The plural form shows the root extending from the act of judging to the decisions that shape order.
יָשְׁבוּ
yashvu
GROWS FROM
ישב
sit, dwell, remain
The Hebrew verb behind “set” is from the root for sitting and dwelling. A throne that is set is pictured as occupied and established, a seat that becomes a place of rule.
ALSO GROWS
yoshev: one who sits or dwells
יוֹשֵׁב
The seated one is also a dweller, linking the throne’s authority with presence.
moshav: seat, dwelling place, settlement
מוֹשָׁב
The same root can name both a seat and a place to dwell, making established rule feel like a settled presence.
דָּוִד
David
GROWS FROM
דוד
beloved
David’s name is connected with dod, “beloved.” The verse places judgment within the house named for the beloved, giving the seat of rule a relational frame as well as an address.
ALSO GROWS
dod: beloved; also a close kinsman
דּוֹד
This related word lets the name David carry the nature of belovedness into the phrase “house of David.”
dodi: my beloved
דּוֹדִי
The possessive form makes the beloved connection personal, showing how the name’s root can express relationship.
THE PATTERN
Judgment is pictured as a settled seat of rule, not merely a passing verdict.
But the LORD shall endure for ever: he hath prepared his throne for judgment.A king that sitteth in the throne of judgment scattereth away all evil with his eyes.And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.THE THREAD
Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face.The same Hebrew word for “judgment,” mishpat, appears here, and the verse calls it the habitation of the throne. That connection opens Psalm 122:5 further: judgment is not only carried out from the seat; it is part of what the seat is founded on.
Read the SDV Bible.
Every verse has a Deep Dive in the app.
The iPhone Bible app with the Selah Decoded Version.
Does something in this reading look wrong? Tell us