Prayer Guide: Psalm 47

By Robert Naughton

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of the Sons of Korah.

Clap your hands, all peoples!
    Shout to God with loud songs of joy!
²For the Lord, the Most High, is to be feared,
    a great king over all the earth.
³He subdued peoples under us,
    and nations under our feet.
⁴He chose our heritage for us,
    the pride of Jacob whom he loves. Selah

⁵God has gone up with a shout,
    the Lord with the sound of a trumpet.
⁶Sing praises to God, sing praises!
    Sing praises to our King, sing praises!
⁷For God is the King of all the earth;
    sing praises with a psalm!

⁸God reigns over the nations;
    God sits on his holy throne.
⁹The princes of the peoples gather
    as the people of the God of Abraham.
For the shields of the earth belong to God;
    he is highly exalted!

REVERENCE

God’s Praiseworthy Attributes:

Worthy of praise – vv. 1, 6, 7
Worthy of reverential awe, worship – v. 2
He is Sovereign, the Most High – v. 2, 8
He is King, Ruler over ALL – vv. 2, 7, 8
Awesome in power – v. 3
He fights our battles for us – v.3
He’s the author of salvation history – v. 4
He loves his people – v. 4
Faithful to his covenant – v. 9
He is a God of blessing – v. 9
Keeper of His promises – v. 9
Father of a diverse, new creation people formed from all the nations, races, tribes of the earth – v. 9
Highly exalted, glorious, honorable – v. 9

Possible Prayer Prompts:

God, I shout to you with joy today, because…
I will praise You Lord even when…
We highly exalt You together because you are…
I praise You Lord because of your faithfulness to me when…
I praise You Lord for keeping your word to me even when…
Lord, I rejoice that you are on your holy throne because…
Lord, I am in awe of You because You…

RESPONSE

God, you truly are the King of Kings. Therefore, it is right that I surrender ___________ to you today.
I confess my inclination to exalt myself, instead of you, when I ____________.
I confess at times I don’t trust you as I ought. Help me to trust you with ____________ today.

REQUESTS

Help me to sincerely praise You Lord today, even when…
Help me to worship you in my __________.
Because You fight our battles for us, I pray that You will deliver me from _______________.
Because You fight our battles for us, I pray that You will deliver _______________ (name) from…
Give me a heart to fear you this week as I…
Give me grace to sing to you this week as I…
Because You love your people, I seek Your care for _________ today.
I pray that _________ (name) will know your power and sovereignty today as they wait on you for _____________.

READINESS

Lord, I am trusting You today to fight for…
Lord, today, I will trust You to rule over …
Lord, today, when I am tempted to build my own kingdom, help me instead to worship and wait on you for …
Lord, help me to hope in the promise of the New Creation, when I am tempted to despair of …