The Meaning of Psalms 24:7 Explained

Psalms 24:7

KJV: Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in.

YLT: Lift up, O gates, your heads, And be lifted up, O doors age-during, And come in doth the king of glory!

Darby: Lift up your heads, ye gates, and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of glory shall come in.

ASV: Lift up your heads, O ye gates; And be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors: And the King of glory will come in.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Lift up  your heads,  O ye gates;  and be ye lift up,  ye everlasting  doors;  and the King  of glory  shall come in. 

What does Psalms 24:7 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Evidently David pictured in his mind the closed gates of Jerusalem as though they were heads bowed. He called on these personified gates to lift their heads so the great King could enter. Normally people bowed their heads as majesty passed, but in this figure the gates did the reverse. Lifting up the gates refers to making the gates higher, larger, so such a glorious God could enter.

Context Summary

Psalms 24:1-10 - Entering Jehovah's Holy Place
Psalms 22:1-31 tells of the cross; Psalms 23:1-6 of the crook; Psalms 24:1-10 of the crown. This great choral hymn was evidently composed to celebrate the removal of the Ark from the house of Obed-edom to Mount Zion, 2 Samuel 6:1-23. It was conducted with music and song to its resting-place, and this psalm was the marching song of the priests, 1 Chronicles 15:2-27.
Psalms 24:1-2 were sung by the whole festal crowd; Psalms 24:3 by a soloist; Psalms 24:4-5 by the choir; and Psalms 24:6 by the entire congregation. What a sublime challenge on the part of the approaching host is contained in Psalms 24:7, to be answered by a company from within the gates in Psalms 24:8! To this again the vast shout of the multitude gives reply in Psalms 24:9.
This magnificent ode reached its perfect accomplishment when the mighty Victor over hell and the grave arose on high and sat down at the Father's right hand. Oh, let the gates of your heart open wide to admit Him! [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 24

1  God's Lordship in the world
3  The citizens of his spiritual kingdom
7  An exhortation to receive him

What do the individual words in Psalms 24:7 mean?

Lift up you gates your heads and be lifted up doors you everlasting and shall come in the King of glory
שְׂא֤וּ שְׁעָרִ֨ים ׀ רָֽאשֵׁיכֶ֗ם וְֽ֭הִנָּשְׂאוּ פִּתְחֵ֣י עוֹלָ֑ם וְ֝יָב֗וֹא מֶ֣לֶךְ הַכָּבֽוֹד

שְׂא֤וּ  Lift  up 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine plural
Root: נָשָׂא  
Sense: to lift, bear up, carry, take.
שְׁעָרִ֨ים ׀  you  gates 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: שַׁעַר  
Sense: gate.
רָֽאשֵׁיכֶ֗ם  your  heads 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, second person masculine plural
Root: רֹאשׁ 
Sense: head, top, summit, upper part, chief, total, sum, height, front, beginning.
וְֽ֭הִנָּשְׂאוּ  and  be  lifted  up 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Nifal, Imperative, masculine plural
Root: נָשָׂא  
Sense: to lift, bear up, carry, take.
פִּתְחֵ֣י  doors 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: פֶּתַח  
Sense: opening, doorway, entrance.
עוֹלָ֑ם  you  everlasting 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: עֹולָם  
Sense: long duration, antiquity, futurity, for ever, ever, everlasting, evermore, perpetual, old, ancient, world.
וְ֝יָב֗וֹא  and  shall  come  in 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
מֶ֣לֶךְ  the  King 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: מֶלֶךְ 
Sense: king.
הַכָּבֽוֹד  of  glory 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: כָּבֹוד  
Sense: glory, honour, glorious, abundance.