Psalm 147:20
New International Version
He has done this for no other nation; they do not know his laws. Praise the LORD.

New Living Translation
He has not done this for any other nation; they do not know his regulations. Praise the LORD!

English Standard Version
He has not dealt thus with any other nation; they do not know his rules. Praise the LORD!

Berean Standard Bible
He has done this for no other nation; they do not know His judgments. Hallelujah!

King James Bible
He hath not dealt so with any nation: and as for his judgments, they have not known them. Praise ye the LORD.

New King James Version
He has not dealt thus with any nation; And as for His judgments, they have not known them. Praise the LORD!

New American Standard Bible
He has not dealt this way with any other nation; And as for His judgments, they have not known them. Praise the LORD!

NASB 1995
He has not dealt thus with any nation; And as for His ordinances, they have not known them. Praise the LORD!

NASB 1977
He has not dealt thus with any nation; And as for His ordinances, they have not known them. Praise the LORD!

Legacy Standard Bible
He has not done so with any nation; So as for His judgments, they have not known them. Praise Yah!

Amplified Bible
He has not dealt this way with any [other] nation; They have not known [understood, appreciated, heeded, or cherished] His ordinances. Praise the LORD! (Hallelujah!)

Christian Standard Bible
He has not done this for every nation; they do not know his judgments. Hallelujah!

Holman Christian Standard Bible
He has not done this for any nation; they do not know His judgments. Hallelujah!

American Standard Version
He hath not dealt so with any nation; And as for his ordinances, they have not known them. Praise ye Jehovah.

Contemporary English Version
But he has not given his laws to any other nation. Shout praises to the LORD!

English Revised Version
He hath not dealt so with any nation: and as for his judgments, they have not known them. Praise ye the LORD.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
He has done nothing like this for any other nation. The other nations do not know the decisions he has handed down. Hallelujah!

Good News Translation
He has not done this for other nations; they do not know his laws. Praise the LORD!

International Standard Version
He has not dealt with any other nation like this; they never knew his decrees. Hallelujah!

Majority Standard Bible
He has done this for no other nation; they do not know His judgments. Hallelujah!

NET Bible
He has not done so with any other nation; they are not aware of his regulations. Praise the LORD!

New Heart English Bible
He has not done this for just any nation. They do not know his ordinances. Praise the LORD.

Webster's Bible Translation
He hath not dealt so with any nation: and as for his judgments, they have not known them. Praise ye the LORD.

World English Bible
He has not done this for just any nation. They don’t know his ordinances. Praise Yah!
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
He has not done so to any nation, "" As for judgments, they have not known them. Praise YAH!

Young's Literal Translation
He hath not done so to any nation, As to judgments, they have not known them. Praise ye Jah!

Smith's Literal Translation
He did not thus to every nation: and judgments they knew them not Praise ye Jah.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
He hath not done in like manner to every nation: and his judgments he hath not made manifest to them. Alleluia.

Catholic Public Domain Version
He has not done so much for every nation, and he has not made his judgments manifest to them. Alleluia.

New American Bible
He has not done this for any other nation; of such laws they know nothing. Hallelujah!

New Revised Standard Version
He has not dealt thus with any other nation; they do not know his ordinances. Praise the LORD!
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
He has not dealt so with all nations; and his judgments he has not made known to them. Praise the LORD.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
He has not done so for all the nations, neither has he shown them his judgments.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
He hath not dealt so with any nation; And as for His ordinances, they have not known them. Hallelujah.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
He has not done so to any other nation; and he has not shewn them his judgments.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
It is Good to Sing Praises
19He declares His word to Jacob, His statutes and judgments to Israel. 20He has done this for no other nation; they do not know His judgments. Hallelujah!

Cross References
Deuteronomy 4:7-8
For what nation is great enough to have a god as near to them as the LORD our God is to us whenever we call on Him? / And what nation is great enough to have righteous statutes and ordinances like this entire law I set before you today?

Romans 3:1-2
What, then, is the advantage of being a Jew? Or what is the value of circumcision? / Much in every way. First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God.

Amos 3:2
“Only you have I known from all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.”

Deuteronomy 7:6
For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for His prized possession out of all peoples on the face of the earth.

Romans 9:4-5
the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption as sons; theirs the divine glory and the covenants; theirs the giving of the law, the temple worship, and the promises. / Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them proceeds the human descent of Christ, who is God over all, forever worthy of praise! Amen.

Exodus 19:5-6
Now if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, you will be My treasured possession out of all the nations—for the whole earth is Mine. / And unto Me you shall be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you are to speak to the Israelites.”

Isaiah 63:19
We have become like those You never ruled, like those not called by Your name.

Ephesians 2:12
remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.

Deuteronomy 32:9
But the LORD’s portion is His people, Jacob His allotted inheritance.

Acts 14:16
In past generations, He let all nations go their own way.

1 Peter 2:9
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

Deuteronomy 33:29
Blessed are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD? He is the shield that protects you, the sword in which you boast. Your enemies will cower before you, and you shall trample their high places.”

Matthew 10:5-6
These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go onto the road of the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. / Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel.

2 Samuel 7:23-24
And who is like Your people Israel—the one nation on earth whom God went out to redeem as a people for Himself and to make a name for Himself? You performed great and awesome wonders by driving out nations and their gods from before Your people, whom You redeemed for Yourself from Egypt. / For You have established Your people Israel as Your very own forever, and You, O LORD, have become their God.

John 4:22
You worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.


Treasury of Scripture

He has not dealt so with any nation: and as for his judgments, they have not known them. Praise you the LORD.

not dealt so

Deuteronomy 4:32-34
For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and ask from the one side of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it? …

Proverbs 29:18
Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.

Isaiah 5:1-7
Now will I sing to my wellbeloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard. My wellbeloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill: …

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Dealt Hallelujah Jah Judgments Laws Nation Ordinances Praise Praised Yah
Psalm 147
1. The prophet exhorts to praise God for his care of the church
4. His power and wisdom
6. His mercy
7. His providence
12. To praise him for his blessings upon the kingdom
15. For his power over the elements
19. And for his ordinances in the church














He has done this for no other nation
This phrase highlights the unique relationship between God and Israel. The Hebrew root for "done" is עָשָׂה (asah), which implies purposeful action. Historically, Israel was chosen as God's covenant people, a theme that runs throughout the Old Testament. This exclusivity underscores God's sovereign choice and the special revelation given to Israel, setting them apart from other nations. It reflects the divine favor and responsibility bestowed upon them, as seen in Deuteronomy 7:6, where Israel is described as a "holy people" chosen by God.

they do not know His judgments
The word "know" comes from the Hebrew יָדַע (yada), which means to know intimately or experientially. This suggests that other nations lack the intimate understanding of God's laws and decrees that Israel possesses. "Judgments" refers to God's righteous decrees and laws, which were revealed to Israel through the Torah. This lack of knowledge among other nations highlights the privilege and responsibility of Israel to be a light to the Gentiles, as seen in Isaiah 42:6. It also points to the broader biblical narrative of God's plan to eventually extend His salvation to all nations through Jesus Christ.

Hallelujah!
This word is a transliteration of the Hebrew הַלְלוּיָהּ (halleluyah), meaning "Praise the Lord." It serves as a doxology, a call to worship and praise God for His unique dealings with Israel. The use of "Hallelujah" here is a reminder of the appropriate response to God's grace and favor—praise and worship. It encapsulates the psalmist's awe and gratitude for God's sovereign acts and His special relationship with His people. This call to praise is not just for Israel but for all who recognize God's mighty works and His unfolding plan of redemption through history.

(20) Any nation.--This boast in Israel's peculiar and exclusive privilege may be compared with Deuteronomy 4:7; Deuteronomy 32:32-41.

Judgments.--Here plainly not manifestations of wrath; but, as so frequently in Psalms 119, the display of righteousness towards Israel.

Verse 20. - He hath not dealt so with any nation. Though the Word of God, to a certain extent, "lighteth every man that cometh into the world" (John 1:9), yet this light of nature is not to be compared to the revelation vouchsafed to Israel. Israel was God's "peculiar people," and had peculiar privileges, which involved special responsibilities. And as for his judgments, they (i.e. the nations) have not known them (comp. Amos 3:2, "You only have I known out of all the families of the earth: therefore will I visit upon you all your iniquities"). Praise ye the Lord (comp. ver. 1).



Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
He has done
עָ֤שָׂה (‘ā·śāh)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 6213: To do, make

this
כֵ֨ן ׀ (ḵên)
Adverb
Strong's 3651: So -- thus

for no other
לְכָל־ (lə·ḵāl)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

nation;
גּ֗וֹי (gō·w)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 1471: A foreign nation, a Gentile, a troop of animals, a flight of locusts

they do not
בַּל־ (bal-)
Adverb
Strong's 1077: A failure, nothing, not at all, lest

know
יְדָע֗וּם (yə·ḏā·‘ūm)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural | third person masculine plural
Strong's 3045: To know

His judgments.
וּמִשְׁפָּטִ֥ים (ū·miš·pā·ṭîm)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 4941: A verdict, a sentence, formal decree, divine law, penalty, justice, privilege, style

Hallelujah!
הַֽלְלוּ־ (hal·lū-)
Verb - Piel - Imperative - masculine plural
Strong's 1984: To shine


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OT Poetry: Psalm 147:20 He has not done this for just (Psalm Ps Psa.)
Psalm 147:19
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