King James Version

Psalms 48:12

Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof.

Study

Hebrew

Tap a word to see its meaning. Words run left to right in English reading order.

In the Hebrew text this line is Psalms 48:13.

סֹ֣בּוּsobvbringסָבַבverb, qal, imperative, 2nd person, masculine, plural — “bring”, a commandH5437to revolve, surround, or border; used in various applications, literally and figurativelybring, cast, fetch, lead, make, walk, [idiom] whirl, [idiom] round about, be about on every side, apply, avoid, beset (about), besiege, bring again, carry (about), change, cause to come about, [idiom] circuit, (fetch a) compass (about, rou…צִ֭יּוֹןtsionZionצִיּוֹןnoun, proper name — “Zion”H6726Tsijon (as a permanent capital), a mountain of JerusalemZion.וְהַקִּיפ֑וּהָvehaqifuhaand compassנָקַףconjunction, verb, hiphil, imperative, 2nd person, masculine, plural, suffix, pronominal, 3rd person, feminine, singular — “and compass”, a commandH5362to strike with more or less violence (beat, fell, corrode); by implication (of attack) to knock together, i.e. surround or circulatecompass (about, -ing), cut down, destroy, go round (about), inclose, round.סִ֝פְר֗וּsifrvcommuneסָפַרverb, qal, imperative, 2nd person, masculine, plural — “commune”, a commandH5608properly, to score with a mark as a tally or record, i.e. (by implication) to inscribe, and also to enumerate; intensively, to recount, i.e. celebratecommune, (ac-) count; declare, number, [phrase] penknife, reckon, scribe, shew forth, speak, talk, tell (out), writer.מִגְדָּלֶֽיהָmigdaleyhacastleמִגְדָּלnoun, common, both genders, plural, construct, suffix, pronominal, 3rd person, feminine, singular — “castle”, the of-form, joined to the next wordH4026a tower (from its size or height); by analogy, a rostrum; figuratively, a (pyramidal) bed of flowerscastle, flower, tower. Compare the names following.

Jewish translation (JPS 1917)

(48-13) Walk about Zion, and go round about her; count the towers thereof.

Compare Public-Domain Translations

The King James Version remains the text of this page and the canonical URL.

American Standard Version (1901)

Walk about Zion, and go round about her; Number the towers thereof;

Young’s Literal Translation

Compass Zion, and go round her, count her towers,

World English Bible

Walk about Zion, and go around her. Number its towers.

Darby Translation

Walk about Zion, and go round about her: count the towers thereof;

Douay-Rheims

And their sepulchres shall be their houses for ever. Their dwelling places to all generations: they have called their lands by their names.

Jewish Publication Society (1917)

(48-13) Walk about Zion, and go round about her; count the towers thereof.

Brenton’s Septuagint (1851), English

Go round about Sion, and encompass her: tell ye her towers.

Septuagint (Brenton’s Greek, 1851)

Κυκλώσατε Σιὼν, καὶ περιλάβετε αὐτὴν, διηγήσασθε ἐν τοῖς πύργοις αὐτῆς.