Great is the LORD—his praise all else excels—

Great is the LORD—his praise all else excels— In our God’s city, on his holy hill. Mount Zion is the joy of all the earth, So high and fair like mountains of the north; Here is the city where the Great King dwells.

God is the fortress of Jerusalem. When kings joined forces, ready to advance, They looked, and fled in terror and surprise, Gripped like a woman who in childbirth cries. Like ships destroyed by storm, you shattered them.

As we have heard, now we have seen it so Within the city of Almighty God— The city of the LORD, which by his grace He makes secure. Within your holy place Your never-failing love we seek to know.

O God, your name is known throughout the earth, And to its farthest shores your praise goes forth; Your strong right hand is filled with righteousness. To Zion your great deeds bring joyfulness, And Judah’s villages are filled with mirth.

Walk round and count the towers of Zion’s hill. Note well her ramparts and her citadels, And speak of them to your posterity. For this God is our God eternally, And to the end our God will guide us still.