What does it mean that God inhabits the praise of His people (Psalm 22:3)?

Psalm 22 is a prophetic psalm of David presenting Jesus Christ as the Savior who laid down His life at the cross. The psalm begins by expressing strong feelings of rejection and abandonment (Psalm 22:1–2; cf. Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34). Yet those heartfelt cries are immediately followed by a declaration of trust in God: “But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel” (Psalm 22:3, KJV).


As the bearer of humanity’s sins, Christ was destined to experience untold pain and anguish (Isaiah 53:4–6, 10; 2 Corinthians 5:21). David writes of God’s silence in the face of his anguish: “Why are you so far . . . from the words of my groaning? O my God, I cry . . . but you do not answer” (Psalm 22:1–2, ESV). Even then, David reminds himself of God’s sovereignty: “Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel” (Psalm 22:3, ESV). The word enthroned here describes the circumstance of sitting, remaining, or dwelling somewhere. (The phrasing God inhabits the praise of His people comes from the King James Version of Psalm 22:3.)

When David declared, “God inhabits the praise of His people” in Psalm 22:3 (KJV), he expressed his absolute trust in God. No matter what was happening at that moment or how alone he felt, David knew that God was present and in control. God was on His throne, ruling over David’s hour of need (see 1 Peter 2:23). God the Father had not abandoned His child. God was working out His sovereign plan, and David would soon be delivered (see Psalm 22:4–5).

Scripture holds many references to God’s enthronement:

The idea behind God inhabiting the praise of His people could be that God’s “throne” on earth was the tabernacle, the place where praise was continually offered to Him. In Psalm 22, David in his suffering remembers the place and people of praise. He is not among those congregants, but he expresses with confidence that their praises are appropriate. Even in the extremity of his distress, David trusts that God is holy and worthy of praise. What was true for David would also be true for the Son of David, the Messiah, and that’s what makes Psalm 22 a prophetic psalm.

Heaven is called God’s temple (Psalm 11:4; Habakkuk 2:20) where God is surrounded by praise. Ultimately, God’s dwelling place will be with His people: “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God” (Revelation 21:3; see also Revelation 21:22). Jesus Christ revealed that He is the Lord’s temple (John 2:19–21), and God’s presence now inhabits His body—the church (1 Corinthians 3:16–17).

Scripture repeatedly affirms that individual believers are “temples of the Holy Spirit” and “the temple of the living God” where God’s presence dwells (1 Corinthians 6:19; 2 Corinthians 6:16). The whole church “is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord . . . built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit” (Ephesians 2:21–22). The church fits together like “living stones” being built into “a spiritual house” that offers “spiritual sacrifices” to God (1 Peter 2:5).

The writer of Hebrews counsels, “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name” (Hebrews 13:15). The apostle Peter explains, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9).

God still inhabits the praises of His people. No matter what our circumstances, we know that God is holy and does all things well. We can worship the Lord even in our distress.