Psalm 35:27
Let them shout for joy and be glad, who favor my righteous cause; and let them say continually, "The Lord be magnified, who has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant."
Psalm 35:27 (NKJV)
May those who delight in my vindication shout for joy and gladness; may they always say, "The Lord be exalted, who delights in the well-being of his servant."
Psalm 35:27 (NIV)
Let them shout for joy, and be glad, that favour my righteous cause: yea, let them say continually, Let the Lord be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant.
Psalm 35:27 (KJV)
But give great joy to those who came to my defense. Let them continually say, "Great is the Lord, who delights in blessing his servant with peace!"
Psalm 35:27 (NLT)
Let those who delight in my righteousness shout for joy and be glad and say evermore, "Great is the Lord, who delights in the welfare of his servant!"
Psalm 35:27 (ESV)
Let them shout for joy and rejoice, who favor my vindication; and let them say continually, "The Lord be magnified, who delights in the prosperity of His servant."
Psalm 35:27 (NASB)Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.lockman.org
Let those who favor my righteous cause and want what is right for me shout for joy and be glad; let them say continually, "Let the Lord be magnified, who delights in the prosperity of His servant."
Psalm 35:27 (AMP)Scripture quotations taken from the Amplified® Bible (AMP), Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.lockman.org
Let those who favor my righteous cause and have pleasure in my uprightness shout for joy and be glad and say continually, Let the Lord be magnified, Who takes pleasure in the prosperity of His servant.
Psalm 35:27 (AMPC)Scripture quotations taken from the Amplified® Bible (AMPC), Copyright © 1954, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.lockman.org
And those who are pleased with my pleasure in God will shout and clap their praises. They'll say it over and over: "God is great — he's pleased with his servant's good life!"
Psalm 35:27 (MSG)Scripture quotations from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress. All rights reserved. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.
New Covenant Meaning
God Is Not Neutral About Your Flourishing
The Hebrew word translated "pleasure" or "delight" is chaphets, a word that carries the sense of personal desire, delight, and longing. This is not the posture of a God who tolerates your prosperity when it happens. This is a God who actively takes pleasure in it. He roots for it. He leans into it. The prosperity in view here is the Hebrew shalom, which is one of the richest words in the entire Old Testament. Shalom is not a polite greeting. It encompasses peace, wholeness, health, safety, completeness, and material wellbeing simultaneously. God takes delight in all of that landing in the life of His servant. Any theology that treats poverty or lack as a mark of spiritual depth has no foundation in Psalm 35:27.
Jesus Came to Give Abundant Life, Not Minimal Survival
John 10:10 records Jesus saying He came so that believers might have life and have it abundantly. The Greek word is perissos, meaning exceeding the ordinary measure, beyond what is expected, superabundant. This is not Jesus offering you just enough to get by. It is Jesus announcing the same thing the psalmist declared: the God of your salvation takes pleasure in your prospering. The apostle John echoed it directly in 3 John 1:2, praying that believers would prosper in all things and be in health, just as the soul prospers. This is not a fringe teaching. It is the consistent testimony of the Old and New Testaments: God takes pleasure in the shalom of His servant.
In Christ, you are not a servant trying to earn God's approval. You are a son or daughter who already has it (Romans 8:15-16). The pleasure God takes in the prosperity of His servant now flows through the finished work of the cross. Galatians 3:13-14 says that Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law so that the blessing of Abraham might come upon us. Abraham was the wealthiest man of his era. The blessing connected to him was not just spiritual. It was total shalom, the kind Psalm 35:27 describes. You are an heir of that blessing, not because you earned it but because Christ secured it.
Application for Your Life
Let God's Pleasure Reshape What You Believe About Yourself
Many believers have unconsciously absorbed the idea that God is more comfortable with them when they are struggling. That spiritual credentials come through difficulty and lack. Psalm 35:27 dismantles that framework at the root. God takes pleasure in your prosperity. He delights in your shalom. When things are going well, when health is strong, when provision is sufficient, when relationships are whole, that is God being God. That is shalom. You do not have to apologize for flourishing. You do not have to reduce yourself to seem humble. Your flourishing is what God is pleased about.
Magnify the Lord Who Delights in Your Good
The psalmist calls for continual praise: let them say continually, the Lord be magnified. The reason for the magnification is specific: He takes pleasure in the prosperity of His servant. This means praise is not just a response to rescue from trouble. Praise is also the right response to ongoing flourishing. When you recognize that the good in your life is something God delights to give, the natural response is the one the psalmist prescribes: magnify the Lord. Make Him big. Declare His character. Let what you say about God be shaped by the truth that He is pleased with your shalom.
Prayer Based on This Verse
Father, I receive what Your Word declares about You. You take pleasure in the prosperity of Your servant. You are not indifferent to my flourishing. You are not watching my struggles from a distance, waiting to see if I earn enough of Your favor. You delight in my shalom. You are pleased when I am whole, healthy, at peace, and provided for. I let go of every belief that You are more pleased with me when I am lacking. I receive the fullness of what Christ purchased: the blessing of Abraham, the abundant life Jesus announced. I magnify You today as the God who delights in my good. In Jesus' name. Amen.