The Meaning of Psalms 50:2 Explained

Psalms 50:2

KJV: Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined.

YLT: From Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shone.

Darby: Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined forth.

ASV: Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined forth.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Out of Zion,  the perfection  of beauty,  God  hath shined. 

What does Psalms 50:2 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalm 50:1-15 - Sacrifices Which God Desires
This is one of the most majestic compositions of this book. For literary power it cannot be excelled. The psalmist hears God calling the whole world from east to west. His presence is compared to the dawn and to a tropical storm. When He is seated on His throne, the heavens and the earth bear witness while He judges His people. Then up the crowded aisles His saints advance and stand before Him.
There is no need to enlarge upon the spiritual insight of the psalmist, who realizes that God cannot be enriched by anything that we can bring; but insists on the sacrifice of thanksgiving, vows of consecration, and the loud call for help in the day of trouble. These are characteristic of those whose God is the Lord, and of the people whom He has taken for His own inheritance. Let us specially ponder these three conditions of the happy life, Psalms 50:14-15. What comfort is contained in the blessed promise of Psalms 50:15! It is so absolute in its certainty and assurance. God has here bound Himself to deliver the soul that calls on Him in its trouble and give it reason to glorify Him. [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalm 50

1  The majesty of God in the church
5  His order to gather his saints
7  The pleasure of God is not in ceremonies
14  but in sincerity of obedience

What do the individual words in Psalms 50:2 mean?

Out of Zion the perfection of beauty God will shine forth
מִצִּיּ֥וֹן מִכְלַל־ יֹ֗פִי אֱלֹהִ֥ים הוֹפִֽיעַ

מִצִּיּ֥וֹן  Out  of  Zion 
Parse: Preposition-m, Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: צִיּׄון  
Sense: another name for Jerusalem especially in the prophetic books.
מִכְלַל־  the  perfection 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: מִכְלָל  
Sense: completeness, perfection.
יֹ֗פִי  of  beauty 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: יֳפִי  
Sense: beauty.
אֱלֹהִ֥ים  God 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
הוֹפִֽיעַ  will  shine  forth 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: יָפַע  
Sense: to shine, shine forth or out, cause to shine, send out beams.