Psalms 22:23 Meaning: Who Are the ‘You Who Fear Yahweh’?

Three key verbs shape this verse, and each one adds a different color to worship. The first is praise. In Hebrew thought this often meant a loud, active confession of God’s character and deeds, something you speak out, not just feel. It is the glad telling of what He has done.

The second verb is glorify. To glorify means to give weight or honor to someone. Here it is directed to the “seed of Jacob”, the covenant family. The call is not merely to admire God but to treat Him as truly important, to let your life reflect His worth.

The third verb is stand in awe or fear. This is not the cowering terror of an enemy. It is the deep reverence that knows who God is and responds with both love and holy respect. The same word appears throughout the Psalms for the proper posture of creatures before their Creator.

Together the three verbs move from outward declaration (praise) to inner honoring (glorify) to settled reverence (fear). They describe a whole person responding to a whole deliverance.

Christians across traditions have seen different layers in this verse. Many point out that the one speaking here is not just David but looks ahead to Christ, who quotes Psalm 22 from the cross. In that light, the call to praise becomes the risen Savior inviting His people to celebrate the answer to His suffering. Some early Protestant commentators understood “you who fear Yahweh” as the faithful remnant of Israel or even Gentile proselytes who had joined the congregation. Others, like the Methodist scholar Adam Clarke, saw the verse as an exhortation to all who revere God to profit from the Gospel’s preaching. The common thread is this: the community that fears God is called to respond publicly to His salvation, whether they are Jew or Gentile, ancient or modern. The specifics of who exactly is included remain open, but the invitation to worship is clear.

Some readers think the third command to “stand in awe of him” is simply repeating the first call to fear the Lord. In fact, the Hebrew uses a different verb for the third command. The first “fear” is the general posture of reverence. The third is a stronger word meaning to tremble or be in awe. The verse is not repetitive: it moves from praise to glorifying to reverent wonder, each building on the last.

When was the last time you received an answer to a long, hard prayer? Maybe a healing came, a relationship mended, or you simply made it through a terrible season. This verse suggests a concrete next step: do not keep it to yourself. Join the assembly, your local church, a small group, even a trusted friend, and say out loud what God did. Praise Him openly. Glorify Him by treating that answer as a big deal. And then let the wonder of His nearness settle into your bones. This week, if you have a story of God’s help, share it. That is what the psalmist did.