A song of ascents. 2
120:1 In my distress I cried out
to the Lord and he answered me.
120:2 I said, 3 “O Lord, rescue me 4
from those who lie with their lips 5
and those who deceive with their tongue. 6
120:3 How will he severely punish you,
you deceptive talker? 7
120:4 Here’s how! 8 With the sharp arrows of warriors,
with arrowheads forged over the hot coals. 9
120:5 How miserable I am! 10
For I have lived temporarily 11 in Meshech;
I have resided among the tents of Kedar. 12
120:6 For too long I have had to reside
with those who hate 13 peace.
120:7 I am committed to peace, 14
but when I speak, they want to make war. 15
A song of ascents. 17
121:1 I look up 18 toward the hills.
From where 19 does my help come?
121:2 My help comes from the Lord, 20
the Creator 21 of heaven and earth!
121:3 May he not allow your foot to slip!
May your protector 22 not sleep! 23
121:4 Look! Israel’s protector 24
does not sleep or slumber!
121:5 The Lord is your protector;
the Lord is the shade at your right hand.
121:6 The sun will not harm you by day,
or the moon by night. 25
121:7 The Lord will protect you from all harm;
he will protect your life.
121:8 The Lord will protect you in all you do, 26
now and forevermore.
A song of ascents, 28 by David.
122:1 I was glad because 29 they said to me,
“We will go to the Lord’s temple.”
122:2 Our feet are 30 standing
inside your gates, O Jerusalem.
122:3 Jerusalem 31 is a city designed
to accommodate an assembly. 32
122:4 The tribes go up 33 there, 34
the tribes of the Lord,
where it is required that Israel
give thanks to the name of the Lord. 35
122:5 Indeed, 36 the leaders sit 37 there on thrones and make legal decisions,
on the thrones of the house of David. 38
122:6 Pray 39 for the peace of Jerusalem!
May those who love her prosper! 40
122:7 May there be peace inside your defenses,
and prosperity 41 inside your fortresses! 42
122:8 For the sake of my brothers and my neighbors
I will say, “May there be peace in you!”
122:9 For the sake of the temple of the Lord our God
I will pray for you to prosper. 43
A song of ascents. 45
123:1 I look up 46 toward you,
the one enthroned 47 in heaven.
123:2 Look, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a female servant look to the hand of her mistress, 48
so my eyes will look to the Lord, our God, until he shows us favor.
123:3 Show us favor, O Lord, show us favor!
For we have had our fill of humiliation, and then some. 49
123:4 We have had our fill 50
of the taunts of the self-assured,
of the contempt of the proud.
A song of ascents, 52 by David.
124:1 “If the Lord had not been on our side” –
let Israel say this! –
124:2 if the Lord had not been on our side,
when men attacked us, 53
124:3 they would have swallowed us alive,
when their anger raged against us.
124:4 The water would have overpowered us;
the current 54 would have overwhelmed 55 us. 56
124:5 The raging water
would have overwhelmed us. 57
124:6 The Lord deserves praise, 58
for 59 he did not hand us over as prey to their teeth.
124:7 We escaped with our lives, 60 like a bird from a hunter’s snare.
The snare broke, and we escaped.
124:8 Our deliverer is the Lord, 61
the Creator 62 of heaven and earth.
A song of ascents. 64
125:1 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion;
it cannot be upended and will endure forever.
125:2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem, 65
so the Lord surrounds his people,
now and forevermore.
125:3 Indeed, 66 the scepter of a wicked king 67 will not settle 68
upon the allotted land of the godly.
Otherwise the godly might
do what is wrong. 69
125:4 Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,
to the morally upright! 70
125:5 As for those who are bent on traveling a sinful path, 71
may the Lord remove them, 72 along with those who behave wickedly! 73
May Israel experience peace! 74
A song of ascents. 76
126:1 When the Lord restored the well-being of Zion, 77
we thought we were dreaming. 78
126:2 At that time we laughed loudly
and shouted for joy. 79
At that time the nations said, 80
“The Lord has accomplished great things for these people.”
126:3 The Lord did indeed accomplish great things for us.
We were happy.
126:4 O Lord, restore our well-being,
just as the streams in the arid south are replenished. 81
126:5 Those who shed tears as they plant
will shout for joy when they reap the harvest. 82
126:6 The one who weeps as he walks along, carrying his bag 83 of seed,
will certainly come in with a shout of joy, carrying his sheaves of grain. 84
A song of ascents, 86 by Solomon.
127:1 If the Lord does not build a house, 87
then those who build it work in vain.
If the Lord does not guard a city, 88
then the watchman stands guard in vain.
127:2 It is vain for you to rise early, come home late,
and work so hard for your food. 89
Yes, 90 he can provide for those whom he loves even when they sleep. 91
127:3 Yes, 92 sons 93 are a gift from the Lord,
the fruit of the womb is a reward.
127:4 Sons born during one’s youth
are like arrows in a warrior’s hand. 94
127:5 How blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them!
They will not be put to shame 95 when they confront 96 enemies at the city gate.
A song of ascents. 98
128:1 How blessed is every one of the Lord’s loyal followers, 99
each one who keeps his commands! 100
128:2 You 101 will eat what you worked so hard to grow. 102
You will be blessed and secure. 103
128:3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine 104
in the inner rooms of your house;
your children 105 will be like olive branches,
as they sit all around your table.
128:4 Yes indeed, the man who fears the Lord
will be blessed in this way. 106
128:5 May the Lord bless you 107 from Zion,
that you might see 108 Jerusalem 109 prosper
all the days of your life,
128:6 and that you might see 110 your grandchildren. 111
May Israel experience peace! 112
A song of ascents. 114
129:1 “Since my youth they have often attacked me,”
let Israel say.
129:2 “Since my youth they have often attacked me,
but they have not defeated me.
129:3 The plowers plowed my back;
they made their furrows long.
129:4 The Lord is just;
he cut the ropes of the wicked.” 115
129:5 May all who hate Zion
be humiliated and turned back!
129:6 May they be like the grass on the rooftops
which withers before one can even pull it up, 116
129:7 which cannot fill the reaper’s hand,
or the lap of the one who gathers the grain!
129:8 Those who pass by will not say, 117
“May you experience the Lord’s blessing!
We pronounce a blessing on you in the name of the Lord.”
A song of ascents. 119
130:1 From the deep water 120 I cry out to you, O Lord.
130:2 O Lord, listen to me! 121
Pay attention to 122 my plea for mercy!
130:3 If you, O Lord, were to keep track of 123 sins,
O Lord, who could stand before you? 124
130:4 But 125 you are willing to forgive, 126
so that you might 127 be honored. 128
130:5 I rely on 129 the Lord,
I rely on him with my whole being; 130
I wait for his assuring word. 131
130:6 I yearn for the Lord, 132
more than watchmen do for the morning,
yes, more than watchmen do for the morning. 133
130:7 O Israel, hope in the Lord,
for the Lord exhibits loyal love, 134
and is more than willing to deliver. 135
130:8 He will deliver 136 Israel
from all the consequences of their sins. 137
A song of ascents, 139 by David.
131:1 O Lord, my heart is not proud,
nor do I have a haughty look. 140
I do not have great aspirations,
or concern myself with things that are beyond me. 141
131:2 Indeed 142 I am composed and quiet, 143
like a young child carried by its mother; 144
I am content like the young child I carry. 145
131:3 O Israel, hope in the Lord
now and forevermore!
A song of ascents. 147
132:1 O Lord, for David’s sake remember
all his strenuous effort, 148
132:2 and how he made a vow to the Lord,
and swore an oath to the powerful ruler of Jacob. 149
132:3 He said, 150 “I will not enter my own home, 151
or get into my bed. 152
132:4 I will not allow my eyes to sleep,
or my eyelids to slumber,
132:5 until I find a place for the Lord,
a fine dwelling place 153 for the powerful ruler of Jacob.” 154
132:6 Look, we heard about it 155 in Ephrathah, 156
we found it in the territory of Jaar. 157
132:7 Let us go to his dwelling place!
Let us worship 158 before his footstool!
132:8 Ascend, O Lord, to your resting place,
you and the ark of your strength!
132:9 May your priests be clothed with integrity! 159
May your loyal followers shout for joy!
132:10 For the sake of David, your servant,
do not reject your chosen king! 160
132:11 The Lord made a reliable promise to David; 161
he will not go back on his word. 162
He said, 163 “I will place one of your descendants 164 on your throne.
132:12 If your sons keep my covenant
and the rules I teach them,
their sons will also sit on your throne forever.”
132:13 Certainly 165 the Lord has chosen Zion;
he decided to make it his home. 166
132:14 He said, 167 “This will be my resting place forever;
I will live here, for I have chosen it. 168
132:15 I will abundantly supply what she needs; 169
I will give her poor all the food they need. 170
132:16 I will protect her priests, 171
and her godly people will shout exuberantly. 172
132:17 There I will make David strong; 173
I have determined that my chosen king’s dynasty will continue. 174
132:18 I will humiliate his enemies, 175
and his crown will shine.
A song of ascents, 177 by David.
133:1 Look! How good and how pleasant it is
when brothers live together! 178
133:2 It is like fine oil poured on the head
which flows down the beard 179 –
Aaron’s beard,
and then flows down his garments. 180
133:3 It is like the dew of Hermon, 181
which flows down upon the hills of Zion. 182
Indeed 183 that is where the Lord has decreed
a blessing will be available – eternal life. 184
A song of ascents. 186
134:1 Attention! 187 Praise the Lord,
all you servants of the Lord,
who serve 188 in the Lord’s temple during the night.
134:2 Lift your hands toward the sanctuary
and praise the Lord!
134:3 May the Lord, the Creator of heaven and earth,
bless you 189 from Zion! 190