Psalm 129
Legacy Standard Bible
Yahweh Has Cut the Cords of the Wicked
A Song of Ascents.
129 “[a]Many times they have [b](A)assailed me from my (B)youth up,”
(C)Let Israel now say,
2 “[c]Many times they have [d]assailed me from my youth up;
Yet they have (D)not prevailed against me.
3 The plowers plowed upon my back;
They lengthened their furrows.”
4 Yahweh (E)is righteous;
He has cut up the (F)cords of the wicked.
5 Let all who (G)hate Zion
Be (H)put to shame and turned backward;
6 Let them be like (I)grass upon the rooftops,
Which dries up before it [e]grows up;
7 With which the reaper does not fill his [f]hand,
Nor the binder of sheaves the (J)fold of his garment;
8 And those who pass by will not say,
“The (K)blessing of Yahweh be upon you;
We bless you in the name of Yahweh.”
Footnotes
- Psalm 129:1 Lit Much
- Psalm 129:1 Lit showed hostility toward
- Psalm 129:2 Lit Much
- Psalm 129:2 Lit showed hostility toward
- Psalm 129:6 Lit draws out
- Psalm 129:7 Lit palm
Psalm 129
New English Translation
Psalm 129[a]
A song of ascents.[b]
129 “Since my youth they have often attacked me,”
let Israel say.
2 “Since my youth they have often attacked me,
but they have not defeated me.
3 The plowers plowed my back;
they made their furrows long.
4 The Lord is just;
he cut the ropes of the wicked.”[c]
5 May all who hate Zion
be humiliated and turned back.
6 May they be like the grass on the rooftops,
which withers before one can even pull it up,[d]
7 which cannot fill the reaper’s hand,
or the lap of the one who gathers the grain.
8 Those who pass by will not say,[e]
“May you experience the Lord’s blessing!
We pronounce a blessing on you in the name of the Lord.”
Footnotes
- Psalm 129:1 sn Psalm 129. Israel affirms God’s justice and asks him to destroy the enemies of Zion.
- Psalm 129:1 sn The precise significance of this title, which appears in Pss 120-134, is unclear. Perhaps worshipers recited these psalms when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. For a discussion of their background see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 219-21.
- Psalm 129:4 tn The background of the metaphor is not entirely clear. Perhaps the “ropes” are those used to harness the ox for plowing (see Job 39:10). Verse 3 pictures the wicked plowing God’s people as if they were a field. But when God “cut the ropes” of their ox, as it were, they could no longer plow. The point of the metaphor seems to be that God took away the enemies’ ability to oppress his people. See L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 187.
- Psalm 129:6 tn The Hebrew verb שָׁלַף (shalaf) normally means “to draw [a sword]” or “to pull.” BDB 1025 s.v. suggests the meaning “to shoot up” here, but it is more likely that the verb here means “to pluck; to pull up,” a nuance attested for this word in later Hebrew and Aramaic (see Jastrow 1587 s.v. שָׁלַף).
- Psalm 129:8 tn The perfect verbal form is used for rhetorical effect; it describes an anticipated development as if it were already reality.
Chinese New Version (CNV). Copyright © 1976, 1992, 1999, 2001, 2005 by Worldwide Bible Society.
Chinese New Version (CNV). Copyright © 1976, 1992, 1999, 2001, 2005 by Worldwide Bible Society.
Copyright © 2004 by World Bible Translation Center
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