Psalm 123
New English Translation
Psalm 123[a]
A song of ascents.[b]
123 I look up[c] toward you,
the one enthroned[d] in heaven.
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,[e]
so our eyes will look to the Lord, our God, until he shows us favor.
3 Show us favor, O Lord, show us favor!
For we have had our fill of humiliation, and then some.[f]
4 We have had our fill[g]
of the taunts of the self-assured,
of the contempt of the proud.
Footnotes
- Psalm 123:1 sn Psalm 123. The psalmist, speaking for God’s people, acknowledges his dependence on God in the midst of a crisis.
- Psalm 123:1 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 123:1 tn Heb “I lift my eyes.”
- Psalm 123:1 tn Heb “sitting.” The Hebrew verb יָשַׁב (yashav) is here used metonymically of “sitting enthroned” (see Pss 9:7; 29:10; 55:19; 102:12).
- Psalm 123:2 sn Servants look to their master for food, shelter, and other basic needs.
- Psalm 123:3 tn Heb “for greatly we are filled [with] humiliation.”
- Psalm 123:4 tn Heb “greatly our soul is full to it.”
Psalm 123
New King James Version
Prayer for Relief from Contempt
A Song of Ascents.
123 Unto You (A)I lift up my eyes,
O You (B)who dwell in the heavens.
2 Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters,
As the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress,
(C)So our eyes look to the Lord our God,
Until He has mercy on us.
3 Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us!
For we are exceedingly filled with contempt.
4 Our soul is exceedingly filled
With the scorn of those who are at ease,
With the contempt of the proud.
Chinese New Version (CNV). Copyright © 1976, 1992, 1999, 2001, 2005 by Worldwide Bible Society.
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
