Plea for Relief from Bitter Foes

A Song of Ascents.

120 In (A)my distress I cried to the Lord,
And He heard me.
Deliver my soul, O Lord, from lying lips
And from a deceitful tongue.

What shall be given to you,
Or what shall be done to you,
You false tongue?
Sharp arrows of the [a]warrior,
With coals of the broom tree!

Woe is me, that I dwell in (B)Meshech,
(C)That I dwell among the tents of Kedar!
My soul has dwelt too long
With one who hates peace.
I am for peace;
But when I speak, they are for war.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 120:4 mighty one

Psalm 120

A song of ascents.

I call on the Lord(A) in my distress,(B)
    and he answers me.
Save me, Lord,
    from lying lips(C)
    and from deceitful tongues.(D)

What will he do to you,
    and what more besides,
    you deceitful tongue?
He will punish you with a warrior’s sharp arrows,(E)
    with burning coals of the broom bush.

Woe to me that I dwell in Meshek,
    that I live among the tents of Kedar!(F)
Too long have I lived
    among those who hate peace.
I am for peace;
    but when I speak, they are for war.

God the Help of Those Who Seek Him

A Song of Ascents.

121 I (A)will lift up my eyes to the hills—
From whence comes my help?
(B)My help comes from the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.

(C)He will not allow your foot to [a]be moved;
(D)He who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, He who keeps Israel
Shall neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord is your [b]keeper;
The Lord is (E)your shade (F)at your right hand.
(G)The sun shall not strike you by day,
Nor the moon by night.

The Lord shall [c]preserve you from all evil;
He shall (H)preserve your soul.
The Lord shall (I)preserve[d] your going out and your coming in
From this time forth, and even forevermore.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 121:3 slip
  2. Psalm 121:5 protector
  3. Psalm 121:7 keep
  4. Psalm 121:8 keep

Psalm 121

A song of ascents.

I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
    where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven(A) and earth.(B)

He will not let your foot slip—
    he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches(C) over Israel
    will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord watches over(D) you—
    the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
the sun(E) will not harm you by day,
    nor the moon by night.

The Lord will keep you from all harm(F)
    he will watch over your life;
the Lord will watch over your coming and going
    both now and forevermore.(G)

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.
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.

Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us!
For we are exceedingly filled with contempt.
Our soul is exceedingly filled
With the scorn of those who are at ease,
With the contempt of the proud.

Psalm 123

A song of ascents.

I lift up my eyes to you,
    to you who sit enthroned(A) in heaven.
As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master,
    as the eyes of a female slave look to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the Lord(B) our God,
    till he shows us his mercy.

Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us,
    for we have endured no end of contempt.
We have endured no end
    of ridicule from the arrogant,
    of contempt from the proud.

The Lord the Strength of His People

A Song of Ascents.

125 Those who trust in the Lord
Are like Mount Zion,
Which cannot be moved, but abides forever.
As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
So the Lord surrounds His people
From this time forth and forever.

For (A)the scepter of wickedness shall not rest
On the land allotted to the righteous,
Lest the righteous reach out their hands to iniquity.

Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,
And to those who are upright in their hearts.

As for such as turn aside to their (B)crooked ways,
The Lord shall lead them away
With the workers of iniquity.

(C)Peace be upon Israel!

Psalm 125

A song of ascents.

Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,(A)
    which cannot be shaken(B) but endures forever.
As the mountains surround Jerusalem,(C)
    so the Lord surrounds(D) his people
    both now and forevermore.

The scepter(E) of the wicked will not remain(F)
    over the land allotted to the righteous,
for then the righteous might use
    their hands to do evil.(G)

Lord, do good(H) to those who are good,
    to those who are upright in heart.(I)
But those who turn(J) to crooked ways(K)
    the Lord will banish(L) with the evildoers.

Peace be on Israel.(M)

A Joyful Return to Zion

A Song of Ascents.

126 When (A)the Lord brought back [a]the captivity of Zion,
(B)We were like those who dream.
Then (C)our mouth was filled with laughter,
And our tongue with singing.
Then they said among the [b]nations,
“The Lord has done great things for them.”
The Lord has done great things for us,
And we are glad.

Bring back our captivity, O Lord,
As the streams in the South.

(D)Those who sow in tears
Shall reap in joy.
He who continually goes [c]forth weeping,
Bearing [d]seed for sowing,
Shall doubtless come again [e]with (E)rejoicing,
Bringing his sheaves with him.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 126:1 Those of the captivity
  2. Psalm 126:2 Gentiles
  3. Psalm 126:6 to and fro
  4. Psalm 126:6 Lit. a bag of seed for sowing
  5. Psalm 126:6 with shouts of joy

Psalm 126

A song of ascents.

When the Lord restored(A) the fortunes of[a] Zion,
    we were like those who dreamed.[b]
Our mouths were filled with laughter,(B)
    our tongues with songs of joy.(C)
Then it was said among the nations,
    “The Lord has done great things(D) for them.”
The Lord has done great things(E) for us,
    and we are filled with joy.(F)

Restore our fortunes,[c](G) Lord,
    like streams in the Negev.(H)
Those who sow with tears(I)
    will reap(J) with songs of joy.(K)
Those who go out weeping,(L)
    carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy,
    carrying sheaves with them.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 126:1 Or Lord brought back the captives to
  2. Psalm 126:1 Or those restored to health
  3. Psalm 126:4 Or Bring back our captives