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Psalm 129
English Standard Version
Psalm 129
English Standard Version
They Have Afflicted Me from My Youth
A Song of (A)Ascents.
129 “Greatly[a] have they (B)afflicted me (C)from my youth”—
(D)let Israel now say—
2 “Greatly have they (E)afflicted me (F)from my youth,
(G)yet they have not prevailed against me.
3 (H)The plowers plowed (I)upon my back;
they made long their furrows.”
4 The Lord is righteous;
he has cut (J)the cords of the wicked.
5 May all who hate Zion
be (K)put to shame and turned backward!
6 Let them be like (L)the grass on the housetops,
which (M)withers before it grows up,
7 with which the reaper does not fill his hand
nor the binder of sheaves his arms,
8 nor do those who pass by say,
(N)“The blessing of the Lord be upon you!
We (O)bless you in the name of the Lord!”
Footnotes
- Psalm 129:1 Or Often; also verse 2
Psalm 129
New International Version
Psalm 129
New International Version
Psalm 129
A song of ascents.
1 “They have greatly oppressed(A) me from my youth,”(B)
let Israel say;(C)
2 “they have greatly oppressed me from my youth,
but they have not gained the victory(D) over me.
3 Plowmen have plowed my back
and made their furrows long.
4 But the Lord is righteous;(E)
he has cut me free(F) from the cords of the wicked.”(G)
5 May all who hate Zion(H)
be turned back in shame.(I)
6 May they be like grass on the roof,(J)
which withers(K) before it can grow;
7 a reaper cannot fill his hands with it,(L)
nor one who gathers fill his arms.
8 May those who pass by not say to them,
“The blessing of the Lord be on you;
we bless you(M) in the name of the Lord.”
Psalm 129
Contemporary English Version
Psalm 129
Contemporary English Version
(A song for worship.)
A Prayer for Protection
1 Since the time I was young,
enemies have often attacked!
Let everyone in Israel say:
2 “Since the time I was young,
enemies have often attacked!
But they have not defeated me,
3 though my back is like a field
that has just been plowed.”
4 The Lord always does right,
and he has set me free
from the ropes
of those cruel people.
5 I pray that all who hate
the city of Zion
will be made ashamed
and forced to turn and run.
6 May they be like grass
on the flat roof of a house,
grass that dries up
as soon as it sprouts.
7 Don't let them be like wheat
gathered in bundles.
8 And don't let anyone
who passes by say to them,
“The Lord bless you!
I give you my blessing
in the name of the Lord.”
Psalm 129
King James Version
Psalm 129
King James Version
129 Many a time have they afflicted me from my youth, may Israel now say:
2 Many a time have they afflicted me from my youth: yet they have not prevailed against me.
3 The plowers plowed upon my back: they made long their furrows.
4 The Lord is righteous: he hath cut asunder the cords of the wicked.
5 Let them all be confounded and turned back that hate Zion.
6 Let them be as the grass upon the housetops, which withereth afore it groweth up:
7 Wherewith the mower filleth not his hand; nor he that bindeth sheaves his bosom.
8 Neither do they which go by say, The blessing of the Lord be upon you: we bless you in the name of the Lord.
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
Contemporary English Version (CEV) 
Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.