Psalm 121
New American Standard Bible
The Lord, the Keeper of Israel.
A Song of Ascents.
121 I will (A)raise my eyes to (B)the mountains;
From where will my help come?
2 My (C)help comes from the Lord,
Who (D)made heaven and earth.
3 He will not (E)allow your foot to slip;
He who (F)watches over you will not slumber.
4 Behold, He who watches over Israel
Will neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The Lord is your [a](G)protector;
The Lord is your (H)shade on your right hand.
6 The (I)sun will not [b]beat down on you by day,
Nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord will [c](J)protect you from all evil;
He will keep your soul.
8 The Lord will [d](K)guard your going out and your coming in
(L)From this time and forever.
Footnotes
- Psalm 121:5 Or keeper
- Psalm 121:6 Lit strike you
- Psalm 121:7 Or keep
- Psalm 121:8 Or keep
Psalm 121
New Living Translation
Psalm 121
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 I look up to the mountains—
does my help come from there?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth!
3 He will not let you stumble;
the one who watches over you will not slumber.
4 Indeed, he who watches over Israel
never slumbers or sleeps.
5 The Lord himself watches over you!
The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade.
6 The sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon at night.
7 The Lord keeps you from all harm
and watches over your life.
8 The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go,
both now and forever.
Psalm 123-125
New American Standard Bible
Prayer for the Lord’s Help.
A Song of Ascents.
123 To You I have (A)raised my eyes,
You who (B)are enthroned in the heavens!
2 Behold, as the eyes of (C)servants look to the hand of their master,
As the eyes of a female servant to the hand of her mistress,
So our (D)eyes look to the Lord our God,
Until He is gracious to us.
3 (E)Be gracious to us, Lord, be gracious to us,
For we have had much more than enough of (F)contempt.
4 Our soul has had much more than enough
Of the (G)scoffing of (H)those who are at ease,
And with the (I)contempt of the proud.
Praise for Rescue from Enemies.
A Song of Ascents, of David.
124 “(J)Had it not been the Lord who was on our side,”
(K)Let Israel say,
2 “Had it not been the Lord who was on our side
When people rose up against us,
3 Then they would have (L)swallowed us alive,
When their (M)anger was kindled against us;
4 Then the (N)waters would have flooded over us,
The stream would have [a]swept over our souls;
5 Then the (O)raging waters would have [b]swept over our souls.”
6 Blessed be the Lord,
Who has not given us [c]to be (P)torn by their teeth.
7 Our souls have (Q)escaped (R)like a bird from the trapper’s (S)snare;
The snare is broken and we have escaped.
8 Our (T)help is in the name of the Lord,
Who (U)made heaven and earth.
The Lord Surrounds His People.
A Song of Ascents.
125 Those who trust in the Lord
Are like Mount Zion, which (V)cannot be moved but (W)remains forever.
2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
So (X)the Lord surrounds His people
(Y)From this time and forever.
3 For the (Z)scepter of wickedness will not rest upon the [d]land of the righteous,
So that the righteous (AA)will not extend their hands to do wrong.
4 (AB)Do good, Lord, to those who are good
And to those who are (AC)upright in their hearts.
5 But as for those who (AD)turn aside to their (AE)crooked ways,
The Lord will lead them away with those who (AF)practice injustice.
(AG)Peace be upon Israel.
Footnotes
- Psalm 124:4 Or passed over
- Psalm 124:5 Or passed over
- Psalm 124:6 Lit as a prey to
- Psalm 125:3 Lit lot
Psalm 123-125
New Living Translation
Psalm 123
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 I lift my eyes to you,
O God, enthroned in heaven.
2 We keep looking to the Lord our God for his mercy,
just as servants keep their eyes on their master,
as a slave girl watches her mistress for the slightest signal.
3 Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy,
for we have had our fill of contempt.
4 We have had more than our fill of the scoffing of the proud
and the contempt of the arrogant.
Psalm 124
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem. A psalm of David.
1 What if the Lord had not been on our side?
Let all Israel repeat:
2 What if the Lord had not been on our side
when people attacked us?
3 They would have swallowed us alive
in their burning anger.
4 The waters would have engulfed us;
a torrent would have overwhelmed us.
5 Yes, the raging waters of their fury
would have overwhelmed our very lives.
6 Praise the Lord,
who did not let their teeth tear us apart!
7 We escaped like a bird from a hunter’s trap.
The trap is broken, and we are free!
8 Our help is from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
Psalm 125
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 Those who trust in the Lord are as secure as Mount Zion;
they will not be defeated but will endure forever.
2 Just as the mountains surround Jerusalem,
so the Lord surrounds his people, both now and forever.
3 The wicked will not rule the land of the godly,
for then the godly might be tempted to do wrong.
4 O Lord, do good to those who are good,
whose hearts are in tune with you.
5 But banish those who turn to crooked ways, O Lord.
Take them away with those who do evil.
May Israel have peace!
Psalm 128-130
New American Standard Bible
Blessedness of the Fear of the Lord.
A Song of Ascents.
128 (A)Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord,
Who (B)walks in His ways.
2 When you (C)eat the (D)fruit of the labor of your hands,
You will be happy and (E)it will go well for you.
3 Your wife will be like a (F)fruitful vine
[a]Within your house,
Your children like (G)olive plants
Around your table.
4 Behold, for so shall a man
Who fears the Lord be blessed.
5 (H)The Lord bless you (I)from Zion,
And may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life.
6 Indeed, may you see your (J)children’s children.
(K)Peace be upon Israel!
Prayer for the Overthrow of Zion’s Enemies.
A Song of Ascents.
129 “[b]Many times they have (L)attacked me from my (M)youth up,”
(N)Let Israel say,
2 “[c]Many times they have attacked me from my youth up;
Yet they have (O)not prevailed against me.
3 The plowers plowed upon my back;
They lengthened their furrows.”
4 The Lord (P)is righteous;
He has cut up the (Q)ropes of the wicked.
5 May all who (R)hate Zion
Be (S)put to shame and turned backward;
6 May they be like (T)grass upon the housetops,
Which withers before it [d]grows up;
7 With which the harvester does not fill his [e]hand,
Or the binder of sheaves his [f](U)arms;
8 Nor do those who pass by say,
“The (V)blessing of the Lord be upon you;
We bless you in the name of the Lord.”
Hope in the Lord’s Forgiving Love.
A Song of Ascents.
130 Out of the (W)depths I have cried to You, Lord.
2 Lord, (X)hear my voice!
Let (Y)Your ears be attentive
To the (Z)sound of my pleadings.
3 If You, [g]Lord, were to keep account of guilty deeds,
Lord, who could (AA)stand?
4 But there is (AB)forgiveness with You,
So that You may be [h](AC)revered.
5 I wait for the Lord, my (AD)soul waits,
And I [i]wait (AE)for His word.
6 My soul waits in hope for the Lord
More than the watchmen (AF)for the morning;
Yes, more than the watchmen for the morning.
7 Israel, (AG)wait for the Lord;
For with the Lord there is (AH)mercy,
And with Him is (AI)abundant redemption.
8 And He will (AJ)redeem Israel
From all his guilty deeds.
Footnotes
- Psalm 128:3 Lit In the innermost parts of
- Psalm 129:1 Lit Much
- Psalm 129:2 Lit Much
- Psalm 129:6 Lit draws out
- Psalm 129:7 Lit palm
- Psalm 129:7 Lit the fold of his robe
- Psalm 130:3 Heb Yah
- Psalm 130:4 Or feared
- Psalm 130:5 Or hope in
Psalm 128-130
New Living Translation
Psalm 128
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 How joyful are those who fear the Lord—
all who follow his ways!
2 You will enjoy the fruit of your labor.
How joyful and prosperous you will be!
3 Your wife will be like a fruitful grapevine,
flourishing within your home.
Your children will be like vigorous young olive trees
as they sit around your table.
4 That is the Lord’s blessing
for those who fear him.
5 May the Lord continually bless you from Zion.
May you see Jerusalem prosper as long as you live.
6 May you live to enjoy your grandchildren.
May Israel have peace!
Psalm 129
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 From my earliest youth my enemies have persecuted me.
Let all Israel repeat this:
2 From my earliest youth my enemies have persecuted me,
but they have never defeated me.
3 My back is covered with cuts,
as if a farmer had plowed long furrows.
4 But the Lord is good;
he has cut me free from the ropes of the ungodly.
5 May all who hate Jerusalem[a]
be turned back in shameful defeat.
6 May they be as useless as grass on a rooftop,
turning yellow when only half grown,
7 ignored by the harvester,
despised by the binder.
8 And may those who pass by
refuse to give them this blessing:
“The Lord bless you;
we bless you in the Lord’s name.”
Psalm 130
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 From the depths of despair, O Lord,
I call for your help.
2 Hear my cry, O Lord.
Pay attention to my prayer.
3 Lord, if you kept a record of our sins,
who, O Lord, could ever survive?
4 But you offer forgiveness,
that we might learn to fear you.
5 I am counting on the Lord;
yes, I am counting on him.
I have put my hope in his word.
6 I long for the Lord
more than sentries long for the dawn,
yes, more than sentries long for the dawn.
7 O Israel, hope in the Lord;
for with the Lord there is unfailing love.
His redemption overflows.
8 He himself will redeem Israel
from every kind of sin.
Footnotes
- 129:5 Hebrew Zion.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.