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Psalm 122[a]

A song of ascents;[b] by David.

122 I was glad because[c] they said to me,
“We will go to the Lord’s temple.”
Our feet are[d] standing
inside your gates, O Jerusalem.
Jerusalem is a city designed
to accommodate an assembly.[e]
The tribes go up[f] there,[g]
the tribes of the Lord,
where it is required that Israel
give thanks to the name of the Lord.[h]
Indeed,[i] the leaders sit[j] there on thrones and make legal decisions,
on the thrones of the house of David.[k]
Pray[l] for the peace of Jerusalem.
May those who love her prosper.[m]
May there be peace inside your defenses,
and prosperity[n] inside your fortresses.[o]
For the sake of my brothers and my neighbors
I will say, “May there be peace in you.”
For the sake of the temple of the Lord our God
I will pray for you to prosper.[p]

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 122:1 sn Psalm 122. The psalmist expresses his love for Jerusalem and promises to pray for the city’s security.
  2. Psalm 122:1 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.
  3. Psalm 122:1 tn Heb “in the ones saying to me.” After the verb שָׂמַח (samakh), the preposition ב (bet) usually introduces the reason for joy.
  4. Psalm 122:2 tn Or “were.”
  5. Psalm 122:3 tc Heb “Jerusalem, which is built like a city which is joined to her together.” The meaning of the Hebrew text is unclear. Many regard this as a description of the compact way in which the city was designed or constructed. The translation assumes an emendation of the verb חֻבְּרָה (khubberah, “is joined”) to a noun חֶבְרָה (khevrah, “association; company”). The text then reads literally, “Jerusalem, which is built like a city which has a company together.” This in turn can be taken as a reference to Jerusalem’s role as a city where people congregated for religious festivals and other civic occasions (see vv. 4-5).
  6. Psalm 122:4 tn Or “went up.”
  7. Psalm 122:4 tn Heb “which is where the tribes go up.”
  8. Psalm 122:4 tn Heb “[it is] a statute for Israel to give thanks to the name of the Lord.”
  9. Psalm 122:5 tn Or “for.”
  10. Psalm 122:5 tn Or “sat.”
  11. Psalm 122:5 tn Heb “Indeed, there they sit [on] thrones for judgment, [on] thrones [belonging] to the house of David.”
  12. Psalm 122:6 tn Heb “ask [for].”
  13. Psalm 122:6 tn Or “be secure.”
  14. Psalm 122:7 tn or “security.”
  15. Psalm 122:7 tn The psalmist uses second feminine singular pronominal forms to address personified Jerusalem.
  16. Psalm 122:9 tn Heb “I will seek good for you.” The psalmist will seek Jerusalem’s “good” through prayer.

Psalm 122

A Prayer for Jerusalem

A song of ascents. Of David.

I rejoiced with those who said to me,
“Let’s go to the house of the Lord.”(A)
Our feet were standing
within your gates, Jerusalem(B)

Jerusalem, built as a city should be,
solidly united,(C)
where the tribes, the Lord’s tribes, go up
to give thanks to the name of the Lord.(D)
(This is an ordinance for Israel.(E))
There, thrones for judgment are placed,
thrones of the house of David.(F)

Pray for the well-being[a] of Jerusalem:
“May those who love you be secure;(G)
may there be peace within your walls,
security within your fortresses.”(H)
Because of my brothers and friends,
I will say, “May peace be in you.”[b](I)
Because of the house of the Lord our God,
I will pursue your prosperity.(J)

Footnotes

  1. 122:6 Or peace
  2. 122:8 = Jerusalem