1  In my distress I called to the Lord,

and he answered me.

2  Deliver me, O Lord,

from lying lips,

from a deceitful tongue.

3  What shall be given to you,

nand what more shall be done to you,

you deceitful tongue?

4  oA warrior’s psharp arrows,

with glowing qcoals of the broom tree!

5  Woe to me, that I sojourn in rMeshech,

that I dwell among sthe tents of tKedar!

6  Too long have I had my dwelling

among those who hate peace.

7  uI am for peace,

but when I speak, they are for war!

My Help Comes from the Lord

121 A Song of mAscents.

1  I vlift up my eyes to wthe hills.

From where does my help come?

2  xMy help comes from the Lord,

who ymade heaven and earth.

3  He will not zlet your foot be moved;

he who akeeps you will not slumber.

4  Behold, he who keeps Israel

will neither slumber nor sleep.

5  The Lord is your keeper;

the Lord is your bshade on your cright hand.

6  dThe sun shall not estrike you by day,

nor the moon by night.

7  The Lord will akeep you from all evil;

he will akeep your life.

8  The Lord will keep

your fgoing out and your coming in

from this time forth and forevermore.

Let Us Go to the House of the Lord

122 A Song of mAscents. Of David.

1  I was glad when they said to me,

g“Let us go to the house of the Lord!”

2  Our feet have been standing

within your gates, O Jerusalem!

3  Jerusalem—hbuilt as a city

that is ibound firmly together,

4  to which the tribes jgo up,

the tribes of the Lord,

as was kdecreed for1 Israel,

to give thanks to the name of the Lord.

5  There lthrones for judgment were set,

the thrones of the house of David.

6  mPray for the peace of Jerusalem!

“May they be secure who love you!

7  Peace be within your nwalls

and security within your ntowers!”

8  For my brothers and companions’ sake

I will say, o“Peace be within you!”

9  For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,

I will pseek your good.

Our Eyes Look to the Lord Our God

123 A Song of mAscents.

1  To you I qlift up my eyes,

O you who are renthroned in the heavens!

2  Behold, as the eyes of servants

look to the hand of their master,

as the eyes of a maidservant

to the hand of her mistress,

so our eyes look to the Lord our God,

till he has mercy upon us.

3  sHave mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us,

for we have had more than enough of tcontempt.

4  Our soul has had more than enough

of uthe scorn of vthose who are at ease,

of the contempt of wthe proud.

Our Help Is in the Name of the Lord

124 A Song of mAscents. Of David.

1  xIf it had not been the Lord who was on our side—

ylet Israel now say—

2  if it had not been the Lord who was on our side

when people rose up against us,

3  then they would have zswallowed us up alive,

when their anger was kindled against us;

4  then athe flood would have bswept us away,

the torrent would have gone cover us;

5  then over us would have gone

the raging waters.

6  Blessed be the Lord,

who has not given us

as prey to their teeth!

7  We have escaped like a bird

from dthe snare of the fowlers;

the snare is broken,

and we have escaped!

8  eOur help is in the name of the Lord,

who made heaven and earth.

The Lord Surrounds His People

125 A Song of mAscents.

1  Those who ftrust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,

which gcannot be moved, but abides forever.

2  As the mountains surround Jerusalem,

so hthe Lord surrounds his people,

from this time forth and forevermore.

3  For ithe scepter of wickedness shall not jrest

on kthe land allotted to the righteous,

lest the righteous lstretch out

their hands to do wrong.

4  mDo good, O Lord, to those who are good,

and to those who are nupright in their hearts!

5  But those who oturn aside to their pcrooked ways

the Lord will lead away with qevildoers!

rPeace be upon Israel!

Restore Our Fortunes, O Lord

126 A Song of mAscents.

1  When the Lord srestored the fortunes of Zion,

we were like those who tdream.

2  Then our umouth was filled with laughter,

and our tongue with shouts of joy;

then they said among the nations,

v“The Lord has done great things for them.”

3  The Lord has done great things for us;

we are glad.

4  Restore our fortunes, O Lord,

like streams in the Negeb!

5  wThose who sow in tears

shall reap with shouts of joy!

6  He who goes out weeping,

bearing the seed for sowing,

shall come home with shouts of joy,

bringing his sheaves with him.

Unless the Lord Builds the House

127 A Song of mAscents. Of Solomon.

1  Unless the Lord builds the house,

those who build it labor in vain.

Unless the Lord xwatches over the city,

the watchman stays awake in vain.

2  It is in vain that you rise up early

and go late to rest,

eating the bread of anxious ytoil;

for he gives to his zbeloved asleep.

3  Behold, bchildren are a heritage from the Lord,

cthe fruit of the womb a reward.

4  Like arrows in the hand of da warrior

are the children1 of one’s youth.

5  Blessed is the man

who fills his quiver with them!

He shall not be put to shame

when he speaks with his enemies ein the gate.2

Blessed Is Everyone Who Fears the Lord

128 A Song of mAscents.

1  fBlessed is everyone who fears the Lord,

who gwalks in his ways!

2  You hshall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands;

you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you.

3  Your wife will be like ia fruitful vine

within your house;

your children will be like jolive shoots

around your table.

4  Behold, thus shall the man be blessed

who fears the Lord.

5  kThe Lord bless you lfrom Zion!

May you see mthe prosperity of Jerusalem

all the days of your life!

6  May you see your nchildren’s children!

oPeace be upon Israel!

They Have Afflicted Me from My Youth

129 A Song of mAscents.

1  “Greatly1 have they pafflicted me qfrom my youth”—

rlet Israel now say—

2  “Greatly have they pafflicted me qfrom my youth,

syet they have not prevailed against me.

3  tThe plowers plowed uupon my back;

they made long their furrows.”

4  The Lord is righteous;

he has cut vthe cords of the wicked.

5  May all who hate Zion

be wput to shame and turned backward!

6  Let them be like xthe grass on the housetops,

which ywithers 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,

a“The blessing of the Lord be upon you!

We bbless you in the name of the Lord!”

My Soul Waits for the Lord

130 A Song of mAscents.

1  Out of cthe depths I cry to you, O Lord!

2  O Lord, hear my voice!

dLet your ears be attentive

to ethe voice of my pleas for mercy!

3  If you, O Lord, should fmark iniquities,

O Lord, who could gstand?

4  But with you there is hforgiveness,

ithat you may be feared.

5  I jwait for the Lord, kmy soul waits,

and lin his word I hope;

6  my soul mwaits for the Lord

more than nwatchmen for othe morning,

more than watchmen for the morning.

7  O Israel, phope in the Lord!

For qwith the Lord there is steadfast love,

and with him is plentiful redemption.

8  And he will rredeem Israel

from all his iniquities.

I Have Calmed and Quieted My Soul

131 A Song of mAscents. Of David.

1  O Lord, my heart is not slifted up;

my eyes are not traised too high;

I do not uoccupy myself with things

too great and vtoo marvelous for me.

2  But I have calmed and quieted my soul,

like a weaned wchild with its mother;

like a weaned child is my soul within me.

3  xO Israel, hope in the Lord

from this time forth and forevermore.

The Lord Has Chosen Zion

132 A Song of mAscents.

1  Remember, O Lord, in David’s favor,

all ythe hardships he endured,

2  how he swore to the Lord

and zvowed to athe Mighty One of Jacob,

3  “I will not enter my house

or get into my bed,

4  I will not bgive sleep to my eyes

or slumber to my eyelids,

5  until I cfind a place for the Lord,

a dwelling place for athe Mighty One of Jacob.”

6  Behold, we heard of it in dEphrathah;

we found it in ethe fields of Jaar.

7  “Let us go to his dwelling place;

let us fworship at his gfootstool!”

8  hArise, O Lord, and go to your iresting place,

you and the ark of your jmight.

9  Let your kpriests be lclothed with righteousness,

and let your msaints shout for joy.

10  For the sake of your servant David,

ndo not turn away the face of oyour anointed one.

11  pThe Lord swore to David a sure oath

qfrom which he will not turn back:

r“One of the sons of your body1

I will set on your throne.

12  If your sons keep my covenant

and my testimonies that I shall teach them,

their sons also forever

shall ssit on your throne.”

13  For the Lord has tchosen Zion;

he has udesired it for his dwelling place:

14  “This is my vresting place forever;

here I will wdwell, for I have desired it.

15  I will abundantly xbless her provisions;

I will ysatisfy her poor with bread.

16  Her zpriests I will clothe with salvation,

and her zsaints will shout for joy.

17  There I will make aa horn to sprout for David;

I have prepared ba lamp for cmy anointed.

18  His enemies I will dclothe with shame,

but on him his crown will shine.”

When Brothers Dwell in Unity

133 A Song of mAscents. Of David.

1  Behold, how good and pleasant it is

when ebrothers dwell in unity!1

2  It is like the precious foil on gthe head,

running down on the beard,

on the beard of Aaron,

running down on hthe collar of his robes!

3  It is like ithe dew of jHermon,

which falls on kthe mountains of Zion!

For there the Lord lhas commanded the blessing,

life forevermore.

Come, Bless the Lord

134 A Song of mAscents.

1  Come, bless the Lord, all you mservants of the Lord,

who nstand oby night in the house of the Lord!

2  pLift up your hands to qthe holy place

and bless the Lord!

3  May the Lord rbless you sfrom Zion,

he who tmade heaven and earth!