Psalm 120–124

Psalm 120

A Cry for Truth and Peace

A song of ascents.

¹In my distress I called to the Lord,

and He answered me. ^l

²“Lord, deliver me from lying lips

and a deceitful tongue.” ^m

³What will He give you,

and what will He do to you,

you deceitful tongue? ⁿ

⁴A warrior’s sharp arrows

with burning charcoal! ^op

⁵What misery that I have stayed in Meshech, ^qr

that I have lived among the tents of Kedar! ^st

⁶I have lived too long

with those who hate peace. ^u

⁷I am for peace; but when I speak,

they are for war. ^v

Psalm 121

The Lord Our Protector

A song of ascents.

¹I lift my eyes toward the mountains.

Where will my help come from? ^w

²My help comes from the Lord,

the Maker of heaven and earth. ^x

³He will not allow your foot to slip;

your Protector will not slumber. ^y

⁴Indeed, the Protector of Israel

does not slumber or sleep. ^z

⁵The Lord protects you;

the Lord is a shelter right by your side. ^ab

⁶The sun will not strike you by day

or the moon by night. ^c

⁷The Lord will protect you from all harm;

He will protect your life. ^d

⁸The Lord will protect your coming and going

both now and forever. ^e

Psalm 122

A Prayer for Jerusalem

A Davidic song of ascents.

¹I rejoiced with those who said to me,

“Let us go to the house of the Lord.” ^f

²Our feet are standing

within your gates, Jerusalem ^g—

³Jerusalem, built as a city should be,

solidly joined together, ^h

⁴where the tribes, Yahweh’s tribes, go up

to give thanks to the name of Yahweh. ⁱ

(This is an ordinance for Israel. ^j)

⁵There, thrones for judgment are placed,

thrones of the house of David. ^k

⁶Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:

“May those who love you prosper; ^l

⁷may there be peace within your walls,

prosperity within your fortresses.” ^m

⁸Because of my brothers and friends,

I will say, “Peace be with you.” ⁿ

⁹Because of the house of the Lord our God,

I will seek your good. ^o

Psalm 123

Looking for God’s Favor

A song of ascents.

¹I lift my eyes to You,

the One enthroned in heaven. ^p

²Like a servant’s eyes on his master’s hand,

like a servant girl’s eyes on her mistress’s hand,

so our eyes are on the Lord our God

until He shows us favor. ^q

³Show us favor, Lord, show us favor,

for we’ve had more than enough contempt. ^r

⁴We’ve had more than enough

scorn from the arrogant

and contempt from the proud. ^s

Psalm 124

The Lord Is on Our Side

A Davidic song of ascents.

¹If the Lord had not been on our side—

let Israel say—

²If the Lord had not been on our side ^t

when men attacked us, ^u

³then they would have swallowed us alive

in their burning anger against us. ^v

⁴Then the waters would have engulfed us;

the torrent would have swept over us;

⁵the raging waters would have swept over us. ^w

⁶Praise the Lord,

who has not let us be ripped apart by their teeth. ^x

⁷We have escaped like a bird from the hunter’s net;

the net is torn, and we have escaped. ^y

⁸Our help is in the name of Yahweh,

the Maker of heaven and earth. ^z