Psalm 123–124

Prayer for Yahweh’s Action in the Face of Scorn

123A song of ascents.^a

¹I lift up my eyes to you,

the one enthroned^b in the heavens.

²Behold, as the eyes of servants

look to the hand of their master,^c

as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress,

so our eyes look to Yahweh our God,

until he is gracious to us.

³Be gracious to us, O Yahweh, be gracious to us,

for long enough we have had our fill of contempt.

⁴For long enough our soul has had its fill of

the derision of the self-confident,

the contempt of the arrogant.

Thanksgiving for Yahweh’s Help

124A song of ascents. Of David.^a

¹“If it had not been Yahweh who was on our side,”

do let Israel say,

²“If it had not been Yahweh who was on our side,

when men rose up against us,

³then they would have swallowed us alive,

when their anger was kindled against us.

⁴Then the waters would have flooded over us,

the torrent would have passed over our soul.

⁵Then over our soul would have passed

the raging waters.”

⁶Blessed be Yahweh,

who has not made^b us prey for their teeth.

⁷Our soul has escaped like a bird

from the snare of fowlers.

The snare is broken, and we have escaped.

⁸Our help is in the name of Yahweh,

maker of heaven and earth.