Psalm 120–132

Psalm 120

Plea for Relief from Bitter Foes

A Song of Ascents.

1 In amy distress I cried to the Lord, And He heard me.

2 Deliver my soul, O Lord, from lying lips

And from a deceitful tongue.

3 What shall be given to you,

Or what shall be done to you,

You false tongue?

4 Sharp arrows of the 1warrior,

With coals of the broom tree!

5 Woe is me, that I dwell in bMeshech,

cThat I dwell among the tents of Kedar!

6 My soul has dwelt too long

With one who hates peace.

7 I am for peace;

But when I speak, they are for war.

Psalm 121

God the Help of Those Who Seek Him

A Song of Ascents.

1 I awill lift up my eyes to the hills—From whence comes my help?

2 bMy help comes from the Lord,

Who made heaven and earth.

3 cHe will not allow your foot to 1be moved;

dHe who keeps you will not slumber.

4 Behold, He who keeps Israel

Shall neither slumber nor sleep.

5 The Lord is your 2keeper;

The Lord is eyour shade fat your right hand.

6 gThe sun shall not strike you by day,

Nor the moon by night.

7 The Lord shall 3preserve you from all evil;

He shall hpreserve your soul.

8 The Lord shall ipreserve 4your going out and your coming in

From this time forth, and even forevermore.

Psalm 122

The Joy of Going to the House of the Lord

A Song of Ascents. Of David.

1 I was glad when they said to me, a“Let us go into the house of the Lord.”

2 Our feet have been standing

Within your gates, O Jerusalem!

3 Jerusalem is built

As a city that is bcompact together,

4 cWhere the tribes go up,

The tribes of the Lord,

1To dthe Testimony of Israel,

To give thanks to the name of the Lord.

5 eFor thrones are set there for judgment,

The thrones of the house of David.

6 fPray for the peace of Jerusalem:

“May they prosper who love you.

7 Peace be within your walls,

Prosperity within your palaces.”

8 For the sake of my brethren and companions,

I will now say, “Peace be within you.”

9 Because of the house of the Lord our God

I will gseek your good.

Psalm 123

Prayer for Relief from Contempt

A Song of Ascents.

1 Unto You aI lift up my eyes,

O You bwho dwell in the heavens.

2 Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters,

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

cSo our eyes look to the Lord our God,

Until He has mercy on us.

3 Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us!

For we are exceedingly filled with contempt.

4 Our soul is exceedingly filled

With the scorn of those who are at ease,

With the contempt of the proud.

Psalm 124

The Lord The Defense of His People

A Song of Ascents. Of David.

1 “If it had not been the Lord who was on our aside,”

bLet Israel now say—

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

When men rose up against us,

3 Then they would have cswallowed us alive,

When their wrath was kindled against us;

4 Then the waters would have overwhelmed us,

The stream would have 1gone over our soul;

5 Then the swollen waters

Would have 2gone over our soul.”

6 Blessed be the Lord,

Who has not given us as prey to their teeth.

7 dOur soul has escaped eas a bird from the snare of the 3fowlers;

The snare is broken, and we have escaped.

8 fOur help is in the name of the Lord,

gWho made heaven and earth.

Psalm 125

The Lord The Strength of His People

A Song of Ascents.

1 Those who trust in the Lord

Are like Mount Zion,

Which cannot be moved, but abides forever.

2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,

So the Lord surrounds His people

From this time forth and forever.

3 For athe scepter of wickedness shall not rest

On the land allotted to the righteous,

Lest the righteous reach out their hands to iniquity.

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

And to those who are upright in their hearts.

5 As for such as turn aside to their bcrooked ways,

The Lord shall lead them away

With the workers of iniquity.

cPeace be upon Israel!

Psalm 126

A Joyful Return to Zion

A Song of Ascents.

1 When athe Lord brought back 1the captivity of Zion,

bWe were like those who dream.

2 Then cour mouth was filled with laughter,

And our tongue with singing.

Then they said among the 2nations,

“The Lord has done great things for them.”

3 The Lord has done great things for us,

And we are glad.

4 Bring back our captivity, O Lord,

As the streams in the South.

5 dThose who sow in tears

Shall reap in joy.

6 He who continually goes 3forth weeping,

Bearing 4seed for sowing,

Shall doubtless come again 5with erejoicing,

Bringing his sheaves with him.

Psalm 127

Laboring and Prospering with the Lord

A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon.

1 Unless the Lord builds the house,

They labor in vain who build it;

Unless athe Lord guards the city,

The watchman stays awake in vain.

2 It is vain for you to rise up early,

To sit up late,

To beat the bread of sorrows;

For so He gives His beloved sleep.

3 Behold, cchildren are a heritage from the Lord,

dThe fruit of the womb is a ereward.

4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,

So are the children of one’s youth.

5 fHappy is the man who has his quiver full of them;

gThey shall not be ashamed,

But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.

Psalm 128

Blessings of Those Who Fear the Lord

A Song of Ascents.

1 Blessed ais every one who fears the Lord,

Who walks in His ways.

2 bWhen you eat the 1labor of your hands,

You shall be happy, and it shall be cwell with you.

3 Your wife shall be dlike a fruitful vine

In the very heart of your house,

Your echildren flike olive plants

All around your table.

4 Behold, thus shall the man be blessed

Who fears the Lord.

5 gThe Lord bless you out of Zion,

And may you see the good of Jerusalem

All the days of your life.

6 Yes, may you hsee your children’s children.

iPeace be upon Israel!

Psalm 129

Song of Victory Over Zion’s Enemies

A Song of Ascents.

1 “Many a time they have aafflicted 1me from bmy youth,”

cLet Israel now say—

2 “Many a time they have afflicted me from my youth;

Yet they have not prevailed against me.

3 The plowers plowed on my back;

They made their furrows long.”

4 The Lord is righteous;

He has cut in pieces the cords of the wicked.

5 Let all those who hate Zion

Be put to shame and turned back.

6 Let them be as the dgrass on the housetops,

Which withers before it grows up,

7 With which the reaper does not fill his hand,

Nor he who binds sheaves, his 2arms.

8 Neither let those who pass by them say,

e“The blessing of the Lord be upon you;

We bless you in the name of the Lord!”

Psalm 130

Waiting for the Redemption of the Lord

A Song of Ascents.

1 Out aof the depths I have cried to You, O Lord;

2 Lord, hear my voice!

Let Your ears be attentive

To the voice of my supplications.

3 bIf You, Lord, should 1mark iniquities,

O Lord, who could cstand?

4 But there is dforgiveness with You,

That eYou may be feared.

5 fI wait for the Lord, my soul waits,

And gin His word I do hope.

6 hMy soul waits for the Lord

More than those who watch for the morning—

Yes, more than those who watch for the morning.

7 iO Israel, hope in the Lord;

For jwith the Lord there is mercy,

And with Him is abundant redemption.

8 And kHe shall redeem Israel

From all his iniquities.

Psalm 131

Simple Trust in the Lord

A Song of Ascents. Of David.

1 Lord, my heart is not 1haughty,

Nor my eyes 2lofty.

aNeither do I 3concern myself with great matters,

Nor with things too 4profound for me.

2 Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul,

bLike a weaned child with his mother;

Like a weaned child is my soul within me.

3 cO Israel, hope in the Lord

From this time forth and forever.

Psalm 132

The Eternal Dwelling of God in Zion

A Song of Ascents.

1 Lord, remember David

And all his afflictions;

2 How he swore to the Lord,

aAnd vowed to bthe Mighty One of Jacob:

3 “Surely I will not go into the chamber of my house,

Or go up to the comfort of my bed;

4 I will cnot give sleep to my eyes

Or slumber to my eyelids,

5 Until I dfind a place for the Lord,

A dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”

6 Behold, we heard of it ein Ephrathah;

fWe found it gin the fields of 1the woods.

7 Let us go into His tabernacle;

hLet us worship at His footstool.

8 iArise, O Lord, to Your resting place,

You and jthe ark of Your strength.

9 Let Your priests kbe clothed with righteousness,

And let Your saints shout for joy.

10 For Your servant David’s sake,

Do not turn away the face of Your 2Anointed.

11 lThe Lord has sworn in truth to David;

He will not turn from it:

“I will set upon your throne mthe 3fruit of your body.

12 If your sons will keep My covenant

And My testimony which I shall teach them,

Their sons also shall sit upon your throne forevermore.”

13 nFor the Lord has chosen Zion;

He has desired it for His 4dwelling place:

14 “This ois My resting place forever;

Here I will dwell, for I have desired it.

15 pI will abundantly bless her 5provision;

I will satisfy her poor with bread.

16 qI will also clothe her priests with salvation,

rAnd her saints shall shout aloud for joy.

17 sThere I will make the 6horn of David grow;

tI will prepare a lamp for My 7Anointed.

18 His enemies I will uclothe with shame,

But upon Himself His crown shall flourish.”