The Lord Surrounds His People

A Song of (A)Ascents.

125 Those who (B)trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,
    which (C)cannot be moved, but abides forever.
As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
    so (D)the Lord surrounds his people,
    from this time forth and forevermore.
For (E)the scepter of wickedness shall not (F)rest
    on (G)the land allotted to the righteous,
lest the righteous (H)stretch out
    their hands to do wrong.
(I)Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,
    and to those who are (J)upright in their hearts!
But those who (K)turn aside to their (L)crooked ways
    the Lord will lead away with (M)evildoers!
    (N)Peace be upon Israel!

Restore Our Fortunes, O Lord

A Song of (O)Ascents.

126 When the Lord (P)restored the fortunes of Zion,
    we were like those who (Q)dream.
Then our (R)mouth was filled with laughter,
    and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then they said among the nations,
    (S)“The Lord has done great things for them.”
The Lord has done great things for us;
    we are glad.

Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
    like streams in the Negeb!
(T)Those who sow in tears
    shall reap with shouts of joy!
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

A Song of (U)Ascents. Of Solomon.

127 Unless the Lord builds the house,
    those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the Lord (V)watches over the city,
    the watchman stays awake in vain.
It is in vain that you rise up early
    and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious (W)toil;
    for he gives to his (X)beloved (Y)sleep.

Behold, (Z)children are a heritage from the Lord,
    (AA)the fruit of the womb a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of (AB)a warrior
    are the children[a] of one's youth.
Blessed is the man
    who fills his quiver with them!
He shall not be put to shame
    when he speaks with his enemies (AC)in the gate.[b]

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 127:4 Or sons
  2. Psalm 127:5 Or They shall not be put to shame when they speak with their enemies in the gate

Psalm 125

A song of ascents.

Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,(A)
    which cannot be shaken(B) but endures forever.
As the mountains surround Jerusalem,(C)
    so the Lord surrounds(D) his people
    both now and forevermore.

The scepter(E) of the wicked will not remain(F)
    over the land allotted to the righteous,
for then the righteous might use
    their hands to do evil.(G)

Lord, do good(H) to those who are good,
    to those who are upright in heart.(I)
But those who turn(J) to crooked ways(K)
    the Lord will banish(L) with the evildoers.

Peace be on Israel.(M)

Psalm 126

A song of ascents.

When the Lord restored(N) the fortunes of[a] Zion,
    we were like those who dreamed.[b]
Our mouths were filled with laughter,(O)
    our tongues with songs of joy.(P)
Then it was said among the nations,
    “The Lord has done great things(Q) for them.”
The Lord has done great things(R) for us,
    and we are filled with joy.(S)

Restore our fortunes,[c](T) Lord,
    like streams in the Negev.(U)
Those who sow with tears(V)
    will reap(W) with songs of joy.(X)
Those who go out weeping,(Y)
    carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy,
    carrying sheaves with them.

Psalm 127

A song of ascents. Of Solomon.

Unless the Lord builds(Z) the house,
    the builders labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches(AA) over the city,
    the guards stand watch in vain.
In vain you rise early
    and stay up late,
toiling for food(AB) to eat—
    for he grants sleep(AC) to[d] those he loves.(AD)

Children are a heritage from the Lord,
    offspring a reward(AE) from him.
Like arrows(AF) in the hands of a warrior
    are children born in one’s youth.
Blessed is the man
    whose quiver is full of them.(AG)
They will not be put to shame
    when they contend with their opponents(AH) in court.(AI)

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 126:1 Or Lord brought back the captives to
  2. Psalm 126:1 Or those restored to health
  3. Psalm 126:4 Or Bring back our captives
  4. Psalm 127:2 Or eat— / for while they sleep he provides for