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Psalm 127
New American Bible (Revised Edition)

Psalm 127[a]

The Need of God’s Blessing

1 A song of ascents. Of Solomon.

I

Unless the Lord build the house,
    they labor in vain who build.
Unless the Lord guard the city,
    in vain does the guard keep watch.
2 It is vain for you to rise early
    and put off your rest at night,
To eat bread earned by hard toil—
    all this God gives to his beloved in sleep.(A)

II

3 Certainly sons are a gift from the Lord,
    the fruit of the womb, a reward.(B)
4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
    are the sons born in one’s youth.
5 Blessed is the man who has filled his quiver with them.
He will never be shamed
    for he will destroy his foes at the gate.[b]

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 127 The Psalm puts together two proverbs (Ps 127:1–2, 3–5) on God establishing “houses” or families. The prosperity of human groups is not the work of human beings but the gift of God.
  2. 127:5 At the gate: the reference is not to enemies besieging the walls of a city but to adversaries in litigation. Law courts functioned in the open area near the main city gate. The more adult sons a man had, the more forceful he would appear in disputes, cf. Prv 31:23.
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Psalm 127
New International Version

Psalm 127

A song of ascents. Of Solomon.

1 Unless the Lord builds(A) the house,
    the builders labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches(B) over the city,
    the guards stand watch in vain.
2 In vain you rise early
    and stay up late,
toiling for food(C) to eat—
    for he grants sleep(D) to[a] those he loves.(E)

3 Children are a heritage from the Lord,
    offspring a reward(F) from him.
4 Like arrows(G) in the hands of a warrior
    are children born in one’s youth.
5 Blessed is the man
    whose quiver is full of them.(H)
They will not be put to shame
    when they contend with their opponents(I) in court.(J)

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 127:2 Or eat— / for while they sleep he provides for
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New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)

Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

New International Version (NIV)

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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.

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