Psalm 137, By the Waters of Babylon

Refugees from Jerusalem, now living in Babylon, recall their homeland and the worship there. This psalm was probably composed just after the destruction of Jerusalem and the exile of 586 BC.

Psalm 137:1-3, Weeping by the rivers

 By the rivers of Babylon we sat 

and wept when we remembered Zion.

 There on the poplars we hung our harps,

 for there our captors asked us for songs, 

our tormentors demanded songs of joy; 

they said, "Sing us one of the songs of Zion!"

Jewish refugees, along the rivers (canals) of Babylon, sit down and weep. Their captives ask for songs of their homeland (either in curiosity or as taunts) but the people of Judah cannot sing. Indeed, they have discarded their lyres amongst the trees.

Psalm 137:4-6, How can we sing?

 How can we sing the songs of the LORD 

while in a foreign land?

 If I forget you, O Jerusalem, 

may my right hand forget [its skill].

 May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth

if I do not remember you, 

if I do not consider Jerusalem my highest joy.

The refugees grieve. How can they sing? They can only remember the beauty that they have lost. They cannot play their instruments or sing their songs.

In Sennacherib's palace in Nineveh there was apparently a wall panel of three prisoners playing lyres as they march, followed by a guard. This picture is now in the British Museum. (See here.)

Psalm 137:7, Please remember

 Remember, O LORD, 

what the Edomites did on the day Jerusalem fell. 

"Tear it down," they cried, 

"tear it down to its foundations!"

The people remember in the taunts of the neighboring Edomites who joyfully watched Babylon's destruction of Jerusalem. (Obadiah 1:10-14 describes this apathy, even delight of the people of Edom at this time. The short book of Obadiah is a prophecy against Edom, giving the consequences of their opposition to Judah.)

Psalm 137:8-9, Please remember

 O Daughter of Babylon, doomed to destruction, 

happy is he who repays you for what you have done to us--

 he who seizes your infants 

and dashes them against the rocks.

In anger, the Jewish exiles call on Babylon to be destroyed; the grieving refugees call even for the infants of Babylon to be killed. (Jeremiah, in Jeremiah 51, says that yes, indeed Babylon will be punished for her assault on Judah and Jerusalem.)

Some Random Thoughts

The last line, an obvious imprecatory (cursing) statement bothers some. Surely this violence should not be in scripture! But I find it to merely be an example of the psalmists beliefs that every plea, every thought can be brought to God. It is one thing to say, angrily to God, "Kill even their children." It is quite another thing to set up a program of murder. 

When Hamas brutally slaughtered innocent citizens (including children) of Israel on October 7, 2023, anyone who saw the aftermath of the massacre surely felt deep anger. "Kill everyone in the Gaza Strip," was a natural human reaction. But one who takes that angry thought to God will eventually ask for justice and not murder.

First published November 21, 2025; updated November 21, 2025

Psalm 136, His *Hesed* Forever

This worship song repeats 

"His love endures forever"

after every statement about God's character. (This phrase was used by Solomon in 2 Chronicles 7:3, at the dedication of the temple.) The phrase is probably intended as part of a call-response from the congregation, with the priests singing one line and the people responding. Kidner says that Jewish tradition calls this psalm the Great Hallel, that is, the Great Psalm of Praise.

The word translated "love" 26 times here is the Hebrew hesed (or checed, חֵסֵד.)

Psalm 136:1-3, Good and greatest

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good.

His love endures forever.

Give thanks to the God of gods.

His love endures forever.

Give thanks to the Lord of lords:

His love endures forever.

YHWH is not only good but is above all gods and lords (that is, greatest of all gods/lords.) Only in the first line is God's name, YHWH, given. After that (the Hebrew text is here) God is described as Elohim ("God") or Adon ("Lord") or by a pronoun.

Psalm 136:4-9, Creator

to him who alone does great wonders,

His love endures forever.

who by his understanding made the heavens,

His love endures forever.

who spread out the earth upon the waters,

His love endures forever.

who made the great lights—

His love endures forever.

the sun to govern the day,

His love endures forever.

the moon and stars to govern the night;

His love endures forever.

God is praised for His creation of the heavens, earth, sun, moon and stars. Note the ANE belief in verse 6 that the disk of the earth rested on water. Verses 7-9 ("...who made the great lights... moon and stars...") echoes Genesis 1:14-18, the fourth Day of Creation.

Psalm 136:10-15, Lord of Egypt

to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt

His love endures forever.

and brought Israel out from among them

His love endures forever.

with a mighty hand and outstretched arm;

His love endures forever.

to him who divided the Red Sea asunder

His love endures forever.

and brought Israel through the midst of it,

His love endures forever.

but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea;

His love endures forever.

God is praised for his deliverance of the Israelites from the slavery of Pharaoh. Verse 12 echoes a phrase that occurs throughout the Exodus (see, for example, Deuteronomy 26:8.) Although the Egyptian pharaohs might claim "a mighty hand and outstretched arm", their strength was nothing compared to that of YHWH!

The verb naar (נָעַר, to shake out, overthow) first appears in Exodus 14:27 to describe, as in verse 15 here, God sweeping the Egyptians into the sea.

Psalm 136:16-20, Defeating all enemies

to him who led his people through the wilderness;

His love endures forever.

to him who struck down great kings,

His love endures forever.

and killed mighty kings—

His love endures forever.

Sihon king of the Amorites

His love endures forever.

and Og king of Bashan—

His love endures forever.

As in the previous psalm (Psalm 135:8-12), God is praised for leading His people through the wilderness to Canaan, defeating kings along the way. including Sihon and Og. (The defeat of Sihon and Og is recorded in Numbers 21:21-35; see also Deuteronomy 3:1-11.)

Psalm 136:21-22, Eternal inheritance

and gave their land as an inheritance,

His love endures forever.

an inheritance to his servant Israel.

His love endures forever.

Finally, the people were settled in their land which will be their inheritance forever.

Psalm 136:23-25, Our lowly estate

He remembered us in our low estate

His love endures forever.

and freed us from our enemies.

His love endures forever.

He gives food to every creature.

His love endures forever.

God has watched over His vulnerable people, freeing them from their enemies. He watches over everything and for that security the people give thanks.

Psalm 136:26, God of heaven

Give thanks to the God of heaven.

His love endures forever.

The psalm ends as it began, giving thanks to the powerful Creator, God above all creation.

Some Hebrew Vocabulary

The verb naar 

נָעַר

means to (violently) shake, shake out, shake up, overthrow. 

First published November 20, 2025; updated November 20, 2025

Psalm 135, Ministers in the House of YHWH

We have finished the psalms of ascent and now move on to a variety of praise psalms.

Psalm 135:1-5, Good and pleasant

Praise the LORD. 

Praise the name of the LORD; 

praise him, you servants of the LORD, 

you who minister in the house of the LORD, 

in the courts of the house of our God.

Praise the LORD, for the LORD is good;

 sing praise to his name, for that is pleasant. 

For the LORD has chosen Jacob to be his own,

 Israel to be his treasured possession.

I know that the LORD is great, 

that our Lord is greater than all gods.

There are some beautiful Hebrew words in this stanza. In verse 3, singing (zammeru, זַמְּרוּ) to God is good (towb, טוֹב) and pleasant (na'iym (נָעִים.) And the people of Israel are YHWH's "treasured possession" (segullah, סְגֻלָּה), a word one might use to describe a set of valuable jewels, saved to wear on a special occasion.

Psalm 135:6-7, Whatever pleases him

The LORD does whatever pleases him, 

in the heavens and on the earth,

 in the seas and all their depths. 

He makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth; 

he sends lightning with the rain 

and brings out the wind from his storehouses.

 

God does as He wishes. When He speaks, it is done (Isaiah 55:10-11.) As in the book of Job (38:22), it is assumed that weather sits in storehouses, ready for God to use.

Psalm 135:8-12, Defeating Pharaoh, Sihon, Og, ...

He struck down the firstborn of Egypt, 

the firstborn of men and animals. 

He sent his signs and wonders into your midst, O Egypt, 

against Pharaoh and all his servants.

He struck down many nations 

and killed mighty kings--

Sihon king of the Amorites, 

Og king of Bashan 

and all the kings of Canaan--

and he gave their land as an inheritance, 

an inheritance to his people Israel.

Egypt and the kings of Canaan (including Sihon and Og) were all defeated by God in support of His people. The defeat of Sihon and Og is recorded in Numbers 21:21-35; see also Deuteronomy 3:1-11.

Psalm 135:13-14, Forever

Your name, O LORD, endures forever, 

your renown, O LORD, through all generations. 

For the LORD will vindicate his people 

and have compassion on his servants.

YHWH (whose name is repeated three times here) has compassion on his people and will continue to protect them. The last two lines are probably from the first half of Deuteronomy 32:26.

Psalm 135:15-18, Silly idols, foolish idolaters

The idols of the nations are silver and gold, 

made by the hands of men. 

They have mouths, but cannot speak, 

eyes, but they cannot see; 

they have ears, but cannot hear, 

nor is there breath in their mouths.

 Those who make them will be like them, 

and so will all who trust in them.

The Old Testament prophets were always shocked at the absurdity of worshiping something that one has just made. (See, for example, Isaiah 44:9-20.) Here the psalmist mocks the enemy who worships idols with fake mouths, eyes and ears and calls for God to make those people like the very idols that they worship. An almost identical passage occurs in Psalm 115:4-8.

Psalm 135:19-21, Israel, Levi, Aaron

O house of Israel, praise the LORD; 

O house of Aaron, praise the LORD;

 house of Levi, praise the LORD; 

you who fear him, praise the LORD.

 Praise be to the LORD from Zion, 

to him who dwells in Jerusalem.

Praise the LORD

The people of Israel, and those that lead worship in the sanctuary, should all praise YHWH. (The house of Aaron is the family of priests; the house of Levi is the larger tribe from which those priests come.)

First published November 19, 2025; updated November 19, 2025

Psalm 134, Praise From the Sanctuary

A song of ascents.

This is the last of fifteen psalms identified as "songs of ascents." It is likely that these songs were sung as people traveled to Jerusalem and then went up to the second temple. This last song is merely a praise chorus, worthy to be sung at the end of any worship time.

Psalm 134:1-2, All you servants

Praise the LORD, all you servants of the LORD 

who minister by night in the house of the LORD.

 Lift up your hands in the sanctuary

 and praise the LORD.

The servants of YHWH, ministering day or night in the sanctuary, are told to pause, lift up their hands and praise their God.

Psalm 134:3, You and Zion

May the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth,

 bless you from Zion.

The final verse repeats an underlying theme of the songs of ascent (see Psalm 121:2 and 124:8) -- that it is that YHWH, Creator, is the one in whom the people trust. The psalm ends with a blessing, may the servant of the sanctuary be blessed by the One Who created both the earth and Zion. Here Zion might represent God's throne, His sanctuary, His place of power (Psalm 150:1-2.)

First published November 18, 2025; updated November 18, 2025

Psalm 133, Oil Running Down the Beard

A song of ascents. Of David.

This is the fourteenth of fifteen psalms identified as "songs of ascents." It is likely that these songs were sung as people traveled to Jerusalem and then went up to the second temple. 

Psalm 133:1, Blessing of unity!

 How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!

The excited theme is set by the first verse. The community of worshipers sing together in unity of worship.

Psalm 133:2, Running down the beard 

 It is like precious oil poured on the head,

 running down on the beard, 

running down on Aaron's beard, 

down upon the collar of his robes.

The joy of unity is expressed in physical terms. In the culture of the ANE, the joy would be similar to fragrant oil poured on a man's head, flowing down his beard, onto the collar of his robes. (See Matthew 26:6-7 for a New Testament example.) The beard is described as "Aaron's beard", presumably the full uncut beard of a healthy man.

Psalm 133:3, Fragrant dew in the desert

 It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Mount Zion. 

For there the LORD bestows his blessing, 

even life forevermore.

Like the fragrant oil running down one's beard or robe, the blessing of unity is like the dew falling on Mount Zion. (One should imagine the smell of approaching rain in the desert.)

Robert Alter, noting the distance between Mount Hermon and Zion, suggests that "Zion" (Tsiyyon, צִיּוֹן) may be an error and that a slight change gives tsiyah ( צִיָּה), meaning "parched land." I note that also very close is the noun tsayon (צִיוֹן) which also means "dry country" or "desert." 

Both Alter and Kidner emphasize that the blessings, whether fragrant oil or nourishing dew, come down from above, onto the united community.

First published November 17, 2025; updated November 17, 2025

Psalm 132, An Everlasting Dynasty

A song of ascents.

This is the thirteenth of fifteen psalms identified as "songs of ascents." It is likely that these songs were sung as people traveled to Jerusalem and then went up to the second temple.  In this psalm, the people remember the building of the first temple and the commitment it represented.

Psalm 132:1-5, David's desire for a temple

 O LORD, remember David 

and all the hardships he endured.

He swore an oath to the LORD 

and made a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob:

 "I will not enter my house or go to my bed--

 I will allow no sleep to my eyes,

 no slumber to my eyelids,

 till I find a place for the LORD, 

a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob."

The psalmist recalls David's hope of finding a home for the temple. That story is told in 2 Samuel 6-7.

Psalm 132:6-7, Go to Jaar

 We heard it in Ephrathah, 

we came upon it in the fields of Jaar;

 "Let us go to his dwelling place;

 let us worship at his footstool--

In the ancient times of David, that worship would have been at Baalah = Kiriath Jearim (see 2 Samuel 6:2, 1 Chronicles 13:6) where the ark had rested for twenty years (1 Samuel 7:1-2.) The word Jaar is the singular of Jearim (says Kidner) and so Jaar should be identified with Kiriath Jearim. (Alter agrees.) David's hometown, Bethlehem, was in the region of Ephrathah.

Here the people tell each other to go and worship at the ark.  Similar processional hymns are Psalm 24 and 68.

Psalm 132:8-10, Come to your resting place

 arise, O LORD, and come to your resting place, 

you and the ark of your might.

 May your priests be clothed with righteousness;

 may your saints sing for joy."

 For the sake of David your servant, 

do not reject your anointed one.

Eventually the ark is carried to Jerusalem and Solomon builds a temple for it. This passage repeats Solomon's prayer before the (first) temple, at its dedication. (See 2 Chronicles 6: 41-42.)

Psalm 132:11-12, A future descendant

 The LORD swore an oath to David, 

a sure oath that he will not revoke: 

"One of your own descendants I will place on your throne--

 if your sons keep my covenant 

and the statutes I teach them, 

then their sons will sit on your throne for ever and ever."

The psalmist's call to YHWH in the first ten verses now turns to YHWH's response and the Messianic promise to David of an eternal kingdom. It is possible that this song is being sung by a future king in Jerusalem, a descendant of David, but it also looks to a future eternal line.

Psalm 132:13-18, Zion forever

 For the LORD has chosen Zion,

 he has desired it for his dwelling:

 "This is my resting place for ever and ever; 

here I will sit enthroned, for I have desired it--

 I will bless her with abundant provisions; 

her poor will I satisfy with food.

 I will clothe her priests with salvation,

 and her saints will ever sing for joy.

 "Here I will make a horn grow for David 

and set up a lamp for my anointed one.

 I will clothe his enemies with shame,

 but the crown on his head will be resplendent."

Zion (Jerusalem) is the center of God's dealing with the people of Israel; it is from there that He blesses the nations. The "horn" is a metaphor for strength; God will make David's strength grow and set up a lamp and crown for this king. (In 2 Samuel 21:17, David is called "the lamp of Israel"; the lamp symbolizes a wise guide for the nation.)

Some Hebrew Vocabulary

The Hebrew word qeren, a feminine noun, horn or tusks,

קֶרֶן

 is a metaphor for strength.

First published November 15, 2025; updated November 15, 2025

Psalm 131, Like a Child with its Mother

A song of ascents. Of David.

This is the twelvth of fifteen psalms identified as "songs of ascents," likely sung as people traveled to Jerusalem and then went up to the temple. In this song, David turns to God and feels His/Her arms wrap around him. This is the humble David that Israel loved, not the arrogant David of later years,

Psalm 131:1, Not proud

My heart is not proud, O LORD, 

my eyes are not haughty; 

I do not concern myself with great matters 

or things too wonderful for me.

The singer goes to God in all humility. There is no arrogance in approaching God. 

Kidner says that the second half of the verse deals with presumption and overreach.

Psalm 131:2, Like a weaned child

But I have stilled and quieted my soul; 

like a weaned child with its mother, 

like a weaned child is my soul within me.

Imagine a child that has fallen down and scraped her knee. She runs crying to her mother, who scoops her up and sits with her for a time. The child snuggles into her mother's chest, a thumb in her mouth and closes her eyes. Her soul is calmed and quieted. This is the image David sees as he goes running to God.

Psalm 131:3, O Israel

O Israel, put your hope in the LORD 

both now and forevermore.

At the end, David turns to Israel and instructs the nation to also crawl into God's lap and take rest there.

Caroline Cobb has an album on the psalms. (You can find Caroline Cobb on Spotify here.) Her rendition of Psalm 131 is Like a Child with its Mother. I find this rendition moving.

The image of God as a mother, comforting her child, is also carried in Isaiah 66:12-13.

Some Random Thoughts

I listened to Caroline Cobb's version of this as a calming song, in the midst of the turmoil leading up to the 2024 election. And like one unconcerned by "great matters", I turned down my reading of social media and "calmed and quieted my soul."

Since the psalm is only three verses and the image of a child in her mother's nap is so vivid and reassuring to me, I went ahead and memorized the psalm.

The metaphor in the psalm places God in the role of mother. It is OK to run to God, crawl in God's lap and quiet your soul.

First published November 14, 2025; updated November 14, 2025

Psalm 130, Watching for Redemption

A song of ascents.

 

This is the eleventh of fifteen psalms identified as "songs of ascents." It is likely that these songs were sung as people traveled to Jerusalem and then went up to the second temple. This psalm is also a penitential psalm, traditionally (says Kidner) the six of seven such psalms (6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130, 143.)

Psalm 130:1-3, Plea for mercy

Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD;

 O Lord, hear my voice. 

Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.

 If you, O LORD, kept a record of sins, 

O Lord, who could stand?

The psalmist calls from the depths (Hebrew maamaqqim), synonymous with the depths of the sea, close to the gates of Sheol. This song is a plea, from deep despair, for forgiveness and mercy, a plea that the singer's sins not be recorded. 

Psalm 130:4, Forgiveness and fear

 But with you there is forgiveness;

 therefore you are feared.

Here is an explicit plea for forgiveness. Because powerful YHWH forgives, says the psalmist, he is to be feared, that is, we are to respond with awe (Alter.)

Psalm 130:5-6, Watching, watching

 I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, 

and in his word I put my hope.

 My soul waits for the Lord 

more than watchmen wait for the morning, 

more than watchmen wait for the morning.

The psalmist waits expectantly for YHWH, just as the night watchman looks for the first light of dawn.

Wordplay centers around the verb shamar (שָׁמַר.) This verb generally means to guard or to watch over but in verse 3, above, the psalmist worries that YHWH will keep/watch/record his sins. Now shamar is the root of the word "watchmen" (Hebrew mishshomerim), and is also the verb translated "wait" by the NIV. Just as the psalmist worries that YHWH watches his sins, he now commits to watching, like the watchmen, for an answer. 

Psalm 130:7-8, Redemption for Israel

 O Israel, put your hope in the LORD, 

for with the LORD is unfailing love

 and with him is full redemption.

 He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins.

The One who forgives individuals also forgives Israel. Israel too needs redemption.

Some Hebrew Vocabulary

The verb shamar 

שָׁמַר

means to guard or to watch over.

First published November 13, 2025; updated November 13, 2025

Psalm 129, Scars on My Back

A song of ascents.

This is the tenth of fifteen psalms identified as "songs of ascents." It is likely that these songs were sung as people traveled to Jerusalem and then went up to the second temple. 

Psalm 129:1-2, Bullied from my youth

 They have greatly oppressed me from my youth--

 let Israel say--

 they have greatly oppressed me from my youth, 

but they have not gained the victory over me.

Israel (and the psalmist) have been oppressed and abused, but they will not be defeated.

Kidner and Alter see a call and response in these two verses (as in the first two verses of Psalm 124): the cantor says "They have greatly oppressed me..." and then calls for the congregants to respond.

Psalm 129:3-4, Furrows in my back

Plowmen have plowed my back 

and made their furrows long.

 But the LORD is righteous;

 he has cut me free from the cords of the wicked.

The singer has been assaulted, as a slave whipped with long scars in his back, but he has now been set free.

Psalm 129:5-7, Those who hate Zion

 May all who hate Zion 

be turned back in shame.

 May they be like grass on the roof, 

which withers before it can grow;

 with it the reaper cannot fill his hands,

 nor the one who gathers fill his arms.

As the previous psalm ended in a blessing, this one ends in a curse, a curse for those who hate Zion. As Kidner points out, Zion represents the city of God; the enemies of Jerusalem represent those opposed to God (see, for example, Psalm 87.)

On the flat roofs of the ANE houses, grass could often grow, but it had no soil, no depth. The singer asks that those who hate Jerusalem be like that grass that (as in Psalm 1:4) withers away.

Psalm 129:8, No blessing upon you!

 May those who pass by not say, 

"The blessing of the LORD be upon you; 

we bless you in the name of the LORD."

In Ruth 2:4, Boaz and the harvesst reapers greet each other with the saying, "The LORD bless you!" This appears to have been a common greeting and blessing in Israel. But, says the psalmist, may those who hate Zion never receive this blessing, as they are not on the side of YHWH!

First published November 12, 2025; updated November 12, 2025

Psalm 128, Blessings and Prosperity

A song of ascents.

This is the ninth of fifteen psalms identified as "songs of ascents." It is likely that these songs were sung as people traveled to Jerusalem and then went up to the second temple, after the return from Babylon.

Psalm 128:1, Walk in His ways

 Blessed are all who fear the LORD, who walk in his ways.

The song begins with a thematic statement, echoing the first psalm. One is blessed (happy) if they follow the righteous path set by YHWH.

Psalm 128:2-4, Prosperity

 You will eat the fruit of your labor; 

blessings and prosperity will be yours.

 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; 

your sons will be like olive shoots around your table.

 Thus is the man blessed who fears the LORD.

Following the thematic opening, the blessings are described. They include prosperity, a fruitful (fertile?) and contented wife, many children, many sons. The happiness occurs in a basic sufficiency for life, not in luxury or wealth (Alter.) Olive shoots are young and flexible, a fitting metaphor for young, active children, as are the arrows of the previous psalm (Psalm 127:3-5.)

The NIV translates the Hebrew word yereka as merely "within" the house, but it represents the "remotest" part or "rear" of the house. In keeping with the culture of the ANE, the fruitful wife is not in public view but back in the secluded "heart" of the home.

Psalm 128:5-6, A blessing

 May the LORD bless you from Zion all the days of your life; 

may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem,

 and may you live to see your children's children. 

Peace be upon Israel.

The song ends with a blessing -- may you prosper and see the prosperity of Jerusalem (your city) -- and may you live to see your grandchildren. The last line is echoed in the New Testament in Galatians 6:16.

Some Random Thoughts

I was working through this psalm when a friend texted me about the strange cultural changes around us in America. We encouraged each other on focusing on the important things (friends, neighbors family) and we ended the conversation with an agreement that, yes, indeed, we are blessed to have seen our children's children!

First published November 11, 2025; updated November 11, 2025

Psalm 127, Gifts in One's Sleep

A song of ascents. Of Solomon.

This is the eighth of fifteen psalms identified as "songs of ascents." It is likely that these songs were sung as people traveled to Jerusalem and then went up to the second temple. This song, however, is attributed to Solomon, who built the first temple.

Psalm 127:1-2, Who is the builder?

Unless the LORD builds the house,

 its builders labor in vain. 

Unless the LORD watches over the city, 

the watchmen stand guard in vain.

 In vain you rise early and stay up late,

 toiling for food to eat--

 for he grants sleep to those he loves.

The psalm offer two choices. Although we may have plans, it is ultimately YHWH who builds houses (and temples) and guards cities. The second verse suggests that anxious striving and sleepless nights should be replaced by trust in YHWH and restful nights. If YHWH is not supportive of the plan, then there is no hope for success.

As Kidner points out, one might be reminded of Jesus calmly sleeping during a storm: Mark 4:35-41.

Alter sees, in the "toiling for food" in verse 2, an echo of the curse of the ground in Genesis 3:17.

Psalm 127:3-5, A quiver

Sons are a heritage from the LORD, 

children a reward from him.

 Like arrows in the hands of a warrior

 are sons born in one's youth.

 Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them.

 They will not be put to shame 

when they contend with their enemies in the gate.

The psalm changes from anxiety about success (in building a house or watching a city) to a question of legacy and family.  In the culture of the ANE, a man's family was the true test of blessing and here, a man who has many sons is especially blessed by God. (The Hebrew word banim, translated "sons" in verse 3, could also be translated "children", "but the martial imagery of the rest of the poem argues for the masculine sense of the term", says Alter.)

The city gate, in the times of the ANE, was where important business -- or even warfare -- occurred.

Although the psalm is attributed to Solomon, that ancient king did not persist in following the advice of this psalm. He built up an impressive army and (at least late in life) relied on material possessions and power instead of YHWH. And despite a thousand wives and concubines, scripture only records one son, Rehoboam.

Some Hebrew Vocabulary

The word bayith is a masculine noun, meaning house, home.

בּיִת

It appears in the first verse of this psalm.

First published November 10, 2025; updated November 10, 2025

Psalm 126, Songs of Joy

A song of ascents.

This is the seventh of fifteen psalms identified as "songs of ascents," songs presumably sung as people traveled to Jerusalem and then went up to the temple.

Here the psalmist recalls returning to Jerusalem after the Babylonian captivity

Psalm 126:1-2, Dreams and laughter

When the LORD brought back the captives to Zion, 

we were like men who dreamed.

 Our mouths were filled with laughter, 

our tongues with songs of joy. 

Then it was said among the nations, 

"The LORD has done great things for them."

 

Walking among the ancient streets of Jerusalem, the returning refugees are awestruck. It is a fulfillment of old dreams -- and they are finally seeing the beautiful city (even if it is in ruins.) They see the events as demonstrating to the world that YHWH has done (will do) great things for Israel.

Psalm 126:3-4, Like streams in the desert

The LORD has done great things for us,

 and we are filled with joy.

 Restore our fortunes, O LORD, 

like streams in the Negev.

There is joy and ectasy in returning to the beautiful land after a long absence. The singer asks for a full return of fortunes -- of power and peace -- and likens such an event to rain in the desert, flooding the wadis of the Negev.

Psalm 126:5-6, Weeping then singing

Those who sow in tears 

will reap with songs of joy.

 He who goes out weeping, 

carrying seed to sow, 

will return with songs of joy,

 carrying sheaves with him.

The previous weeping has now led to joy, just as a struggling farmer might carryseeds into the tilled land later returns with an overflowing crop. This stanza expands on the promises of Psalm 121:7-8. Verse 5, in the order of the Hebrew, is a four word chiamus of contrasts (says Alter):

sow 

tears

joy 

reap

while verse 6 is a nice example of antithetical parallelism:

weeping, carrying seeds 

is replaced, later, by 

songs of joy, carrying sheaves.

The analogy of one "reaping what they sow" runs throughout the book of Proverbs and is mentioned, in the New Testament, explicitly in Galatians 6:7-10 (and elsewhere.)

First published November 8, 2025; updated November 8, 2025

Psalm 125, Surrounded by YHWH

A song of ascents.

 

This thanksgiving psalm is the sixth of fifteen songs of ascents.  It is likely that these songs were sung as people traveled to Jerusalem and then went up to the temple. In this song, as the people go up to the temple (or imagine the process on some future day), they look to the hill around them and remember that God surrounds their city.

Psalm 125:1-2, Surrounding the people

 Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, 

which cannot be shaken but endures forever.

 As the mountains surround Jerusalem, 

so the LORD surrounds his people both now and forevermore.

As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so too does YHWH surround His people. As Kidner points out, this has some similarities to Psalm 121:1-2, with a slightly different riff. In that psalm, the singer asks if the mountains provide salvation and says, No! In this psalm, the singer is reminded that YHWH surrounds the people like the mountains do.

oel 3:20 promises that (someday) Jerusalem and Israel will endure forever.

Psalm 125:3, Will not remain

 The scepter of the wicked will not remain

 over the land allotted to the righteous,

 for then the righteous might use their hands to do evil.

The scepter (power) of the wicked is, at this time, over the land, but it will not remain. Surely justice will come to show the people that evil is not the route to take.

Many of the songs of ascent were probably written during the Babylonian captivity. Consistent with that is the statement here that evil covers that land.

Psalm 125:4-5, Do good, please!

Do good, O LORD, to those who are good,

 to those who are upright in heart.

 But those who turn to crooked ways

 the LORD will banish with the evildoers. 

Peace be upon Israel.

The psalmist pleads forYHWH to do good to those who are good and to turn His favor away from the evildoers.

First published November 7, 2025; updated November 7, 2025