Psalm 124-126
The Message
124 1-5 If God hadn’t been for us
—all together now, Israel, sing out!—
If God hadn’t been for us
when everyone went against us,
We would have been swallowed alive
by their violent anger,
Swept away by the flood of rage,
drowned in the torrent;
We would have lost our lives
in the wild, raging water.
6 Oh, blessed be God!
He didn’t go off and leave us.
He didn’t abandon us defenseless,
helpless as a rabbit in a pack of snarling dogs.
7 We’ve flown free from their fangs,
free of their traps, free as a bird.
Their grip is broken;
we’re free as a bird in flight.
8 God’s strong name is our help,
the same God who made heaven and earth.
125 1-5 Those who trust in God
are like Zion Mountain:
Nothing can move it, a rock-solid mountain
you can always depend on.
Mountains encircle Jerusalem,
and God encircles his people—
always has and always will.
The fist of the wicked
will never violate
What is due the righteous,
provoking wrongful violence.
Be good to your good people, God,
to those whose hearts are right!
God will round up the backsliders,
corral them with the incorrigibles.
Peace over Israel!
126 1-3 It seemed like a dream, too good to be true,
when God returned Zion’s exiles.
We laughed, we sang,
we couldn’t believe our good fortune.
We were the talk of the nations—
“God was wonderful to them!”
God was wonderful to us;
we are one happy people.
4-6 And now, God, do it again—
bring rains to our drought-stricken lives
So those who planted their crops in despair
will shout “Yes!” at the harvest,
So those who went off with heavy hearts
will come home laughing, with armloads of blessing.
Psalm 124-126
New International Version
Psalm 124
A song of ascents. Of David.
1 If the Lord had not been on our side—
let Israel say(A)—
2 if the Lord had not been on our side
when people attacked us,
3 they would have swallowed us alive
when their anger flared against us;
4 the flood(B) would have engulfed us,
the torrent(C) would have swept over us,
5 the raging waters
would have swept us away.
6 Praise be to the Lord,
who has not let us be torn by their teeth.
7 We have escaped like a bird
from the fowler’s snare;(D)
the snare has been broken,(E)
and we have escaped.
8 Our help is in the name(F) of the Lord,
the Maker of heaven(G) and earth.
Psalm 125
A song of ascents.
1 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,(H)
which cannot be shaken(I) but endures forever.
2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,(J)
so the Lord surrounds(K) his people
both now and forevermore.
3 The scepter(L) of the wicked will not remain(M)
over the land allotted to the righteous,
for then the righteous might use
their hands to do evil.(N)
4 Lord, do good(O) to those who are good,
to those who are upright in heart.(P)
5 But those who turn(Q) to crooked ways(R)
the Lord will banish(S) with the evildoers.
Peace be on Israel.(T)
Psalm 126
A song of ascents.
1 When the Lord restored(U) the fortunes of[a] Zion,
we were like those who dreamed.[b]
2 Our mouths were filled with laughter,(V)
our tongues with songs of joy.(W)
Then it was said among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things(X) for them.”
3 The Lord has done great things(Y) for us,
and we are filled with joy.(Z)
Footnotes
- Psalm 126:1 Or Lord brought back the captives to
- Psalm 126:1 Or those restored to health
- Psalm 126:4 Or Bring back our captives
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.