Our Eyes Look to the Lord Our God
A Song of mAscents.
123 To you I qlift up my eyes,
O you who are renthroned in the heavens!
2 Behold, as the eyes of servants
look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a maidservant
to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the Lord our God,
till he has mercy upon us.
3 sHave mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us,
for we have had more than enough of tcontempt.
4 Our soul has had more than enough
of uthe scorn of vthose who are at ease,
of the contempt of wthe proud.
Our Help Is in the Name of the Lord
A Song of mAscents. Of David.
124 xIf it had not been the Lord who was on our side—
ylet Israel now say—
2 if it had not been the Lord who was on our side
when people rose up against us,
3 then they would have zswallowed us up alive,
when their anger was kindled against us;
4 then athe flood would have bswept us away,
the torrent would have gone cover us;
5 then over us would have gone
the raging waters.
6 Blessed be the Lord,
who has not given us
as prey to their teeth!
7 We have escaped like a bird
from dthe snare of the fowlers;
the snare is broken,
and we have escaped!
8 eOur help is in the name of the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
The Lord Surrounds His People
A Song of mAscents.
125 Those who ftrust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,
which gcannot be moved, but abides forever.
2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
so hthe Lord surrounds his people,
from this time forth and forevermore.
3 For ithe scepter of wickedness shall not jrest
on kthe land allotted to the righteous,
lest the righteous lstretch out
their hands to do wrong.
4 mDo good, O Lord, to those who are good,
and to those who are nupright in their hearts!
5 But those who oturn aside to their pcrooked ways
the Lord will lead away with qevildoers!
rPeace be upon Israel!
Restore Our Fortunes, O Lord
A Song of mAscents.
126 When the Lord srestored the fortunes of Zion,
we were like those who tdream.
2 Then our umouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then they said among the nations,
v“The Lord has done great things for them.”
3 The Lord has done great things for us;
we are glad.
4 Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
like streams in the Negeb!
5 wThose who sow in tears
shall reap with shouts of joy!
6 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 mAscents. Of Solomon.
127 Unless the Lord builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the Lord xwatches over the city,
the watchman stays awake in vain.
2 It is in vain that you rise up early
and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious ytoil;
3 Behold, bchildren are a heritage from the Lord,
cthe fruit of the womb a reward.
4 Like arrows in the hand of da warrior
are the children1 of one’s youth.
5 Blessed is the man
who fills his quiver with them!
He shall not be put to shame