Psalms 120; Psalms 121; Psalms 122; Psalms 123; Psalms 124; Psalms 125; Psalms 126; Psalms 127; Psalms 128; Psalms 129; Psalms 130; Psalms 131; Psalms 132

Psalms 120

1 I call out to the LORD when I'm in trouble, and he answers me.

2 Lord, save me from people whose lips tell lies. Save me from people whose tongues don't tell the truth.

3 What will the LORD do to you, you lying tongue? And what more will he do?

4 He will punish you with the sharp arrows of a soldier. He will punish you with burning wood from a desert tree.

5 How terrible it is for me to live in the tents of the people of Meshech! How terrible to live in the tents of the people of Kedar!

6 I have lived too long among those who hate peace.

7 I want peace. But when I speak, they want war.

Psalms 121

1 I look up to the hills. Where does my help come from?

2 My help comes from the Lord. He is the Maker of heaven and earth.

3 He won't let your foot slip. He who watches over you won't get tired.

4 In fact, he who watches over Israel won't get tired or go to sleep.

5 The LORD watches over you. The LORD is like a shade tree at your right hand.

6 The sun won't harm you during the day. The moon won't harm you during the night.

7 The LORD will keep you from every kind of harm. He will watch over your life.

8 The LORD will watch over your life no matter where you go, both now and forever.

Psalms 122

1 I was very glad when they said to me, "Let us go up to the house of the Lord."

2 Jerusalem, our feet are standing inside your gates.

3 Jerusalem is built like a city where everything is close together.

4 The tribes of the LORD go there to praise his name. They do it in keeping with the law he gave to Israel.

5 The thrones of the family line of David are there. That's where the people are judged.

6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Say, "May those who love you be secure.

7 May there be peace inside your walls. May your people be kept safe."

8 I'm concerned for my family and friends. So I say to Jerusalem, "May you enjoy peace."

9 I'm concerned about the house of the LORD our God. So I pray that things will go well with Jerusalem.

Psalms 123

1 I look up and pray to you. Your throne is in heaven.

2 Slaves depend on their masters. Maids depend on the women they work for. In the same way, we depend on the LORD our God. We wait for him to show us his favor.

3 Lord, show us your favor. Show us your favor, because people have made so much fun of us.

4 We have had to put up with a lot from those who are proud. They were always laughing at us.

Psalms 124

1 Here is what Israel should say. Suppose the LORD had not been on our side.

2 Suppose the LORD had not been on our side when our enemies attacked us.

3 Suppose he had not been on our side when their anger blazed out against us. Then they would have swallowed us alive.

4 They would have been like a flood that drowned us. They would have swept over us like a rushing river.

5 They would have washed us away like a swollen stream.

6 Give praise to the Lord. He has not let our enemies chew us up.

7 We have escaped like a bird from a hunter's trap. The trap has been broken, and we have escaped.

8 Our help comes from the Lord. He is the Maker of heaven and earth.

Psalms 125

1 Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion. They will always be secure. They will last forever.

2 Like the mountains around Jerusalem, the LORD is all around his people both now and forever.

3 Evil people will not always rule the land the LORD gave to those who do right. If they did, those who do right might do what is evil.

4 Lord, do good to those who are good. Do good to those whose hearts are honest.

5 But what about those who have taken paths that are crooked? The LORD will drive them out, along with those who do what is evil. May Israel enjoy peace.

Psalms 126

1 Our enemies took us away from Zion. But when the LORD brought us home, it seemed like a dream to us.

2 Our mouths were filled with laughter. Our tongues sang with joy. Then the people of other nations said, "The LORD has done great things for them."

3 The LORD has done great things for us. And we are filled with joy.

4 Lord, bless us with great success again, as rain makes streams flow in the Negev Desert.

5 Those who cry as they plant their crops will sing with joy when they gather them in.

6 Those who go out sobbing as they carry seeds to plant will come back singing with joy. They will bring the new crop back with them.

Psalms 127

1 If the LORD doesn't build a house, the work of its builders is useless. If the LORD doesn't watch over a city, it's useless for those on guard duty to stand watch over it.

2 It's useless for you to work from early morning until late at night just to get food to eat. God provides for those he loves even while they sleep.

3 Children are a gift from the Lord. They are a reward from him.

4 Children who are born to people when they are young are like arrows in the hands of a soldier.

5 Blessed are those who have many children. They won't be put to shame when they go up against their enemies in court.

Psalms 128

1 Blessed are all those who have respect for the Lord. They live as he wants them to live.

2 Your work will give you what you need. Blessings and good things will come to you.

3 As a vine bears a lot of fruit, so your wife will have many children by you. They will sit around your table like young olive trees.

4 Only a man who has respect for the LORD will be blessed like that.

5 May the LORD bless you from Zion. May you enjoy the good things that come to Jerusalem all the days of your life.

6 May you live to see your grandchildren. May Israel enjoy peace.

Psalms 129

1 Here is what Israel should say. Many times my enemies have beaten me down ever since I was a young nation.

2 Many times my enemies have beaten me down ever since I was a young nation, but they haven't won the battle.

3 They have made deep wounds in my back. It looks like a field a farmer has plowed.

4 The LORD does what is right. Sinners had tied me up with ropes. But the LORD has set me free.

5 May all those who hate Zion be driven back in shame.

6 May they be like grass that grows on the roof of a house. It dries up before it can grow.

7 There isn't enough of it to fill a person's hand. There isn't enough to tie up and carry away.

8 May no one who passes by say to those who hate Zion, "May the blessing of the LORD be on you. We bless you in the name of the Lord."

Psalms 130

1 Lord, I cry out to you because I'm suffering so deeply.

2 Lord, listen to me. Pay attention to my cry for your favor.

3 Lord, suppose you kept a record of sins. Lord, who then wouldn't be found guilty?

4 But you forgive. So people have respect for you.

5 With all my heart I wait for the LORD to help me. I put my hope in his word.

6 I wait for the Lord to help me. I wait with more longing than those on guard duty wait for the morning. I'll say it again. I wait with more longing than those on guard duty wait for the morning.

7 Israel, put your hope in the Lord, because the LORD's love never fails. He sets his people completely free.

8 He himself will set Israel free from all of their sins.

Psalms 131

1 Lord, my heart isn't proud. My eyes aren't proud either. I don't concern myself with important matters. I don't concern myself with things that are too wonderful for me.

2 I have made myself calm and content like a young child in its mother's arms. Deep down inside me, I am as content as a young child.

3 Israel, put your hope in the LORD both now and forever.

Psalms 132

1 Lord, remember David and all of the hard times he went through.

2 Lord, he took an oath. Mighty One of Jacob, he made a promise to you.

3 He said, "I won't enter my house or go to bed.

4 I won't let my eyes sleep. I won't close my eyelids

5 until I find a place for the Lord. I want to build a house for the Mighty One of Jacob."

6 Here are the words we heard in Ephrathah. We heard them again in the fields of Kiriath Jearim.

7 "Let us go to the LORD's house. Let us worship at his feet.

8 Lord, rise up and come to your resting place. Come in together with the ark. It's the sign of your power.

9 May your priests put on godliness as if it were their clothes. May your faithful people sing with joy."

10 In honor of your servant David, don't turn your back on your anointed king.

11 The LORD took an oath and made a promise to David. It is a firm promise that he will never break. He said, "After you die, I will place one of your own sons on your throne.

12 If your sons keep my covenant and the laws I teach them, then their sons will sit on your throne for ever and ever."

13 The LORD has chosen Zion. That's the place where he wants to live.

14 He has said, "This will be my resting place for ever and ever. Here I will sit on my throne, because that's what I want.

15 I will greatly bless Zion with everything it needs. I will give plenty of food to the poor people living there.

16 I will put salvation on its priests as if it were their clothes. God's faithful people will always sing with joy.

17 "Here in Jerusalem I will raise up a mighty king from the family of David. I will set up the lamp of David's kingdom for my anointed king. Its flame will burn brightly forever.

18 I will put shame on his enemies as if it were their clothes. But the royal crown he wears will shine with glory."