Discovery BoxPsalms 127:1
ContextA song of ascents, 2 by Solomon.
127:1 If the Lord does not build a house, 3
then those who build it work in vain.
If the Lord does not guard a city, 4
then the watchman stands guard in vain.
Psalms 127:1
ContextA song of ascents, 6 by Solomon.
127:1 If the Lord does not build a house, 7
then those who build it work in vain.
If the Lord does not guard a city, 8
then the watchman stands guard in vain.
Psalms 2:1
Context2:1 Why 10 do the nations rebel? 11
Why 12 are the countries 13 devising 14 plots that will fail? 15
[127:1] 1 sn Psalm 127. In this wisdom psalm the psalmist teaches that one does not find security by one’s own efforts, for God alone gives stability and security.
[127:1] 2 sn The precise significance of this title, which appears in Pss 120-134, is unclear. Perhaps worshipers recited these psalms when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. For a discussion of their background see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 219-21.
[127:1] 3 sn The expression build a house may have a double meaning here. It may refer on the surface level to a literal physical structure in which a family lives, but at a deeper, metaphorical level it refers to building, perpetuating, and maintaining a family line. See Deut 25:9; Ruth 4:11; 1 Sam 2:35; 2 Sam 7:27; 1 Kgs 11:38; 1 Chr 17:10, 25. Having a family line provided security in ancient Israel.
[127:1] 4 sn The city symbolizes community security, which is the necessary framework for family security.
[127:1] 5 sn Psalm 127. In this wisdom psalm the psalmist teaches that one does not find security by one’s own efforts, for God alone gives stability and security.
[127:1] 6 sn The precise significance of this title, which appears in Pss 120-134, is unclear. Perhaps worshipers recited these psalms when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. For a discussion of their background see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 219-21.
[127:1] 7 sn The expression build a house may have a double meaning here. It may refer on the surface level to a literal physical structure in which a family lives, but at a deeper, metaphorical level it refers to building, perpetuating, and maintaining a family line. See Deut 25:9; Ruth 4:11; 1 Sam 2:35; 2 Sam 7:27; 1 Kgs 11:38; 1 Chr 17:10, 25. Having a family line provided security in ancient Israel.
[127:1] 8 sn The city symbolizes community security, which is the necessary framework for family security.
[2:1] 9 sn Psalm 2. In this royal psalm the author asserts the special status of the divinely chosen Davidic king and warns the nations and their rulers to submit to the authority of God and his chosen vice-regent.
[2:1] 10 tn The question is rhetorical. Rather than seeking information, the psalmist expresses his outrage that the nations would have the audacity to rebel against God and his chosen king.
[2:1] 11 tn The Hebrew verb רָגַשׁ (ragash) occurs only here. In Dan 6:6, 11, 15 the Aramaic cognate verb describes several officials acting as a group. A Hebrew nominal derivative is used in Ps 55:14 of a crowd of people in the temple.
[2:1] 12 tn The interrogative לָמָּה (lamah, “why?”) is understood by ellipsis in the second line.
[2:1] 13 tn Or “peoples” (so many English versions).
[2:1] 14 tn The Hebrew imperfect form describes the rebellion as underway. The verb הָגָה (hagah), which means “to recite quietly, meditate,” here has the metonymic nuance “devise, plan, plot” (see Ps 38:12; Prov 24:2).
[2:1] 15 tn Heb “devising emptiness.” The noun רִיק (riq, “emptiness”) may characterize their behavior as “worthless, morally bankrupt” but more likely refers to the outcome of their plots (i.e., failure). As the rest of the psalm emphasizes, their rebellion will fail.
