Psalms 122:1-4

Psalm 122 ¹ 

A song of ascents, ²  by David.

122:1 I was glad because ³  they said to me,

“We will go to the Lord’s temple.”

122:2 Our feet are ⁴  standing

inside your gates, O Jerusalem.

122:3 Jerusalem ⁵  is a city designed

to accommodate an assembly. ⁶ 

122:4 The tribes go up ⁷  there, ⁸ 

the tribes of the Lord,

where it is required that Israel

give thanks to the name of the Lord. ⁹ 

[122:1]  ¹ sn Psalm 122. The psalmist expresses his love for Jerusalem and promises to pray for the city’s security.

[122:1]  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.

[122:1]  ³ tn Heb “in the ones saying to me.” After the verb שָׂמַח (samakh), the preposition בְּ (bet) usually introduces the reason for joy.

[122:2]  ⁴ tn Or “were.”

[122:3]  ⁵ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[122:3]  ⁶ tc Heb “Jerusalem, which is built like a city which is joined to her together.” The meaning of the Hebrew text is unclear. Many regard this as a description of the compact way in which the city was designed or constructed. The translation assumes an emendation of the verb חֻבְּרָה (khubbÿrah, “is joined”) to a noun חֶבְרָה (khevrah, “association; company”). The text then reads literally, “Jerusalem, which is built like a city which has a company together.” This in turn can be taken as a reference to Jerusalem’s role as a city where people congregated for religious festivals and other civic occasions (see vv. 4-5).

[122:4]  ⁷ tn Or “went up.”

[122:4]  ⁸ tn Heb “which is where the tribes go up.”

[122:4]  ⁹ tn Heb “[it is] a statute for Israel to give thanks to the name of the Lord.”