Psalms 121:1-8

Psalms 107:150

Gordon Churchyard

Psalms 121

Psalms For Climbing;

Psalms 120:134

Jesus said, "We will go up to Jerusalem" (Luke 18:31).

The Story of Psalms 120:134

These 15 psalms are called "Songs of Ascent" in many Bibles. "Ascent" means "going up". This translation calls it "climbing". But what are we climbing? Bible students give us 4 answers:

• One line in the psalm "climbs" on the line in front of it. This means that it repeats the line. Read the start of Psalms 124 for an example.

• There were 15 steps from where the women stood to where the men stood outside the *temple. The *temple was God's house in Jerusalem. As the men climbed the steps, they sang one psalm on each step. This is why most of the psalms for climbing are short.

• Jerusalem was on the top of a hill called "Zion". The *Jews often went to Jerusalem to worship God at the *temple. "Worship" means "Tell God how *wonderful that he is. And tell him that you love him". The *Jews sang these psalms for climbing as they went up to Jerusalem.

• Hezekiah was a king of the *Jews. He was so ill that he thought he would soon die. He prayed for a longer life. God made the clock "climb" back 10 degrees. This was about an hour. It was a sign that Hezekiah would live another 15 years. Hezekiah made a book of 15 psalms, 10 of them new, the other 5 by David and Solomon. The story is in Isaiah chapter 38.

We do not know which of these is the true answer. It may be something else! Perhaps answers 3 and 4 are the true answers.

Who wrote the psalms for climbing? Some are by David, and one or two are by Solomon. Solomon was David’s son. The other psalms for climbing may be by Hezekiah or one of his friends like Isaiah; or by Ezra or Nehemiah. Ezra and Nehemiah were leaders of the *Jews 500 years after Solomon built the *temple, or 250 years after Hezekiah was king. This was when the *Jews made the Book of Psalms. The psalms for climbing were part of this Book of Psalms.

Psalms 121

(This is) a song for climbing.

v1 When I look up to the hills I find no help there.

v2 My help comes from the *LORD.
He made the *heaven and the earth.

v3 He will not let your foot *slide.
The one that *guards you will not sleep.

v4 It is certain that he will not sleep.
The one that *guards Israel will never sleep.

v5 The *LORD is the one that *guards you.
The *LORD is near you to *protect you.

v6 The sun will not hurt you in the day,
nor the moon at night.

v7 The *LORD is the one that *guards you from all danger.
He is the one that *guards your life.

v8 The *LORD *guards you when you go out.
And he when *guards you when you come in.
(He will do this) now and always.

What Psalms 121 means

If you travelled from home to Jerusalem, you would go through dangerous places. You would need someone to *protect you and guard you. "*Protect you" and "guard you" mean the same. They mean "stop someone hurting you". There was no help from the hills, (verse 1). Instead, there was danger from the people that lived there! But there was someone to give help: the *LORD! Read the note in Psalms 120 about what "the *LORD" means.

The *LORD will *protect you and guard you, (verse 5). He never sleeps, so he never stops guarding you, (verses 3-4). He will not let your foot slide, so that you do not fall over. Your feet slide when the ground is wet. They also slide when it has ice or oil on it. The *LORD *guards you from dangers that you do not know about, (verse 7). He *guards you as you go out and on your way home, (verse 8). He is always there to give you help!

Something to do

In the psalm, "you" means the people that went up (climbed up) to Jerusalem. But God’s promise is still true! He will give you help, and *protect you. Read the psalm, and change "you" or "your" to "me" or "my". Believe it … then God will *protect you also!
Hebrew ~ the language that the Jews spoke; they wrote the Psalms in Hebrew.
temple ~ a place where people meet to worship God.
Jew ~ a person who is born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children; a person who has the faith of the Jews, called Judaism.
faith ~ belief in someone or something; in the Psalms, belief in God.
wonderful ~ great and surprising.
Lord ~ a name for God; it means he has authority, or "master"; It is the word "Adonai" in Hebrew. Look also at LORD below.
LORD ~ a special name for God that his people use. It is the covenant name of God. In Hebrew it is Yahweh or Jehovah. Look after Psalm 25 in Book 1 of the Psalms of David for more about the names of God.
lord ~ someone with authority.
LORD ~ the covenant name for God (in a covenant you agree with someone).
Hebrew ~ the language that the Jews spoke; they wrote the Psalms in Hebrew.
covenant ~ two people have agreed what each should do (here, God and his people). Look in Psalm 120 about the covenant.
Yahweh ~ the covenant name for God. Most Bibles translate it LORD with 4 capital letters. It means something like "I am" or "always alive".
Jehovah ~ how some languages say Yahweh, one of the names of God in Hebrew.
heaven ~ the home of God.
guard ~ stop someone hurting someone else.
protect ~ stop people hurting and destroying (someone or something).
protect ~ stop people hurting and destroying (someone or something).