New Living Translation
Psalms 124:1
1What if the Lord had not been on our side? Let all Israel repeat:
Psalms 124:1 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)If it had not been the Lord who was on our side, now may Israel say;
- New International Version (NIV)If the Lord had not been on our side— let Israel say—
- English Standard Version (ESV)If it had not been the Lord who was on our side— let Israel now say—
- New King James Version (NKJV)“If it had not been the Lord who was on our side,” Let Israel now say—
Context of Psalms 124:1
What if the Lord had not been on our side? Let all Israel repeat: 2What if the Lord had not been on our side when people attacked us? 3They would have swallowed us alive in their burning anger.
Read all of Psalms 124Psalms 124:1 word by word
לוּלֵ֣י יְ֭הוָה שֶׁהָ֣יָה לָ֑נוּ יֹֽאמַר־נָ֝א יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Psalms 124:1
- Psalms 120:1I took my troubles to the Lord; I cried out to him, and he answered my prayer.
- Psalms 134:1Oh, praise the Lord, all you servants of the Lord, you who serve at night in the house of the Lord.
- Psalms 27:1The Lord is my light and my salvation— so why should I be afraid? The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble?
- Psalms 46:7The Lord of Heaven’s Armies is here among us; the God of Israel is our fortress. Interlude
- Psalms 54:4But God is my helper. The Lord keeps me alive!
- Psalms 56:9My enemies will retreat when I call to you for help. This I know: God is on my side!
- Psalms 118:6The Lord is for me, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?
- Exodus 15:1Then Moses and the people of Israel sang this song to the Lord: “I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously; he has hurled both horse and rider into the sea.
- Isaiah 8:9“Huddle together, you nations, and be terrified. Listen, all you distant lands. Prepare for battle, but you will be crushed! Yes, prepare for battle, but you will be crushed!
- Romans 8:31What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?
- Hebrews 13:5Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.”
- Psalms 129:1From my earliest youth my enemies have persecuted me. Let all Israel repeat this:
Commentaries on Psalms 124:1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1If it had not been the Lord - If God had not, in a very especial manner, supported and defended us, we had all been swallowed up alive, and destroyed by a sudden destruction, so that not one would have been left. This might refer to the plot against the whole nation of the Jews by Haman, in the days of Mordecai and Esther; when by his treacherous schemes the Jews, wheresoever dispersed in the provinces of Babylon, were all to have been put to death in one…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1If it had not been the Lord who was on our side - Unless it was Yahweh who was with us. The idea is, that someone had been with them, and had delivered them, and that such was the nature of the interposition that it could be ascribed to no one but Yahweh. It bore unmistakeable evidence that it was his work. The deliverance was of such a kind that it could have been accomplished by him only. Such things often occur in life, when the intervention in our…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1The deliverance of the church. (1-5) Thankfulness for the deliverance. (6-8) Verses 1-5 God suffers the enemies of his people sometimes to prevail very far against them, that his power may be seen the more in their deliverance. Happy the people whose God is Jehovah, a God all-sufficient. Besides applying this to any particular deliverance wrought in our days and the ancient times, we should have in our thoughts the great work of redemption by Jesus…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-2The negative rhetorical questions emphasize the positive idea that the Lord was indeed on their side.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-81-2. on our side--for us (Psa 56:9). now--or, "oh! let Israel"Read the comment
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Psalms 124
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- The Treasury of David
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New Living Translation — © 1996, 2004, 2015 Tyndale House Foundation
Commentaries