Psalm 120

I hate liars and fighters

Save me from liars

Road trip song [1]

1Trouble paid me a visit.
So, I asked the LORD for help,
Sure enough, he helped me.
2LORD, protect me from liars
And people who say anything to get their way.
3Liar,
What do you expect to gain from this?
What do you think you’re going to get?
4I’ll tell you what you’ll get:
Flaming arrows shot at you,
The bullseye.
5What rotten luck.
I have to live in Meshech, [2] of all places.
That’s what I get
For pitching my tents with people of Kedar.
6I’ve had all I can take
Of living with warmongers.
7I try to talk up peace
But all they talk about is war.

Footnotes

Intro Notes for Psalms

Intro Notes for Book 5 of 5 In Psalms

Intro Notes for Road Trip Songs

1120:1

The subtitle wasn’t part of the original psalm. Psalms 120-134 are called songs of ascent, possibly because Jewish pilgrims sang these songs while traveling up into the Judean hills to celebrate a Jewish holiday in Jerusalem.

2120:5

Meshech was far northeast of the Jewish homeland. Some place it near the Caspian Sea, while the people of Kedar were Arab nomadic herders from south of Israel, in the Arabian Peninsula. Some scholars say the song writer got at least one of the names wrong. Others suggest he meant what he said, and he was possibly saying that no matter how far he moved away from people who hate peace (verses 6-7), it was too close for comfort. Or, perhaps the nomads at the time were people of war, living outside their usual territory and traveling to cooler climate during a drought. Educated guesses.