Psalm 128 is the 128th psalm of the

Book of Psalms The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived f ...

, beginning in English in the

King James Version The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an Bible translations into English, English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and publis ...

: "Blessed is every one that feareth the ; that walketh in his ways". In

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

, it is known as "Beati omnes qui timent Dominum". In the slightly different numbering system used in the Greek

Septuagint The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond th ...

and the

Latin Vulgate The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels us ...

, this psalm is Psalm 127. The psalm forms a regular part of

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

and other Protestant liturgies.

Text

Hebrew Bible version

Following is the Hebrew text of Psalm 128:

King James Version

¹Blessed is every one that feareth the LORD; that walketh in his ways. ²For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee. ³Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table. ⁴Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the LORD. ⁵The LORD shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life. ⁶Yea, thou shalt see thy children's children, and peace upon Israel.

Theme

Written anonymously, Psalm 128 likely dates to the post- exilic period (that is, after about 539 BCE). The

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary The Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary refers to a biblical commentary entitled a ''Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible'', prepared by Robert Jamieson, Andrew Robert Fausset and David Brown and published in 1871; and de ...

describes as a "virtual commentary on this psalm".

Verse 6

:''May you see your children’s children! Peace be upon Israel!'' This verse recalls

Jacob Jacob (; ; ar, يَعْقُوب, Yaʿqūb; gr, Ἰακώβ, Iakṓb), later given the name Israel, is regarded as a patriarch of the Israelites and is an important figure in Abrahamic religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. J ...

's reunion with his son

Joseph Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...

in : ''And Israel acobsaid to Joseph, "I had not thought to see your face; but in fact, God has also shown me your offspring!"'' and is reflected in

Job Work or labor (or labour in British English) is intentional activity people perform to support the needs and wants of themselves, others, or a wider community. In the context of economics, work can be viewed as the human activity that contr ...

's restoration: ''After this Job lived one hundred and forty years, and saw his children and grandchildren for four generations''.Pulpit Commentary
on Psalm 128, accessed 23 September 2018 Proverbs 17:6 celebrates the same idea: ''Children’s children are the crown of old men.'' The concluding prayer for peace upon

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, which also appears in

Psalm 125 Psalm 125 is the 125th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "They that trust in the shall be as mount Zion". In Latin, it is known by as, " Qui confidunt in Domino". The Book of Psalms is part of the Ketuv ...

, is best taken as a "detached clause", according to the

Pulpit Commentary The ''Pulpit Commentary'' is a homiletic commentary on the Bible created during the nineteenth century under the direction of Rev. Joseph S. Exell and Henry Donald Maurice Spence-Jones. It consists of 23 volumes with 22,000 pages and 95,000 entrie ...

Uses

Judaism

In traditional Jewish practice, this psalm is recited following

Mincha Mincha ( he, מִנחַה, pronounced as ; sometimes spelled ''Minchah'' or ''Minḥa'') is the afternoon prayer service in Judaism. Etymology The name ''Mincha'', meaning "present", is derived from the meal offering that accompanied each sacrif ...

between

Sukkot or ("Booths, Tabernacles") , observedby = Jews, Samaritans, a few Protestant denominations, Messianic Jews, Semitic Neopagans , type = Jewish, Samaritan , begins = 15th day of Tishrei , ends = 21st day of Tishre ...

and

Shabbat Hagadol Special Shabbatot are Jewish Shabbat days on which special events are commemorated. Variations in the liturgy and special customs differentiate them from the regular Sabbaths and each one is referred to by a special name; many communities also ad ...

. It is also recited prior to

Aleinu ''Aleinu'' (Hebrew: , lit. "upon us", meaning "t isour duty") or ''Aleinu leshabei'ach'' (Hebrew: "t isour duty to praise Names_of_God_in_Judaism.html" "title="/nowiki>Names of God in Judaism">God]"), meaning "it is upon us" or "it is our obligat ...

during

Motzei Shabbat The term Motza'ei Shabbat ( he, מוצאי שבת—literally, the going out of the Sabbath) in Judaism refers to the time in the evening immediately following Shabbat, that is Saturday night. It is a time when, following one's declaration of the in ...

Maariv ''Maariv'' or ''Maʿariv'' (, ), also known as ''Arvit'' (, ), is a Jewish prayer service held in the evening or night. It consists primarily of the evening ''Shema'' and '' Amidah''. The service will often begin with two verses from Psalms, ...

, and among the prayers of the

Bedtime Shema ''Shema Yisrael'' (''Shema Israel'' or ''Sh'ma Yisrael''; he , שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל ''Šəmaʿ Yīsrāʾēl'', "Hear, O Israel") is a Jewish prayer (known as the Shema) that serves as a centerpiece of the morning and evening Jewis ...

. Its second verse is found in

Pirkei Avot Pirkei Avot ( he, פִּרְקֵי אָבוֹת; also transliterated as ''Pirqei Avoth'' or ''Pirkei Avos'' or ''Pirke Aboth''), which translates to English as Chapters of the Fathers, is a compilation of the ethics, ethical teachings and Maxim ...

Chapter 4, no. 1 and Chapter 6, no. 4.

Christianity

Traditionally, since the Middle Ages, this psalm has been recited within the Office of

none None may refer to: *Zero, the mathematical concept of the quantity "none" *Empty set, the mathematical concept of the collection of things represented by "none" *''none'', an indefinite pronoun in the English language Music * ''None'' (Meshuggah E ...

from Tuesday until Saturday, according to the

Rule of St. Benedict The ''Rule of Saint Benedict'' ( la, Regula Sancti Benedicti) is a book of precepts written in Latin in 516 by St Benedict of Nursia ( AD 480–550) for monks living communally under the authority of an abbot. The spirit of Saint Benedict's Ru ...

(530). In the liturgy of the current Roman Rite

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...

, Psalm 128 is used on the

feast of the Holy Family The Holy Family consists of the Child Jesus, the Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph. The subject became popular in art from the 1490s on, but veneration of the Holy Family was formally begun in the 17th century by Saint François de Laval, the first ...

, the 33rd Sunday in

Ordinary Time Ordinary Time ( la, Tempus per annum) is the part of the liturgical year in the liturgy of the Roman Rite, which falls outside the two great seasons of Christmastide and Eastertide, or their respective preparatory seasons of Advent and Lent. Or ...

of the year A and the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time of the year B. It is also the traditional psalm for nuptial masses (missa pro votiva sponso and sponsa). In the

Sarum Use The Use of Sarum (or Use of Salisbury, also known as the Sarum Rite) is the Latin liturgical rite developed at Salisbury Cathedral and used from the late eleventh century until the English Reformation. It is largely identical to the Roman rite, ...

, the psalm was also sung by the priest after

Psalm 121 Psalm 121 is the 121st psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.". In the slightly different numbering system used in the Greek Septuagint a ...

at the churching of women.Ordo ad purificandum mulierum
Manuale ad usum ecclesiae Sarum
Renwick.

Music

This psalm was used by

Michel-Richard Delalande Michel Richard Delalande e Lalande'' (; 15 December 1657 – 18 June 1726) was a French Baroque composer and organist who was in the service of King Louis XIV. He was one of the most important composers of grands motets. He also wrote ...

in 1698 to compose a

grand motet The grand motet (plural grands motets) was a genre of motet cultivated at the height of the French Baroque music, French baroque, although the term dates from later French usage. At the time, due to the stylistic feature of employing two alternating ...

(S51) which was played in the royal chapel of

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...

to celebrate the offices.

Henry Desmarest Henri Desmarets (February 1661 – 7 September 1741) was a French composer of the Baroque music, Baroque period primarily known for his stage works, although he also composed sacred music as well as secular cantatas, songs and instrumenta ...

composed a grand motet "''Beati omnes"'' (unknown date).

Marc-Antoine Charpentier Marc-Antoine Charpentier (; 1643 – 24 February 1704) was a French Baroque composer during the reign of Louis XIV. One of his most famous works is the main theme from the prelude of his ''Te Deum'', ''Marche en rondeau''. This theme is still us ...

composed in 1680/1681 one "''Beati omnes qui timent Dominum"'' H.178, for 3 voices, 2 treble instruments and continuo.

Salamone Rossi Salamone Rossi or Salomone Rossi ( he, סלומונה רוסי or שלמה מן האדומים) (Salamon, Schlomo; de' Rossi) (ca. 1570 – 1630) was an Italian Jewish violinist and composer. He was a transitional figure between the late Ita ...

, the 17th-century Jewish-Italian composer who was the first known composer to write choral music for the Jewish liturgy, published three settings of the psalm (for 3, 5, and 6 voices) in his collection Shir Ha'shirim Lishlomo, published in 1622.

References

External links

* * * Text of Psalm 128 according to th
1928 Psalter

text in Hebrew and English, mechon-mamre.org
A song of ascents. / Blessed are all who fear the LORD, and who walk in his ways.
text and footnotes, usccb.org United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

introduction and text, biblestudytools.com
Psalm 128 – The Blessed Family of Those Who Fear the LORD
enduringword.com
Psalm 128 / Refrain: How abundant is your goodness, O Lord.

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

Psalm 128
at biblegateway.com *

Charles H. Spurgeon Charles Haddon Spurgeon (19 June 1834 – 31 January 1892) was an English Particular Baptist preacher. Spurgeon remains highly influential among Christians of various denominations, among whom he is known as the "Prince of Preachers". He wa ...

Psalm 128
detailed commentary, archive.spurgeon.org * {{Psalms

128 128 may refer to *128 (number), a natural number *AD 128, a year in the 2nd century AD *128 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC *128 (New Jersey bus) See also * List of highways numbered A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may al ...