Psalm 126:6 - Printer Friendly

ESV: He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.

NIV: Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them.

NASB: One who goes here and there weeping, carrying his bag of seed, Shall indeed come again with a shout of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.

CSB: Though one goes along weeping, carrying the bag of seed, he will surely come back with shouts of joy, carrying his sheaves.

NLT: They weep as they go to plant their seed, but they sing as they return with the harvest.

KJV: He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.

NKJV: He who continually goes forth weeping, Bearing seed for sowing, Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, Bringing his sheaves with him.

Cultivating land, planting seeds, and nurturing them as they grow are difficult tasks. In a symbolic way, this is the source of "weeping" from the effort and pain involved. The result, however, is a harvest of food and new seed for the future. This imagery has several possible applications to the nation of Israel.

The most direct connection is the literal prosperity of the people. After returning from Babylonian captivity (Ezra 2:1), the people looked to the Lord for His blessings (Psalm 126:4). It is especially difficult to farm on land which has been left to run wild for many years. The process of restarting life in the Promised Land would be intimidating. Another possible application is the idea of working hard to restore Israelite culture, hoping to attract more of the Jews living in Babylon to come back to their ancestors' territory.

In His covenant with Israel, God promised to reward faithfulness to His law with abundance (Deuteronomy 28:1, 6, 12). For the New Testament believer, there are spiritual implications of these ideas. Christians can be encouraged to look beyond the struggles of sowing of God's Word to the joy of reaping a bountiful harvest (John 4:35–38; 2 Corinthians 9:10; James 3:18).

Psalm 126:5–6 closes the song with a metaphor of sowing and reaping. It will be difficult for Israel to rebuild the nation and the city of Jerusalem. It will also be hard to bring back those Israelites who chose to remain in Babylon after being freed to go back to the Promised Land. But hard work now results in a better harvest later.

Learning that they could return to the Promised Land (2 Chronicles 36:17–21) would have been incredible news for Israel. It seemed too good to be true. Yet God's work was being seen by the entire world. The psalmist prays for the Lord to continue restoring the people. This would have included those who chose to remain in Babylon.

This is a "song of ascent," sung by pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem for one of three annual festivals (Deuteronomy 16:16). Psalm 126 seems inspired by Israel's return from exile in Babylon (2 Chronicles 36:17–21; Ezra 2:1). A few scholars suggest a connection to the thwarted siege of Jerusalem during the reign of Hezekiah (2 Kings 19:32–36). The psalmist celebrates what God has done. Yet he also prays to bring all the people of Israel back to the Promised Land.

The book of Psalms is composed of individual songs, hymns, or poems, each of which is a ''Psalm'' in and of itself. These works contain a wide variety of themes. Some Psalms focus on praising and worshipping God. Others cry out in anguish over the pain of life. Still other Psalms look forward to the coming of the Messiah. While some Psalms are related, each has its own historical and biblical context.