Christianity

Psalms 129Plowed Upon My Back

Summary

Psalm 129, a Song of Ascents, invites Israel to say that enemies have afflicted it many times from its youth, yet have not prevailed. The plowers plowed upon its back and made their furrows long, but the righteous LORD has cut asunder the cords of the wicked. The psalm then prays that all who hate Zion be confounded and turned back, becoming like grass on the housetops that withers before it grows, never gathered by reapers or blessed by passersby.

Key verse

“Many a time have they afflicted me from my youth: yet they have not prevailed against me.”

Psalms 129:2

Themes

Endurance Through Oppression
God's Righteousness
Survival
Judgment on Enemies

Many a time have they afflicted me from my youth, may Israel now say:

Many a time have they afflicted me from my youth: yet they have not prevailed against me.

The plowers plowed upon my back: they made long their furrows.

The LORD is righteous: he hath cut asunder the cords of the wicked.

Let them all be confounded and turned back that hate Zion.

Let them be as the grass upon the housetops, which withereth afore it groweth up:

Wherewith the mower filleth not his hand; nor he that bindeth sheaves his bosom.

Neither do they which go by say, The blessing of the LORD be upon you: we bless you in the name of the LORD.

Text: King James Version (1611/1769), public domain.

Across traditions

Christianity
Psalm 124: Let Israel Now Say
Psalm 124 opens with the same call, let Israel now say, and likewise credits the nation's survival entirely to the LORD.
Christianity
Exodus 1: Affliction in Egypt
Exodus 1:12 says that the more the Egyptians afflicted Israel, the more they multiplied, an early example of the pattern Psalm 129 describes: oppressed from youth, yet not destroyed.

Questions about Psalms 129

What does 'the plowers plowed upon my back' mean?

Psalm 129:3 pictures oppression as plowing long furrows across Israel's back, a vivid image of scourging or crushing labor. The point is that the wounds were deep but not fatal.

What is grass upon the housetops in Psalm 129?

Flat roofs of packed earth in ancient Israel could sprout grass after rain, but it withered quickly in the shallow soil. Psalm 129:6 uses it as a picture of enemies whose power fades before it matures.