Psalms 124
BSASBThis is a Song of Ascents, a song sung by pilgrims going up to Jerusalem, and it looks back on a narrow escape. Israel admits that without the LORD they would have been destroyed by enemies, floods and traps. The psalm ends with praise and with a confession of where all true help comes from.
Psalms 124:1-2
The psalm begins with an unfinished thought: if the LORD had not been on our side… Israel is told to say it out loud together. The danger was real, and the people give the credit for survival to God alone. His presence made the difference when men rose up against them.
BSA: LORD (“Yehovah, The covenant Name of God”): The name God shared with Israel reminds them that he is the God who keeps his promises to his people. declare (“say, proclaim, confess”): Gratitude for deliverance is meant to be spoken openly, not kept private.
See also: Psalm 118:6-7; Romans 8:31.
Psalms 124:3
The enemy’s anger is pictured as a fire that has caught hold, and then as a mouth that swallows. Being swallowed alive means total, sudden destruction, with no chance to resist. The verse shows how helpless Israel would have been on her own.
BSA: flared (“was kindled, burned intensely”): Their rage is like a fire that spreads and cannot be put out by those it burns. swallowed (“consumed, destroyed completely”): The enemy’s aim was total destruction, not merely defeat.
Hebrew: בָּלָעוּנוּ (bālā’ûnû, H1104) — “they would have swallowed us.” The Hebrew verb is a gulping down. The picture is of a great mouth, like the grave opening wide, that takes its victims whole.
See also: Numbers 16:30-32.
Psalms 124:4-5
The picture changes from fire and teeth to a flood. Rushing water in dry country can sweep away anything in its path. Three times the psalm says what would have happened, and the repetition makes the danger feel heavy. Troubles like these are too strong for us to stand against by ourselves.
BSA: engulfed (“swept over, submerged”): The water does not just touch them; it goes over their heads. swept us away (“drowning our soul”): The flood threatens life itself, not only possessions or comfort.
See also: Isaiah 43:2; Psalm 69:1-2.
Psalms 124:6
Now the mood turns from fear to praise. The LORD is blessed because he did not hand Israel over to be torn apart like an animal caught by a predator. The people see their rescue as a gift they did not earn, and it moves them to worship.
BSA: Blessed (“praised, worshiped”): To bless the LORD is to thank and honor him aloud for what he has done. prey (“food, something torn apart”): The enemy is pictured as a wild beast, and Israel as the meal it was denied.
Psalms 124:7
A small bird caught in a hunter’s net seems to have no hope. Yet the net is broken, and the bird flies free. The psalm says this of the whole community, not just one person. The rescue is complete, and the people know the credit is not theirs.
BSA: bird (“a little bird, a sparrow”): The weakest, smallest creature is the one who escapes, which shows that the rescue came from God and not from strength. snare (“a net, a trap”): The danger was hidden and cunning, not only open violence.
Hebrew: נִמְלָטָה (nimlāṭâ, H4422) — “has escaped, slipped away.” The Hebrew word carries the sense of slipping out to safety. The bird has not fought its way out. It is simply set free.
See also: Psalm 91:3.
Psalms 124:8
The psalm ends with its main confession: our help is in the name of the LORD. His name stands for who he is, and he is the Maker of heaven and earth. The God who made everything is greater than any enemy, flood or trap. That is a safe place to stand.
BSA: name (“character and reputation”): To trust the name of the LORD is to trust all that he is and has shown himself to be. Maker (“Creator, One who brings into being”): The one who helps us is the same one who brought all things into being, so no power is beyond him.
See also: Psalm 121:2; Genesis 1:1.