I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.
Parallel translations
- WEB A Song of Ascents. I will lift up my eyes to the hills. Where does my help come from?
- BSB A song of ascents. I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?
- NKJV I will lift up my eyes to the hills— From whence comes my help?
- NASB I will raise my eyes to the mountains; From where will my help come?
- NLT I look up to the mountains— does my help come from there?
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The psalmist lifts his eyes to the hills and asks where his help comes from. He looks beyond the dangers around him to find his source of help.
Overview
In this beloved Song of Ascents, the pilgrim looks up to the 'hills,' which surrounded Jerusalem but could also harbor dangers and false sanctuaries. His question prompts the confident answer of the next verse. The verse models the believer's instinct to lift the eyes from earthly threats toward God, our true help in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Ps 120:1In my distress I cried unto the LORD, and he heard me.
- Ps 123:1Unto thee lift I up mine eyes, O thou that dwellest in the heavens.
- Jer 3:23Truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills, and from the multitude of mountains: truly in the LORD our God is the salvation of Israel.
- Isa 2:3And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
- Ps 2:6Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.
- Ps 87:1His foundation is in the holy mountains.
- Ps 68:15–16The hill of God is as the hill of Bashan; an high hill as the hill of Bashan.
- Ps 78:68But chose the tribe of Judah, the mount Zion which he loved.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Commentaries & study tools
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 121:1 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.