What if the Lord had not been on our side when people attacked us?
Parallel translations
- WEB if it had not been Yahweh who was on our side, when men rose up against us;
- KJV If it had not been the LORD who was on our side, when men rose up against us:
- BSB if the LORD had not been on our side when men attacked us,
- NKJV “If it had not been the Lord who was on our side, When men rose up against us,
- NASB “Had it not been the Lord who was on our side When people rose up against us,
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
Again: if Yahweh had not been on their side when enemies rose against them. God's presence was the decisive factor in the face of attack.
Overview
The repeated 'if it had not been Yahweh' heightens the sense of how grave the danger was when 'men rose up against us.' Only God's intervention stood between the people and destruction. This points to the gospel reality that God's being for us in Christ means no foe can ultimately prevail.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Ps 22:12–13Many bulls have surrounded me. Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled me.
- Ps 22:16For dogs have surrounded me. A company of evildoers have enclosed me. They have pierced my hands and feet.
- Ps 37:32The wicked watches the righteous, and seeks to kill him.
- Ps 21:1–2For the Chief Musician. A Psalm by David. The king rejoices in your strength, Yahweh! How greatly he rejoices in your salvation!
- Ps 3:1A Psalm by David, when he fled from Absalom his son. Yahweh, how my adversaries have increased! Many are those who rise up against me.
- Num 16:2–3They rose up before Moses, with some of the children of Israel, two hundred fifty princes of the congregation, called to the assembly, men of renown.
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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 124:2 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.