Psalm 129 is Israel’s testimony of survival: “Often have they fought against me from my youth: but they could not prevail over me.” Its striking image, “The wicked have wrought upon my back: they have lengthened their iniquity,” like a plough cutting long furrows, was read by the Church Fathers as a prophecy of Christ’s scourging. In the Douay-Rheims it is numbered Psalm 128. Below is the full Catholic text, what the psalm means, how the Church uses it, and a prayer.
Psalm 129 in the Douay-Rheims Bible
Often have they fought against me from my youth, let Israel now say.
Often have they fought against me from my youth: but they could not prevail over me.
The wicked have wrought upon my back: they have lengthened their iniquity.
The Lord who is just will cut the necks of sinners:
Let them all be confounded and turned back that hate Sion.
Let them be as grass on the tops of houses: which withered before it be plucked up:
Wherewith the mower filleth not his hand: nor he that gathereth sheaves his bosom.
And they that have passed by have not said: The blessing of the Lord be upon you: we have blessed you in the name of the Lord.
Psalm 129 or Psalm 128?
The Douay-Rheims Bible follows the numbering of the Latin Vulgate and the Greek Septuagint, while most modern Bibles follow the Hebrew. So the Douay’s Psalm 128 is Psalm 129 in the New American Bible and other modern translations. In Latin the psalm begins Saepe expugnaverunt me a iuventute mea. See how many psalms are there?
The furrows on his back
The picture is of ploughmen driving long furrows across a field. The Fathers of the Church saw in it Christ, whose back was torn by the scourge before his crucifixion (John 19:1), and also the Church in every age, persecuted yet never destroyed. Jesus promised that “the gates of hell shall not prevail against” his Church (Matthew 16:18), and this psalm sings the same confidence from Israel’s long experience: enemies may attack “from my youth,” but “they could not prevail over me.” See Good Friday.
It is one of the fifteen Songs of Ascents, Psalms 120 to 134, sung by pilgrims going up to Jerusalem; see Psalm 120, the first of them. Its last lines recall the friendly blessing harvesters gave one another, “The blessing of the Lord be upon you: we have blessed you in the name of the Lord,” a blessing the wicked will never hear.
What the psalm means
- A long history of suffering: Israel was attacked “from my youth.”
- Not defeated: “they could not prevail over me.”
- Furrows on the back: the image the Church applies to Christ’s scourging.
- The just Lord frees his people: “The Lord who is just will cut the necks of sinners,” breaking the cords of oppression.
- Grass on the roof: the enemies of Sion wither before they grow.
How the Church uses Psalm 129
- One of the Songs of Ascents, prayed in the Liturgy of the Hours.
- In Lent and on Good Friday, as a meditation on the scourging.
- For persecuted Christians, as a song of endurance.
A prayer with Psalm 129
Written for this page:
Lord, many have attacked your people from their youth, but they have not prevailed.
Jesus, scourged for us, by your wounds heal us.
Strengthen your persecuted Church and all who suffer for your name.
Let your blessing rest upon us; we bless you in the name of the Lord. Amen.
Frequently asked questions
What is Psalm 129 about?
Israel’s endurance through a long history of persecution, and confidence that its enemies will not prevail.
Why is Psalm 129 linked to Christ’s Passion?
Its image of ploughmen cutting furrows on a back was read by the Church Fathers as a prophecy of the scourging of Jesus.
More psalms and prayers
Texts and sources
- Scripture: Psalm 128 (129); John 19:1; Matthew 16:18, Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner), public domain.
- The prayer was written for this page.