Bible / Psalms
Psalm 124 [Douay 123]
World English Bible, Catholic edition, in plain modern English. About the translations
Douay-Rheims Bible, Challoner revision, the traditional Catholic English Bible. About the translations
Psalm 124 in modern numbering
1 If it had not been the LORD who was on our side, let Israel now say,
2 if it had not been the LORD who was on our side, when men rose up against us,
3 then they would have swallowed us up alive, when their wrath was kindled against us,
4 then the waters would have overwhelmed us, the stream would have gone over our soul.
5 Then the proud waters would have gone over our soul.
6 Blessed be the LORD, who has not given us as a prey to their teeth.
7 Our soul has escaped like a bird out of the fowler’s snare. The snare is broken, and we have escaped.
8 Our help is in the LORD’s name, who made heaven and earth.
1 If it had not been that the Lord was with us, let Israel now say:
2 If it had not been that the Lord was with us, When men rose up against us,
3 Perhaps they had swallowed us up alive. When their fury was enkindled against us,
4 Perhaps the waters had swallowed us up.
5 Our soul hath passed through a torrent: perhaps our soul had passed through a water insupportable.
6 Blessed be the Lord, who hath not given us to be a prey to their teeth.
7 Our soul hath been delivered as a sparrow out of the snare of the fowlers. The snare is broken, and we are delivered.
8 Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
This chapter in the Catechism and the early Church
Where the Catechism of the Catholic Church cites these verses (from its footnotes on vatican.va), and where the earliest Church Fathers quote them (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1, public domain). Short quotes only; follow the links for the full text. The Catechism uses modern verse numbers and psalm numbers (one higher than Douay-Rheims for most psalms), so these are listed by chapter.
- Psalm 124:8 in modern BiblesCCC 287
Read the Catechism and Fathers
- CCC 287 “The truth about creation is so important for all of human life that God in his tenderness wanted to reveal to his…”
“For the Framer [Demiurge] of the entire universe made promise to David, as David himself declares: "My help is from God, who made heaven and earth;”
Quoted in Against Heresies, Book III, St. Irenaeus of Lyons (c. AD 180), Chapter X. Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1