Psalm 126:4
New International Version
Restore our fortunes, LORD, like streams in the Negev.

New Living Translation
Restore our fortunes, LORD, as streams renew the desert.

English Standard Version
Restore our fortunes, O LORD, like streams in the Negeb!

Berean Standard Bible
Restore our captives, O LORD, like streams in the Negev.

King James Bible
Turn again our captivity, O LORD, as the streams in the south.

New King James Version
Bring back our captivity, O LORD, As the streams in the South.

New American Standard Bible
Restore our fortunes, LORD, As the streams in the South.

NASB 1995
Restore our captivity, O LORD, As the streams in the South.

NASB 1977
Restore our captivity, O LORD, As the streams in the South.

Legacy Standard Bible
Restore our captivity, O Yahweh, As the streams in the Negev.

Amplified Bible
Restore our captivity, O LORD, As the stream-beds in the South (the Negev) [are restored by torrents of rain].

Christian Standard Bible
Restore our fortunes, LORD, like watercourses in the Negev.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Restore our fortunes, LORD, like watercourses in the Negev.

American Standard Version
Turn again our captivity, O Jehovah, As the streams in the South.

Contemporary English Version
Our LORD, we ask you to bless our people again, and let us be like streams in the Southern Desert.

English Revised Version
Turn again our captivity, O LORD, as the streams in the South.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Restore our fortunes, O LORD, as you restore streams [to dry riverbeds] in the Negev.

Good News Translation
LORD, make us prosperous again, just as the rain brings water back to dry riverbeds.

International Standard Version
Restore our exiles, LORD, like the streams of the Negev.

Majority Standard Bible
Restore our captives, O LORD, like streams in the Negev.

NET Bible
O LORD, restore our well-being, just as the streams in the arid south are replenished.

New Heart English Bible
Restore our fortunes again, LORD, like the streams in the Negev.

Webster's Bible Translation
Turn again our captivity, O LORD, as the streams in the south.

World English Bible
Restore our fortunes again, Yahweh, like the streams in the Negev.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
Turn again, O YHWH, [to] our captivity, "" As streams in the south.

Young's Literal Translation
Turn again, O Jehovah, to our captivity, As streams in the south.

Smith's Literal Translation
Jehovah turned back our captivity, as torrents in the south.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Turn again our captivity, O Lord, as a stream in the south.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Convert our captivity, O Lord, like a torrent in the south.

New American Bible
Restore our captives, LORD, like the dry stream beds of the Negeb.

New Revised Standard Version
Restore our fortunes, O LORD, like the watercourses in the Negeb.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Turn again our captivity, O LORD, like the streams in the south.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Return our captivity, LORD JEHOVAH, like the streams in the South.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Turn our captivity, O LORD, As the streams in the dry land.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Turn, O Lord, our captivity, as the steams in the south.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The LORD Has Done Great Things
3The LORD has done great things for us; we are filled with joy. 4Restore our captives, O LORD, like streams in the Negev. 5Those who sow in tears will reap with shouts of joy.…

Cross References
Isaiah 35:6-7
Then the lame will leap like a deer and the mute tongue will shout for joy. For waters will gush forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert. / The parched ground will become a pool, the thirsty land springs of water. In the haunt where jackals once lay, there will be grass and reeds and papyrus.

Isaiah 43:19-20
Behold, I am about to do something new; even now it is coming. Do you not see it? Indeed, I will make a way in the wilderness and streams in the desert. / The beasts of the field will honor Me, the jackals and the ostriches, because I provide water in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, to give drink to My chosen people.

Joel 3:18
And in that day the mountains will drip with sweet wine, and the hills will flow with milk. All the streams of Judah will run with water, and a spring will flow from the house of the LORD to water the Valley of Acacias.

Ezekiel 47:1-12
Then the man brought me back to the entrance of the temple, and I saw water flowing from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. / Next he brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and there I saw the water trickling out from the south side. / As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and led me through ankle-deep water. ...

Amos 9:13-15
“Behold, the days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when the plowman will overtake the reaper and the treader of grapes, the sower of seed. The mountains will drip with sweet wine, with which all the hills will flow. / I will restore My people Israel from captivity; they will rebuild and inhabit the ruined cities. They will plant vineyards and drink their wine; they will make gardens and eat their fruit. / I will firmly plant them in their own land, never again to be uprooted from the land that I have given them,” says the LORD your God.

Jeremiah 31:9
They will come with weeping, and by their supplication I will lead them; I will make them walk beside streams of waters, on a level path where they will not stumble. For I am Israel’s Father, and Ephraim is My firstborn.”

Hosea 6:3
So let us know—let us press on to know the LORD. As surely as the sun rises, He will appear; He will come to us like the rain, like the spring showers that water the earth.

Isaiah 41:18
I will open rivers on the barren heights, and fountains in the middle of the valleys. I will turn the desert into a pool of water, and the dry land into flowing springs.

Isaiah 44:3-4
For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and currents on the dry ground. I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring. / They will sprout among the grass like willows by flowing streams.

Isaiah 55:10-13
For just as rain and snow fall from heaven and do not return without watering the earth, making it bud and sprout, and providing seed to sow and food to eat, / so My word that proceeds from My mouth will not return to Me empty, but it will accomplish what I please, and it will prosper where I send it. / You will indeed go out with joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands. ...

John 7:37-39
On the last and greatest day of the feast, Jesus stood up and called out in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. / Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said: ‘Streams of living water will flow from within him.’” / He was speaking about the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were later to receive. For the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.

Revelation 22:1-2
Then the angel showed me a river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb / down the middle of the main street of the city. On either side of the river stood a tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit and yielding a fresh crop for each month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.

John 4:13-14
Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again. / But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a fount of water springing up to eternal life.”

Matthew 5:6
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

Acts 3:19-20
Repent, then, and turn back, so that your sins may be wiped away, / that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Jesus, the Christ, who has been appointed for you.


Treasury of Scripture

Turn again our captivity, O LORD, as the streams in the south.

turn again

Psalm 126:1
A Song of degrees. When the LORD turned again the captivity of Zion, we were like them that dream.

Psalm 85:4
Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause thine anger toward us to cease.

Hosea 1:11
Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be gathered together, and appoint themselves one head, and they shall come up out of the land: for great shall be the day of Jezreel.

as the streams

Joshua 3:16
That the waters which came down from above stood and rose up upon an heap very far from the city Adam, that is beside Zaretan: and those that came down toward the sea of the plain, even the salt sea, failed, and were cut off: and the people passed over right against Jericho.

Isaiah 41:18
I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.

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Psalm 126
1. The church celebrating her incredible return out of captivity
4. Prays for and prophesies the good success thereof














Restore our fortunes
The phrase "Restore our fortunes" is a plea for renewal and revival. In Hebrew, the word for "restore" is "shuv," which means to return or bring back. This word is often used in the context of repentance and turning back to God. The term "fortunes" can be understood as well-being or prosperity, indicating a desire for God to bring back the blessings and favor that were once experienced. Historically, this reflects the longing of the Israelites for the restoration of their land and prosperity after periods of exile or hardship. It is a call for divine intervention to reverse the current state of adversity.

O LORD
The use of "O LORD" is a direct address to Yahweh, the covenant-keeping God of Israel. The name "LORD" in all capitals represents the tetragrammaton YHWH, the sacred and personal name of God. This invocation signifies a personal and communal relationship with God, acknowledging His sovereignty and power. It is a reminder of the faithfulness of God to His promises and His ability to act on behalf of His people. The Israelites often called upon the LORD in times of need, trusting in His character and past acts of deliverance.

like streams in the Negev
The "streams in the Negev" is a vivid metaphor. The Negev is a desert region in southern Israel, known for its arid conditions. However, during the rainy season, the dry riverbeds, or wadis, can suddenly fill with rushing water, transforming the landscape. This imagery symbolizes sudden and abundant blessing and renewal. Just as the barren desert can be revitalized by unexpected streams, so too can God bring about a swift and miraculous change in the fortunes of His people. This metaphor emphasizes hope and the transformative power of God's intervention, encouraging believers to trust in His timing and provision.

(4) Captivity.--Here there is a change. The joy of the great Return was too great not to last on through many vicissitudes. But the poet now thinks of the many exiles still dispersed among the nations, and prays for another manifestation of Divine favour and power.

The streams in the south.--Rather, the channels in the south. The allusion is to the sudden filling of the dry torrent-beds of the southern district of Palestine in the rainy season. So the poet prays that torrents of the returned may pour into the desolate and deserted country. (Comp. Isaiah 49:18 for the same feeling, but under a different figure.) The LXX. have "in the south wind," evidently thinking of the melting of a frozen stream, instead of the filling of a dry river-bed.

Verse 4. - Turn again our captivity, O Lord. The work is not half done - not half the nation has returned. We, who occupy the land, are but "a remnant" (Ezra 9:8; Nehemiah 1:3). Bring back, we pray thee, the rest of the captives. As the streams in the south. As thou bringest back, after the autumn rains, ample streams to the dry water-courses of the Negeb, or south country.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Restore
שׁוּבָ֣ה (šū·ḇāh)
Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine singular | third person feminine singular
Strong's 7725: To turn back, in, to retreat, again

our captives,
שְׁבִיתֵ֑נוּ (šə·ḇî·ṯê·nū)
Noun - feminine singular construct | first person common plural
Strong's 7622: Exile, prisoners, a former state of prosperity

O LORD,
יְ֭הוָה (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel

like streams
כַּאֲפִיקִ֥ים (ka·’ă·p̄î·qîm)
Preposition-k | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 650: Containing, a tube, a bed, valley of a, stream, a strong thing, a hero

in the Negev.
בַּנֶּֽגֶב׃ (ban·ne·ḡeḇ)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - proper - feminine singular
Strong's 5045: South country, the Negeb, south


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OT Poetry: Psalm 126:4 Restore our fortunes again Yahweh like (Psalm Ps Psa.)
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