Psalms 126:5
Blessed is the man that hath filled the desire with them; he shall not be confounded when he shall speak to his enemies in the gate.
Open Psalms 126:5 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Beatus vir qui implevit desiderium suum ex ipsis : non confundetur cum loquetur inimicis suis in porta.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- μακάριος ὃς πληρώσει τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν αὐτοῦ ἐξ αὐτῶν· οὐ καταισχυνθήσεται, ὅταν λαλῶσι τοῖς ἐχθροῖς αὐτῶν ἐν πύλῃ.
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from Psalms 127:5
- אַשְׁרֵ֤י הַגֶּ֗בֶר אֲשֶׁ֤ר מִלֵּ֥א אֶת אַשְׁפָּת֗וֹ מֵ֫הֶ֥ם לֹֽא יֵבֹ֑שׁוּ כִּֽי יְדַבְּר֖וּ אֶת אוֹיְבִ֣ים בַּשָּֽׁעַר
Haydock's commentary
Desire. Who has as many children as he could wish. Hebrew, "his quiver." They are like arrows for his defence. (Calmet)
The Septuagint may have put the thing signified instead of the figure; or ashpatho may not be confined to the formal sense.
He shall. Hebrew, "they," father and son: yet the Chaldean, &c., retain he.
The children of Christ, and of his martyrs, who have been persecuted, are declared to be very powerful protectors; (Berthier) while such as imitate them, (Haydock) shall easily answer the objections which shall be put to them at the day of judgment, and be happy. (Worthington)
Gate. The enemies' envoys were not admitted into the city, 4 Kings xviii. 17. (Origen, &c.)
In law-suits, children will prove excellent assistants. (Calmet) (Ecclesiasticus xxx. 4.)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Psalm CXXVII
8. “Blessed is the man who hath filled his desire from them” ( ver. 5 ). Well, my brethren, who filleth his desire from them? Who loveth not the world. He who is filled with the desire of the world, hath no room for that to enter which they have preached. Pour forth what thou carriest, and become fit for that which thou hast not. That is, thou desirest riches: thou canst not fill thy desire from them: thou desirest honours upon earth, thou desirest those things which God hath given even unto beasts of burden, that is, temporal pleasure, bodily health, and the like; thou wilt not fulfil thy desire from them.…“He shall not be ashamed, when he speaketh with his enemies in the gate.” Brethren, let us speak in the gate, that is, let all know what we speak. …