Psalm 120 (Vulgate) is the second Song of Ascents and marks a tonal shift from moral distress to quiet confidence.
— Psalm 121 (Hebrew / English)
Levavi oculos meos in montes
By GRAHAM JOHN
A psalm of trust and reassurance, affirming that true security comes not from places of power or refuge, but from the attentive, sustaining care of the Lord.
8 verses total
VERSUS 1–8 (Latin + Literal English + Word Notes)
1
Levavi oculos meos in montes, unde veniet auxilium mihi.
I lifted up my eyes to the mountains; from where will my help come to me?
Word Notes:
- levo, levare — to lift, raise
- oculus, -i m. — eye
- mons, montis m. — mountain
- unde — from where
- auxilium, -ii n. — help, aid
2
Auxilium meum a Domino, qui fecit caelum et terram.
My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
Word Notes:
- facio, facere — to make
- caelum, -i n. — heaven
- terra, -ae f. — earth
3
Non det in commotionem pedem tuum; neque dormitet qui custodit te.
He will not allow your foot to slip; nor will he who guards you slumber.
Word Notes:
- do, dare → det — allow, permit (subjunctive)
- commotio, -onis f. — slipping, shaking
- pes, pedis m. — foot
- dormito, dormitare — to slumber lightly
- custodio, custodire — to guard
4
Ecce, non dormitabit neque dormiet qui custodit Israel.
Behold, he will neither slumber nor sleep, who guards Israel.
Word Notes:
- ecce — behold
- dormio, dormire — to sleep
5
Dominus custodit te; Dominus protectio tua super manum dexteram tuam.
The Lord guards you; the Lord is your protection at your right hand.
Word Notes:
- protectio, -onis f. — protection
- dexter, dextra, dextrum — right-hand side (strength, action)
6
Per diem sol non uret te, neque luna per noctem.
By day the sun will not strike you, nor the moon by night.
Word Notes:
- uro, urere — to burn, strike
- luna, -ae f. — moon
- idiom: total protection, day and night
7
Dominus custodit te ab omni malo; custodiat animam tuam Dominus.
The Lord guards you from all evil; the Lord guards your life.
Word Notes:
- malum, -i n. — evil, harm
- anima, -ae f. — life, soul
8
Dominus custodit introitum tuum et exitum tuum, ex hoc nunc et usque in saeculum.
The Lord guards your going out and your coming in, from now and forever.
Word Notes:
- introitus, -us m. — entrance
- exitus, -us m. — departure
- usque in saeculum — forever
MORPHOLOGY EXERCISES (8)
Identify tense, voice, mood, and principal parts:
- levavi
- veniet
- det
- dormitet
- custodit
- uret
- custodiat
- custodit (v. 8)
TRANSLATION EXERCISES (8)
Translate into Latin:
- I lift up my eyes to the mountains.
- My help comes from the Lord.
- He will not allow your foot to slip.
- He who guards you does not sleep.
- The Lord is your protection.
- The sun will not strike you by day.
- The Lord guards your life.
- He guards your going out and your coming in.
SUMMARY (≈100 words)
Psalm 120 redirects the anxious gaze. The mountains, often symbols of refuge, power, or danger, are deliberately relativised: help does not come from them, but from the one who made them. Protection is described not as dramatic intervention but as unceasing attentiveness — a guardian who neither slumbers nor sleeps. The psalm replaces fear with steadiness, insisting that life’s ordinary movements, departures and returns, fall within a wider care. Trust here is not ecstatic but settled, rooted in continuity rather than escape.
REFLECTION QUESTION
What are the “mountains” you instinctively look toward for security — and how does this psalm quietly challenge those assumptions?