Psalms 134 KJV
A Call to Praise at Night
About This Psalm
The last Song of Ascents - a nighttime blessing. Lift up your hands in the sanctuary and bless the LORD.
1ehold, bless ye the LORD, all ye servants of the LORD, which by night stand in the house of the LORD.
2 Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the LORD.
3 The LORD that made heaven and earth bless thee out of Zion.
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Did You Know?
As the concluding Song of Ascents, Psalm 134 resolves the collection's pilgrimage journey by shifting from road imagery to stationary temple service, marking arrival at Zion as the fulfillment of ascent.
The nighttime summons to 'servants of the Lord' likely references Levitical temple watches maintaining the perpetual lamp and offerings, portraying worship as an unbroken vigil through both literal darkness and exile-like trial.
Verse 2's lifted hands echo the Aaronic blessing of Numbers 6 yet reverse its flow, as worshipers first bless God before receiving the creator's blessing 'out of Zion,' establishing reciprocal benediction.
The title 'maker of heaven and earth' in verse 3 links directly to Psalms 121 and 115 within the ascent group, framing God's cosmic sovereignty as the guarantor of protection for those who reach Jerusalem.
Its terse structure and evening setting prefigure later Jewish and Christian nocturnal liturgies, where the psalm models praise persisting beyond daylight as an act of eschatological hope amid apparent divine absence.
In old age David could not keep warm even under heavy blankets, prompting his officials to bring the young Shunammite Abishag to lie beside him as a human heat source without becoming his wife.
Despite completing the temple, Solomon later built shrines to foreign deities like Ashtoreth, Chemosh, and Molech on the Mount of Olives for his 700 wives and 300 concubines, directly contributing to the kingdom's division after his death.
The New Testament further develops this imagery to portray the heavenly Jerusalem where believers gather to the living God.
Jerusalem sits at about 2,500 feet elevation. Higher than most surrounding areas.
Commentary & Study Notes Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871) ยท Public Domain by night โ the evening service (Ps 141:2), as opposed to morning (Ps 92:2).
Classic verse-by-verse commentary on Psalms 134 from Jamieson, Fausset & Brown (1871). Covers: 1, 2. The pilgrim bands arriving at the sanctuary call on the priests, who.
- 120-134
- by night โ the evening service (Ps 141:2), as opposed to morning (Ps 92:2).
- 2
- Lift up your hands โ (Compare Ps 28:2).
Read all 3 notes on Psalms 134 โ