Psalms 129 · The Lantern

The `title of the hundrid and nyne and twentithe `salm. The song of greces. Lord, Y criede to thee fro depthes; Lord, here thou mi vois.

Thin eeris be maad ententif; in to the vois of my biseching.

They often attacked me from my youth: and indeed they could not prevail against me. They attacked me with base thoughts, they attacked me with anger.

"Now may Israel say." She now seemeth to be speaking of herself: for she seemed not to have commenced herself, but to have answered. But to whom hath she replied? To them that think and say, How great evils do we endure, how great are the scandals that every day thicken, as the wicked enter into the Church, and we have to endure them?

"They have often attacked me from my youth, but as a matter of fact they did not prevail against me." And in the earlier, fifth psalm of ascent there is a similar beginning. This figure of speech is called "anaphora," that is, a repetition of the same word at the beginning of a number of verses.

Lord, if thou kepist wickidnessis; Lord, who schal susteyne?

For merci is at thee; and, Lord, for thi lawe Y abood thee. Mi soule susteynede in his word; my soule hopide in the Lord.

Fro the morewtid keping til to niyt;

Israel hope in the Lord.

For whi merci is at the Lord; and plenteous redempcioun is at hym.

And he schal ayen bie Israel; fro alle the wickidnessis therof.

Psalms129