Psalms 126: Sowing In Tears
Those who returned to Zion were like dreamers filled with laughter, and the psalm promises that tearful sowing will give way to joyful reaping.
Psalms 126 (WEB)
1 When Yahweh brought back those who returned to Zion, we were like those who dream.
2 Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing. Then they said among the nations, “Yahweh has done great things for them.”
3 Yahweh has done great things for us, and we are glad.
4 Restore our fortunes again, Yahweh, like the streams in the Negev.
5 Those who sow in tears will reap in joy.
6 He who goes out weeping, carrying seed for sowing, will certainly come again with joy, carrying his sheaves.
Psalms 126 (KJV)
1 When the Lord turned again the captivity of Zion, we were like them that dream.
2 Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing: then said they among the heathen, The Lord hath done great things for them.
3 The Lord hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad.
4 Turn again our captivity, O Lord, as the streams in the south.
5 They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.
6 He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.
Psalms 126 (ASV)
1 When Jehovah brought back those that returned to Zion, We were like unto them that dream.
2 Then was our mouth filled with laughter, And our tongue with singing: Then said they among the nations, Jehovah hath done great things for them.
3 Jehovah hath done great things for us, Whereofwe are glad.
4 Turn again our captivity, O Jehovah, As the streams in the South.
5 They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.
6 He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing seed for sowing, Shall doubtless come again with joy, bringing his sheaves with him.
Summary
This Song of Ascents moves from remembered joy to present prayer to confident hope. The psalmist recalls how, when the LORD brought back the captives to Zion, it felt like a dream too good to be true. Their mouths were filled with laughter and their tongues with singing, and even the surrounding nations took notice and said, "Yahweh has done great things for them." The people gladly echo it: the LORD has done great things for us, and we are glad. From this memory of past restoration, the psalm turns to petition: "Restore our fortunes again, Yahweh, like the streams in the Negev"—a plea that God would do once more what he has done before, flooding their dry season with new life. The final verses give a principle of hope for those still waiting: those who sow in tears will reap in joy, and the one who goes out weeping, carrying seed, will surely return rejoicing, bearing his sheaves. Present sorrow is not the end of the story; God turns tearful sowing into a joyful harvest. This points toward Christ, whose sorrowful sowing in death yielded the great harvest of resurrection life.
Voices
- The returned people — Those whom the LORD brought back to Zion, laughing like dreamers at his great deeds and praying for renewed restoration.
- Yahweh the restorer — The LORD who brought back the captives and turns dry seasons and tearful sowing into joyful, abundant harvest.
- The nations — The surrounding peoples who witness God's great deeds for his people and confess that Yahweh has done great things for them.
Key Verse
Psalm 126:5 (WEB)
Those who sow in tears will reap in joy.
Lessons Learned
- Remembering God's past deliverances fuels faith for present need.
- God's restoration can be so great it feels like a dream, drawing even outsiders to acknowledge him.
- It is right to ask God to do again what he has graciously done before.
- Present tears are not wasted; God turns faithful, weeping labor into a harvest of joy.
- Recount God's great deeds. "Yahweh has done great things for us, and we are glad" (Psalm 126:3, WEB); remembered grace becomes the soil of present and future hope.
- Ask God to restore again. "Restore our fortunes again, Yahweh, like the streams in the Negev" (Psalm 126:4, WEB); past mercy gives us boldness to pray for more.
- Tears now, joy later. "Those who sow in tears will reap in joy" (Psalm 126:5, WEB); God promises that sorrowful, faithful labor will not be the final word.
- The harvest is certain. The weeping sower "will certainly come again with joy, carrying his sheaves" (Psalm 126:6, WEB), a hope sealed in Christ's death and resurrection.
- How does the psalmist describe the people's response when the LORD restored them?
- What do the watching nations conclude about Israel's God, and why does that matter?
- What is the psalmist asking for in the prayer of verse 4?
- How does the image of sowing in tears and reaping in joy give hope to those still suffering?
- What "seed" are you sowing in tears right now? How does this psalm encourage you to keep sowing?
- They were like those who dream, mouths filled with laughter and tongues with singing (126:1-2). The restoration was so wonderful it felt unreal, overflowing in joyful praise.
- The nations say, "Yahweh has done great things for them" (126:2). God's deliverance of his people becomes a witness to outsiders, displaying his power and goodness to the watching world.
- He prays, "Restore our fortunes again… like the streams in the Negev" (126:4)—that God would flood their dry season with sudden, life-giving renewal as he has done before.
- The sower's tears do not cancel the harvest; the one who weeps now "will certainly come again with joy, carrying his sheaves" (126:5-6). Faithful sorrow is on the way to certain rejoicing.
- This is a gentle personal-application question. Invite members to name the costly, tearful labor they are tempted to abandon, and to take heart that in God's economy such sowing leads to a harvest of joy.