Chapter Text
125:1 A gradual canticle. When the Lord brought back the captivity of Sion, we became like men comforted.
125:2 Then was our mouth filled with gladness; and our tongue with joy. Then shall they say among the Gentiles: The Lord hath done great things for them.
125:3 The Lord hath done great things for us: we are become joyful.
125:4 Turn again our captivity, O Lord, as a stream in the south.
125:5 They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.
125:6 Going they went and wept, casting their seeds.
125:7 But coming they shall come with joyfulness, carrying their sheaves.
Study Lenses
The verse centers on "gradual", "canticle", "lord", "brought", "back", "captivity", "sion", and "became". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "gradual" and "canticle", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.
The local DRB text gives this verse as the immediate unit, so "gradual" and "canticle" carries the first interpretive weight. In Psalms context, the local focus is worship, trust, the LORD's kingship, and covenant mercy.
A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "gradual" and "canticle" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.