Psalms 135:2

Hebrew (Westminster Leningrad Codex)

English Translation

You who stand in the house of Yahweh, In the courts of our God's house.

World English Bible · Public Domain

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בְּ֝חַצְר֗וֹת

châtsêr

H2691

“in/at · courts of”

Preposition + Noun, Common, Both, Plural, Construct

Appears 190× in the Hebrew Bible
First appears at Genesis 25:16

Full BDB Definition

Origin: from H2690 in its original sense

TWOT: 722a , 723a

court, enclosure - enclosures - court - settled abode, settlement, village, town

About this verse

These counts appear in no published source. They are computed here, from the morphology-tagged text and Lemma’s own curated glosses. What Lemma adds →

6: words
5: distinct lemmas
Wisdom: section

Grammatical profile

1 verb
5 nouns

Verb forms

שֶׁ֣֭עֹֽמְדִים Qal · Participle Active

Repetition

A word recurs within this verse — often emphatic in Hebrew:

בְּבֵ֣ית house H1004 ×2

Hebrew & Septuagint length

In English translation the verse runs 15 words from the Hebrew and 17 from the Septuagint (LXX English) — closely comparable.

A rough comparison of the two English renderings, which tokenize alike — not a word-level alignment.

Word counts can differ between the Hebrew and the Greek without any difference in meaning — e.g. the Hebrew direct-object marker אֵת has no separate Greek word, and Greek often adds the article ὁ.

In the original languages it is 6 Hebrew tokens and 10 Greek tokens — but the two are counted differently (Hebrew bundles its prefixes and suffixes into one token; the Greek is in lemma form), so that isn’t a like-for-like length.

Cross-references

Topical passages linked to Psalms 135:2 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — connected by theme and wording, ordered by reader-vote popularity; previews shown in the World English Bible.

Psalms 116:19 In the courts of Yahweh's house, In the midst of you, Jerusalem. Praise Yah!
Psalms 92:13 They are planted in Yahweh's house. They will flourish in our God's courts.
Psalms 96:8 Ascribe to Yahweh the glory due to his name. Bring an offering, and come into his courts.
Luke 2:37 and she had been a widow for about eighty-four years), who didn't depart from the temple, worshipping with fastings and petitions night and day.
1 Chronicles 16:37–42 So he left there, before the ark of the covenant of Yahweh, Asaph and his brothers, to minister before the ark continually, as every day's work required;
1 Chronicles 23:30 and to stand every morning to thank and praise Yahweh, and likewise in the evening;
Nehemiah 9:5 Then the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, [and] Pethahiah, said, Stand up and bless Yahweh your God from everlasting to everlasting; and blessed be your glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.

Cross-references courtesy of OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0).

Hebrew and Greek witnesses Masoretic Hebrew ↔ Greek Septuagint

The same verse in the two great witnesses to the Old Testament, shown verse-for-verse.

You’re reading Greek Psalm 134 (Hebrew Psalm 135). The Septuagint counts the superscription, so verse numbers can differ from the Hebrew — chapter-level alignment, not verse-by-verse. Numbering follows Rahlfs.

These are two independent witnesses, not word-aligned to each other, and the Septuagint is shown in lemma (dictionary) form.

Hebrew Psalms 135:2 Masoretic · Westminster Leningrad Codex

שֶׁ֣֭עֹֽמְדִים בְּבֵ֣ית יְהוָ֑ה בְּ֝חַצְר֗וֹת בֵּ֣ית אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ

You who stand in the house of Yahweh, In the courts of our God's house.

World English Bible · Public Domain

Greek LXX Greek Psalm 134:2 Septuagint · lemma form

ὁ ἵστημι ἐν οἶκος κύριος ἐν αὐλή οἶκος θεός ἐγώ

who stand in the house of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God.

LXX2012 (modern English Septuagint) · Public Domain

Hebrew: Westminster Leningrad Codex (CC BY 4.0). Greek: Septuagint (public domain); English from LXX2012 (modern English Septuagint) (Public Domain). How the Septuagint differs from the Hebrew →

Commentary

Notes on Psalms 135:2 from classic Christian and Jewish commentators (each source and its license shown beneath its notes). The classic Christian expositions comment on the surrounding passage and are grouped to its opening verse, so a note may address several verses; the Jewish commentaries on the Tanakh (Rashi and others) are per-verse, so they appear only where the commentator wrote on this verse.

Lemma curates 59 commentaries, every one of them public domain or Creative Commons licensed, each selected and text-cleaned for this edition rather than reprinted as found. About our sources →

Trapp's Complete Commentary

John Trapp

Psa 135:2 Ye that stand in the house of the LORD, in the courts of the house of our God,

Ver. 2. Ye that stand in the house] See Psa 134:1.

In the courts] Where the people also had a place, 2Ch 4:9, and are required to bear a part in this heavenly Hallelujah.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

J. A. Alexander on Psalms

Joseph Addison Alexander

2. (Psa 135:2) Who (are) standing in the house of Jehovah, in the courts of the house of our God. The participle indicates continued action. The mention of the courts confirms what has been already said, as to the objects of address in Psa 135:1.

Joseph Addison Alexander, The Psalms Translated and Explained (1850) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Geneva Bible (1599)

Geneva Bible translators

Ye Levites that are in his Sanctuary.

Meaning, the people: for the people and Levites had their courts, which were places of the Temple separate.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 2. Ye that stand] Priests and Levites. For which he gives several reasons.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne

2. Ye that stand &c.] As in Psa_134:1, those who minister in the Temple and its precincts are summoned to praise. It is less natural to suppose that the first line refers to the priests and Levites, and the second line (ye that stand being supplied) to the worshippers in the outer court.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

John Gill's Exposition

Ye that stand in the house of the Lord,.... That have a place and standing there, and go not out, being sons as well as servants; See Gill on Psa 134:1 and See Gill on Psa 84:4;

in the courts of the house of our God; alluding to the courts in the temple, the court of the priests, where they stood and ministered, slaying and offering their sacrifices; and the great court, where all the Israelites stood and worshipped, Ch2 4:9. So this may describe the worshippers of God in common, who should praise him: and happy are they that have a place here; see Psa 84:1.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Ye that stand in the house of the Lord - See the notes at Psa 134:1. That is, those who were appointed to conduct the services of religion, the priests and Levites.

In the courts of the house of our God - The areas, or parts assigned for different classes of worshippers around the tabernacle and the temple. See the notes at Mat 21:12; notes at Psa 92:13.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations

Either in the temple or the inner court, which were appropriated to the priests and Levites; or in the outward court, which was for the people. See 2Ch 4:9.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

The Treasury of David

Charles H. Spurgeon

Ver. 2. Ye that stand in the house of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God. You are highly favoured; you are the domestics of the palace, nearest to the Father of the heavenly family, privileged to find your home in his house; therefore you must, beyond all others, abound in thanksgiving. You "stand; "or abide in the temple; you are constant occupants of its various courts; and therefore from you we expect unceasing praise. Should not ministers be celebrated for celebrating the praises of Jehovah? Should not church officers and church members excel all others in the excellent duty of adoration? Should not all of every degree who wait even in his outer courts unite in his worship? Ought not the least and feeblest of his people to proclaim his praises, in company with those who live nearest to him? Is it not a proper thing to remind them of their obligations? Is not the Psalmist wise when he does so in this case and in many others? Those who can call Jehovah "our God" are highly blessed, and therefore should abound in the work of blessing him. Perhaps this is the sweetest word in these two verses. "This God is our God for ever and ever." "Our God" signifies possession, communion in possession, assurance of possession, delight in possession. Oh the unutterable joy of calling God our own!

Ver. 2. What is at this day "the house of the Lord"? Who may be said to stand in it? What special reasons have they for praise?

Ver. 2. The nearer to God, the dearer to God; and the better our place, the sweeter our praise. W. B. H.

Ver. 2-5. Our God, Our Lord. Sweet subject. See our Exposition.

Psalms 135:3*

Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

The Pulpit Commentary

Ye that stand in the house of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God. The "servants" are not here the priests and Levites only, as in Psa_134:1; but the priests, the Levites, and the people all those who throng the "courts" of the temple (comp. vers. 19, 20).

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

John Wesley's Explanatory Notes

Ye - Ye priest and Levites.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

Ibn Ezra

Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra

"Who stand" - those are the priests who perform the sacrifices and those who play the trumpets

Ibn Ezra on the Tanakh — English translations: “Sefaria Community Translation” (CC0 1.0 (public-domain dedication)); “Yalkut, Sifsei Chachomim Chumash, Metsudah Publications, 2009” (CC BY 4.0); and “Commentary of Ibn Ezra on Isaiah - trans. by M. Friedlander, 1873” (public domain). Text via Sefaria.

Lesson kit

Teaching starters — assembled from the data on this page, not authored interpretation. Every prompt links to the verse data it draws on. Edit before teaching.

Psalms, in the Wisdom, opens this verse with 6 words (5 distinct Hebrew lemmas). Its most distinctive word is châtsêr (“court”). A historical commentator’s framing appears above. Read the whole chapter for the surrounding context.

Discussion questions

How does “court” (châtsêr) shape what this verse is saying?
How does Psalms 116:19, which shares this passage’s theme, read alongside this verse?
What does the repetition of “house” (2× in this one verse) do in this verse?
These translations render this verse differently; the difference is in the English rendering, not the original. What questions does that raise?
«שֶׁ֣֭עֹֽמְדִים» is a Qal Participle Active verb. How does that grammatical form shape the action described?
Compare how Trapp's Complete Commentary and J. A. Alexander on Psalms read this verse. Where do they agree or differ?

Things to notice

This verse counts 6 Hebrew ↔ 10 Greek words.
These translations choose different wording for 8 words in this verse.
“house” occurs 2× in this single verse.
5 distinct Hebrew lemmas span 6 words in this verse.