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Psalm 120:5
Woe is me, that I live in Meshech, that I dwell among the tents of Kedar!
3What will be given to you, and what will be done more to you, you deceitful tongue?
4Sharp arrows of the mighty, with coals of juniper.
5Woe is me, that I live in Meshech, that I dwell among the tents of Kedar!
6My soul has had her dwelling too long with him who hates peace.
7I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war.
Notice
The tents of Kedar are a dwelling place without peace in this lament, where the strain comes from the people around the speaker.
Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.
What difference does dwelling among these tents make to the weight of the speaker’s complaint?
Write on thisWhere, if anywhere, does the wish for peace meet resistance in your own surroundings?
Write on thisConnect
Where else Scripture says this
12 passages readers most often link with this verse, and the thread each one shares with it.
This verse's connections, by chapterThe Bible's strongest chapter linksHover or tap a book to trace it
Genesis 10:2The sons of Japheth were: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras.Meshech appears in both passages: Genesis names him among Japheth’s sons, while the psalm names Meshech as the speaker’s dwelling place.
Song of Songs 1:5I am dark, but lovely, you daughters of Jerusalem, like Kedar’s tents, like Solomon’s curtains.Both mention Kedar’s tents, which serve as a comparison for appearance in the Song and a setting for distress in the psalm.
Genesis 25:13These are the names of the sons of Ishmael, by their names, according to the order of their birth: the firstborn of Ishmael, Nebaioth, then Kedar, Adbeel, …Kedar appears in both passages: Genesis names him among Ishmael’s sons, while the psalm describes dwelling among the tents bearing his name.
Ezekiel 27:13“‘“Javan, Tubal, and Meshech were your traders. They traded the persons of men and vessels of bronze for your merchandise.Both name Meshech, though Ezekiel describes trade in human beings and bronze, while the psalm laments dwelling there.
Isaiah 21:16For the Lord said to me, “Within a year, as a worker bound by contract would count it, all the glory of Kedar will fail,Both name Kedar: the psalm laments dwelling among its tents, while Isaiah announces that its glory will fail.
1 Samuel 26:19Now therefore, please let my lord the king hear the words of his servant. If it is so that the LORD has stirred you up against me, let him accept an offering. …Both describe distress tied to place: dwelling in Meshech and Kedar, or being driven from the LORD’s inheritance.
Jeremiah 2:10For pass over to the islands of Kittim, and see. Send to Kedar, and consider diligently, and see if there has been such a thing.Kedar is the shared place name, though Jeremiah directs people to investigate there and the psalm laments dwelling among its tents.
Micah 7:1–2Misery is mine! Indeed, I am like one who gathers the summer fruits, as gleanings of the vineyard. There is no cluster of grapes to eat. My soul desires to eat …Both speakers lament their condition: one describes distress among Kedar’s tents, while the other compares his lack to finding no fruit.
Ezekiel 27:21“‘“Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were your favorite dealers in lambs, rams, and goats. In these, they were your merchants.Both name Kedar, with the psalm describing its tents and Ezekiel describing its princes as merchants trading livestock.
Isaiah 60:6–7A multitude of camels will cover you, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah. All from Sheba will come. They will bring gold and frankincense, and will proclaim …The connection is limited to named peoples and places: Isaiah describes arrivals bearing gifts and praise, while the psalm laments its speaker’s dwelling.
Ezekiel 38:2–3“Son of man, set your face toward Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him,Meshech appears in both: as the psalm’s troubled dwelling place and in the title of the ruler Ezekiel must address.
Jeremiah 9:2–3Oh that I had in the wilderness a lodging place of wayfaring men, that I might leave my people and go from them! For they are all adulterers, an assembly of …Both lament life among troubling companions; Jeremiah wishes for a wilderness lodging, while the psalm names the tents where its speaker dwells.
Where this verse fits
Loneliness. work conflict. family conflict.
One step
Something small to carry out of this verse
Encouragement
Distress about the people around you has a place in prayer. This lament leaves the trouble unresolved; Scripture preserves the complaint of someone weary of living without peace.
Now put it in your words.
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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).