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Psalm 129:7

with which the reaper doesn’t fill his hand, nor he who binds sheaves, his bosom.

5Let them be disappointed and turned backward, all those who hate Zion.
6Let them be as the grass on the housetops, which withers before it grows up,
7with which the reaper doesn’t fill his hand, nor he who binds sheaves, his bosom.
8Neither do those who go by say, “The blessing of the LORD be on you. We bless you in the LORD’s name.”
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← Psalm 129:6Psalm 129:8 →
Notice

The reaper’s empty hand makes the prayer against Zion’s enemies stark: their hatred is pictured as withered grass that yields nothing worth gathering.

Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.

How does the empty-handed reaper shape your understanding of the prayer against those who hate Zion?

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What troubles you about this prayer for enemies to wither before they can produce a harvest?

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Connect

Where else Scripture says this

4 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
Galatians 6:8For he who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption. But he who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.Both passages use harvest imagery to describe a ruinous outcome, though Galatians contrasts sowing to the flesh with sowing to the Spirit.
Isaiah 17:10–11For you have forgotten the God of your salvation, and have not remembered the rock of your strength. Therefore you plant pleasant plants, and set out foreign …Both passages speak of plants, but Isaiah describes planting after forgetting God, while the psalm pictures grass yielding no harvest.
Psalm 126:6He who goes out weeping, carrying seed for sowing, will certainly come again with joy, carrying his sheaves.Both passages describe harvests: Psalm 126 promises sheaves to carry, while Psalm 129 pictures nothing to gather.
Hosea 8:7For they sow the wind, and they will reap the whirlwind. He has no standing grain. The stalk will yield no head. If it does yield, strangers will swallow it up.Both passages picture a failed harvest, with nothing for the reaper in Psalm 129 and no usable grain in Hosea.
Where this verse fits

Injustice and anger. sermon or Bible study notes.

What the Bible says about anger →
One step

Something small to carry out of this verse

Ask God to make hatred against his people fruitless

prayeroncelight
Encouragement

This is a prayer for judgment on those who hate Zion. Its empty harvest expresses the plea that their hostility will come to nothing.

Now put it in your words.

Start an entry on Psalm 129:7. Write what it stirs. Psalmlog sets your words beside Scripture and gives you one next step. Your first entry is free, no account needed.

Keep goingPsalm 129 · the whole chapter with its connection mapPsalms · every chapterBuild a reading plan through Psalms

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).