1 H ow lovely are Your dwelling places, O Lord of hosts!

2 M y soul longed and even yearned for the courts of the Lord; My heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.

3 T he bird also has found a house, And the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, Even Your altars, O Lord of hosts, My King and my God.

4 H ow blessed are those who dwell in Your house! They are ever praising You. Selah.

5 H ow blessed is the man whose strength is in You, In whose heart are the highways to Zion!

6 P assing through the valley of Baca they make it a spring; The early rain also covers it with blessings.

7 T hey go from strength to strength, Every one of them appears before God in Zion.

8 O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer; Give ear, O God of Jacob! Selah.

9 B ehold our shield, O God, And look upon the face of Your anointed.

10 F or a day in Your courts is better than a thousand outside. I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.

11 F or the Lord God is a sun and shield; The Lord gives grace and glory; No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.

12 O Lord of hosts, How blessed is the man who trusts in You!