1How lovely is thy dwelling place,

O Lord of hosts!

2My soul longs, yea, faints

for the courts of the Lord;

my heart and flesh sing for joy

to the living God.

3Even the sparrow finds a home,

and the swallow a nest for herself,

where she may lay her young,

at thy altars, O Lord of hosts,

my King and my God.

4Blessed are those who dwell in thy house,

ever singing thy praise!   Selah

5Blessed are the men whose strength is in thee,

in whose heart are the highways to Zion.a

6As they go through the valley of Baca

they make it a place of springs;

the early rain also covers it with pools.

7They go from strength to strength;

the God of gods will be seen in Zion.

8O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer;

give ear, O God of Jacob!   Selah

9Behold our shield, O God;

look upon the face of thine anointed!

10For a day in thy courts is better

than a thousand elsewhere.

I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God

than dwell in the tents of wickedness.

11For the Lord God is a sun and shield;

he bestows favor and honor.

No good thing does the Lord withhold

from those who walk uprightly.

12O Lord of hosts,

blessed is the man who trusts in thee!