Psalms 137: By the Rivers of Babylon
Exiles weep beside foreign waters, refusing to forget Jerusalem, pouring raw grief and a longing for justice into the hands of God.
Psalms 137 (WEB)
1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down. Yes, we wept, when we remembered Zion.
2 On the willows in its midst, we hung up our harps.
3 For there, those who led us captive asked us for songs. Those who tormented us demanded songs of joy: “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”
4 How can we sing Yahweh’s song in a foreign land?
5 If I forget you, Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill.
6 Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth if I don’t remember you; if I don’t prefer Jerusalem above my chief joy.
7 Remember, Yahweh, against the children of Edom, the day of Jerusalem; who said, “Raze it! Raze it even to its foundation!”
8 Daughter of Babylon, doomed to destruction, he will be happy who rewards you, as you have served us.
9 Happy shall he be, who takes and dashes your little ones against the rock.
Psalms 137 (KJV)
1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.
2 We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof.
3 For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion.
4 How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land?
5 If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning.
6 If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy.
7 Remember, O Lord, the children of Edom in the day of Jerusalem; who said, Rase it, rase it, even to the foundation thereof.
8 O daughter of Babylon, who art to be destroyed; happy shall he be, that rewardeth thee as thou hast served us.
9 Happy shall he be, that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones.
Psalms 137 (ASV)
1 By the rivers of Babylon, There we sat down, yea, we wept, When we remembered Zion.
2 Upon the willows in the midst thereof We hanged up our harps.
3 For there they that led us captive required of us songs, And they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion.
4 How shall we sing Jehovah’s song In a foreign land?
5 If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, Let my right hand forget her skill.
6 Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, If I remember thee not; If I prefer not Jerusalem Above my chief joy.
7 Remember, O Jehovah, against the children of Edom The day of Jerusalem; Who said, Rase it, rase it, Even to the foundation thereof.
8 O daughter of Babylon, that art to be destroyed, Happy shall he be, that rewardeth thee As thou hast served us.
9 Happy shall he be, that taketh and dasheth thy little ones Against the rock.
Summary
Psalm 137 is a searing communal lament born in the Babylonian exile, one of the most emotionally raw psalms in the whole collection. The people sit down by the rivers of Babylon and weep as they remember Zion, hanging their harps on the willows because their songs have died in their throats. Their captors mock them, demanding cheerful songs of Zion as entertainment, but the exiles ask how they can sing Yahweh's song in a foreign land. Far from forgetting Jerusalem, they bind themselves to her with a fierce vow: if they forget her, may their right hand lose its skill and their tongue cling to the roof of their mouth. The psalm then turns toward those who destroyed the city—Edom, who cheered the demolition, and Babylon, doomed to destruction—and erupts in a shocking cry for retribution, even against Babylon's infants. This is honest, anguished prayer, handing rage and the thirst for justice over to God rather than acting on it. It refuses to pretend the wounds of injustice are small. Christians read it in light of the cross, where God absorbs the world's violence and where vengeance is left to him, even as we are called to pray for our enemies and long for the New Jerusalem that cannot be torn down.
Voices
- The exiles — God's people carried to Babylon, weeping for Zion, unable to sing the LORD's song in a foreign land yet refusing to forget home.
- The captors — The Babylonian tormentors who demand songs of joy from the grieving, mocking their faith and their lost city.
- Edom and Babylon — The enemies of Jerusalem—Edom who cheered her fall and Babylon who destroyed her—named in a cry for divine justice.
Key Verse
Psalm 137:1 (WEB)
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down. Yes, we wept, when we remembered Zion.
Lessons Learned
- Faith does not forbid grief; it gives our weeping a direction—toward the God who remembers.
- There are seasons when forced cheerfulness would be a lie, and honest sorrow is the truer worship.
- Remembering what we have lost can be an act of faithfulness, keeping our hope anchored to God's promises.
- Even our rawest anger and longing for justice belong in prayer, surrendered to God rather than taken into our own hands.
- Lament is a legitimate language of faith. The exiles do not hide their tears; they sit and weep "when we remembered Zion" (Psalm 137:1, WEB), bringing grief openly before God.
- Worship cannot be coerced or commodified. "How can we sing Yahweh's song in a foreign land?" (Psalm 137:4, WEB)—true praise is not performance for mockers.
- Holy remembrance keeps hope alive. "If I forget you, Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill" (Psalm 137:5, WEB) binds the heart to God's promised city.
- Vengeance is surrendered to God, not seized. The psalm's shocking cry against Babylon (Psalm 137:8-9, WEB) is handed to God in prayer, leaving judgment to him rather than to human hands.
- What does it mean that the exiles hung up their harps rather than singing on demand?
- Why might remembering Jerusalem be an act of faith rather than mere homesickness?
- How should we understand the violent words of verses 8-9—what does it mean to bring such feelings to God?
- Where do we feel pressure to put on a cheerful face when our hearts are truly grieving?
- Is there a loss you are still carrying? How might naming it honestly before God become a form of worship?
- Their silenced harps show that worship is not entertainment. They will not turn sacred songs into amusement for their captors, and their silence is itself a confession that their hope is tied to God and his city, not to Babylon.
- To remember Jerusalem is to remember God's promises attached to it. Forgetting would mean surrendering hope; remembering keeps them oriented toward God's future even in captivity. Discuss how memory can fuel faith.
- These verses are raw, unfiltered prayer, not a command to imitate. The exiles refuse to act on their rage and instead hand it to God for judgment. In Christ we learn to pray even our worst feelings honestly while leaving vengeance to him.
- Many of us feel pressure to perform contentment in church or online. Invite the group to consider how God welcomes honest lament, and how forced positivity can keep us from real healing.
- This is a gentle personal-application question. Encourage members to name a grief they have minimized, and to bring it plainly to God. As leader, assure them that lament is faith, not the failure of it.