Rashi 's Commentary: Show Hide. Psalms 137:3 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. Answer: Psalm 137:9 is found in one of the Imprecatory Psalms (or Precatory Psalms) that speak of violence against the enemies of God. In its whole form of nine verses, the psalm reflects the yearning for Jerusalem as well as hatred for the Holy City's enemies with sometimes violent imagery. This Psalm is composed of two parts. NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 137:7-9 7 Remember, O Lord, against the sons of Edom The day of Jerusalem, Who said, "Raze it, raze it To its very foundation." Every chapter is devoted to praise and thanksgiving from the author to Yahweh. The Psalmist is saying, “I have seen horrible things. Before Psalm 137:4 we have to imagine that they answered the request of the Babylonians at that time in the language that follows, or thought thus within themselves when they withdrew themselves from them. A. Tehillim - Psalms - Chapter 137 « Previous Chapter 136. By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion. . The Treasury of David . If I forget you, Jerusalem, may my right hand forget its skill. This plaintive ode is one of the most charming compositions in the whole Book of Psalms for its poetic power. There on the poplars we hung our harps, for there our captors asked us for songs, our tormentors demanded songs of joy; they said, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!” How can we sing the songs of the LORD while in a foreign land? Commentary for Psalms 137 . That verse reads, “Happy is the one who seizes your infants / and dashes them against the rocks.” Why? 2 We hung our harps. --Robert Rollock. Praise the name of the L ord, give praise, O v servants of the L ord, 2 who n stand in the house of the L ord, in w the courts of the house of our God! Psalm 137:9 lives in this nexus. 1. . “It will not leave even a root or branch. Then in verses 3-6, the abuse of the nation of Israel suffered under the Babylonian Empire is remembered. 2 We hung our harps Upon the willows in the midst of it. meaning. 1. Ps 137:1-4 137 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. The psalm begins with an expression of sorrow over Zion. 135 u Praise the L ord! Upon the willows in the midst of it. Psalm 137 – The Mournful Song of the Exiles. PSALM 137 OVERVIEW. An imprecatory psalm is one that seeks God’s judgment and, consequently, pain and destruction on others, such as an enemy. Psalm 137 gives permission, and actually authorizes the powerless who have been brutalized to vent their indignation and turn to God for justice. If it were not inspired it would nevertheless occupy a high place in poesy, especially the former portion of it, which is tender and patriotic to the highest degree. Scoffers are not to be compiled with. The purpose of this paper is to analyse Psalm 137 to ascertain what Israel’s response was in a time of exile. Psalms 137. Those that rejoice in God, for his sake make Jerusalem their joy. (1-4) Their affection for Jerusalem. 137 By the rivers of Babylon, There we sat down, yea, we wept When we remembered Zion. Psalm 137 is a hymn expressing the yearnings of the Jewish people during their Babylonian exile. 3 Praise the L ord, for x the L ord is good; sing to his name, y for it is pleasant! Ps 137:1-9. 137. The first part of the psalm tells the story of exile in Babylon (587-538 B.C.E.). The poignancy comes in its personal description of the distress of Babylonian exile; the trouble is in its terrible outburst against the oppressors. The first is, an heavy complaint of the church, unto Ps 137:7. Last week I began a series looking at Psalm 137. Forgiveness doesn’t mean forgetting or excusing. 8 O … Singing to the self. Whole Psalm. 3 For there those who carried us away captive asked of us a song, And those who () plundered us requested mirth, Saying, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!” Psalm 137. In English it is generally known as "By the rivers of Babylon", which is how its first words are translated in the King James Version.It is Psalm 136 in the slightly different numbering system of the Greek Septuagint and the Latin Vulgate versions of the Bible. 1. rivers of Babylon—the name of the city used for the whole country. Chapter 137. Ver. Psalm 137 is at once one of the most poignant and most troubling of the psalms. 1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. Psalm 137 is the 137th psalm of the Book of Psalms, and as such it is included in the Hebrew Bible. This is the repayment. Longing for Zion in a Foreign Land. Herewith the Psalm closes, Happy, that takes and dashes your little ones against the rock Psalm 136:9. This book clearly provides hope and confidence in the Lord as the maker of all things, the ultimate ruler of everything including the universe. This is a most affecting picture. Psalms 137:1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. Psalms 137:2 We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. 137. How did they address the faith crisis of exile? (1-3) Mourning by Babylon’s rivers. But for you who respect my name, the sun of vindication will rise with healing wings, and you will skip about like calves released from the stall. In Psalm 137:9, the Jews are singing a song about how they want revenge exacted upon their enemies who treated them cruelty. Psalm 137:4. This is a complicated and difficult question. What did the Jewish exiles in Babylon remember? It may also have been written many years into the exile. I ... You see, when they were in their land, the nation of Israel existed as a theocracy, meaning that God was their ultimate ruler, and so the culture of their worship and the rest of their culture fit together perfectly under the Law of God (at least in theory!). The Jews bewail their captivity. Question: "What does Psalm 137:9 mean when it says, ‘Happy is the one who seizes your infants and dashes them against the rocks’?" To complete their woes, they insulted over them; they required of them mirth and a song. remembered Zion—or, Jerusalem, as in Ps 132:13. And whereas poetry has its function, Halacha and the concept of justice prohibit us from turning the thought into the deed. Do we ask, what reward? PSALM 137. Because this psalm is a remembrance of Babylon, many commentators believe it was written after the return from exile. ... 2. the etymology of cognate roots is often a pointer to meaning. (5-9) 1-4 Their enemies had carried the Jews captive from their own land. 1 By the rivers of Babylon, There we sat down, yea, we wept. We have already sung in another Psalm, The words of the wicked have prevailed against us. Exile is thus primarily not a geographical issue, but it is a social, moral, cultural, liturgical and spiritual issue; an understanding that one is in a hostile, alien situation. The other is an heavy imprecation and a prophetical denunciation against the enemies of the church, unto the end of the Psalm. 3 For there those who carried us away captive asked of us a song, And those who # Ps. This Psalm records the mourning of the captive Israelites, and a prayer and prediction respecting the destruction of their enemies. Psalm 119 Verses 137-144 Tsadde Verse 137 — Exposition; Notes; KJV NKJV NLT NIV ESV CSB NASB. 3. the thrust of the Psalm as a whole. 2 We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. What should you remember? Remember” and “forget” stand out in this psalm. Psalms 137:1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. What did they ask the Lord to remember? How shall we sing the Lord’s song — Those sacred songs which are appropriated to the worship of the true God in his temple, and are appointed by him to be sung only to his honour and in his service; in a strange land — When we are banished from our own temple and country, and among those who are strangers and enemies to our God and his worship? Psalm 137. 1. When suffering, we should recollect with godly sorrow our forfeited mercies, and our sins by which we lost them. When we remembered Zion. Show content in: English Both Hebrew. 2 We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. Clarke's Psalms 137:2 Bible Commentary We hanged our harps upon the willows - The ערבים arabim or willows were very plentiful in Babylon. 1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat, we also wept when we remembered Zion. Whole Psalm. Psalm 137 is an imprecatory psalm. The Psalms: 137: The Mourning of the Exiles in Babylon: 1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. I want horrible things to happen to the perpetrators.” But it is enough to say it, not to act on it. By the rivers of Babylon, There we sat down, yea, we wept When we remembered Zion. 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. If you know much about OT literature/writings, you will know that a lot of times, especially in Psalms, that the stories were written as poetic expressions of personal feelings/emotions, due to the circumstances, good or bad, that was taking place in the writers life. 4 For the L ord has z chosen Jacob for himself, Israel as his a own possession. Verse 9 names the crime: killing babes. Psalms 137. JPSOA has "keep Jerusalem in memory at my happiest hour." For what has that Babylon done to us? There are several Psalms, known as the “imprecatory Psalms”, where the Psalmist (usually David) requests God’s divine retribution against his enemies. Her he calls unhappy, but him happy who pays her as she has served us. This was very barbarous; also profane, for no songs would serve but the songs of Zion. “For indeed the day is coming, burning like a furnace, and all the arrogant evildoers will be chaff. Next » Chapter 138. Psalm 137:8 speaks of Babylon being repaid by having precisely what she did to the Jews done back to her. Your Name, O Lord, Endures Forever. TheTorah.com is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The coming day will burn them up,” says the Lord who rules over all. They are enraged because of their treatment at the hands of the Babylonians. Commentary on Psalm 137:5-9 (Read Psalm 137:5-9) What we love, we love to think of. Psalm 137 is a hymn expressing the yearnings of the Jewish people during their Babylonian exile. One of the primest examples of this is here in Ps. The Devil may never get you to do drugs, drink, or smoke, but if he can just get you to hang up your harp & sing a silent song, he's got you. 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