Psalm 137

Psalm 137

Lament of the Exiles

¹By the rivers of Babylon—

there we sat down and wept

when we remembered Zion. ^y

²There we hung up our lyres

on the poplar trees, ^z

³for our captors there asked us for songs,

and our tormentors, for rejoicing:

“Sing us one of the songs of Zion.” ^a

⁴How can we sing the Lord’s song

on foreign soil? ^b

⁵If I forget you, Jerusalem,

may my right hand forget its skill. ^c

⁶May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth

if I do not remember you,

if I do not exalt Jerusalem as my greatest joy! ^d

⁷Remember, Lord, what the Edomites said

that day ^eat Jerusalem:

“Destroy it! Destroy it

down to its foundations!” ^f

⁸Daughter Babylon, doomed to destruction,

happy is the one who pays you back

what you have done to us. ^g

⁹Happy is he who takes your little ones

and dashes them against the rocks. ^h