Psalm 137:1–9
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- LSB Legacy Standard Bible
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- AV 1873 The Cambridge Paragraph Bible of the Authorized English Version
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- D-R Douay-Rheims Bible
- ESV English Standard Version
- GW GOD’S WORD Translation
- GNB Good News Translation
- HCSB The Holman Christian Standard Bible
- KJV 1900 King James Version
- LEB The Lexham English Bible
- MSG The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language
- NET The NET Bible
- NASB95 New American Standard Bible (1995)
- NCV New Century Version
- NIrV New International Reader’s Version (1998)
- NIV New International Version (2011)
- NKJV The New King James Version
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- NRSVue New Revised Standard Version: Updated Edition
- RSV The Revised Standard Version
- RSVCE The Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition
- TNIV Today’s New International Version
- YLT Young’s Literal Translation
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We Wept When We Remembered Zion
1By the arivers of Babylon,
There we sat and also bwept,
When we remembered Zion.
2Upon the 1awillows in the midst of it
We bhung our lyres.
3For there our captors aasked us about the words of a song,
And bour tormentors asked joyfully, saying,
“Sing for us one of the songs of Zion.”
4How can we sing a song of aYahweh
In a foreign land?
5If I aforget you, O Jerusalem,
May my right hand 1forget her skill.
6May my atongue cling to the roof of my mouth
If I do not remember you,
Above my chief joy.
7Remember, O Yahweh, against the sons of aEdom
The day of Jerusalem,
Who said, “Tear it down! Tear it down
bTo its very foundation.”
8O daughter of Babylon, you adevastated one,
How blessed will be the one who brepays you
With 1the recompense with which you have recompensed us.
9How blessed will be the one who seizes and adashes your infants
Against the cliff.
Footnotes
Cross references
- aEzek 1:1, 3
- bNeh 1:4
- aLev 23:40; Is 44:4
- bJob 30:31; Is 24:8; Ezek 26:13
- aPs 80:6
- bIs 49:17
- a2 Chr 29:27; Neh 12:46
- aIs 65:11
- aJob 29:10; Ps 22:15; Ezek 3:26
- bNeh 2:3
- aPs 83:4–8; Is 34:5, 6; Jer 49:7–22; Lam 4:21; Ezek 25:12–14; 35:2; Amos 1:11; Obad 10–14
- bPs 74:7; Hab 3:13
- aIs 13:1–22; 47:1–15; Jer 25:12; 50:1–46; 51:1–64
- bJer 50:15; 51:24, 35, 36, 49; Rev 18:6
- a2 Kin 8:12; Is 13:16; Hos 13:16; Nah 3:10
Copyright 2024 The Lockman Foundation
In other versions
ESVEnglish Standard Version
By the waters of Babylon,
there we sat down and wept,
when we remembered Zion.
On the willows there
we hung up our lyres.
For there our captors
required of us songs,
and our tormentors, mirth, saying,
“Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”
How shall we sing the Lord’s song
in a foreign land?
If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
let my right hand forget its skill!
Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth,
if I do not remember you,
if I do not set Jerusalem
above my highest joy!
Remember, O Lord, against the Edomites
the day of Jerusalem,
how they said, “Lay it bare, lay it bare,
down to its foundations!”
O daughter of Babylon, doomed to be destroyed,
blessed shall he be who repays you
with what you have done to us!
Blessed shall he be who takes your little ones
and dashes them against the rock!
Copyright 2001 Crossway Bibles
NIVNew International Version (2011)
By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept
when we remembered Zion.
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?
If I forget you, Jerusalem,
may my right hand forget its skill.
May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
if I do not remember you,
if I do not consider Jerusalem
my highest joy.
Remember, Lord, what the Edomites did
on the day Jerusalem fell.
“Tear it down,” they cried,
“tear it down to its foundations!”
Daughter Babylon, doomed to destruction,
happy is the one who repays you
according to what you have done to us.
Happy is the one who seizes your infants
and dashes them against the rocks.
Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 Biblica, Inc.
CSBChristian Standard Bible
By the rivers of Babylon—
there we sat down and wept
when we remembered Zion.
There we hung up our lyres
on the poplar trees,
for our captors there asked us for songs,
and our tormentors, for rejoicing:
“Sing us one of the songs of Zion.”
How can we sing the Lord’s song
on foreign soil?
If I forget you, Jerusalem,
may my right hand forget its skill.
May 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!
Remember, Lord, what the Edomites said
that day at Jerusalem:
“Destroy it! Destroy it
down to its foundations!”
Daughter Babylon, doomed to destruction,
happy is the one who pays you back
what you have done to us.
Happy is he who takes your little ones
and dashes them against the rocks.
Copyright 2017 Holman Bible Publishers
NLTNew Living Translation
Beside the rivers of Babylon, we sat and wept
as we thought of Jerusalem.
We put away our harps,
hanging them on the branches of poplar trees.
For our captors demanded a song from us.
Our tormentors insisted on a joyful hymn:
“Sing us one of those songs of Jerusalem!”
But how can we sing the songs of the Lord
while in a pagan land?
If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
let my right hand forget how to play the harp.
May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth
if I fail to remember you,
if I don’t make Jerusalem my greatest joy.
O Lord, remember what the Edomites did
on the day the armies of Babylon captured Jerusalem.
“Destroy it!” they yelled.
“Level it to the ground!”
O Babylon, you will be destroyed.
Happy is the one who pays you back
for what you have done to us.
Happy is the one who takes your babies
and smashes them against the rocks!
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.
LEBThe Lexham English Bible
By the rivers of Babylon,
there we sat, yes, we wept,
when we remembered Zion.
On the willows in her midst,
we hung up our lyres.
For there our captors asked of us
words of a song,
and our tormentors asked of us jubilation,
“Sing for us from a song of Zion.”
How could we sing the song of Yahweh
in a foreign land?
If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
let my right hand forget.
Let my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth,
if I do not remember you,
if do not I exalt Jerusalem
above my highest joy.
Remember, O Yahweh, against the sons of Edom
the day of Jerusalem,
the ones who said, “Lay it bare! Lay it bare
to its foundation!”
O daughter of Babylon, about to be devastated,
happy shall be he who pays back to you
what you paid out to us.
Happy shall be he who seizes
and smashes your children
against the rock.
Copyright 2012 Lexham Press
KJV 1900King James Version
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept,
When we remembered Zion.
We hanged our harps
Upon the willows in the midst thereof.
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.
How shall we sing the Lord’s song
In a strange land?
If I forget thee, O Jerusalem,
Let my right hand forget her cunning.
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.
Remember, O Lord, the children of Edom in the day of Jerusalem;
Who said, Rase it, rase it, even to the foundation thereof.
O daughter of Babylon, who art to be destroyed;
Happy shall he be, that rewardeth thee
As thou hast served us.
Happy shall he be, that taketh
And dasheth thy little ones against the stones.
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