Psalm 137 is a lament written by people who had been taken from Jerusalem and forced to live in Babylon. It is read because it is one of the Bible’s most honest pictures of grief, memory, and anger, and because its final verses are among the most troubling in the Psalms. This page walks through the chapter so you can see what it says, why it says it, and how it can be read faithfully today.
Psalm 137 Summary
The psalm opens by the rivers of Babylon, where the exiles sit down and weep as they remember Zion, the hill where Jerusalem and its temple stood. They have hung their harps on the willows, unable to play. Their captors ask them to sing one of the songs of Zion, but the singers refuse, asking how the LORD’s song could be sung in a foreign land.
The middle of the psalm turns to a solemn vow. The speaker swears that if Jerusalem is ever forgotten, the speaker’s own skill and voice will fail, and that Jerusalem will remain the highest joy. Then the tone darkens into a call for justice, asking the LORD to remember Edom’s cruelty on the day Jerusalem fell and to bring judgment on Babylon.
The chapter ends with two verses that many readers find shocking. They pronounce a blessing on whoever repays Babylon for what it did and on whoever strikes its children. Reading the whole psalm together shows that the ending is the raw cry of people who had been harmed, not a calm statement of ideal conduct.
Background and Setting
Psalm 137 is one of the Psalms in the Psalter, the collected songbook of ancient Israel that forms the middle section of the Old Testament. The title does not name an author, and the psalm is usually read as anonymous. Scholars generally date it to the exile or shortly after, around the early sixth century BC or the period immediately following the return from Babylon, when Judah’s loss of the temple and the city was still fresh.
The psalm was written for a community that had lived through the destruction of Jerusalem and the deportation of many of its people. Its language reflects that trauma, and its place in the Psalms gives it a voice for later worshippers who also knew loss, displacement, and the question of how to pray when God seems absent.
Psalm 137 Section by Section
Verses 1-4: Weeping in a Foreign Land
1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down. Yes, we wept, when we remembered Zion. 2 On the willows in that land, we hung up our harps.
Psalm 137:1-2 (WEB)
The chapter begins with a physical picture: people sitting by the rivers of Babylon, weeping. The verb suggests they are not visiting but staying, a place where they have been made to live. Their memory of Zion is so strong that it turns into tears, and the harps they once played in worship now hang silent on the willows.
The request in verse 3 sharpens the pain. Their captors want entertainment, a taste of the very worship that was taken from them. The reply in verse 4 is a question rather than a refusal, and it asks whether the LORD’s song can even be sung in a land where God’s presence seems far off. It is a question many believers have asked when faith and circumstances feel at odds.
Verses 5-6: The Vow of Remembrance
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.
Psalm 137:5-6 (WEB)
Here the speaker makes a conditional vow, binding their own skill and speech to the memory of Jerusalem. The images are vivid: a right hand forgetting its craft and a tongue clinging to the roof of the mouth. The point is not self-punishment for its own sake but a declaration that Jerusalem is the center of their deepest loyalty.
The phrase “chief joy” shows what is at stake. The exiles are not asking merely to be comfortable again. They are describing a joy rooted in the city and its worship, and they are refusing to let that joy be replaced by the pleasures Babylon offers.
Verses 7-9: The Cry for Justice and Its Hard Ending
7 Remember, the LORD, 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.
Psalm 137:7-9 (WEB)
Verse 7 calls on the LORD to remember Edom, which had celebrated Jerusalem’s fall and urged its destruction. The prayer is a plea for God to act as judge on behalf of the wronged. It reflects a conviction that wrongdoing is seen by God and will not go unanswered.
Verses 8 and 9 are the most difficult in the chapter. They pronounce a blessing on those who repay Babylon and strike its children. Christian readers have long wrestled with these lines, and most point out that the psalm records real anguish without endorsing violence as a model for believers. The Bible’s wider teaching, including Jesus’s command to love enemies, shapes how the passage is best understood today.
Key Themes in Psalm 137
- Grief and memory: The exiles remember Zion so vividly that remembering itself becomes an act of mourning.
- Faithfulness in exile: Even in a foreign land, the community holds fast to Jerusalem and to the worship of the LORD.
- Honest lament: The psalm does not hide anger, questions, or painful desires from God.
- Justice and judgment: The cry for God to remember Edom and Babylon reflects a longing for wrongs to be answered.
Lessons From Psalm 137 for Today
Many people today feel like exiles in some way: a parent whose child has moved far away, a worker who has lost a job and a sense of belonging, or a family that has had to leave a familiar home. Psalm 137 gives permission to name that loss plainly and to bring it to God without polishing the words. The exiles did not pretend they were fine, and that honesty is itself a form of trust.
The psalm also shows how easily anger can rise in pain. Its harshest lines remind believers to bring even their most difficult feelings into prayer rather than letting them fester in silence. At the same time, the rest of Scripture calls followers of Jesus to forgive and to pray for those who harm them, so the psalm is best read as a window into raw human emotion that God can receive, not a pattern to copy.
Questions for Reflection
- What place or people do you find yourself longing for when you feel displaced?
- How do you usually respond when someone asks you to sing or celebrate in a season of sorrow?
- In what ways does this psalm help you think about being honest with God about anger?
- How would you pray the difficult final verses in a way that is faithful to both the psalm’s honesty and Jesus’s command to love enemies?
A Prayer From Psalm 137
Lord, you know how hard it is to sit by the rivers of our own losses and find that our songs have gone quiet. You know the places we remember with tears and the people we miss every day. Give us the courage to name our grief honestly, without pretending we are fine. Keep our hearts turned toward you even when we feel far from home, and let our memory of what we have lost become a prayer rather than a wound. Where anger rises, bring it to you, and shape it by your mercy and your love for those who hurt us. Amen.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who wrote Psalm 137?
The psalm does not name its author in the text. It is usually treated as anonymous, written by a community in exile or shortly after the Babylonian captivity.
Why does Psalm 137 end with such harsh verses?
The ending records the raw anguish of people who had suffered great harm. Most readers see it as honest expression of pain rather than an example for believers to follow.
How should Christians read the violent language in Psalm 137?
Christians often read it alongside Jesus’s teaching to love enemies and pray for those who persecute. The psalm is understood as a window into human emotion that God can receive, not a model for personal vengeance.
