Psalm 137:3 - Printer Friendly

ESV: For there our captors required of us songs, and our tormentors, mirth, saying, "Sing us one of the songs of Zion!"

NIV: for there our captors asked us for songs, our tormentors demanded songs of joy; they said, "Sing us one of the songs of Zion!"

NASB: For there our captors demanded of us songs, And our tormentors, jubilation, saying, 'Sing for us one of the songs of Zion!'

CSB: for our captors there asked us for songs, and our tormentors, for rejoicing: "Sing us one of the songs of Zion."

NLT: For our captors demanded a song from us. Our tormentors insisted on a joyful hymn: 'Sing us one of those songs of Jerusalem!'

KJV: 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.

NKJV: 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!”

The captive people of Israel (Daniel 1:1–3) are too deep in grief to sing songs or play music. They sit under trees growing near Babylon's extensive canal system and set their instruments aside (Psalm 137:1–2). This emotion is made worse by teasing from their oppressors. The Babylonians are mockingly calling on the Israelites to sing about Zion—another name for Jerusalem (2 Samuel 5:7; 1 Kings 8:1). This was the very city destroyed and ravaged by Babylonian invaders (2 Chronicles 36:17–21). To be defeated and exiled from home is difficult enough; adding ridicule would make the situation even worse. Grief will soon turn to bitterness as the people pray for the Lord to avenge their situation (Psalm 137:7–9).

Satan often uses mockery as a tactic to break believers' resolve to honor the Lord. Goliath ridiculed David (1 Samuel 17:42–44). Second Kings 2:23 describes teenaged boys ridiculing Elisha. When Nehemiah and his fellow Jews were rebuilding Jerusalem's walls, enemies "jeered" at them (Nehemiah 4:1–4). Despite his innocence, Job received ridicule from so-called friends during his time of suffering (Job 12:4). Jesus, too, was the object of ridicule. Matthew 27:27–31 describes how the governor's soldiers mocked Him while abusing His body.

Psalm 137:1–6 mourns for Israel's captivity in Babylon, identified with the Euphrates river system. Israel's new masters tease them, asking for songs about the Jewish homeland. But the people cannot sing while in such misery. Instead, they set their instruments aside and vow to remember what has happened to their people.

After being captured by Babylon (2 Chronicles 36:17–21), the people of Israel are teased by their new masters. The Babylonians ask the Jews to perform songs from their homeland. But the Israelites cannot bring themselves to sing. They vow to remember what happened to their city and their people. The psalmist prays that God would bring harsh vengeance on Edom and Babylon. He hopes they suffer the same gruesome evils which they inflicted upon Israel.

After years of warning (Deuteronomy 28:1, 64), Israel was conquered and the people taken away into Babylon (2 Chronicles 36:17–21). After seventy years (Jeremiah 29:10–14) they were allowed to rebuild Jerusalem (Ezra 2:1). This psalm expresses a grieving desire for enemies such as Babylon (Daniel 1:1–3) and Edom (Obadiah 1:10–11, 14) to suffer the same evils they committed on Israel. This is perhaps the most notorious of the "imprecatory" psalms (Psalms 5; 10; 17; 35; 58—59; 69—70; 79; 83, 109; 129; 137; 140).

The book of Psalms is composed of individual songs, hymns, or poems, each of which is a ''Psalm'' in and of itself. These works contain a wide variety of themes. Some Psalms focus on praising and worshipping God. Others cry out in anguish over the pain of life. Still other Psalms look forward to the coming of the Messiah. While some Psalms are related, each has its own historical and biblical context.