Psalms 137:1-9 (NLT)
1 Beside the rivers of Babylon, we sat and wept as we thought of Jerusalem.
2 We put away our harps, hanging them on the branches of poplar trees.
3 For our captors demanded a song from us. Our tormentors insisted on a joyful hymn: “Sing us one of those songs of Jerusalem!”
4 But how can we sing the songs of the LORD while in a pagan land?
5 If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget how to play the harp.
6 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.
7 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!”
8 O Babylon, you will be destroyed. Happy is the one who pays you back for what you have done to us.
9 Happy is the one who takes your babies and smashes them against the rocks!
During the time of separation from their homeland—the place of their heritage and of God’s promise—there was a painful challenge in singing the songs of that place. The songs of Jerusalem had been inspired by life in the city of David, in seasons of great triumph and joy. Though they were songs meant for rejoicing, in exile they stirred deep longing and even thoughts of retribution toward those who had taken them from their home. And yet, within every phrase was a powerful remembrance—one that kept their identity alive and prepared the way for their return.
There is also a treasured place of peace that we have entered through the Blood of Jesus. It is a secret place where songs have been inspired and sung—songs that have established an identity of freedom and joy in Him. There are times, however, when the circumstances of life—a loss, rejection, personal failure, or oppression—can leave us with a sense of separation from that place of peace.
In those moments, there is something very powerful about singing those songs again. At first, they may awaken a measure of longing or regret. But with each phrase that exalts the One whose presence fills that treasured place, a way of return is opened. In the singing, there is both a reliving and a reawakening—a remembrance of the life that is ours in Him, a life that is real, present, and eternal.