Scripture
By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion. 2 There on the poplars we hung our harps, 3 for there our captors asked us for songs, our tormentors demanded songs of joy; they said, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”
Psalm 137:1-3 NIV
Question
What difficult emotions have you experienced lately?
Psalm 137
“How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land?”
Films about revenge are very popular. From Braveheart to John Wick to The Revenant, revenge is a theme that you can find in several movies each year.
It’s a popular theme because there’s something very human about wanting to exact revenge on people who have hurt or wronged you. The Psalms don’t shy away from this this very human desire for vengeance.
As followers of Jesus, we believe that we shouldn’t want to see people who have wronged us come to ruin or a violent end. And that is right. But we are human, so what do we do if we feel upset because we have been victimized in some way? What do we do with this feeling of pain when it so consumes our hearts that we actually want revenge?
Of course, we can act on this impulse, but as followers of Jesus we know better. Revenge is never (and never will be) the way of Jesus. We can deny this feeling and pretend it doesn’t exist—but God has something better for us. He wants us to express the deep pain of our hearts to him and then give those feelings over to him.
Psalm 137 is not for the faint of heart. It’s a sobering lament and it’s a song of resolve. It’s set in the context of what may have been the most traumatic event that the people of God ever experienced. The exile to Babylon simply sucked the air out of the life of the
Hebrew people when it happened. And you feel that in this psalm.
This psalm was written to express deep human suffering and to ask a very serious question: “How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land?”
Jeremiah, the prophet that wrote to the exiles, told them how to do this. Look especially at Jeremiah 29 and look for verses 7 and 13. Jeremiah is speaking to the captives in Babylon, and he is explaining to them what they ought to do.
Read and pray through Psalm 137 today and let this psalm train you to take your every emotion to God.
It’s a popular theme because there’s something very human about wanting to exact revenge on people who have hurt or wronged you. The Psalms don’t shy away from this this very human desire for vengeance.
As followers of Jesus, we believe that we shouldn’t want to see people who have wronged us come to ruin or a violent end. And that is right. But we are human, so what do we do if we feel upset because we have been victimized in some way? What do we do with this feeling of pain when it so consumes our hearts that we actually want revenge?
Of course, we can act on this impulse, but as followers of Jesus we know better. Revenge is never (and never will be) the way of Jesus. We can deny this feeling and pretend it doesn’t exist—but God has something better for us. He wants us to express the deep pain of our hearts to him and then give those feelings over to him.
Psalm 137 is not for the faint of heart. It’s a sobering lament and it’s a song of resolve. It’s set in the context of what may have been the most traumatic event that the people of God ever experienced. The exile to Babylon simply sucked the air out of the life of the
Hebrew people when it happened. And you feel that in this psalm.
This psalm was written to express deep human suffering and to ask a very serious question: “How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land?”
Jeremiah, the prophet that wrote to the exiles, told them how to do this. Look especially at Jeremiah 29 and look for verses 7 and 13. Jeremiah is speaking to the captives in Babylon, and he is explaining to them what they ought to do.
Read and pray through Psalm 137 today and let this psalm train you to take your every emotion to God.
Prayer