Psalm 137 (KJV With Strong's) - Bible Truth Library

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Psalm 137

Psa. 137:1 KJV (With Strong’s)

By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.

More on:

Babylon,

River,

Zion; Sion; Mount Zion

Cross References

Ministry on This Verse

1-6: The constancy of the Jews in captivity.

7-9: The prophet curses Edom and Babel.

A.M. cir. 3463.

B.C. cir. 541. (Title.)The author of this beautiful and affecting elegy is unknown, but the occasion is evident; and it was most probably composed during, or near the close of, the captivity.the rivers.

Gen. 2:10‑14• ¹⁰And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads.
¹¹The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold;
¹²And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.
¹³And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia.
¹⁴And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates. (Gen. 2:10‑14)

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Ezra 8:21,31• ²¹Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river of Ahava, that we might afflict ourselves before our God, to seek of him a right way for us, and for our little ones, and for all our substance.
³¹Then we departed from the river of Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go unto Jerusalem: and the hand of our God was upon us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy, and of such as lay in wait by the way. (Ezra 8:21,31)

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Ezek. 1:1• ¹Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God. (Ezek. 1:1)

there sat.

Neh. 1:3‑4• ³And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.
⁴And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven, (Neh. 1:3‑4)

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Neh. 2:3• ³And said unto the king, Let the king live for ever: why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers' sepulchres, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire? (Neh. 2:3)

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Job 2:12‑13• ¹²And when they lifted up their eyes afar off, and knew him not, they lifted up their voice, and wept; and they rent every one his mantle, and sprinkled dust upon their heads toward heaven.
¹³So they sat down with him upon the ground seven days and seven nights, and none spake a word unto him: for they saw that his grief was very great. (Job 2:12‑13)

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Jer. 13:17‑18• ¹⁷But if ye will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret places for your pride; and mine eye shall weep sore, and run down with tears, because the Lord's flock is carried away captive.
¹⁸Say unto the king and to the queen, Humble yourselves, sit down: for your principalities shall come down, even the crown of your glory. (Jer. 13:17‑18)

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Jer. 15:17• ¹⁷I sat not in the assembly of the mockers, nor rejoiced; I sat alone because of thy hand: for thou hast filled me with indignation. (Jer. 15:17)

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Lam. 2:10• ¹⁰The elders of the daughter of Zion sit upon the ground, and keep silence: they have cast up dust upon their heads; they have girded themselves with sackcloth: the virgins of Jerusalem hang down their heads to the ground. (Lam. 2:10)

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Ezek. 3:15• ¹⁵Then I came to them of the captivity at Tel-abib, that dwelt by the river of Chebar, and I sat where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven days. (Ezek. 3:15)

we wept.

Psa. 42:4• ⁴When I remember these things, I pour out my soul in me: for I had gone with the multitude, I went with them to the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise, with a multitude that kept holyday. (Psa. 42:4)

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Psa. 102:9‑14• ⁹For I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping,
¹⁰Because of thine indignation and thy wrath: for thou hast lifted me up, and cast me down.
¹¹My days are like a shadow that declineth; and I am withered like grass.
¹²But thou, O Lord, shalt endure for ever; and thy remembrance unto all generations.
¹³Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion: for the time to favor her, yea, the set time, is come.
¹⁴For thy servants take pleasure in her stones, and favor the dust thereof. (Psa. 102:9‑14)

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Isa. 66:10• ¹⁰Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all ye that love her: rejoice for joy with her, all ye that mourn for her: (Isa. 66:10)

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Jer. 51:50‑51• ⁵⁰Ye that have escaped the sword, go away, stand not still: remember the Lord afar off, and let Jerusalem come into your mind.
⁵¹We are confounded, because we have heard reproach: shame hath covered our faces: for strangers are come into the sanctuaries of the Lord's house. (Jer. 51:50‑51)

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Lam. 1:16• ¹⁶For these things I weep; mine eye, mine eye runneth down with water, because the comforter that should relieve my soul is far from me: my children are desolate, because the enemy prevailed. (Lam. 1:16)

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Lam. 2:11,18• ¹¹Mine eyes do fail with tears, my bowels are troubled, my liver is poured upon the earth, for the destruction of the daughter of my people; because the children and the sucklings swoon in the streets of the city.
¹⁸Their heart cried unto the Lord, O wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears run down like a river day and night: give thyself no rest; let not the apple of thine eye cease. (Lam. 2:11,18)

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Lam. 3:48,51• ⁴⁸Mine eye runneth down with rivers of water for the destruction of the daughter of my people.
⁵¹Mine eye affecteth mine heart because of all the daughters of my city. (Lam. 3:48,51)

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Dan. 9:3• ³And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes: (Dan. 9:3)

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Dan. 10:2‑3• ²In those days I Daniel was mourning three full weeks.
³I ate no pleasant bread, neither came flesh nor wine in my mouth, neither did I anoint myself at all, till three whole weeks were fulfilled. (Dan. 10:2‑3)

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Luke 19:41• ⁴¹And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, (Luke 19:41)

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Rev. 11:3• ³And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. (Rev. 11:3)

• Book 5, Series 4. Ten tribes restored. (““The Placement of the Psalms in Prophecy”” by B. Anstey)

• There is a double application of this to our souls. Nothing can make us forget the heavenly Jerusalem, the house where God and the Lamb are the temple, and where they dwell. All the glory of the world is nothing compared with that heavenly home. (“Practical Reflections on the Psalms: Psalms 135-138” by J.N. Darby)

• Historically, the psalm sets forth the sorrows of Israel in captivity: prophetically, it expresses the sorrows of the godly in Israel in a latter day. (“Psalms 137” by H. Smith)

• (vv. 1-3) The psalm opens with the captives of Israel at Babylon in the day of its prosperity and earthly joy, as set forth by its rivers, its mirth, and its songs. (“Psalms 137” by H. Smith)

• They can only weep when they remember Zion. The glory and joy of Babylon are as nothing in their eyes compared with the blessedness of their own city. (“Psalms 137” by H. Smith)

• This psalm begins the final series of the book. The ten tribes of Israel are again seen away from their promised land (vs. 1, 4) being reproached by the Gentiles (vs. 1-3). (“Book 5.” by B. Anstey)

J. N. Darby Translation

By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down; yea, we wept when we remembered Zion.