Psalm 137:1-4 "By the rivers of Babylon,
there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. (2) We
hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. (3) 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.
(4) How shall we sing the LORD'S song in a strange land?"
To me, this is a very sad Psalm. It was written while in captivity. The captors were mocking the people of Israel as they were in such a state of sadness.
They would sit by the river. To me, sitting by a running stream of water gives such a sense of peacefulness. Quite honestly, if I lived beside a running stream or river, I would want to spend all my time just sitting under a tree and listening to the water quietly run by.
For the people of Israel, these rivers of Babylon were not a source of peace. They were a constant reminder that they were not in their homeland. This was not the River Jordan where so many wonderful events had taken place. This was a river in a strange land where they had been forcefully taken and made to remain. Their own actions had caused this move to occur. They had gone against the LORD and had tried to insert their own ways and ideas into the plan that had been given them. God's way is always perfect and requires no improvements. When we try to insert our own ways over the way God has prescribed, there will always be consequences. Some will be more serious than others.
The Babylonians mocked them and made them sing the songs of Zion which were written as songs of joy and gladness; but they could not sing them properly. Their hearts were filled with regret and sadness. They hang their harps on the willow branches and could not sing. How could they sing joyfully when they were in such a low estate.
This is a warning to us concerning our lives. The simple truth of the matter is this: There is joy in serving the Lord. There is harshness and sadness in serving ourselves. I want to sing the songs of Zion with the joy prescribed when they were written.
To me, this is a very sad Psalm. It was written while in captivity. The captors were mocking the people of Israel as they were in such a state of sadness.
They would sit by the river. To me, sitting by a running stream of water gives such a sense of peacefulness. Quite honestly, if I lived beside a running stream or river, I would want to spend all my time just sitting under a tree and listening to the water quietly run by.
For the people of Israel, these rivers of Babylon were not a source of peace. They were a constant reminder that they were not in their homeland. This was not the River Jordan where so many wonderful events had taken place. This was a river in a strange land where they had been forcefully taken and made to remain. Their own actions had caused this move to occur. They had gone against the LORD and had tried to insert their own ways and ideas into the plan that had been given them. God's way is always perfect and requires no improvements. When we try to insert our own ways over the way God has prescribed, there will always be consequences. Some will be more serious than others.
The Babylonians mocked them and made them sing the songs of Zion which were written as songs of joy and gladness; but they could not sing them properly. Their hearts were filled with regret and sadness. They hang their harps on the willow branches and could not sing. How could they sing joyfully when they were in such a low estate.
This is a warning to us concerning our lives. The simple truth of the matter is this: There is joy in serving the Lord. There is harshness and sadness in serving ourselves. I want to sing the songs of Zion with the joy prescribed when they were written.