Chapter Summary

Lamentation over the sad condition of God's people in captivity.

Discussion Questions for Psalms, Chapter 137

1. Psalm 137:1, “By the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion.” (ESV) This Psalm is identified as a community lament as the people remember the Babylonian captivity. What impact do you think it had on the community to lament together? What would this have looked like for the community in that day?
2. What all did the community have to mourn? Have you ever seen your community come together to grieve together? If so, what was it like for you to witness or be apart of this?
3. Psalm 137:3, “For there our captors required of us songs, and our tormentors, mirth, saying, ‘Sing us one of the songs of Zion!’” (ESV) What did the “songs of Zion” mean to the Judeans? What heart posture would this then display from the Babylonians?
4. Psalm 137:4, “How shall we sing the LORD’s song in a foreign land?” (ESV) Why would it be difficult for them to sing such songs in a foreign land? What would it do to the people’s hearts to sing those songs away from their homeland?
5. How interconnected are our memories to our identity as an individual and a community? What does this Psalm teach us about identity?
6. Psalm 137:5-6 “If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill! Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth, if I do not remember you, if I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy!” (ESV) What is the Psalmist equating these songs to? Why would it be better for him to forget his skill and loose his speech than to play them?
7. Psalm 137:7, “Remember, O LORD, against the Edomites the day of Jerusalem, how they said, ‘Lay it bare, lay it bare, down to its foundations!’” (ESV) Here the Psalmist shifts his attention towards God. What did the Psalmist equate with the call to “remember”? What actions from God would this have brought about?
8. Considering verse seven, why does the Psalmist ask God to remember the Edomites? What did this people group represent in that day? What were they associated with?
9. How do you think you would handle the kind of circumstance the Psalmist is in? What Scriptures would you be quickest to cling to in a time like this?
10. Psalm 137:9, “Blessed shall he be who takes your little ones and dashes them against the rock!” (ESV) Verses like these can be heavy and hard to reconcile with. What was your experience reading this passage? What would help you see why God allowed it to be in His Word? How can we cling to God’s goodness in the midst of understanding heavy passages? How can we pray and ask God for understanding that we may see His heart?

Key Words/Phrase

Captivity, v. 3.

Characters

God.

Strong Verse(s)

4