Psalms 137 (MSG)

¹Alongside Babylon's rivers we sat on the banks; we cried and cried, remembering the good old days in Zion.

²Alongside the quaking aspens we stacked our unplayed harps;

³That's where our captors demanded songs, sarcastic and mocking: "Sing us a happy Zion song!"

⁴Oh, how could we ever sing God's song in this wasteland?

⁵If I ever forget you, Jerusalem, let my fingers wither and fall off like leaves.

⁶Let my tongue swell and turn black if I fail to remember you, If I fail, O dear Jerusalem, to honor you as my greatest.

⁷God, remember those Edomites, and remember the ruin of Jerusalem, That day they yelled out, "Wreck it, smash it to bits!"

⁸And you, Babylonians—ravagers! A reward to whoever gets back at you for all you've done to us;

⁹Yes, a reward to the one who grabs your babies and smashes their heads on the rocks!