“By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion. There … our tormentors demanded songs of joy; they said, ‘Sing us one of the songs of Zion!’”
Psalm 137:1, 3
We can’t imagine the horror of being forced from our home by foreign enemies and marched off to an unfamiliar land. The Israelites experienced this and then lived for 70 years as captives in Babylon. In time they’d settle in and find their new way of living in exile, making Babylon their home, even though it clearly was not.
The psalmist records (v. 4) the anguished thoughts of the Lord’s people: “How can we sing the songs of the LORD while in a foreign land?” We ponder this too, as we consider that this world is not our home. We may not be under the oppression of a foreign ruler as the Israelites were and as some nations are today, but we know the discouragement of life here. We long in our hearts for heaven. At times we wonder how we can sing the songs of the Lord when there is so much evil around us.
But if we don’t sing His songs, what will our hearts be tuned to? Even in lament and sorrow, we can sing of the blessed assurance we have in God’s amazing grace, of how great is His faithfulness, and of what a friend we have in Jesus.
The psalmist records (v. 4) the anguished thoughts of the Lord’s people: “How can we sing the songs of the LORD while in a foreign land?” We ponder this too, as we consider that this world is not our home. We may not be under the oppression of a foreign ruler as the Israelites were and as some nations are today, but we know the discouragement of life here. We long in our hearts for heaven. At times we wonder how we can sing the songs of the Lord when there is so much evil around us.
But if we don’t sing His songs, what will our hearts be tuned to? Even in lament and sorrow, we can sing of the blessed assurance we have in God’s amazing grace, of how great is His faithfulness, and of what a friend we have in Jesus.
Scripture Focus
Psalm 137
Insight
When the aching for your heavenly homeland runs deep, don’t let discouragement rob you of the enjoyment of godly, Christ-focused music.
Bible In A Year
- Jeremiah 49-50
- Psalm 126
- 2 Corinthians 6-7