New Living Translation NLT
New International Version NIV
1 Beside the rivers of Babylon, we sat and wept as we thought of Jerusalem.
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By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion.
2 We put away our harps, hanging them on the branches of poplar trees.
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There on the poplars we hung our harps,
3 For our captors demanded a song from us. Our tormentors insisted on a joyful hymn: “Sing us one of those songs of Jerusalem!”
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for there our captors asked us for songs, our tormentors demanded songs of joy; they said, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”
4 But how can we sing the songs of the LORD while in a pagan land?
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How can we sing the songs of the LORD while in a foreign land?
5 If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget how to play the harp.
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If I forget you, Jerusalem, may my right hand forget its skill.
6 May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth if I fail to remember you, if I don’t make Jerusalem my greatest joy.
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May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you, if I do not consider Jerusalem my highest joy.
7 O LORD, remember what the Edomites did on the day the armies of Babylon captured Jerusalem. “Destroy it!” they yelled. “Level it to the ground!”
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Remember, LORD, what the Edomites did on the day Jerusalem fell. “Tear it down,” they cried, “tear it down to its foundations!”
8 O Babylon, you will be destroyed. Happy is the one who pays you back for what you have done to us.
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Daughter Babylon, doomed to destruction, happy is the one who repays you according to what you have done to us.
9 Happy is the one who takes your babies and smashes them against the rocks!
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Happy is the one who seizes your infants and dashes them against the rocks.