Psalms 137; Psalms 138; Psalms 139

1 By the rivers of Babylon, we sat down and cried as we remembered Zion.

2 We hung our lyres on willow trees.

3 It was there that those who had captured us demanded that we sing. Those who guarded us wanted us to entertain them. [They said,] "Sing a song from Zion for us!"

4 How could we sing the LORD's song in a foreign land?

5 If I forget you, Jerusalem, let my right hand forget [how to play the lyre].

6 Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth if I don't remember you, if I don't consider Jerusalem my highest joy.

7 O LORD, remember the people of Edom. Remember what they did the day Jerusalem [was captured]. They said, "Tear it down! Tear it down to its foundation."

8 You destructive people of Babylon, blessed is the one who pays you back with the same treatment you gave us.

9 Blessed is the one who grabs your little children and smashes them against a rock.

1 I will give thanks to you with all my heart. I will make music to praise you in front of the false gods.

2 I will bow toward your holy temple. I will give thanks to your name because of your mercy and truth. You have made your name and your promise greater than everything.

3 When I called, you answered me. You made me bold by strengthening my soul.

4 All the kings of the earth will give thanks to you, O LORD, because they have heard the promises you spoke.

5 They will sing this about the ways of the LORD: "The LORD's honor is great!"

6 Even though the LORD is high above, he sees humble people [close up], and he recognizes arrogant people from a distance.

7 Even though I walk into the middle of trouble, you guard my life against the anger of my enemies. You stretch out your hand, and your right hand saves me.

8 The LORD will do everything for me. O LORD, your mercy endures forever. Do not let go of what your hands have made.

1 O LORD, you have examined me, and you know me.

2 You alone know when I sit down and when I get up. You read my thoughts from far away.

3 You watch me when I travel and when I rest. You are familiar with all my ways.

4 Even before there is a [single] word on my tongue, you know all about it, LORD.

5 You are all around me--in front of me and in back of me. You lay your hand on me.

6 Such knowledge is beyond my grasp. It is so high I cannot reach it.

7 Where can I go [to get away] from your Spirit? Where can I run [to get away] from you?

8 If I go up to heaven, you are there. If I make my bed in hell, you are there.

9 If I climb upward on the rays of the morning sun [or] land on the most distant shore of the sea where the sun sets,

10 even there your hand would guide me and your right hand would hold on to me.

11 If I say, "Let the darkness hide me and let the light around me turn into night,"

12 even the darkness is not too dark for you. Night is as bright as day. Darkness and light are the same [to you].

13 You alone created my inner being. You knitted me together inside my mother.

14 I will give thanks to you because I have been so amazingly and miraculously made. Your works are miraculous, and my soul is fully aware of this.

15 My bones were not hidden from you when I was being made in secret, when I was being skillfully woven in an underground workshop.

16 Your eyes saw me when I was only a fetus. Every day [of my life] was recorded in your book before one of them had taken place.

17 How precious are your thoughts concerning me, O God! How vast in number they are!

18 If I try to count them, there would be more of them than there are grains of sand. When I wake up, I am still with you.

19 I wish that you would kill wicked people, O God, and that bloodthirsty people would leave me alone.

20 They say wicked things about you. Your enemies misuse your name.

21 Shouldn't I hate those who hate you, O LORD? Shouldn't I be disgusted with those who attack you?

22 I hate them with all my heart. They have become my enemies.

23 Examine me, O God, and know my mind. Test me, and know my thoughts.

24 See whether I am on an evil path. Then lead me on the everlasting path.