Darby Bible
Psalms 137:5
5If I forget thee, Jerusalem, let my right hand forget [its skill];
Psalms 137:5 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning.
- New International Version (NIV)If I forget you, Jerusalem, may my right hand forget its skill.
- English Standard Version (ESV)If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill!
- New King James Version (NKJV)If I forget you, O Jerusalem, Let my right hand forget its skill!
Context of Psalms 137:5
3For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that made us wail [required] mirth, [saying,] Sing us [one] of the songs of Zion. 4How should we sing a song of Jehovah's upon a foreign soil? If I forget thee, Jerusalem, let my right hand forget [its skill]; 6If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to my palate: if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy. 7Remember, O Jehovah, against the sons of Edom, the day of Jerusalem; who said, Lay [it] bare, Lay [it] bare, down to its foundation!
Read all of Psalms 137Psalms 137:5 word by word
אִֽם־אֶשְׁכָּחֵ֥ךְ יְֽרוּשָׁלִָ֗ם תִּשְׁכַּ֥ח יְמִינִֽי׃Read the interlinear
Cross-references for Psalms 137:5
- Psalms 84:1How amiable are thy tabernacles, O Jehovah of hosts!
- Psalms 102:13Thou wilt rise up, thou wilt have mercy upon Zion: for it is the time to be gracious to her, for the set time is come.
- Psalms 122:5For there are set thrones for judgment, the thrones of the house of David.
- Nehemiah 1:2that Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and [certain] men of Judah. And I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, who were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem.
- Nehemiah 2:2And the king said to me, Why is thy face sad, seeing thou art not sick? this is nothing else but sadness of heart. And I was very sore afraid.
- Isaiah 62:1For Zion's sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not be still, until her righteousness go forth as brightness, and her salvation as a torch that burneth.
- Jeremiah 51:50Ye that have escaped the sword, go, stand not still: remember Jehovah from afar, and let Jerusalem come into your mind.
- Daniel 6:10And when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and, his windows being open in his upper chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled on his knees three times a day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.
- Zechariah 11:17Woe to the worthless shepherd that leaveth the flock! The sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye; his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye utterly darkened.
Commentaries on Psalms 137:5
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5If I forget thee, O Jerusalem - The meaning here is, that to sing in such circumstances would seem to imply that they had forgotten Jerusalem; that they were unmindful of its sorrows, and cared not that it was desolate. The remembrance of its calamities pressed hard upon them, and they could not do anything which would seem to imply that they had become unmindful of the sufferings that had come upon their nation. One will not make merry when a wife or…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 5-9Verses 5-9 What we love, we love to think of. Those that rejoice in God, for his sake make Jerusalem their joy. They stedfastly resolved to keep up this affection. When suffering, we should recollect with godly sorrow our forfeited mercies, and our sins by which we lost them. If temporal advantages ever render a profession, the worst calamity has befallen him. Far be it from us to avenge ourselves; we will leave it to Him who has said, Vengeance is mine…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5-6The psalmist pledges his loyalty to Jerusalem, the city at the center of God’s reign and the location of fellowship with him.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 5-65-6. For joyful songs would imply forgetfulness of their desolated homes and fallen Church. The solemn imprecations on the hand and tongue, if thus forgetful, relate to the cunning or skill in playing, and the power of singing.Read the comment
- Rashi on Tanakh · v. 5If I forget you, O Jerusalem The congregation of Israel says this.Read the comment
Topics related to Psalms 137:5
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Psalms 137
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- The Treasury of David
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
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Commentaries