EasyEnglish Bible 2018
Psalms 137:5
5Jerusalem, I never want to forget you. I would rather lose my right hand!
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
3Our enemies asked us to sing songs for them there. They laughed at us as their prisoners. They asked for a song to make them happy. They shouted, ‘Sing us a song about Zion!’ 4But we are in a foreign land, so we cannot sing a song to the Lord. Jerusalem, I never want to forget you. I would rather lose my right hand! 6I would rather my tongue could no longer move! Yes, I will always remember you, Jerusalem. You are the most important thing that I think about, more than anything else that makes me happy. 7Lord, remember to punish the people of Edom. They were happy when Babylon's army won against Jerusalem. On that day the Edomites said, ‘Knock down the city so that nothing still stands!’
Read all of Psalms 137Psalms 137:5 word by word
אִֽם־אֶשְׁכָּחֵ֥ךְ יְֽרוּשָׁלִָ֗ם תִּשְׁכַּ֥ח יְמִינִֽי׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Psalms 137:5
- Psalms 84:1Lord Almighty, the temple where you live is beautiful!
- Psalms 102:13You will soon be kind to Zion again. Now it is time to forgive her. Yes, the time is now right for you to do that.
- Psalms 122:5Israel's leaders sit there to judge the people. They sit on the thrones of King David's descendants.
- Nehemiah 1:2Hanani, my brother, and some other men arrived from Judah. I asked them for news of the Jews who had returned there from exile in Babylon. I asked them for news about Jerusalem.
- Nehemiah 2:2The king asked me, ‘Why are you sad? You are not ill. This must mean that you are very upset.’ I was very frightened.
- Isaiah 62:1Because I love Zion, I will not be quiet. I cannot stay quiet, because Jerusalem is in trouble. I will continue to speak until she is safe again. I want her righteousness to shine like the sun at dawn. I want her salvation to be a bright light in the dark.
- Jeremiah 51:50You Israelites who are still alive, leave Babylon now! Do not wait! You are far away from your homes. But remember that the Lord is with you. Think about Jerusalem.
- Daniel 6:10Daniel heard that the king had written this new law. Then he went home. He went upstairs to his room where the windows opened in the direction of Jerusalem. He bent down on his knees and he prayed to God, and he thanked God. He did that three times every day, in the same way that he had always done before.
- Zechariah 11:17Bad things will happen to the bad shepherd who leaves his sheep. His enemy's knife will cut his arm and his right eye. His arm will become like a dry stick. And his right eye will no longer be able to see anything.’
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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