Some events are so momentous that they change the way we live. For many people, the advent of the atomic bomb in 1945 was such an event. In 1945, atomic bombs were detonated over two cities in Japan, leaving an indelible mark on the world. This marked the beginning of the nuclear age, in which the human race, for the first time, could destroy itself.

The Israelites experienced a similar upheaval of their lives in the destruction of Jerusalem and their exile to Babylon in 586 BC. It was a devastating, traumatic event. Their lives had been destroyed and they were sorrowful and troubled, to an even greater degree—they longed for vengeance. Psalm 137 expresses the depth of their emotion.

The placing of this psalm between Psalms 136 and 138 is significant. Psalm 136 ends with, “His love endures for ever” (v. 26), and Psalm 138 begins on the same note of praise, “I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart” (v. 1). Yet, sandwiched between these two songs of praise is a psalm of people who confess they have nothing to sing about.

In Psalm 137:1–4, the exiles weep as they remember the destruction of their beloved Jerusalem. This was still a raw, open wound. The sorrow was compounded by confusion, for this was the city that God had said would never be destroyed (see Psalm 46). So deep is their anguish that they can no longer sing—they express this with the picture of them hanging up their harps (v. 2). Today we might say, “We’ve locked our instruments in the cupboard and thrown away the key.” Their sorrow is intensified because all they hear is the mockery of their captors (v. 3).

Yet, the exiles know that the day will come when they will again sing songs of praise. Their tormentors may have robbed them of their songs, but they haven’t taken away their faith. For all their sorrow and confusion, the exiles still affirm their loyalty to God and Jerusalem (vv. 5–6). “Jerusalem” here refers to the presence of God in the midst of His people. In effect, they’re saying, “If we ever surrender our identity as God’s people, may even our ability to sing be taken away.” Verses 5–6 express the people’s hope that, one day, they will dwell with their God in the city He has chosen, and sing the songs of Zion.

The highest joy for Christians is not an earthly Jerusalem which is made of stones and will be destroyed, but the eternal, heavenly city made of the people of God (Revelation 21:9–10). There may be times in our life when we find it hard to sing because grief overwhelms us. But that’s okay. Like the Israelites, we can maintain our faith in God’s good plans for us and the sure hope that one day we’ll again sing “the songs of the Lord” (Psalm 137:4).