Psalm 137

Common English Bible

Psalm 137

137 Alongside Babylon’s streams,
    there we sat down,
    crying because we remembered Zion.
²We hung our lyres up
    in the trees there
³    because that’s where our captors asked us to sing;
    our tormentors requested songs of joy:
    “Sing us a song about Zion!” they said.
⁴But how could we possibly sing
    the Lord’s song on foreign soil?

⁵Jerusalem! If I forget you,
    let my strong hand wither!
⁶Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth
    if I don’t remember you,
    if I don’t make Jerusalem my greatest joy.

⁷Lord, remember what the Edomites did
        on Jerusalem’s dark day:
    “Rip it down, rip it down!
    All the way to its foundations!” they yelled.
⁸Daughter Babylon, you destroyer,^[a]
    a blessing on the one who pays you back
    the very deed you did to us!
⁹    A blessing on the one who seizes your children
    and smashes them against the rock!

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Footnotes

Psalm 137:8 Sym, Tg, Syr; MT the devastated

Matthew 5:1-12

Common English Bible

5 ¹Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up a mountain. He sat down and his disciples came to him. ²He taught them, saying:

Happy people

³“Happy are people who are hopeless, because the kingdom of heaven is theirs.

⁴“Happy are people who grieve, because they will be made glad.

⁵“Happy are people who are humble, because they will inherit the earth.

⁶“Happy are people who are hungry and thirsty for righteousness, because they will be fed until they are full.

⁷“Happy are people who show mercy, because they will receive mercy.

⁸“Happy are people who have pure hearts, because they will see God.

⁹“Happy are people who make peace, because they will be called God’s children.

¹⁰“Happy are people whose lives are harassed because they are righteous, because the kingdom of heaven is theirs.

¹¹“Happy are you when people insult you and harass you and speak all kinds of bad and false things about you, all because of me. ¹²Be full of joy and be glad, because you have a great reward in heaven. In the same way, people harassed the prophets who came before you.

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