By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept… (137:1a)
Psalm 137 is considered one of the “imprecatory psalms.” There are ten psalms (7, 35, 55, 58, 69, 79, 109, 137, 139) which contain imprecatory prayers or calls for God’s judgment or curses upon the nation’s enemies. These are often hard psalms to interpret or explain, particularly in light of the NT exhortation to “forgive one’s enemies.” So what do we do with these psalms? I think we have to read them understanding the historical and emotional context in which they are written.
The Psalms reflect the emotional and spiritual struggles of God’s people. They do not present a “sanitized” view of life, a “trust-in-God-and-everything-is-rosy” perspective. They deal with life as it really is. That’s why the psalms cry out to God at times, “Why, O Lord?” “How long will You let us suffer?” “Will You hide forever?” These psalms do not teach us that God is absent. He is always with us. But they do teach us that at times our emotions are so stretched and our spirits are so dry that do not see God. God seems absent. He seems to have abandoned us.
God does not seem to mind the struggles that sometimes enter our hearts. In fact, He seems to invite us to wrestle with Him. It is the expression of emotion that shows that our hearts are still alive, that we have not grown cold or apathetic. More than anything God seems to hate the apathetic, indifferent heart. This is the lukewarm heart that God vomits out of His mouth in Revelation 3:16.
So when we read Psalm 137, we need to remember that the Jewish people have suffered greatly. Jerusalem and their entire nation have been wiped away by the Babylonians. The Babylonians destroyed everything, mercilessly killed many men, women, and children, and then carted the rest off to Babylon. While in Babylon, the Babylonians taunted the Jews, “Sing us one of those victory songs! C’mon, entertain us! We love to hear how your God will save you.” It is the taunt of the Jewish leaders to Jesus, “If you are the Messiah, come down from the cross and we will believe in You.” It is the taunt of arrogance.
The Babylonians not only destroyed the Jewish nation, but they also tried to destroy the Jewish spirit, to humiliate them, to crush them. The best we can do to try to understand their sorrow, pain and anger is to think back to 9/11. Only to make it equivalent to the Jews’ suffering, we would have to imagine our entire nation being destroyed, with thousands upon thousands killed, and the rest of us made captives of another nation that regularly laughed, scorned, and taunted us, “Sing that Star Spangled Banner song again! Or how about that God Bless the USA one. C’mon entertain us with those great American songs!” Get the picture?
This psalm was written in the midst of that kind of suffering…and it is real. What would be your emotional response to such violent destruction and constant humiliation? “God crush them. Do to them what they have done to us. May someone cast their little children against the rocks so they can feel the pain we experienced when they dashed ours against the rocks.” It is not pretty. It is not supposed to be. But it is real emotion expressing itself to God, waiting for His justice.
So should we pray the same things today? No. Christ has taught us a different way, a higher way. But the imprecatory psalms teach us that forgiving our enemies is not some emotionless task. Spirituality is not stoicism, stuffing our emotions and acting as if everything is okay. Spirituality feels emotion, struggles with it, and then finally surrenders it to God.
C.S. Lewis wrote about the imprecatory psalms in his book, Reflections on the Psalms. It is a good chapter worth reading some time if you get the opportunity. Lewis reflected on WW II in which he served as a soldier with the British army. Lewis remembers an evening in which a group of his fellow soldiers are sitting around talking about Hitler and his reported crimes against the Jewish people. Some expressed outrage and anger, but many of them were indifferent to the whole affair, even thinking it was simply British propaganda to get them worked up for the fight. In Lewis’ mind, the indifference was more scarey than the anger. A person who sees diabolical wickedness and feels anger is still emotionally alive. Such a person who then, through the power of Christ, chooses to forgive his enemies expresses true forgiveness. On the other hand, the person who feels nothing neither sees the wickedness nor struggles to extend forgiveness. He simply does not care. This is the worst state to be in.
Lord, keep my heart from growing cold. May I not stuff my emotions but learn to feel them, express them to You, and experience the power of Your Spirit in learning to love as You have loved.