He was an
exile, or someone who had once been there and remembered this time with
bitterness. Babylon was the scene (see the accompanying picture here, from the
Chludov Psalter, of that episode next to the river) in “Psalm 137”, a
centuries-old lament. A prisoner’s reason for writing doesn’t need to be
further explained – he’s in detention where his will has been conquered.
Vengeance is the resulting operative emotion that the writer expresses, and God’s
word doesn’t conceal or sugar-coat this deep anger. What does one do with such
a memory?
Was the
composer one of the prophets, perhaps Jeremiah or Ezekiel? Or was it one of the
Levitical composer-musicians who lamented this time, allowing the nation to
recall and so purge from their collective soul these feelings? Some sources
indicate that Jeremiah was the source of this prose, perhaps alternately called
out as ‘Jeremias’ in an ancient superscription. Or, was Ezekiel lyrically recalling
his personal Babylonian experience that he referenced in his prophecy’s first
few lines (Ezekiel 1:1-3)? That the nation is derisively encouraged to sing for
their captors suggests this recollection was especially offensive, conceivably
because singing was normally reserved for voluntary
expression to Him. That would be the
complaint of a godly musician, right? Someone who reserved his musicality for
the Holy One would find a pagan’s requirement for this form of expression
unforgivable. A song to recall these acidic sensations must have come from a
personal witness to their origins. Yet, a
composer willing to expose his own heart’s disturbing desire – to see his enemy’s
infants crushed (Psalm 137:8-9) – is someone whose connection with holiness is false,
isn’t it? How low does the human spirit sink, despite the test given it in a depraved
time? The words of this composer, no matter who he may be, read like those of a
war-weary soldier, someone with combat fatigue.
Is the
anonymity of the Psalm’s writer by accident? Who would want to own the feelings
of revenge that this writer expresses? Is it possible that the writer
recognized his own condition, as he concluded his composition? The song’s last
sentence, “So let the words…be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord”, read like someone
who’s seen his own degeneration and wants to recover. Indeed, that may be one
of the most common themes of the Psalms and other biblical songs – they’re therapeutic.
I can’t hide my insides from Him. Admit them, give them to Him. He’s the only
one that can heal me of this wound.
There is no source for the song story, but for background on
the psalm, see the New International Version Study Bible, general editor
Kenneth Barker, 1985, copyright The Zondervan Corporation, for notes on Psalm
89 and the song’s original biblical-era composer.
Also see this site for background and potential author of
the psalm: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psalm_137
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