Psalm 137 – Interpretive Overview

I inhibit a context, a social, cultural and geographical location. “Our locations naturally set the agenda and determine the assumptions we bring with us to any reading of Scripture” (Erickson, Reading From Location PDF, 1). In this unit’s learning, we have been asked to bring an interpretation from the world in front of the text. If I’m honest, this seems daunting and even dangerous to attempt without first doing some historical-critical, and textual research in what is a particular lament, from a particular location in history. 

The Psalm is located in the fifth book of the collection and is most likely dated between 538-515 BCE. We know this because Babylon still exists, and the temple has yet to be rebuilt. The people of Israel, therefore, are in exile with the destruction of Jerusalem (586 BCE) still fresh in the rear view mirror. As the Psalm begins, God’s people are oppressed, captured and very far from home.

Textually, the lament begins in 1-4 with a scene of poetic despair. “By the rivers of Babylon,” a title given through history to this famous Psalm, sums up the situation! As captors, the people of God are mourning their political situation. Taunted by their captors to entertain them with song, the Psalmist confesses the impossibility of rejoicing while fresh memories of destruction and dread fill their hearts in 5-6. The lament closes in 7-9 with a call for justice for the wickedness heaped upon their nation, families, and even children. The last phrase concerning children being “dashed against the rock” was not a literal call for vengeance, but an ancient 

I’m a Canadian born, American dual-citizen who has enjoyed an incredible amount of mobility throughout my life. Travel has been mostly a positive experience and my destinations, chosen! When I read this lament, I’m reminded that I have never experienced the reality of being a refugee, imprisoned or held against my will for more than a few hours. As Gorman states, a posture of humility is needed when approaching scripture as we all bring certain limitations in knowledge and perspective (Gorman 2020, Elements, p 142). As I consider the human element of witnessing my friends and family being killed, or the screams of bloodshed that might have haunted those caught in the throes of war, I find myself even fearful of relating a lament like Psalm 137 within my cozy, privileged location. 

When I meditate on this Psalm, I’m filled personally with grief over the evils in our world. The world, for me, seems quite peaceful, even though I’m near Russian aggression to the east of Ukraine. There are, tonight, many crying out verbally and in silence, for a God to show up and deliver them. There’s a certain befuddlement, a disillusionment in a lament, and I’m left quite speechless as to how I can truly synthesize this in my own world. I am, however, surrounded by deeper levels of suffering among the poor, the widow and orphan. Perhaps, this is more of a confession on my part, that I have more opportunity to enter the suffering of others, and must. 

As far as questions, I’m curious how Israel actually employed a psalm like 137 in history, whether in the Temple or in other settings? I’ve yet to participate in a corporate lament through song. I’m also wondering if the final verse in it’s violent description has a linguistic history that might be revealing, and whether the psalmist is bringing comfort, in an Old Testament justice sort of way? Perhaps lamenting the sorrys of parents who saw their own children taken from them during the siege? 

This weekend our friends from Kazatin, Ukraine, joined us for a time of connection, learning and prayer. It was so interesting to see how quickly our Lighthouse community found unity and friendship even though it was for most the first time they met.

We looked at the stages of faith in our Christian journey, from discovering God, to learning about God, to the productive life, and then inner journey towards deeper surrender and self-knowing. God is more interesting in who we are becoming, than what we are doing. This is a difficult thing to embrace for those striving on the hamster wheel!

We are loved, valued, broken, yet cherished by the Savior. May God bless this friendship of ministries as we journey together. Next weekend conference will be at their place, about 2.5hrs northeast. We’re believing our gatherings will open up to more hungry sojourners on the learning path.

We love what God is up to in Ukraine!

I avoided studying, and even reading ‘end time’ Scripture for most of my faith journey. Growing up, I would hear some of the most fantastic ideas and theories about the end times. I’d hear others enjoy lively debates about end times, pre-trib this, post-trib that, it just seemed like everyone was guessing and throwing darts so I steered clear.

This past year, it’s been fascinating to dig into the various genres of scripture. Scripture, history and culture truly make lovely bedfellows. What the biblical authors intended to communicate, what the original readers understood, are often, I’m learning, so significantly missed by our 21st century western experience.

One example is the rich symbolism and metaphoric language embedded in the Old Testament, and in pagan mythology of the day. For a short interpretative exercise this week, we had to study Revelation 13. I’m pasting below some of my initial findings related to inter-textuality, or how John’s use of Daniel, Hosea and the like are weaved into a synthesized, monolithic ‘beast’, the worldly opposing forces throughout the ages which Israel, and now the Church are up against, and continue to ‘battle’ until Christ’s return ushers in the victory already secured through our victorious Lamb!

The most striking inter-textual connections in Revelation 13 for me are the descriptions of the beast rising out of the sea. Specifically I focused on verse 2 with the symbolism of the leopard, bear and lion.

Proverbs 28:15 says, “Like a roaring lion or a charging bear
    is a wicked ruler over a helpless people.”

There are actually many surprising combination references in the OT which combine lions and bears as Israel’s foreign overlords at different periods of their history. As far back as 1 Samuel 17:34-36 when David is before the Philistine giant, he essentially calls Goliath and his nation a lion and bear.

Lamentations 3:10 is another interesting passage in which the writer laments that God is like a bear lying in wait, and a lion in hiding, ready to pounce in judgement due to their apostasy. God has a history of using foreign actors to bring his judgement to Israel.

Hosea 13:7-8, I think, might be a key in understanding what the first century would have thought about Revelation 13 and the emerging beast. Hosea’s ministry took place well before the Babylonian exile and destruction of Solomon’s Temple. The prophet warns, “so I will become like a lion to them, like a leopard I will lurk along the way.”

Daniel, in his famous chapter 7 description of four different beasts, I think, is borrowing from Hosea’s vision of emerging political forces and captors. John then seems to synthesize them. While we can guess at which animal represents which world power (e.g. Persian/Mede bear, Alex the Great Hellenistic leopard), it seems as though John is borrowing a range of OT texts and ideas to symbolize something a historic but now ongoing reality for the Jewish / Gentile church as well?

Both Daniel’s and John’s beast arrive by surfacing from the sea (Dan 7:3, Rev 13:1). Both Daniel’s and John’s beast speaks arrogantly, and breath threats against God’s people (Dan 7:8, 11, Rev 13:5). Daniel clearly interprets the four beasts as political powers/kings (7:17).  I think it would be quite difficult for John’s original audience, particularly those familiar with the Book of Hosea/Daniel to conjure up meanings for John’s beast beyond it’s past and present political, oppressive powers – especially with Rome at the height of its glory! 

I’m learning that “symbols do not conceal; they reveal” (Achtemeire 2001, 561). In the inter-textuality of the beasts symbolism, I’m seeing “words, deeds, symbols, pointing forward and backward constantly throughout the Bible” (Clifford PDF, p.16).

We drove 40 minutes to Stavy, a small village just west of us to visit Mark and Masha today. They are living in their parents massive, old school house which their family lived in for several years before moving back to Ontario, Canada.

They are open to using the property for hosting some retreats, or however the Lord might use this wonderful space. We call our guest house the big house, this makes our big house look like a small house! It’s probably 6000-7000sf of space, and was designed for a fostering / orphan ministry. Masha used to live next door, at the big house for a couple of years. It’s so cool to see how God provided her a wonderful Canadian dude, and now a baby!

I loved seeing this combine bouncing down the road. I used to have a toy combine sort of like this as a kid, so it brought back memories. I stopped my truck, swung around and chased it down the road to get this photo. The driver must have thought I was nuts.

We no longer use our beach much since the tourists rolled into town a few years ago, it’s just too small and gets packed quickly. Plus the water is rather unclean..Kyiv actually shut down their beaches last week due to pollution. Well, the girls didn’t mind a quick visit .. just don’t drink it!